Page 55 of Rules of Engagement
The air left her lungs in a gush. "That's unrealistic."
"Every relationship has issues. Arguments. But if the commitment is there, they're just arguments. It doesn't always have to be the end, Eliza."
She lowered her gaze to the grilled salmon salad in front of her and finally picked up her fork. "This looks delicious, doesn't it?"
OceanofPDF.com
Chapter 21
After lunch, Eliza opened her binder once more and removed another file. "What's this?" Carter asked.
She smiled at him and flipped open the folder. "This is what I have in mind for Piper's birthday party. I wanted to run it by you and get your thoughts."
She laid the sheets out in front of him, and he felt his mouth gape in wonder. "Wow."
"You like it? I'll warn you now that I may go a little overboard with balloons, but they're big impact, and I have so many left over from various events."
"She loves balloons," he said, taking in the personal-size mermaid-scale birthday cake, surrounded by cupcakes with mermaid tails and sprinkles and clamshell cookies with frosting between the two halves along with a pearl candy.
"Since kids are notoriously picky about food, I'm thinking seashell pasta, pizza cutouts of mermaid tails, and baby croissant sandwiches made to look like crabs," she said, pointing to a photo. "Those can be PB and J or plain cheese. And blue punch otherwise known as ocean water for drinks. Best of all, it can be made ahead of time and is kid-friendly."
"This is incredible."
"Oh, good. I was hoping you'd say that," she said, flipping another page. "And there's more."
"More than this?"
"Yeah, well, you said the party will be at Lincoln's because of the pool, so I found a couple of cute games. And a standing cutout I thought you could make for me? Amelia's friend Izzy volunteered to paint it for us."
The cutout featured three spots for little heads positioned above the bodies of two mermaids and a pirate. "Yes. Absolutely. I've got plenty of stuff perfect for that. I can cut it out and have it to you by this evening."
"Great."
He couldn't believe she'd pulled the party ideas together so quickly, especially having worked on Lincoln and Amelia's wedding all last week. "I have an idea. While I'm dropping off the cutout, how about I also bring some of the shelving we discussed? Maybe I could get into those rooms and get started?"
It seemed only fair—and it was a way to spend more time with her as their schedules allowed.
Eliza sank her teeth into her lower lip again before apparently realizing what she did and stopped. He managed to pull his gaze from her mouth and wished she wasn't wearing those sunglasses.
"It's the weekend. I'm sure you have plans. Don't you?"
"I do—with you. If you say it's okay."
"I… Yes, it's okay. After all, it's part of our agreement so… yeah."
Part of their agreement. Did that mean she didn't want to move forward on a personal level? He wanted to ask but his instincts told him to bide his time. "How about dessert? To celebrate our working together on future projects."
Eliza laughed and shook her head. "Not for me. I had more than enough cake last night. You go right ahead, though."
"Nothing is as much fun if you have to do it alone," he said, winking at her and thoroughly enjoying the flush that rose in her cheeks. "Okay, since we're not having dessert, how about we hop back on the boat and go have some fun before we head back?"
Minutes later,they were back on the water. Carter had snagged the check before she could and paid despite her protests that it was a business meeting aboutherbusiness.
As they'd walked out of the restaurant, she spotted a few heads turning toward them and didn't mind Carter's hand riding her shoulder as he walked by her side.
Now they cruised along the Intercoastal, and she spent the time staring at Carter's strong profile instead of the scenery.
She hated the fear that seemed to be lurking just below the surface, because she'd enjoyed their day. They'd talked business and Piper's party details, but she felt they'd also made a deeper connection during the discussion about her family and James. Then again, having known Carter for only two weeks, she couldn't be sure if it was a connection or merely part and parcel of simply learning more about a new acquaintance.
