Page 8 of The Friend Zone
“Sure. You’re a beautiful woman,andI’m going to guess a very smart one too. A lethal combination.”
“Intelligent women often turn men off.” Dana smoothly removed her hand from his grasp.
“Not this man.” Sheldon moved closer and lowered his voice. “Tell you what, give me thirty minutes of your time, and if after thirty minutes you no longer want to be bothered with me, I’ll leave you alone and you can walk away.”
Dana watched him with narrowed eyes. “Thirty minutes is all you need?”
“Yes, over coffee or whatever you want to drink, and I heard the scones are really good here.”
He was slightly charming, not too pushy but making the effort. And he was in a bookstore, for goodness’ sake. Definitely a plus.
When her last relationship ended, she decided to take a break from men because she seemed to constantly end up with duds. They were either intellectual types, too aloof or snooty to relax and have a good time, or they were men whose only interests revolved around partying and sex. She longed for a happy median, someone like Omar—a veritable unicorn—who knew how to have a good time but also had interests in business and philanthropy. Maybe she’d found herself another unicorn.
“The chocolate chip cookies are excellent too.” Dana pulled out her phone and opened the clock app. “You have a deal. I’m setting the timer for thirty minutes.”
He raised his eyebrows. “You don’t play around.”
“No, I don’t.” The seconds started counting down.
“Can I at least know the name of the woman I’m going to woo?”
Interesting choice of words. She hadn’t been wooed in a long time. So many men didn’t make the effort anymore. It was nice to see someone making the effort, and who knows, he might be the distraction she needed to help her get over her feelings for Omar. She would know more in the next twenty-nine minutes.
“My name is Dana. Dana Lindstrom.”
5
Omar lifted his hand in greeting to the guard as he rolled through the gate at the front of the subdivision where his parents lived in Suwanee. In sweetening the deal to entice them to move from New York, he’d offered to buy them a house.
He himself lived in a condo in Midtown, adequate for his needs as a thirty-three-year-old bachelor. For his parents, however, he purchased a four-sided brick, three-story manor with a master on the main floor, four additional bedrooms on the upper floors, and five and a half baths.
His parents loved the place for different reasons. His mother liked the layout of the house and the privacy afforded by the small community of only thirty houses. His father, Omar Senior, liked having access to the Jack Nicklaus-designed golf course. His passion for the game rubbed off on Omar, and since leaving football, he often played golf with his father.
He parked in the driveway and lifted Prince from the back seat. Jangling his keys as he entered the house, he let Prince run ahead into the kitchen. Right away, the delicious aroma of the meal hit his nostrils, and he practically salivated.
Dorothy wore an apron over her dress and stood at the island, putting the finishing touches on a dish.
“Grandma!” Prince screamed, barreling toward her as if he hadn’t seen her in years.
“Hey, baby!” She bent to give him a hug and kiss.
Omar kissed her cheek. “Smells good in here.”
“I hope you brought your appetite.”
“I see. You prepared a feast.”
He reached for a homemade roll, but she smacked his hand, and Omar grunted his displeasure.
“Not before dinner,” Dorothy said. “You two go wash up. Your father’s in the den watching TV.”
Omar sighed heavily and led his son to the bathroom first. Then he went in search of his father and found him in the den making a whiskey sour at the fully stocked bar.
The two-story den was bright and airy, with two sitting areas grouped around mahogany tables. One grouping contained a sectional, armchair, and recliner, while the other consisted of two solid-print armchairs in front of the fireplace.
There was a huge painting of Omar over the stone fireplace in his red Falcons jersey, arms raised overhead as he hollered after sacking the quarterback on the opposing team.
This room led onto the balcony, which contained an exterior fireplace and overlooked a full acre. His parents took full advantage of the outdoor space last winter after they finished renovations. They did a lot of entertaining, inviting over friends to huddle around the warm fire and roast marshmallows or dine on comforting soup with hot cider.
