The waiter approached and greeted us with a smile. "Miss Navarro, so great to see you again!"
It was a common refrain. I suspected every waiter in the restaurant wanted to serve Catalina. No doubt she tipped well and ran up an expensive tab. Her first order of business was ordering a Lafite Rothschild.
The sommelier brought the wine and poured a sample for her to taste. Once he received her approval, he poured the glasses, and we enjoyed the expensive grape juice.
I ordered the filet mignon, topped with lobster and served with a side of sautéed mushrooms and garlic mashed potatoes. A bowl of creamy lobster bisque started things off in the right direction.
The meal did not disappoint.
We enjoyed dinner, chatted effortlessly, and indulged in the famous key lime pie. The tangy, zesty overload of sugar was heavenly.
Catalina was just as sweet.
At the end of the evening, the waiter instinctively handed the bill to Catalina. I managed to steal it before she could grab it.
"No! This is my treat.”
"I insist,” I said. “You covered the skydiving. This is the least I can do."
"Technically, a case could be made that this is our third date,” she said.
"Can you really call the gala a date?”
"It depends on how you look at it. I hope you don't think that buying my dinner will get you into my pants tonight."
I laughed. "I would never be so presumptuous.”
I slipped my credit card into the folio and handed it back to the waiter.
"I'll be right back with this," he said when he retrieved it.
"Thank you. It's not often that someone steals the tab from me.”
I had no doubt a woman like Catalina ran into her fair share of freeloaders.
I signed the check and left a nice tip. Fat and happy, we strolled out of the restaurant, hopped into the Navigator, and Marco drove us back to the marina at Diver Down. He pulled around by the dock.
Catalina took my hand. She had nice hands, and her touch was warm. “I had a wonderful evening,” she said before kissing my cheek.
She lingered in the vicinity.
Marco watched in the rearview.
I wasn’t keen on the audience. “I’d invite you aboard for a drink, but I’m sure you have better things to do.”
21
“Tempting,” Catalina said. The words slid from her tongue like velvet. “But you’re going to have to work harder than that. I crafted two great adventures for us. Let’s see what you can come up with,” she said with a sassy eyebrow. “That is if you’re so inclined.”
“I’m inclined,” I said, staring into her smoldering eyes.
She had definitely thrown down the gauntlet.
“Good. I’ll expect a call with an irresistible offer.”
“You’ll get one,” I assured.
She gave me a quick kiss on the lips.
