Four hands rose.
Cali nearly sagged with relief. She’d won. And with all the work she’d put into the demonstration, it would be easy to set up the game. All she had to do now was explain it to the staff, so they were prepared for Banned Books Week next week.
A thrill pulsed through her as she thanked the board and scurried toward her office. She grabbed her phone and texted The Nine.
The board said yes! Banned Books Week is a go!
The Nine drowned her screen in emojis, gifs, and congrats. Minka even promised to update the café menu board with a new latte dubbedLibrary Hero.
She was grinning from the chaos when another message buzzed through, quiet and separate.
Knew you’d nail it. Want to celebrate?—Ethan.
She pressed her lips together, willing herself not to grin.Sounds like you’ve got a thing for celebrating. Which do you like more: Celebrations or the color gray?she texted back.
He thought about it for a while, those triple dots appearing then disappearing.
Celebrating in gray with you sounds just about perfect. Your place tonight? I’ll cook.
Heat licked up her neck, blooming beneath her collar.Cook what?Cali texted.
Coq au vin, of course.
She ran a hand along her collarbone as Minka’s words ran through her head. Maybe she could, against her better judgment, keep things casual with Ethan.
Something caught her eye, and when she turned to her window, she caught him leaning against a tree, hard hat dangling from his hand, his head bent over his phone. She could watch him unseen, and for a second, she let herself.
She typed before she could stop herself:But that would make it a date.
Across the lot, his smile spread like a man who’d just won a bet.
Yes, it would.—Ethan.
“Cross! Break time’s over. Get moving!” the foreman barked. Ethan jolted, tucked his phone away, and hurried off.
She giggled and pulled the blinds shut.
A few minutes later, her phone buzzed again.What time’s good for you? Any food aversions? Red or white wine? Do you have a pot with a lid? A ladle?
When she teased him—Neediest chef I’ve ever met—he only replied:Worth it.
Chapter 13
That evening, about 15 minutes before Ethan arrived, Cali reapplied her velvety red lipstick in her bathroom mirror and remembered the taste of cider on Ethan’s lips from last Friday. Her breath caught in her chest, and she kept having to remind herselfIt’s just dinner, Cali. Like Minka said, it’s supposed to be fun. Relax.
She wondered, though, if that kiss happened again, what his lips might taste like tonight. And that’s as far as she would allow herself to think. Sure, there was that voice in her head saying she was making a mistake. That no good could come from this. Or at least not the good she was used to. Not the routine, reliable kind of good. Hot, sexy, temporary good? Yes. Make-her-moan good? Possibly. Something that left her smiling for days after? Definitely.
But what happened after that was out of her comfort zone—and out of her control. Come the holidays, Ethan would be packed or already gone. And just like she didn’t owe him anything after tonight’s dinner, he didn’t owe her either. If she set her expectations low, then she couldn’t get hurt. She’d done the math. At 32, the amount of pain she’d feel when Ethan Cross disappeared from Autumn Ridge and her life could never compare to the kind of pain she’d already survived.
In the full-length mirror, she ran her hands down her cozy yet feminine autumn ensemble—deep burgundy, cropped,button-front cardigan, a mustard-yellow skirt that was a little too short for work, and opaque black tights that ran up her thighs.
She moved around the kitchen, trying to bleed off the nervous energy, opening windows, knowing how warm the kitchen could make the rest of the A-frame feel while in use. Max followed her with a curious glint in his eyes, especially when the field crickets chirped outside.
“Don’t go getting ideas, Mister,” she warned him with a waggle of her finger.
He crouched down and rolled over onto his back, big turquoise eyes staring up at her innocently.
“I don’t believe you, you rascal,” she told him.
