Page 66 of Snow Balled

That just left one catatonic man. I moved closer to Drew. He looked amazing. The dress shirt did very little to hide his bulging biceps, but it made him look sophisticated and handsome. And he had real slacks on, not jeans. Not that he didn’t look good in jeans, but this outfit made him look charming. Plus, if the evening took a naughty direction and he got hard, the lighter fabric of his pants might make him a little more comfortable.

Since he still hadn’t moved, I placed my fingers on his jaw, rubbing the smooth skin. “You shaved.”

“Yes,” he said hoarsely.

“It looks good.”

I stepped to the side as Carter came out with a plate of bruschetta. “That smells amazing,” I said as he passed. Then I frowned as he put it on the worktable. “We’re eating out here?”

“No, we’ll eat in the kitchen,” he said. He had on a t-shirt that had food stains on it, which wasn’t surprising since he was our chef tonight. But his black jeans hugged his ass in an enticing way, and his black boots made him look extra tall. I was already completely on board with date night.

With my hand on Drew’s shoulder for support, I balanced on my toes and whispered into his ear. “Thank you so much for going down there to get my dress for me.”

“Totally worth it,” Carter muttered as he made his way back to the kitchen, and I laughed.

“Are you brave enough to try the appetizers?” I asked Drew.

He blinked and seemed to snap out of it. “Brave?”

I smiled. “Because Carter made them.”

“I’m game if you are.”

Game was the perfect way to describe me. I wanted to try new things tonight. Many new things. But that meant showing far more courage than it took to try Carter’s food. And it also required solving a problem I hadn’t anticipated. Everyone was acting like I’d just been beamed down to the cabin. Like I wasn’t the same person they’d known for all this time. Sure, they all looked really hot, but I knew they were the same as when they were wearing baggy clothes and in need of a shave.

Tristan appeared with a bottle of chardonnay. Carter was right behind him, and my jaw nearly dropped. He’d changed into a steel-gray button-down shirt that made him look as dangerous as he looked handsome.

Okay, so maybe it was jarring to see someone you knew transform themselves.

Tristan poured the wine into four glasses.

“A toast,” Carter began once we all had one. “To your screenplay getting made into a movie,” he began with a sexy little bow in my direction. “And to our company being a success.”

“A huge success,” I said, as we clinked our glasses together.

The cool liquid tickled my throat in a pleasant way. Maybe this would help me relax. Hopefully, it would help all of us relax.

When Carter went back to attend to the meal, I pulled Tristan aside. “Are you sure we should be doing this?” I said with a sly smile as I tilted my head toward the kitchen. “I’m not sure you’ve considered how far away we are from the nearest poison control center.”

He chuckled quietly, and behind him, Drew smiled.

“Trust me,” Tristan said. “He’s perfected this meal over the years. His goal is to impress women, not send them to get their stomachs pumped.”

“Good to know.” Personally, I thought the easiest way for Carter to impress a woman was to take off his shirt and keep his mouth shut. But I was willing to give this way a shot, too.

Taking a bite of the bruschetta, I tried not to smear my makeup, which felt strange. For years, it had been a daily thing. Here, I’d almost forgotten how to apply it. But I’d have to get used to it again for the press tour. It was less than two weeks from now.

And it meant leaving Tristan, Carter and Drew.

That was another reason to dread it. But then again, it would also mean meeting Miranda and showing her my screenplay. Carter had even remembered that and included it in the toast.

“Why are you smiling?” Drew asked. He held an appetizer in his hand, but he hadn’t taken a bite yet.

There were many answers I could’ve given him, but I chose the one that was the most pertinent at the moment. “I’m on a date.”

“Dinner’s ready.” Carter stood in the doorway to the kitchen, and if he was nervous about the meal, he didn’t show it.

To my surprise, the round wooden table had been transformed. The place settings were the same, but there were several lit candles and even a centerpiece of sorts, with evergreen branches and pinecones.

---