“What’s this?”
“Well, I figured since you didn’t have time to grab milk this week, chances were you didn’t have time to grab wine either.”
“I went to the store by myself today, remember? Someone called in emergency babysitting for me. I bought four bottles.”
His wide grin made his eyes sparkle. “Good. You owe me.”
He pushed the door open and stepped inside before I could invite him. I followed him to the kitchen, reflecting on how quickly he’d made himself at home.
“So your plan is to show up and drink all of my wine?How neighborly.”
He flashed a smile over his shoulder and started rummaging through my cabinets. “I’m going to share. It’s too cold to sit outside now, even if I built a fire.Glasses?”
“Next to the fridge.”
He moved over and finally found what he had been looking for. He surveyed my small wine rack that sat on the side cabinet. His lips pressed into a frown as he picked up each bottle and read the label.
“We’ll drink mine,” he finally decided.
“Snob!There’s nothing wrong with my wine.”
He gave me a look that contradicted my opinion. “I’ll teach you. You get out of the house so little, you need my help.”
“You have managed to invade my privacy, insult my taste in wine and call me a recluse in the span of three minutes. I’m honestly impressed.”
He started opening and closing drawers, looking for the cork screw. I pulled it out of the right drawer and handed it to him.
“I don’t think you’re a recluse,” he told me with his concentration fixed on the bottle of wine. “I think you’re busy. And I think I have better taste in wine.”
“Both of those things are true,” I finally conceded. I slid onto the bar stool and tried not to be charmed by his smug grin.
He handed me a half-filled glass and watched my face as I took my first sip. Then he poured his own.
“How was your day?” he asked after a few minutes of comfortable silence.
His words floated over my skin, warm and smooth. I felt my heart swell with friendly affection for this man that barely knew me, but cared enough to ask about my day- my day that was filled with kids and mess and craziness.
“Actually, pretty good.”I tucked some hair behind my ear and took another sip of wine. “I enjoyed my trip to the grocery store. Thanks again for calling Emma.”
“My pleasure.”His gaze stayed focused on my face. “My day was good too, thanks for asking.”
I shook my head at him. “Put any bad guys in jail?”
His warm chuckle filled the room with an easy grace. “Not today. Let’s see, I had a mediation, a couple contracts and one last will and testament. I told you, noLaw and Orderfor me. It’s all paperwork.”
“You’re really pretty boring, aren’t you?” I dropped my chin into my hand. “No wonder you have such a hard time getting dates.”
His eyes narrowed playfully. “I don’t have a hard time getting dates.”
“Oh, just keeping them?”
“I’m going to take my wine back.”
I gulped a big swallow and then grinned at him. “Let’s hear the gory details, Ben. Where’s Mrs. Tyler? Emma said you were perfectly normal. You didn’t make any disgusting mouth noises or try to get out of paying the check. How is it that you’re still single?”
He swirled his wine and stared at it contemplatively. “There’s not a big mystery here, if that’s what you’re looking for. I’ve had girlfriends off and on over the years, but no one that I really felt a deep connection to. To be fair though, I have been pretty focused on my career lately and before that, school. It wasn’t until recently that the idea of finding someone to settle down with entered my mind.”
“Oh.” Well, that was a normal enough answer. “You’re a workaholic then?” I teased.
