“Your laugh is funny,” he pointed out as we climbed the stairs to the entrance.
I made a face when I looked at him. “What’s funny about my laugh?”
“It’s just…” He grinned. “It’s in surround sound.”
“Are you saying I’m loud?”
He opened the door for me and waited until I walked inside. “I didn’t say that.”
Glancing over my shoulder, I eyed him suspiciously. “You implied it.”
He put his hand on the small of my back. “I like that you’re loud,” he whispered.
I inhaled sharply.
Before I could fully process what he’d said, he moved toward the hostess. “We have a reservation for two underAnderson.”
The hostess told a man in all black, who then escorted us to the second floor, to a table overlooking the water. The man attempted to pull my chair out for me, but Lamar sidestepped him and intervened.
“Thank you. I got it,” he insisted, lining the chair up behind me and pushing it forward as I sat.
“Thank you,” I murmured.
When he walked around the table and sat across from me, I couldn’t help but smile.Always the gentleman.
“We are serving brunch until four,” the man said, handing us oversized menus. “Your waiter, Gus, will be with you in a moment. Can I get you anything to drink while you wait?”
“I’ll take a water, please,” I replied.
Lamar nodded. “Water is good. Thank you.”
We took a few minutes to review the menu, commenting on what looked good.
“I’m getting the steak-and-eggs brunch special,” Lamar said. “What are you thinking?”
“I love chicken and waffles. But my eyes keep gravitating to the French toast casserole. I’ve never had that before, and I’m intrigued.”
“I’ve had it and it’s good. Would you like to order, or would you like me to?”
“Oh!” My eyebrows shot up. “Well, you can—”
“Hi, I’m Gus,” greeted an older man with a slicked-back ponytail. He poured water into our glasses and then set the bottle between us. “I’ll be your waiter today. What can I get you?”
“She’ll have the French toast casserole,” Lamar ordered as he stared at me. “What would you like as your side?”
I’d never had someone order for me before, so I was caught off guard. “Oh, um, bacon, please. Crispy.”
“She’ll have the French toast casserole with crispy bacon, and I’ll take the steak and eggs, please. Medium steak, soft-scramble eggs.”
“Very nice choices,” Gus commented, taking the menus from our hands. “Your order will be up soon.”
When we were left alone, Lamar caught me staring at him.
“What?” he wondered, sitting back in his chair.
“I was just thinking about how I’ve never had someone order for me before.”
“How did you like it?”
