Chapter Five
The place Landenchose surprised me. It was a small Greek restaurant with candles on every table, friendly staff, and, if the smell was anything to go by, delicious food.
Another thing that surprised me was his lack of argument when I insisted on driving my own vehicle. He’d merely shrugged and used an app on his cell phone to share the location of the restaurant with me. Which made me suspicious.
Still, once we were there and seated, my stomach let me know on no uncertain terms that I’d missed lunch and I needed to feed it soon or there would be dire consequences.
Yes, my stomach and I had that kind of relationship. I was one of those women who gothangry. And it wasn’t pretty when I did.
When the waiter approached, I opened my mouth to order an appetizer but Landen beat me to it.
“We’ll take an order of tzatziki with extra pita to start,” he stated. “But we’ll need a few moments to decide on our entrees.
The waiter smiled and nodded as he filled our water glasses then walked away.
I lifted a brow at Landen as I sipped my water.
He shrugged, a grin tugging at the corners of his mouth. “I knew you were hungry.”
I lowered my glass. “Yes, but perhaps I would have liked something else.”
His grin widened but he didn’t take the bait. “Would you like me to call him back over here?”
I stared at him as I tapped my finger on the table. “No, I happen to like tzatziki.”
He leaned forward and laid his hand over mine, stilling the rhythmic beat of my finger on the table. “Am I allowed to offer suggestions?”
My eyes narrowed. “Yes, of course,” I replied primly.
Then I let it go. I didn’t like it when men tried to order for me without asking me what I wanted first. In this case, it wasn’t worth the effort because I liked what he ordered and I wasn’t going to deprive myself just to be contrary. I would definitely eat more than my share.
A few months ago, I’d gone on a date with a man who insisted he order my meal because I’d never been to the restaurant before and he knew “exactly what a woman like me would want.”
Then the bastard ordered me a salad with a vinaigrette on the side, no meat on it, and that was it.
Needless to say, there wasn’t a second date.
Landen distracted me from my thoughts by turning my hand over, cradling it in his and smoothing his thumb across my palm. The calluses on his fingers surprised me because I knew he mostly worked behind a desk. They also made tingles spread up my arm because they created an exhilarating sensation.
The waiter returned with our appetizer before I could finish wracking my brain for something to say. Landen seemed reluctant to release my hand but he let me go when I tugged it free and reached for the spoon.
The tzatziki was tangy, creamy, and perfectly seasoned and the toasted pita with it was delicious. I bit back a moan as I took my first bite and watched Landen drop a good-sized dollop of the dip on his plate and quite a few pieces of pita.
“Do you know what you’d like for your entree?” the waiter asked.
I grimaced. I’d been so distracted by Landen that I’d barely looked at the menu. Then I smiled at the waiter as I swallowed the pita in my mouth. “What would you recommend to someone who’s never eaten here before but loves Greek food?” I asked.
I saw Landen smirk out of the corner of my eye but ignored him.
The waiter pointed to three different selections, describing each and explaining what side dishes came with them. They all sounded perfect.
Finally, I said, “I’ll take the Greek combo.” It contained a little of each of some of my favorite Greek foods.
The waiter nodded and looked toward Landen, who was grinning widely. “That’s a great choice. I want the Athenian combo.”
That had been my second choice.
“Do you want to split a bottle of wine?” Landen asked me.
