Tim sat in the passenger seat of Jessica’s white Land Rover and talked over his shoulder to the girls in the backseat. He offered to drive her car that was already set up with the car seats, but she insisted she drive so he could relax after a hard day of work. The girls chattered non-stop and their excitement was contagious. Earlier, Jessica informed Tim that they hadn’t been out to eat in a very long time. It took a lot of energy to corral four little girls in a public space. His invitation to dinner was a surprise, and she was glad to be out of the house. Glad that he was accompanying them on an adventure.
Before they left, Tim politely asked if he could change out of his work uniform in the downstairs bathroom instead of going home to do it. She told him to take his time and get refreshed in the guest room off the kitchen. He seemed pleased and took her up on the offer as she scrambled to get the girls changed and their hair combed. Tim had told her the place was casual and to wear what she already had on. Seriously? She wouldn’t be caught dead wearing shorts and a t-shirt out in public unless she was going to the gym. His comment was dismissed, and she almost felt guilty when all four of her daughters ended up overly dressed in pretty pastel sundresses.
“No, Mama! I don’t want to wear a bow,” Jennifer hollered, her three siblings joining the protest.
When it was three against one, Jessica threw her hands up in the air. It was just a pink bow that would have accentuated their cute outfits. But she didn’t have much time to get ready herself and decided to leave the bows on the vanity in their bathroom. She had learned over the past few months how to pick her battles and chuckled when she almost had a fit of her own, trying to decide what to wear.
Going through her closet, she thumbed through her wardrobe, scowling the entire time. “Nope, too dressy. Nope, too much cleavage. Nope, too casual…”
She finally landed on simple Capri pants and a loose frilly top. Her wrists jangled with her favorite David Yurman bracelets, her wedding ring absent from her tanned fingers. She pulled her blonde hair into a high ponytail and added silver hoop earrings. There wasn’t time to do her entire makeup face, so she kept it simple with mascara and lipstick. One thing her Southern mama always stressed was that a proper girlneverwent out in public without lipstick. The finishing touch was her expensive heeled sandals she hadn’t worn in ages. She stood in front of the full-length mirror in her walk-in closet and admired the shoes that showed off her pretty pink toenails. Excitement pulsed through her like the beat of a drum, and she knew it was going to be hard to keep her eagerness under control. But for a moment, she started to second guess if going out to dinner in public with a guy like Tim was such a good idea.
“Helloooo, gorgeous. How are you?” Elizabeth cooed on the phone, her Yorkie, Mulligan yapping in the background.
Jessica kept her hand cupped over her mouth and spoke quietly into her cell phone. “Hey. Tim invited the girls and me to eat Mexican. We’re ready to go, but I’m not sure this is such a good idea…”
“Stop it! Tim McGill? The hot yard guy? Ofcourseyou should go,” her friend interrupted.
Jessica sighed and sat on the edge of her bed.
“When was the last time you went out and had a little fun with a gorgeous man who is totally into you? Huh? You certainly can’t say that about asshole Stephen. And so what if he’s a yard guy? He’s so hot, Jessica. Good Lord!”
“I know, right?” Jessica agreed.
“Just go. What’s the worst that could happen?”
“Umm, I could run into someone I know? Elizabeth, I’ve never gone out with anyone like Tim before. Mama would kill me if she saw me with a guy who had hair longer than mine. And Elizabeth…” she paused, whispering into the phone, “…he has a tattoo. Oh god, what if he’s only interested in me because of the money?” Regret immediately filled her being as she said those words. “I take that back. He’s not like that. He’snothinglike that.”
“Go have some fun, Jessica. You deserve it. And so what if he’s a blue-collar worker with a tattoo? He’s charming, and he’s obviously interested in you! And if you run into someone you know, so what! Give them something to talk about!” Elizabeth started singing the old Bonnie Raitt tune, making Jessica laugh out loud and Mulligan howl.
“Okay. I’m going.” Gathering her small purse, she looked in the mirror one last time.
“I want details when you get back.Allof them!”
“Well, I don’t know how many details I’ll have going on a date with my kids in tow!”
Thankful to have had a pep talk from her best friend, Jessica finally made it downstairs with Jo-Jo all dressed up on her hip and stopped in the arched entryway of the family room to observe Tim with her other three daughters. They were mesmerized as he played the disappearing quarter game, pretending to pull the silver coin from behind each of their ears. Squeals of delight erupted each time the quarter magically appeared, causing Jessica’s heart to skip a beat. When he looked up at her, his face softened, and his eyes seemed to dance as he looked from her feet to her face.
“You look amazing,” he crooned, his deep voice all rumbly and sexy.
The girls’ heads whipped around, and they clamored to reach their mother and pull her into the room. Jo-Jo thrust her baby hands toward Tim, and he casually took her into his arms as if he’d been doing it all his life.
“Thank you,” she replied, taking in the vibrant green of his eyes. “You clean up well, yourself.”
Tim was wearing cargo shorts, flip-flops and a simple, black tee, the tattoo on his arm peeking out from under the sleeve. His hair was tied back into a low ponytail, and she could smell a trace of manly deodorant. Jessica was throwing caution to the wind stepping out on the town with a guy that looked like Tim McGill. Part of her was thrilled at the idea, and she wanted to give people something to talk about. The other part of her was scared to death, her conservative upbringing rearing its ugly head.
When the girls were buckled into their car seats, Tim typed the address of the restaurant into the GPS system and kept their attention while Jessica drove in peace. She chuckled a few times at their animated conversation before he turned to her with a question.
“Do you like Ceviche?” The Spanish word effortlessly rolled off his tongue.
“I’m not sure,” she replied. “But I’m willing to try it if you recommend it.” Her comment made him smile and nod.
Jessica navigated her large vehicle into a parking space right in front of the Los Rancheros Mexican restaurant. It was situated at the far end of a strip mall in the suburban community next to a large grocery store. When they walked through the double doors, the hostess seemed to recognize Tim and immediately greeted him, speaking in Spanish.
“Hola, Tim. Mesa para uno?”
Tim shook his head and gestured to Jessica and the girls behind him. “Hola, Maria. Esta noche no. Necesitamos una mesa para seis y una trona si tienes una por favor.”
The young woman eagerly nodded. “Derecho de esta manera Señor.”
