Page 19 of The Playboy's Playbook

“Uh, I’m not sure. It’s kind of hard to plan things now because I work when she’s free and she’s working when I’m free. I know we talked about going to California at one point, but I’m not too sure when that’ll be.”

“California seems like a cool place to visit. Which part were you thinking about?” I ask.

Laila takes a sip of her drink before answering. “Sonoma. I’ve always wanted to go.”

“What’s Sonoma?” I furrow my brows.

Laila’s laugh is music to my ears. “You don’t know Sonoma Valley, California?”

I shake my head and chuckle nervously. “No, it’s not ringing a bell.”

“Sonoma Valley is wine country. They have the most beautiful vineyards and houses. It’s my dream place to live when I retire. It just looks so peaceful out there.”

Laila gets a faraway look in her eyes and I can tell that she’s thinking about Sonoma now, imagining herself living in a house not too far from a vineyard with a garden in her backyard. She’d be happy there, in her bubble away from the world.

“It sounds like a beautiful place,” my voice just above a whisper as I gaze at Laila. For the first time since she’s sat down, I see a flash of emotion in her chocolate eyes. It disappears almost as quickly as it materialized. I wish I knew what she felt so I can make sure she feels it all of the time with me.

“Can I ask you something?” Laila pulls me from my thoughts. I nod at her to continue.

“Why now?” she asks, slightly tilting her head to the right.

“Why now what?”

Laila takes a deep breath, preparing herself for her next question. “You said that you wanted to get to know me, but whynow?”

I think carefully about my answer. I could tell her that seeing her at the rodeo made me feel things and I want to explore those feelings with her, but I don’t want to scare her away.

“Uh, I guess seeing you at the rodeo before Clay got to you made me think about us as kids. Seeing you made me realize that we’re not kids anymore and I want to know the woman sitting in front of me. Also, I’m so sorry about Clay. He knows not to walk up to people he doesn’t know, but he’s six and his dad is –”

“You’re rambling,” she chuckles.

I feel my cheeks burn with embarrassment and I look down at my hands in my lap. I force a chuckle out and rub my hand on the back of my neck. “It’s embarrassing really. I mean, a six-year-old walked up to you like it was nothing.”

“No, it’s not embarrassing. I think it’s kind of cute,” Laila says, her voice quiet. We sit in silence, easy smiles on both of our faces.

I’m going to consider the first play a success. Luke is going to be so proud.

We spent two hours talking, laughing, and catching up. She has a Yorkie named Nola, she’s back in school for her Masters’ degree, and she’s taking cooking classes as a hobby.

She asked what I did for work and I told her about working in construction. She asked if I ever built a house and I told her I helped a friend out with his house. She asked if Clay was that friend’s kid and I told her he was.

By the time we both began to feel comfortable, the bar started filling up so we took that as our cue to leave.

As we walk to her car, I notice she keeps looking over to the playground across the street. I nudge her shoulder with mine, nodding in the playground’s direction.

“Wanna go play for a bit?” I ask. Laila cuts her eyes back to me and lets out another laugh.

“I think we’ve outgrown the playground, Matthew.”

“You know, you can call me Matt. It’s not a crime.”

She nods and she gets quiet, as if she doesn’t want me to hear her. “I know, but…” she begins.

“Matthew is a comfort thing. I’ll respect that,” I answer for her, meaning every word.

We get to her car and she leans her back against the door and I stand in front of her. We’re silent, staring into each other’s eyes. I really want to pull her close to me and test the waters, but I don’t want to push her.

She closes her eyes as I brush my hand over her hair, tucking it behind her ear. She immediately reacts to my touch and leans into my hand. I take the opportunity to step closer. I can almost taste the lemons and strawberries on her lips.

---