“Me?” He turned and grabbed a box of . . . of . . . Whatwas in this box, anyway? “No. That would be crazy. And I’m not crazy.” He didn’t sound convincing.
She lifted her brow, drawing his attention to her eyes. Stunning, even more so than the dress. “What are you doing with that?” she said, pointing to the box in his arms.
Catering. Focus on the catering.“Taking it to the kitchen.” He headed in that direction.
“Why would you bring a giant box of straws to a cocktail party?”
He looked down and frowned. Instead of grabbing the box that held his apron, knives, and seasonings, he had grabbed the one filled with boxes of straws he’d picked up last week from the restaurant supply store in North Little Rock. He’d kept forgetting to put it in the diner supply closet. He shoved it back into his Jeep and took the cooler instead, pretending he hadn’t just outed himself as a little crazy after all.
“What can I carry?” she asked.
Tanner glanced at her dress again, trying to shift his mind to business gear. It would be a shame to ruin that dress while she was catering. “Are you wearing that tonight?”
She glanced down at her outfit, then back at him. “What’s wrong with it?”
Not a single thing.He cleared his throat. “You should change into something else. I can bring everything inside.”
Hurt flashed in her eyes, and her lips, luscious and red, flattened into a line. “I’m not changing,” she said.
He was about to point out the obvious fact that she could spill something on the dress when Harper came outside. “Dylan’s here,” she said, walking toward them. “You don’t mind if I borrow Anita for a minute, do you, Tanner?”Without waiting for an answer, she slipped her arm through Anita’s and led her back to the house.
Dylan?
Unable to help himself, he watched Anita walk away, enjoying the view. When she disappeared into the house, he muttered a curse and turned, accidentally clipping the trunk lift of his Jeep. Pain shot straight to his funny bone.
Setting the cooler on the edge of the trunk, he rubbed his elbow, scrambling to regain his bearings. He couldn’t afford to blow it tonight, and so far, he was on course to do exactly that. If Anita didn’t want to change into something more suited for catering, that was her business. His business was making sure he didn’t tank his business.
Leaving the cooler for now, Tanner grabbed another covered tray of tapas and headed for the kitchen. When he didn’t see Anita there, he glanced at the living room. She was standing by a small bar in the corner with Harper, talking to a clean-cut guy in a white shirt and black bow tie standing behind the counter. That had to be Dylan.
Something twisted inside him, and when he set down the tapas tray on the quartz countertop, the clatter echoed in the room. The three of them looked at him. “Sorry,” he mumbled. Harper nodded and headed for the stairs while Anita and Dylan went back to talking—and Tanner could tell he wasn’t the only one who appreciated Anita’s new look.
After he’d gone outside and brought the last tray to the kitchen, she was still talking to Dylan. Irritated, he went to her. “You’re on the clock,” he said, barely giving Dylan a glance.
She flicked her gaze at him, then turned back to Dylan. “I’m sorry, I have to get to work.”
“Come by later if you get the chance,” he said. Then he held out his hand to Tanner. “Dylan Sears,” he said.
Tanner shook, but his focus remained on Anita. “Pour the dips into the dipping cups,” he said, sounding bossier than he ever had when they worked together at Sunshine. “Got it?”
“Got it,” she muttered and went to the kitchen.
He followed her, making sure to keep his eyes on the stone floor and not on her. He and Anita had never been at odds before. He’d also never seen her show interest in another guy before.
He went back outside to get the cooler, which held the mini apple cheesecakes, stopping in between the house and his Jeep and inhaling the fresh lake air. Tonight was going to be a disaster if they didn’t get back on their usual footing. There was still some time left before the guests arrived, and he hoped they could talk for a few minutes and get their focus back on the job.
But when he returned, she wasn’t in the kitchen. She wasn’t talking with Dylan, either. “Anita?”
“In the pantry.”
The pantry was located next to the fridge and out of sight from the living room. When he got to the door, he saw how small it was, with barely enough room for one person. “What are you doing in here?” he said, stepping inside.
“Harper asked me to get the box of margarita salt from the top shelf. She forgot to put it at the bar, and one of theguests is already here.” She pointed to the box at the back of the pantry. “Do you see a step stool somewhere? I can’t reach it.”
“I’ll get it.” He walked up behind her and grabbed the box. “Here.”
As Anita started to turn around, his hand knocked against a row of metal canisters sitting on the shelf with the salt. Before he could catch it, one of them fell over with a clatter. Anita jumped, and he instinctively put his arms around her. The box of salt hit the floor. “Are you okay?”
Anita nodded, tilting her face up to look at him. “Just startled, that’s all.”
