She smiled through pursed lips."It could work, but I don't think it'd go down too well at Muse on Saturday night, do you?"
He chuckled."Ah, no.You have a point."
"I could go shopping with Becca on Saturday," she ventured.
He watched her face and waited.And because he didn't offer any further input, she eventually nodded and said, "Yeah, okay.I'll stay."
~ ~ ~
Dinner was great.It felt easy being with her.The conversation and the laughter came naturally, and Ollie enjoyed every minute of it.
But there was a small nagging doubt in the back of his mind.Should he have offered to go back to Fort Bragg with her instead of asking her to stay here?She'd said yes, and he was thrilled.He just hoped that it wouldn't backfire on him.
When Grady came with the check, he reached for it automatically, but then hesitated and raised his eyebrows at Callie."Is it okay if I get this?"
He relaxed when she smiled."Yes, thanks.I'll get it next time."
He nodded.At least this was familiar territory.Maybe not with women — they usually expected him to foot the bill for everything — but this was how it worked with Reaves.He liked to pay his own way too, even though he lived on his pilot's salary.Ollie respected it when it came to his best friend.
He smiled at Callie as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.He respected it when it came to her, too.He knew how fortunate he was, even if he wasn't exactly grateful to his dad most of the time.
"How do you want to work this, then?"Callie asked.
"Work what?"
"Should I follow you home?"
"Oh, yeah."He hadn't thought about that.She was in her truck.It wasn't ideal.
She gave him a puzzled look."Or have you changed your mind already?I can head home."
"No," he said quickly."It's just..."He blew out a sigh."No secrets, right?"
"Right," she agreed, looking a little concerned.
"Don't worry.It's just that I want to be honest with you.How would you feel about leaving your truck here until morning?"
"Why?"
"Because I want to be with you when you arrive at my place for the first time."
She frowned, and he chuckled."I can just imagine you muttering away to yourself about spoiled little rich boys once you pull through the gates."
She made a face."I've seen the gates already, remember?And I've seen the house and the grounds.It's not as though it's going to come as a complete shock, is it?"
"No, true.I guess I'm just worried."
He relaxed a little when she reached for his hand and gave it a squeeze."Well, don't be.Neither of us handled this very well in the beginning.Yeah, you should have been more honest.But at the same time, I should have been more open."
He didn't like to agree, but she kind of had a point.
She squeezed his hand."So I'll follow you, rather than leave my truck here on the street overnight."She let out a short laugh."Not that I think anyone around here would steal it."
"We can go in your truck and leave mine here, if you prefer," he suggested.
She let out a short laugh."No way.You need to get that thing home and behind your big gates.I felt pretty dumb when I realized what it was."
He gave her a rueful smile.He'd told her that it was a Cullinan, and that was the truth.
