Page 24 of Rebel Secrets
“I’m glad.”
Then we stood there and stared at each other for a few seconds before I swore I could see the gears of her brain fire up due to too much silence.Her lips curved in a smile that made the tightness return to my muscles, which just pissed me off.
“Well,” she said, “I’m just gonna?—”
“I think we should probably have lunch sometime next week.Before we’re shoved into each other’s personal space for this dance at the wedding.”
Apparently, I’d struck her dumb with my brilliance.Or maybe she thought I’d been taken over by aliens, since I was the last person she’d expect to ask her to lunch.And honestly, maybe I had been.
“I’m not sure I can.Lunch is the busiest time of day for me and I’m not?—.”
“Shit, I totally forgot the bakery’s only open for breakfast and lunch.”And before I realized what I was going to say, the words were out of my mouth.“Then how about dinner?”
Her eyes widened, as if she were considering the aliens thing again.And maybe that the aliens were here to cause mass destruction.
“Dinner?”
“Yeah.”Then my brain started spinning in circles because it had caught up with my mouth and now it was trying to figure out what the hell I’d gotten it into.Dinner was a whole universe away from lunch.
Lunch was all bright light and busy people rushing around to get something to eat before heading back to work.Lunch was a finite period of time.
Dinner… Well, dinner was dark lighting and way too much time to sit and fuck up a conversation.
“Dinner would be…good.Sure.Dinner is fine.Is there a night that’s better for you?I have another book club next week for the teens on Thursday.Oh, and Tuesday we’re having a painting class.We’re going to paint bricks to look like books to decorate a garden.I’m really kind of excited about that one.I only have a little garden, but it definitely could use some work.Oh wait, Wednesday’s out too?—”
“How about Monday?Paolo’s work for you?”
Paolo’s was the local pizzeria.Bright lights, families with kids, groups of teenagers.Lots of noise and laughter and talking.Enough distraction to keep him from stressing too much about who he was with.
“Sure.That works.”
“You want to meet there around six-thirty?”
“Sure.That—That’s good.I’ll see you there.”Then she looked over her shoulder like she was desperate for an exit.“I should get back to?—”
“Yeah, no problem.And Erin?”
“Yeah?”
“Book club was good.”
ChapterEight
Erin
“You and Rebel?On a date?”
“It’s not a date.He didn’t ask me out on a date.It’s more like a get-used-to-each-other dinner before we have to dance at the wedding.”
Rain and I were stocking shelves Sunday after closing.We’d been mobbed this weekend.Lots of people getting their reading material for the pool or vacation.Or it’d been a big release week, and we had a lot of new inventory.
Whatever, it’d been a busy day, and I was more than ready to head home with some Chinese takeout.I’d baked all week and had absolutely no desire to be in a kitchen tonight, and the next couple episodes of Wynonna Earp.Linny’s daughter, Maddy, had turned me onto the show, and I was hooked.
“Are you sure you two can be trusted in a public space together for more than five minutes alone?I mean, I’m sure Vic would like his restaurant to still be standing after you two leave.”
“I’m sure he’ll be on his best behavior.”
Rain’s grin held mischief.“He’s not the only one I’m talking about.”
