I flutter my lashes at him. “You make it sound so old-fashioned.”
“Nothing old-fashioned about respecting someone. You show up when you say you’re going to show up. It’s not rocket science.”
“If only Gavin could have been more like you.”
He snorts. “Gavin? I shouldn’t be surprised this guy stood you up. Sounds like a first-class asshole.”
“Probably was.” I smile back at him. “I mean, yeah, he totally is. He stood me up. The fucker.”
“That’s the attitude to have. Nothing you did wrong. The man wouldn’t know a beautiful woman if she walked right out in front of him.”
“You calling me beautiful, Sam?” I ask.
He takes a minute to pause, stuffing an overly red bite ofpancake into his mouth. He chews thoughtfully before swallowing. “You know you are.”
“I like hearing it from you.”
“You’re beautiful, Joey,” he answers. There’s no hesitation in his voice. No stutter at all.
The way Sam is looking at me tells me he means it. I want to squirm under his gaze, but something tells me I shouldn’t. That this man wants me to know he means what he says.
“You’re not so bad yourself, Sam.”
It’s all I can say.
Tension is thick between the two of us as we take one another in. I want to move from my side of the booth to his just to feel his warmth against me.
Before I can do anything stupid, Shelly comes to the table.
“Do you two want anything else…or are you finished?”
She eyes the empty containers.
“We’re done.” Sam cleans up the containers and stuffs them into the plastic bag as Shelly takes them and walks away.
“What do I owe you for the pancakes?” I ask, fishing some crumpled-up bills out of my purse.
“Don’t worry about them.”
“You sure?” I ask, resting my hand on his forearm.
The corner of his mouth quirks up into a smile as he pats my hand. “Your dad would never forgive me if I let you pay.”
“I wouldn’t tell him.”
It’s a bucket of cold water thrown over me. Not that I need the reminder of who Sam is to me.
“No, but I’m sure it’d get back to him somehow.”
“The joys of a small town,” I say.
I don’t do anything to shake off his touch. His warmth—hell, his presence—is calming in a way I haven’t experienced in a long time.
It’s…well, it’s nice. It makes me feel like there might not be something wrong with me that makes guys keep standing me up.
“I should get going,” Sam says.
“Me too. I can get in some grocery shopping without Max, which means I don’t have to buy every type of cookie there is.”
