Jalen smiled. “You’ve said something along those lines. I don’t think I’ve told you how handsome you look.”
“Thank you. Have you decided what you’d like to order?” Jalen nodded as she twisted her glass from side to side. “How are your girls?” he questioned.
Jalen smiled. She thought it was sweet that he had asked her about her sisters. “They’re good. It’s the weekend, so it’s their favorite time of the week. How is Alynn?”
“She’s doing well. She wasn’t excited to go back to school a few weeks ago after her surgery, and now she wants to have a sit-down with the creator of school hours and have a discussion.”
The two of them chuckled. Jalen had the same issue with Mikal sometimes. While she liked school, she didn’t want to be there for seven hours out of the day.
The waitress returned with the wine and glasses, pouring one for each of them. She then took their orders, and once she was gone, the two proceeded with small talk.
????????????
Rohan watched as Jalen took the last bite of her key lime pie. He’d ordered chocolate cake himself. Flagging the waitress, he asked her for the check when she came over.
“That was honestly one of the best key lime pies I’ve had in a while,” Jalen told him.
“I’ve never been a fan of key lime.”
“Blasphemy,” she replied in mock shock, causing him to chuckle.
When the waitress came back with the ticket, Rohan took his wallet out, placing his credit card inside the check folder before handing it back to her.
“Was your cake good?” Jalen questioned.
“It was. I typically get the chocolate cake for dessert when I come here.”
“I’ll have to try it next time I come. Desserts and sweets are my guilty pleasure.”
“We can come back whenever you want,” he told her, and he meant it.
When the waitress came back, Rohan took his card and placed it in his wallet before signing the receipt, adding a tip.
“What do I owe you?” Jalen asked. Rohan shook his head. “I asked you out.” She glared at him for a moment. “You can leave the tip,” he said, even though he already had. He’d suspectedthat she wouldn’t want him to pay for her food. So, he’d decided to let her leave the tip, even before they’d started dinner.
“Next time, I’m paying,” she told him as she placed some cash on the table.
Rohan remained quiet but smiled at her. One, because she’d said next time, which meant she wanted to see him again. Two, because he would not let her pay any time; however, he wouldn’t tell her that just yet.
It was almost nine-thirty when they walked out of the restaurant. It was unusually cool for September. Rohan popped the mint he’d gotten on the way out.
“I know it’s getting late, but I want to take you somewhere,” he informed Jalen as he watched her do the same.
“Okay. Is it far?”
“No, it isn’t.”
Rohan led her over to his car and opened the passenger door for her. Where he wanted to take her was only about three blocks, but he didn’t want to have her walk there in her heels.
It took only a few minutes for them to pull up at their destination. Getting out of the car, Rohan walked around to her side and opened the door for her. He had brought her to Papago Park. There were several parks in town, but this one, in his opinion, was the best. When the sun went down, soft coral-colored lights lit up the area.
While the atmosphere was nice, that was only one reason he’d brought her to this park. They also had paddle boats, and that was what he wanted to take her on. They stayed open until ten-thirty on the weekend, so they had plenty of time to enjoy a ride.
Rohan took her hand, finding that he liked the feel of her soft hand in his, and led her over to the paddle boat rental. Once he’d filled out the paperwork and they'd signed the waivers. He paid, despite her objection, before helping her into the boat.
He was sure trying to pedal with heels on would be difficult, and he also didn’t want her to do it barefoot. He knew they cleaned the boats after each use, but he didn’t mind moving them along.
“I’ll move us along; you just relax,” he told her.
