Page 8 of Married to Murder
A line appeared between his dark brows. “Oh, I see.” He hesitated. “But you said yes to dinner with me. I guess I should be flattered.”
“Well, I don’t exactly consider myself to be some great prize. I just tend to keep to myself.”
He nodded. “Okay.”
Freddy brought our beers and then rushed back in the direction of the kitchen.
Tanner lifted his beer. “How about we just relax and have dinner. That’s all this has to be. Okay?”
I bumped his beer with my bottle. “Sure.” The problem was, I wasn’t sure I only wanted this to just be dinner. The promise of his pretty, full mouth and heated eyes made me want more, even if I was leery about getting involved with him. I swallowed a mouthful of the ice-cold beer and then sighed.
He laughed. “That’s right. Just relax.”
I winced. “I guess your dinner invitation caught me off guard.”
“Is that why you said yes?”
I shrugged. “I said yes because I was enjoying your company.”
“Good. That’s the same reason I asked.” He smiled, his eyes warm. “So what’s life like in this town? Boring? Or is there enough to keep you amused?”
“I lead a very simple life, so it gives me all I need. I have my freedom. I like what I do. Sure, I wish I made better money during the slower months so I could pump some cash back into the business. But I’m fortunate to have a place to sleep and a roof over my head.” I frowned. “Not everybody has that.”
“True.”
I studied the menu some more, deciding on the Baja tacos, and I set my menu down. I didn’t have a huge appetite because I still felt anxious. The tacos would be more than enough food. “What about you? Where do you hail from?”
“I live in San Luis Obispo.”
“It’s nice up there.” I nodded. “What do you do for a living?”
His jaw clenched. “I run my family’s candy company.”
“Yeah?” I perked up at that information. “What kind of candy?”
“Chocolates.”
I grinned. “Lucky you.”
He grimaced. “It’s not as fun as it sounds.”
“No? What’s the name of the company?”
He sighed. “I’m Tanner Trenton.”
“Trenton?” I frowned. “Trenton. Wait… you mean of Trenton’s Treats?” I widened my eyes. How had I not noticed his name earlier? I guess I’d been distracted with trying not to ogle him.
“The one and the same.” His mouth was a straight line.
“Seriously?” I smiled stiffly. “Wow. You must be even richer than I thought.” I was having trouble wrapping my head around who he was. Why the hell would a guy like him have needed me as his dinner companion?
He looked uneasy. “I don’t like to tell people who I am right away. It makes them uncomfortable sometimes.”
“I can see why.” I grimaced. “You must have had better options than me to have dinner with.”
“I wanted to have dinner with you.”
I nodded absentmindedly, my confused thoughts buzzing around in my head.
