She laughed.“Sorry, I should have explained myself.I know what he’s like – if it’s up to him, you’ll only ever work on American-made cars.He doesn’t think much of what he callsforeign jobs.”
Jake didn’t know if his laughter was caused by relief or by the expression on her face as she spoke – she captured Harvey’s mixture of disdain and humor perfectly.
“I know what you mean, but since he’s invested in seeing me do well, he’s fine with letting me repair them.Says they’ll keep me busy and well paid, given that they break down so often.”
He loved the way she laughed.Much of the time she seemed … not serious, but definitely responsible.When she laughed, it was like she forgot all her cares and was somehow free.It suited her; she was gorgeous anyway, but when she looked all carefree like that …
She stopped abruptly, and he followed her gaze.A large group was piling out of a couple of SUVs in the parking lot in the square.They were mostly guys – maybe eight of them– and a few girls.He looked back at Savannah, wondering why they’d caught her attention, then back at the guys.They were well dressed, laughing and joking around – good-looking, he’d guess; what did he know?
He felt his eyebrows draw together as Harvey’s words came back to him.What if some tourist did come along and sweep her off her feet?He inhaled sharply.He had to at least give it a shot.
“What are you doing later?”
She shrugged.“Not much.I think Tiff’s out this evening, so I figure I’ll …”
Shit.He hadn’t made himself clear.He waited for her to finish before trying again.“What I meant was, would you like to go out with me tonight?”
Her eyes widened, and he held his breath.
When it didn’t look like she was going to reply, he gave her a rueful smile.“Sorry, that came out of the blue, but we both know it’s not really out of the blue and … We’ve danced around the edges for so long already.”Damn Harvey for putting words into his mouth!“I … Say no if you want to, but if you do, can we make sure we don’t let this change things between us?I love having you as a friend, and I don’t want to lose that – but I’d love even more if you’d let me take you out.On a date,” he added, just in case there was still any doubt about what he was saying.
She rolled her lips together, and his heart sank when she finally said, “We shouldn’t.”
He nodded sadly.“I know you think that; you’ve said it before.”He nudged her with his elbow.“And if that’s your way of letting me down gently, there’s no need.I–”
“No!”she exclaimed.“I’d love to go out with you.It’s just–”
He grinned.“How about we ignore the ‘it’s just’ part – even if only for tonight?You have an empty evening ahead of you, so do I.Let’s go out – please?”
Happiness buzzed in his chest when she nodded.Her eyes sparkled as they looked up into his, and she breathed, “Okay, let’s do it.”
Chapter Two
As they walked back up the steps from the beach, Savannah’s heart was pounding.And it wasn’t from the exertion of climbing the steps, no – she was nervous.Of course she was, this was it!She was actually going on a date with Jake.
When they reached the top, he turned to her with a smile.“I was going to ask what time you want me to pick you up, but what do you think – want to start right now?”
“I … What do you mean?”
He gestured toward the deck of The Boathouse restaurant.Several of the tables were occupied with people enjoying the late afternoon sun.
“I don’t mean instead of a date, but now that you’ve finally said yes, I don’t want to go home and get changed and then come back out again – not just yet.I want to do all of that, make it a real date,” he added hurriedly.“But I don’t want to say goodbye to you yet.We could sit and make the most of the sun before we go.Then I’ll come pick you up in a little while and we can go out – wherever you’d like.We could have dinner at Giuseppe’s or go over to Four Mile and eat at the café or the sports bar.”His eyebrows drew together.“Or maybe Giuseppe’s is best.I …”
A rush of warmth filled her chest when it hit her that he was rambling – maybe nervous.She reached out to touch his arm, hoping to put him at ease.The air seemed to crackle between them.He froze at her touch, and she felt it too – something zinged between them.
For a moment, all she could do was stare into his eyes – his gorgeous, big brown eyes that stared back at her.His lips curved up into a smile.
“I don’t get nervous, Savannah.Not usually, but damn, girl!You …” He shrugged.
She chuckled.“It’s okay.I’m nervous, too.”
“You are?”
She nodded.“How could I not be?”She managed to stop herself before she told him how important this felt to her.
“What do you say, then?Want to sit on the deck at The Boathouse, have a drink, and calm our nerves?”
“I’d love to sit over there, but I’ll stick with a soda – and rely on deep breaths to calm the nerves.”
