“Cool.” He grinned while heading toward his SUV. “Is six okay?”
“Yes, perfect.”
Actually, you’re perfect, Campbell thought, believing this from everything he’d come to know about her. He considered briefly asking if he could pick her up at her place but decided against this. He didn’t want to make her uncomfortable in any way. “I’ll text you the address.”
“All right.”
After he did so, Campbell climbed into his Chevy Tahoe and headed for the grocery store, en route to home, while contemplating what to cook. He imagined that Bella had already spoken to Stefanie about his visit to her estate, where—aside from talking about his latest case and Mia’s checkered history as a housekeeper for Bella’s father, Stuart Reston—they had shared kind words about Stefanie. She and Bella really seemed to have hit it off. Just as he had with Stefanie. He hoped that they would be able to move the needle in continuing to make progress in their relationship. So long as he didn’t blow it with the dinner, Campbell was optimistic in that regard.
Chapter Ten
Admittedly, Stefanie felt downright giddy as she drove onto Campbell’s property, taking note of the green, hilly acreage. She envisioned children playing and running across it merrily. Along with their doting parents watching their offspring with boundless joy.
Okay, so maybe I’m putting the cart ahead of the horse with this vision, Stefanie thought. She took a breath. Best to let things play out naturally and not assume that she and Campbell were already a match made in heaven. For now, it was just dinner—albeit a second date—and no guarantees of scrumptious desserts to leave a lasting taste in either of their mouths.
Stefanie got out of her car and approached Campbell’s farmhouse. With her hair loose, she wore a sleeveless indigo denim dress and black T-strap sandals. Campbell was waiting for her when she arrived at the front door.
“Hey.” He flashed her a mouthwatering grin.
“Hey.” She smiled back, taking in his formfitting terra-cotta piqué polo shirt, beige twill chinos and brown boat shoes.
“Come in,” he told her enthusiastically.
Stefanie stepped into his house and was even more impressed with the layout and rustic furnishings than shewas with the land it sat on. Or at least equally so. “You have a beautiful place here,” she remarked sincerely.
Campbell smiled. “Thanks. It’s probably a bit much for just one person. Guess maybe I was thinking ahead—”
She grinned musingly, reading between the lines. “I see.”
“Food’s ready to be served,” he said. “I can give you the grand tour later.”
“Sounds good.”
“Hope you like fish?”
Stefanie picked up the scent of the grilled halibut. “I love fish,” she told him.
“Good to know.” Campbell grinned. “I added tomato vinaigrette to the halibut, to go with grilled vegetables, lemon-herbed rice and whole wheat bread. There’s red wine, fruit punch, water and/or coffee. Whatever suits your fancy.”
She smiled. “Everything sounds tasty,” she confessed. “I’ll have the red wine.”
“You and me both,” he said flatly. “So, make yourself at home and we’ll eat.”
They sat kitty-corner from one another in the dining room at an aspen log table on ladder-back chairs. Stefanie had to commend Campbell for the meal. “It’s really good,” she marveled, which was an understatement.
“Glad you like it.” He gave her a slanted grin. “Picked up a few recipes from my dad and his girlfriend, Sally. But mostly, I suppose the cooking comes naturally—if I’m motivated enough.”
She giggled, slicing a knife into the grilled halibut. “I guess you were,” she teased him.
“Yeah, I can certainly say unabashedly that I wanted to leave the right impression on you,” he said with a laugh, then bit off a piece of bread.
Stefanie scooped up some lemon-herbed rice. “You’ve succeeded.” She put the rice in her mouth, savoring the taste, and wondered what other tricks he might have up his sleeve.
Campbell tasted his wine. “So, I suppose Bella told you that I dropped by to talk about Mia O’Dell?”
Stefanie nodded. “I knew that Mia was the housekeeper of Bella’s father,” she told him. “But I didn’t realize that she was stealing from Stuart Reston and was fired as a result. Not that I would’ve known this. Still, it kind of came as a shock. Sad, too.”
“I agree on both counts,” Campbell said. “Especially if losing her job was what led Mia to join the Braison Family—which may have played a crucial role in her use of fentanyl that resulted in her fatal overdose of the drug.”
