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I groan. “Seriously? Mark too?”
He grins. “And Tom. And Tucker. And Lila. You have very loyal, caring friends.”
“Of the four of them, you should be most frightened of –”
He starts the truck. “I know. Mark, because you’ve been best friends for forever.”
I laugh. “Actually, I was going to say Lila.”
His eyebrows vanish beneath his hairline as he whips around. “Sweet little Lila?”
I laugh again. “Don’t be fooled by her blond curls and big violet eyes. The guys throw punches. Lila would rip out your throat without ever batting an eye.”
After a moment of stunned silence, he pulls out of my driveway. “I made reservations at a steakhouse, if that’s alright.”
“It sounds delicious.”
The ride is quiet but short, the silence broken only by the radio, but it’s a comfortable silence, at least for me. For all I know, he’s picturing a trim blonde shredding his throat.
When we get to the restaurant, Blake shuts off the motor. “Stay put,” he says, hopping out of the truck. He comes around and opens my door. “Let me help you,” he says, offering his hand.
No panic.
I smile and take his hand, stepping down onto the running board and then the ground as his warm fingers close over mine. He keeps a loose grip on them as we walk into the restaurant. A perky blond hostess stands behind a small counter. “Blake,” she purrs.
I glance up in time to see him wink at her. “Hi, Talia. We have a reservation for two.” She looks down at the book in front of her, a faint blush tinging her lovely features.
I try to ignore my building irritation. He’s eye candy. Of course women flirt with him.
Except he winked at her.
I don’t have any claim on Blake, so it shouldn’t annoy me.
But it does.
It’s disrespectful to wink at other women when you’re on a date. Just the other day, he told me he makes it a point to respect the woman he’s with.
The blond hostess leads us to our table. I try not to notice her perfect figure and the extra shimmy she’s adding to her walk. Blake releases my fingers, instead placing his hand lightly on the small of my back as we follow her to a corner booth. I tense slightly but rein it in.
“I went out with her older sister a few times,” Blake volunteers after she’s left and we’re seated. “Talia was about fifteen at the time, and she had a crush on me. It drove her sister nuts because Talia had no qualms about flirting with me right in front of her sister.”
My irritation drops to a low simmer, but it doesn’t disappear. “How old was her sister?”
He thinks back. “It was about seven years ago. I would have been twenty-five. Tasha was twenty-two. She was one of the first girls I dated after my marriage ended, so I was gun shy. We didn’t date very long.”
I can excuse Talia’s behavior, but Blake’s wink? That gives me pause.
The corner of the restaurant where we’re seated is quiet and cozy. Our window overlooks a peaceful lake encircled by a paved walking path. Benches are spaced every few yards with bird feeders near them. Two fat squirrels squabble over sunflower seeds at the feeder nearest us, and we both laugh as we watch them wrestle.
Dinner is wonderful. The red wine has hints of blackberry, and the same flavors are echoed in the mouthwatering blackberry vinaigrette on my salad. The steak is well-seasoned and cooked to perfection. Conversation is light, mostly revolving around Blake’s nieces and their escapades. He doesn’t make a single flirtatious remark, and despite the sketchy start to our dinner, I’m more relaxed than I've ever been around him.
The server has cleared away our plates and refilled our glasses when it happens. Blake looks at me, his eyes suddenly intense. “What happened to you, Charlie?”
I’m completely caught off guard by his borderline-accusatory tone. “What?”
He takes a deep breath, refining his question to make it a bit more palatable. “I’m hoping you might tell me what happened that’s left you so uncomfortable with men. Will you tell me about it? I’d like to understand, so I know a little more about your boundaries and what to expect.”
My throat tightens, and I swallow convulsively.
