“How did you get it so fast?”
He waggled his brows. “Well, ma’am, it’s a little-known service called overnight shipping.”
She couldn’t stop a laugh at his ridiculous customer service voice.
“After I heard you liked it yesterday, I ordered it as an apology for missing our earlier dinner. Figured it might help get me in your good graces. What kind do you want, Beth?”
“Blueberry.” She licked her lips. “Why are you doing this?”
Hank lifted a shoulder. “Giving you cheesecake? Well, I needed a dessert to go with dinner, and?—”
Bethany pushed her chair out, the sound loud in the large room, and stood. “No, Hank. I mean why are you doing all of this?” She pointed at the dinner table. “Making me dinner. Fixing up the building? Why do you need to get on my good side? What do you want from me?”
Hank sighed and slid a piece of blueberry cheesecake onto a small plate. “Your company? I’m not your ex-fiancé. I don’t need or want your money.”
Bethany sucked in a breath. “You’ve been listening to gossip, haven’t you?”
“Not intentionally.” He made a face that she could almost interpret as apologetic. “I overheard people talking about your ex-fiancé in the restaurant this morning.”
“Well, that’s not surprising. People around here love to talk.” A dull ache settled in her stomach. She sat back down. “I wasn’t accusing you of wanting money. But all this energy you’re expending...it must be for something.”
Hank crossed to the table and set the cheesecake in front of her but didn’t move away. Instead, he crouched next to her, so they were eye level. “I’d like to get to know you better. That’s all. No ulterior motives. No evil intentions. I thought we could be friends.”
“Friends.” Bethany tested the word on her tongue and found it disappointing. Why would a TV star and thelandlord of her building want to be her friend? She looked at her lap. Had she secretly been hoping Hank wanted more than friendship from her? Was she crazy? She’d only met him yesterday morning.
“Yeah.” Hank tucked a stray curl behind her ear.
Bethany raised her head and frowned. She would have brushed his hand away, but the motion was so quick, she couldn’t react in time. Plus, she wasn’t sure that he knew he’d done it, and she didn’t want to make a scene. And...she’d kind of liked it.
“I could use a friend right now. And I have this feeling you could use one too. Will you be my friend, Beth?”
Put like that, it seemed ridiculous to say no. But Bethany wasn’t taking chances. “What does it mean to be your friend, Hank? What are you expecting from me?”
“A slice of cheesecake? A stroll after dinner to see the stars?” Hank pointed to the window in the other room, where Bethany caught a glimpse of Lake Erie. “It’s a beautiful night, and there’s a lake outside. What do you say? Friends?”
Bethany looked into Hank’s clear eyes and caught the same vulnerability she’d glimpsed there yesterday. What was more, she understood it—the loneliness. She could use a friend too.
Instead of answering, though, she sank her fork into the thick cheesecake and took a bite. She closed her eyes around the creamy concoction. Hank was right. This might be the best she had ever tasted.
She opened her eyes to see him watching her. “Tell you what. You let me take a slice of this home for Travis, and we’ll be friends.”
Hank laughed and the worry disappeared from his expression. “You can have the whole darn plate.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
“This is a great rental. How’d you find it?” Bethany held her sandals in one hand while they strolled along the beach. She tried to remember the last time she’d squished sand between her toes.
Hank shined a flashlight ahead of them. “My assistant, Pamela, tracked it down.”
“She’s traveling with you?”
“No, she’s in LA. But she takes care of stuff like this for me.”
“You’re lucky to have her.”
“Yeah, I suppose. Most celebrities do use assistants—we have crazy schedules.”
“Is she upset with you for staying in Cleveland?”
