"My intuition. Being able to trust my gut and go with the flow, to see which direction the universe guides me in. It's the reason I took a leap of faith and opened my wellness center, despite the people closest to me trying to talk me out of it."
"I see," I said, though I didn't see at all.
I was a planner and analyzed problems from all angles to find solutions and determine how to proceed. Going with the flow had never been part of my vocabulary, and I'd never once reliedon the universe to guide my steps. I didn't even know what that meant.
Tallulah seemed nice enough, but I was beginning to suspect she was too woo-woo for my taste. If Blossom was anything like her, I had concerns because I'd raised Manuel to be sensible and practical.
"Different people have different approaches," I added.
The waiter returned, placing our beverages beside us. "Ready to order?" he asked.
"Order anything you like. Dinner is on me," I announced to the table.
My son shot an appreciative smile in my direction.
Tallulah lifted her gaze from her menu, surprise on her face. "You don't have to do that."
"I insist. After all, we're about to be family."
"That's very generous of you."
"May I have two more minutes?" Blossom asked.
"Sure. I'll be back in a little bit." The waiter left again.
I relaxed into my chair. As far as I was concerned, the night was off to a good start. My son was the most important person in the world to me, and if he loved this young lady, I wanted to make sure she was comfortable joining our family despite her mother's unconventional style of decision-making.
I still wasn't completely on board with my son getting married so soon out of college to a young woman he'd only known a short time. But tonight could be a successful meeting of the families.
I would do my part to make that happen.
Chapter 4
Tallulah
Ialready knew what I wanted for dinner because I had reviewed the menu ahead of time, but my eyes skimmed the choices to reconfirm I wanted the salmon salad.
Though studying the menu, I was oddly conscious of the man to my right. Was he good-looking? Yes. But not in a drop-dead gorgeous, head-turning way. In a polished, respectable way. The Caucasian version of my ex-husband.
He had a headful of glossy dark brown hair, cut low and graying at the temples. Faint lines had settled at the corners of his eyes, which appeared as captivating pools of light gray. His lips weren't particularly remarkable—somewhere between thin and full—but his jawline... well, that was remarkably square. Perhaps Jamison's best feature. I wouldn't be surprised if his jawline could cut through concrete.
He wore a navy-blue suit and a dark tie. A very conservative appearance compared to his son, whose tan jacket and red tie seemed more relaxed and complemented his darker complexion. They'd both clearly come right from work.
At first glance, I had assumed that if Jamison smiled, his face would crack. Instead, the initial smile softened his features andmade him seem more approachable, but I could definitely see the rigidity in him that Blossom had mentioned.
Most of the time, the only meat I ate was seafood, with the occasional chicken thrown in. When I didn't feel like eating either of those, a big bowl of vegetables was my go-to. The menu had an interesting vegetarian option, but I idly considered ordering the lobster. Such a decision would definitely not make a good impression on Jamison and embarrass my daughter. But boy, was I tempted. I hadn't had lobster in a long time, and I'm sure a restaurant like this made a great dish. Jamison did say to get anything you want, didn't he?
I knew he didn't mean getanythingyou want. No one ever meant those words when they said them. What they really meant was, get anything you want within reason. I closed the menu.
"You've made a decision?" Jamison asked.
I nodded. "I'm going to have the salmon salad."
"Salmon salad?"
He sounded appalled. Downright disappointed. Maybe I should have ordered the lobster.
"They have great steaks. I bring clients here at least twice a month," he continued.
