Page 24 of Hello Tease

Up close, I thought he wasn’t my usual type, but there were things I liked about him. He had a nice smile. Kind eyes...

“I haven’t seen you around town,” he said.

“I just moved here not too long ago. I’m the new nurse at the retirement home.”

“Oh nice. My grandma lives there. Maybe I’ll see you around.”

“Who’s your grandma?” I asked.

“Mary Ellis Smith,” he replied.

“I love her!” I said. “I mean, I’ve only been there a week, but she’s already mopped the floor with me in Rummikub.”

He tossed his head back, laughing. “That’s Granny. She didn’t even let me win when I was a kid.”

I laughed. “I could see that.”

Despite chatting, he led us both, not missing a beat of the music. “What else should I know about you?”

My lips pressed together for a moment. I’d thought about how to handle having children and dating, but this was my first time other than my failed tryst on the dating app. “Well, the most important thing is that I have two children.”

I could feel his hands tense. “I’m not about to get beat up, am I?” he half-joked.

Which was actually funny because he was a big enough guy anyone would be an idiot to start a fight with him. “No,” I said. “I’m divorced.”

“Sorry to hear that,” he said.

I shrugged, because, really, what else could you say?

“If it’s not too forward, I’d love to take you out to dinner sometime. There’s not much fancy here in town, but there’s a steak restaurant in a town not far from here we could go to.”

The closing chords of the song played, and I stepped back, feeling... so much. Excited, nervous, breathless. Was I really getting asked on my first date in eight years? A tight sensation filled my chest. Nerves maybe. Because I had thought plenty about a rebound, but now that the opportunity was here, it didn’t feel right.

My sister’s words echoed in my mind, reminding me that I needed to get back out there and do something for myself. So I nodded. “Dinner sounds nice.” It didn’t have to go further than that if I didn’t want it to.

“Can I have your number?” he asked.

“Sure.” We walked to the side of the dance floor to get out of the way of the other people dancing, and once his phone was out and ready, I recited the numbers to him.

He saved them in and said, “How’s next Friday?”

“Seven o’clock?” I suggested. That would give me time to get ready after work.

“Sounds like a deal,” he replied.

I gave him a smile and said I was going to hang out with my friends. He promised to call.

It was all very... practical. Decent. No drama. No games. No awkward flirtation. Maybe my sister was wrong—in-person dating was still the way to go.

I walked back to my friends, and I could see them all trying not to stare yet waiting to grill me.

When I got to the table, Della leaned forward, red curls falling over her shoulders. “Tell us everything!”

My cheeks heated, and I felt young again. “He asked me out to dinner.”

Henrietta grinned. “What did you say?”

“I told him I would.”

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