“She goes by Cynthia, not Cindy?”
“She said it goes with her business.” Dylan shrugged. “She’s into interior design.”
“Style by Cynthia?” Jasmine, the termite account bookkeeper, asked, standing in the doorway between the two offices.
Rae frowned, irritated the other woman had been eavesdropping.
“You’ve heard of it?” Dylan asked.
“Oh, yeah. My mother likes her stuff. She does cool videos on decorating.” Jasmine shot him a sly look. “I’ve met her before, and she seems a little classy for a pest control guy.”
“There’s nothing wrong with a pest control guy.” Rae shot him a meaningful look.
The corners of his mouth twitched. What would Jasmine say if she knew he could soon be her boss? Mr. G. hadn’t mentioned Dylan buying the company again, so he and Rae had decided the night before he’d approach the old man for more information.
“Dylan cleans up really nice,” Rae said.
“Whatever.” Jasmine rolled her eyes.
“Don’t listen to her.” Rae glanced at him and found he was laughing softly. “What?”
“I’m not laughing at you. I was thinking my father would agree with her.” Dylan turned thoughtful. “I’ll have to look back and see if I ever mentioned what I do for a living. Jasmine may have a point.” He leaned closer and lowered his voice. “Anyway, I don’t want to meet her alone.”
“You won’t be alone. You’ll be withher.”
“That’s not what I mean. I was thinking about a group date. It’d take off a lot of the pressure.” He got that odd expression again, and she wondered what secret insecurities he might be hiding. Until Amelia had come up with this dating thing, Rae had thought she and Dylan had talked about everything. Now she wondered what he’d been holding back. He asked, “What if we did it together? You and your guy, and me and Cynthia.”
Rae’s spirits lifted. Nothing could be too bad with Dylan there, and she’d have a chance to see what kind of woman this Cynthia was.
“That might be fun,” she said. “I think I could handle meeting someone in a group.”
“What’s this about a group?” Amelia asked, stepping around the corner.
Rae wondered how long she’d been listening too. They really needed to save these conversations for when they were home and wouldn’t have an office full of potential listeners. Amelia might be a godly woman, but she had her flaws like anybody else, and she didn’t have any compunction about eavesdropping. Dylan, of course, looked completely unfazed.
“We were talking about having our first dates together as a group,” he said.
Amelia exchanged glances with him, and something seemed to pass between them. It was almost like they were keeping a secret from Rae.
“What are you two up to?” she asked.
“Dylan’s been out of the dating pool far too long,” Amelia said. “I think a group date would be the perfect solution.”
“Then showmesome sympathy, okay?” Rae asked. “I’d like to go on a double date, assuming my guy is ready for it.” She hoped he wasn’t.
“What’s his name anyway?” Amelia asked.
“Ruben.” Rae schooled her features, wondering what the others would say. Not that there was anything wrong with the name.
For the first time since Amelia had first suggested the whole dating thing, she looked worried. “Isn’t that an old man’s name?”
“No, it’s not an old man’s name,” Rae said.
“Yeah.” Dylan named a famous soccer player.
“Don’t forget that R&B singer,” Rae added.
Amelia shot them both a flat look. “I can see Dylan knowing the name of a soccer player, but since when did you start liking R&B, Rae?”
