He dials a number and puts the phone to his ear. “CC, hey, where are you? We have reservations at six-thirty. Oh, and Hayden’s here.” He pauses. His brow furrows. “It’s a Friday night. There was nothing on my desk when I left.”
I motion my thumb like I’m going to leave because I feel like I’m eavesdropping. He puts his finger up and mouths, “Hold on.”
He’s nodding while Caroline apparently gives him instructions. “Okay,” he says. “I’ll tell her.” He squints at something she says. “I don’t know.…no…it’s fine, I’ll ask her. Okay, bye, see you in a bit. Love you.”
He hangs up and looks up at me. “You hungry?”
“Um…”
“Caroline isn’t gonna make it for dinner. She did overbook. She apologizes and suggests that we go eat at Murphy’s in the Highlands anyway, and she’ll meet us there as soon as she’s done. She said we could all go out afterward…if you want?”
“No, I would never want to intrude on your date.” The idea of sharing a meal and getting to know Blake is exciting, but it feels too awkward—too much like we’re on our own date.
“Caroline really wants you to go. I think it would make her happy. We can skip the shopping part and get drinks after dinner. It’s up to you. No pressure.”
“Okay,” I say hesitantly, caving in. “I’ll meet you there.”
“Sounds good. Let me walk you to your car.”
It’s a really nice neighborhood and just barely dark out. “That’s okay, really. I’m actually a couple of blocks away.”
“Why don’t I just drive? I’m right here,” he says, pointing to a black BMW sedan. Nice car but not his style at all.
What do I say? It seems harmless. “Sure, okay, sounds good.” Frankie could use a break. That’s the excuse I’m going with.
When we get into his car, I’m immediately overwhelmed by his yummy man smell. He’s not wearing cologne. I think it’s his deodorant. Maybe it’s just his natural scent. Oh, geez.
“This is a nice car.”
He’s looking straight ahead, concentrating on the road. “It’s a company car,” he says simply.
“Do you like it?”
“Yeah, I guess.” He looks over and shoots me a tight smile.
“You hate it?”
“I totally hate it, but didn’t want to sound ungrateful.”
We both laugh.
“Caroline likes me in this car.”
Oh, please. Blake would look good driving a jalopy. “Hmm. If you had a choice, what kind of car would you drive?”
“A ’67 Chevelle. Black with cherry interior. But I have my Triumph, so I’m good for now.”
“A Chevelle? That is a very cool car. I can tell you’ve thought about that question before.”
“I’ll get one myself someday and hide it in a secret garage so Caroline doesn’t find out.”
He already anticipates hiding things from each other? “She wouldn’t care.”
“No, maybe not. She’s pretty frugal, despite how much she’s eventually going to inherit. She’d think a Chevelle would be a frivolous buy.” He speeds up and takes a corner very tightly. When I spill over into the center console, he reaches his right arm out to hold me. “Sorry about that. This car handles so well, I forget how fast I’m taking corners sometimes.”
I’m tongue-tied for a moment. “It’s okay.” If he touches my knee I’ll spontaneously combust. “So Caroline will inherit the business? And a big trust fund?”
“She will. I guess I don’t care that much about the money.”
