Page 27 of Here & Now

She looked more excited than she had all evening, and he hated to turn her down. “I’ll think about it. In the meantime, I need to check the steak.” He went back to the grill and opened the lid. “How do you like yours cooked?”

“Medium—I don’t like my food swimming in a pool of blood.”

“Got it.” Man, he liked this woman. She amused and intrigued him, particularly the way her mood alternated from shy to revealing kept him on his toes. It was a refreshing change from the other women he’d met recently.

“The steak is almost done. I’ll go get the plates, utensils, and salad.”

“I’ll help.” Before he could argue, she stood and accidentally knocked over her wine glass. “Oh no!”

“It’s okay. Don’t worry about it.” He grabbed a towel from the cabinet beneath the grill and rushed over to the table. The glass hadn’t broken, and there hadn’t been much liquid left in it, but a few drops of wine had splattered on her top. He went to dab it off, but she eyed him warily, so instead, he handed her the cloth.

“See what I mean? Klutz!” she said as she dabbed at the stain.

Unfortunately, her outfit was light-colored, and the red wine stain stood out. Suddenly he realized he was staring at her chest, and he quickly turned away. “I’ll go get some wet paper towels.”

“It won’t help, but at least I didn’t break the glass.” She wiped up the spill on the table and righted the glass.

“Sorry about your outfit,” he said.

“I knew I should have worn shorts and a T-shirt,” she muttered.

They went inside, gathered the things they needed, and went back out.

A few moments later, they sat down to steak, salad, and more wine. When he asked if she wanted a refill, she said, “Sure. I’ve already embarrassed myself, and I’m not even drunk.”

Sensing that she needed to regroup, he said nothing for a while. He wanted to assure her she shouldn’t be embarrassed and he was enjoying her company, but he decided to let it ride.

Finally, she looked up from her plate. “This is really good. Thanks for making it.”

He smiled. “That’s what neighbors do.” What a load of crap! He’d never made dinner for a neighbor until now.

She gave him a funny look, almost like she’d read his mind. For some crazy reason, he wanted to prove that he was a good guy and didn’t have an ulterior motive.

She carefully moved her wine glass out of the way, reached for the salad tongs, and added more salad to her plate.

After a couple of moments, he said, “What are you doing Wednesday night?”

She’d just lifted the fork to her mouth, and a piece of lettuce dangled precariously from it, Italian dressing dripping onto her plate. One wrong move, and she’d get some on her top, but he decided not to say anything.

She lowered the fork and eyed him curiously. “Why?”

“Are you always this leery of people, or just me?”

She blinked a few times and didn’t answer, so he plunged ahead. “I’m taking a dolphin cruise out at seven. I thought you might like to come.”

“With you or just the dolphins?”

He laughed. “Since I’m the captain, both.”

Her eyes went wide. “I saw the sign in your shop, but I didn’t know—”

“Marco and I take turns piloting the boat, and it’s my turn on Wednesday night.”

“Oh.”

“But if you’re busy…”

“Busy? No, I’m not busy.”