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Chapter Thirteen
Tori sipped her wine and smiled. “I’ve lived in Laurel Creek my whole life. Except when I went away to college.”
First date chatter was usually annoying, but she had to admit Allison had done a good job of setting her up with the handsome veterinarian from the next town over. His name was Alec, he was divorced and loved Italian food.
“How do you know Allison?” Tori asked when the conversation lulled.
He smiled. It was a nice smile. “We met at a dog funeral.” He laughed. “It was nice to have someone there who found the situation as ludicrous as I did.”
“I didn’t even think about that,” Tori said, attempting to keep a straight face. “I could have had a funeral for my doggie.”
His eyebrows rose. “Seriously?”
It proved impossible not to laugh. “No, I’m kidding, but my dog did die recently. I am thinking of adopting another. I went to dog foster ranch, but they only had larger dogs, the smallest was medium sized and he didn’t care for me at all.”
“If you have a specific breed in mind, I can help. People drop off dogs at my clinic all the time.”
Something shifted. Tori couldn’t put her finger on it, but it felt as if someone was watching her. As discreetly as possible, she looked to the right and scanned the tables. Those that were seated were either engrossed in conversations or on their cell phones. One table of women was lifting glasses, toasting.
“Would you like more wine?” the server asked. Tori looked to Alec who smiled. “Sure, sounds good.”
“I can’t believe you’re not attached,” Alec said, taking her hand in his. “You’re a beautiful woman.”
A tingle traveled from their joined hands up her arm and she leaned forward. “Thank you. I’m always busy with my restaurant. But I’ve decided to take on a business partner and slow things down. Enjoy life more.”
“I hope that means more dates,” he replied and Tori was glad they’d hit it off.
Once again, she felt the sense of someone watching and she looked to her left. In the far corner were Mimi and a man Tori didn’t recognize. Whoever it was sat back in his chair, one leg stretched out as if he were bored. It was strange for someone to go out to eat and act so oddly.
Mimi glared at her and turned away.
It definitely wasn’t a date, neither Mimi nor the man acted as if they wanted to be there. From the corner of her eye, she watched as the man flipped through papers and shook his head. Mimi pointed at something and seemed to get angry.
“Do you know them?” Alec asked, looking to where Mimi and the mystery man sat.
“I know her. Not exactly on friendly terms, but I find it strange that she’s here having dinner when she lives in Billings.” Tori decided it was best to change the subject. “How about you come to my restaurant next week? I think you’ll like it.”
The server came with their wine and Alec released her hand. “I’d love to.”
“So how wasthe date?” The next day, Allison burst into the restaurant kitchen through the side door. “He’s super cute isn’t he?”
Tori had to smile. “Yes he is attractive and very easy to talk to. We made a second date.”
“Oh, yay!” Allison jumped and clapped. “I’m so glad.”
“Don’t get too excited,” Tori warned. “I do good on first and second dates and then I find excuses and suddenly get too busy to follow through.”
Marco huffed. “Maybe you’re scared of the sex part.”
This was not a conversation she wanted to have with a man. Marco was in his late fifties and always bragging about his sex life. Obviously, his wife was well taken care of. Still, it was uncomfortable.
“I’m not scared of the sex part,” Tori replied. “I think I have commitment phobia.”
Jessie, who was rolling silverware into napkins, piped up. “I think with the right one, you’ll jump into the mattress mambo, no problema.”
Tori went to the side table and reached for tomatoes to chop. “Can we stop talking about my sex life please?”
“Why? I found it interesting.” Tobias stood at the entryway wearing a t-shirt, jogging pants and a shit-eating grin.
