Boyfriend and girlfriend? Certainly not with these time constraints.
Lovers? Maybe.
His groin tightened at the thought of being her lover. Erasing all thoughts of the last guy she dated.
“So, have you dated a lot of women around here?” Colette asked, interrupting his thoughts, and he coughed, choking on a piece of steak. Had she heard his thoughts?
“I’ve dated some.”
“Jessica?”
Marshall coughed again. Was she some kind of super spy or something?
“We went out once or twice. It never went anywhere,” he admitted. “It felt more like tagging along on Evan’s dates than anything.”
Colette raised a brow. “She was pretty interested in you the other night, from what I heard.”
“Yeah, well, I have it on good authority she has moved on.”
She lifted her glass of wine to her lips and snorted. “Interesting.”
“What about the last guy you dated? Is he pining away for you in the city, only discovering what he lost and desperate to win you back?” Marshall questioned, his eyes narrowing. He wanted to see her reaction. Did she have some unfinished business in the city that would have her hurrying back?
Her shoulders dropped and she studied her meal closely. “Definitely not. The last guy I dated,” she used air quotations for the word dated, “he was happy to have one night with me and forget I ever existed. Which is kind of my dating life in a nutshell. I’ve been with a few guys, but they never linger long. They don’t stop long enough to develop anything that deep.” Her mouth turned down as she cast her gaze down.
Anger simmered in his chest. The way some men like to love women and cast them so quickly disgusted him. Marshall swallowed the guilt, well aware of his own dating history and the revolving door of lovers he had in the city. His old life. It was humbling. He reached a hand to stroke her cheek with his thumb, and her gaze locked with his.
“Well, I’m honored to stop here with you.” He ached to kiss her, to bring back her smile.
How had they gotten here?
He wanted this date to be fun, not sad.
They both had a less-than-stellar dating history, but it had brought them here. He had no regrets about that.
Colette chuckled. “You sound like an eighties song,” she said, her eyes dancing. “I’m going to have to introduce you to Modern English.”
He grinned and rested his chin in his palm, savoring each inch of her face. Her expression was pure sunshine, and nothing was more rewarding to him than bringing it back. The server came and cleared their plates, leaving behind the dessert menu.
The weekend DJ was setting up on the stage, and Marshall pulled his phone out of his pocket to check the time. They stillhad some time before the show started at the theater, and it was a quick walk down the street.
“You feel like dancing?”
She cocked her head. “Do we have time? I don’t want to miss the play.”
“We have time for a couple songs, I’d say,” he said, standing. “Just give me a minute.” He smirked, knowing she watched him as he strode toward the DJ. He’d known DJ Hanson since he had been coming to The Golden Horseshoe. The man waved as he approached.
“Are you here on a date with that lovely lady tonight?” Hanson asked, a teasing tone to his voice. “Can’t say I saw it coming with you, Marshall.”
“Surprise, I guess. Can I request a song? It’s her favorite, and I’d love to hear it before we have to leave for the theater,” Marshall asked, watching as Hanson popped open his laptop and brought up his song list on the screen.
“Sure, I can look it up.” The icon blinked in the search bar, making Marshall break into a sweat. He had no idea what the song was.
“Do you have Modern English? What’s their big song? I forget.”
Hanson gave him a blank look and snorted.
“Um, that’s not on my usual list. I’ll have to search it. I’ve never heard of this band.”
