"No, not at all, tell us all about your wedding plans," Cora said to Sara, ignoring Tori's obvious ploy to throw Dale and Cora together, should he arrive with Bruce.
"We're getting married the day after Christmas, so we have some time yet." She looked around the bar. "Oh, there's Bruce now. It doesn't look like Dale's with him, after all. Wouldn't that have been something to see, the two of you together, after all these years? Just like in the movies."
Sara waved to her fiancée, and he walked over to join her. He planted a kiss on her cheek and spoke to Tori. Looking at Cora, he said, "This can't be Cora Watson."
"Yes, in the flesh. I'm here for a short visit," she replied, smiling up at him.
"Wait till old Dale sees you." Bruce let out a low whistle.
"Where is Dale?" Sara asked.
"He had to answer a phone call. He said he'd be in when he was finished. Dance with me, woman." He reached for Sara's hand and led her to the dance floor.
Cora said to Tori, "You may as well call Jonathan and have him join us. I have the feeling Sara and Bruce are with us for the duration."
"And Dale Barton… who in a million years would have thought he'd be here, of all places, tonight, and in town the same week as you? Coincidence or sheer fate, what do you think?" Tori grinned.
"I don't know what to think, Tori," she answered in a slightly nervous voice as the redhead pulled her cell out of her purse and texted her boyfriend.
A few minutes later, she told Cora, "Jonathan will join us. He was watching a movie. He's such a good boy, staying in while I'm out."
Cora rolled her eyes. "I'm surrounded by lovesick fools." But as she said the words, she was really thinking to herself, I wish I was one of them.
Bruce and Sara walked back to the table, a few minutes later. Shortly after that, the absolute sexiest man in the world—at least in Cora's opinion—joined them. As she looked up into the eyes of the man she'd loved since she was fifteen years old, her heart skipped a beat, and her breath caught in her throat. Sara had been right when she'd said the years had been good to him. He was charisma, class, and sex appeal, all rolled into one amazingly handsome man. He had the same brown hair and beautiful brown eyes. And with the muscular body, it was obvious he worked out and had remained athletic over the years.
He spoke to both Sara and Tori, but when his eyes came to rest on Cora's face, he froze for just a second. Quickly regaining his composure, he smiled and said, "Cora Beth, is that you?"
"Yes, it's me."
He sat down beside her. "Wow, how many years has it been? Are you still in Chicago?"
"I left there three years ago, to take a position with a publishing house in New York City," she informed him.
"New York City, that's pretty impressive for a small-town girl."
He smiled at her, and her knees turned to jelly. All the confidence and sass she'd acquired over the past twelve years went out the door with one smile from this man.
Weakly, she returned the smile, hoping he hadn't noticed the effect he still had on her.
He ordered a beer and began to talk to the others at the table. After a while, he looked at Cora again and asked, "Care to dance with an old flame while you're in town, Cora Beth?"
"All right, I guess one dance would be okay," she replied, wondering how in the world she was going to get up and walk to the dance floor with shaking legs and a pounding heart.
He led her onto the wooden floor, and as the DJ played a slow and sensuous love song, she found herself in the arms of the only man she had ever loved.
He pulled her close and whispered, "This seems just like old times, huh?"
She smiled up at him. Maybe fate had brought them both to town the same week, just like Tori had said. This was the year of their thirtieth birthdays, after all. She nestled closer and lay her head on his shoulder. He tightened his hold on her and kissed the top of her head.
I'm finally back where I belong, in Dale's arms.
When they returned to the table and joined the other two couples, Cora found herself watching his every move as he spoke to the group. Tori asked him about his upcoming move back to Fredericksburg.
"Yes, Tori, it's true. Dad is looking to retire in a few years. He and Mom want to travel, so we thought it best if I make the move now. It will make the transition smoother, hopefully, when I take over the firm."
"Won't you miss Austin? You've lived there for so long," Cora asked.
He looked at her, grinning as he replied, "Coming from someone who lives in the Big Apple, I can see where you'd wonder about that. Yes, I'll miss the action. I get out on the weekends a lot and go to clubs and various events. But I'm not that far away. I'll still be able to go back most weekends."
The group continued talking into the early morning hours. When the bar was closing, Jonathan suggested they all go out for an early breakfast at an all-night diner in town.
Tori looked at Cora. "Are you game?"
"Sure, I'll go."
"Cora, why don't you ride with me, and we can catch up a little more?" Dale suggested.
Heart pounding as she looked into his deep brown eyes, she replied softly, "I would like that." She looked over at Tori and said, "Is that okay with you? We'll meet you and Jonathan at the diner."
"Perfectly all right with me; take your time," Tori answered as she winked at her.
"Sara, are you guys coming, too?" Tori asked.
"Yes, we'll meet you there."
Bruce winked at Dale as he said, "If you're not there in half an hour, we won't send out a search party."
"We'll be there," Dale replied as he took Cora's hand and held it tightly in his.
She was tempted to pinch herself to make sure the whole scene was really happening, but instead, she smiled at the others and added, "Yes, we'll be there. We may even beat all of you."
As he led her to his sharp black Lexus in the parking lot, he chuckled. "You know, we ought to be late, just to get them going."
"Do you really want to take all the ribbing we'd be sure to get if we were?" she asked, giggling like a schoolgirl.
He opened the passenger door for her, and, after making sure she was comfortably seated in the leather passenger seat, he walked around to the driver's side and slid into the seat.
Effortlessly, he wheeled the luxury car into traffic and drove toward the diner. "How long did you say you were going to be in town?"
"I got here earlier in the week for Gram's funeral, and I'm staying another week to help Mom and Dad get her house ready to sell."
"I'm sorry about your gram; she was a great old gal," he said sympathetically.
"Yes, she was. I'll miss her. We talked often on the phone until she became ill. I was home a few months ago to visit her, and I'm so glad I made that weekend trip now."
"I hear little Cassie is married. Where does she live?"
"She lives in San Antonio. That's where Clay, her husband, is from. They have a baby girl."
"Wow, the years have flown by, haven't they?"
"How's your sister?" she inquired as she drank in the sight of his gorgeous features.
"Denita is fine, married with two kids, lives here in town."
"I'll bet she's happy her baby brother is moving back."
"Yes, I suppose so. She keeps after me to settle down, and I keep telling her I'm having too much fun as a swinging bachelor. She seems to think that once I get back here, I'll meet the right girl and all that will change." He chuckled as they pulled into the parking lot of the diner. "Well, here we are, last chance to take a cruise around town and come back fashionably late," he said as he turned off the car.
"I think it's too late, Tori and Jonathan have seen us, and Sara and Bruce are pulling in as we speak."
"Damn the luck," he muttered as he opened his door.
He walked around the front of the car and around to her side. Extending a hand to help her out, he complimented her, "Looking good, Cora Beth."
"Thank you, Dale, you're not so bad yourself."
They joined the rest of their group and walked into the diner. After the hostess seated them at a large table in the back of the dining room, they perused the menu and gave the disinterested waitress their orders.
Cora ordered an omelet and coffee.
Dale commented, "Coffee won't keep you awake at this hour?"
"Heavens, no, I practically live on it when I'm up late reading manuscripts."
"I'd have some serious issues with that if we were still together," he said under his breath, then he busied himself looking over the menu again.
Cora heard his remark and wondered what he meant by that. Serious issues? That didn't sound like the easygoing Dale she remembered. She decided to let it pass but resolved to pay close attention to anything else he might say.
After everyone had placed their order, the conversation drifted away from old times to the upcoming holiday wedding of Sara and Bruce later in the year.
"Dale is going to be my best man," Bruce told the others as he slapped his buddy on the back.
"Really, I didn't realize the two of you were still that close," Tori replied.
"We've kept in touch, and now that my old pal is moving back to town, I figure we'll be spending some time together, on the golf course and the racquetball court.
"As long as I'm not the groom, I have no problem being in a tux and standing at the altar," Dale joked.
"So you have no plans to settle down anytime soon?" Jonathan asked as he smiled at Tori.
"Not unless fate has something else in store for me, I don't," he replied as he took a sip of his water and looked at Cora.
Cora listened to the conversation but said nothing. So, he isn't married and has no plans to marry. That must mean there is no one special in his life either.
An hour later, they decided to call it a night. Dale looked at Cora and asked, "May I drive you home?"
Looking at Tori, who nodded, she answered with a smile, "Of course, you may."
As he drove the distance from the diner to her parents' house, he looked across at her and asked, "Would you like to have dinner before you go back to New York? Who knows how many years it will be before we get this chance again?"
"Yes, Dale, I'd like that very much," she replied softly.
"How about tomorrow night?"
"Tomorrow night will be fine," she answered as her heart skipped a beat.
"Here we are, safe and sound. I'll walk you to the door, just like old times." He got out, helped her out of the car and, taking her hand, started up the walk to her parents' front door as he had done so many times in the past.
"I'll pick you up at seven tomorrow night," he said when they reached the front porch.
"I'll be ready," she replied, looking up at him with a smile.
He leaned over and gave her a peck on the cheek. "Until then," he said as he turned and walked to his car.
She watched him drive away. Until then, my love, she thought as she opened the front door.
Everyone was in bed already, so she crept quietly up the stairs. When she reached the door to her room, Cassie came out with an empty baby bottle in her hand.
"Are you just getting in? I had to get up and feed the baby. She's finally asleep again."
"Yes, we met up with some old friends and went out for breakfast when the bar closed."
"Who did you see?"
"Sara and her fiancé, do you remember her?"
"Yes, I do. How is she?"
"Happy and in love, getting married in December, to Bruce King. I know you remember him; he was Dale's best friend."
"Oh wow, I can't imagine those two together, but I guess love is weird like that sometimes."
"They seem to be very happy together. Dale was there too. He's in town this week and had dinner with Bruce before they joined Sara at the bar."
"Dale Barton was there? Isn't he some big-time Austin lawyer now?"
"Yes, but oddly enough, he's moving back home to take over his dad's law firm soon."
"Now, isn't that weird? The two of you just happen to be in town the same week, after all these years," Cassie teased. "It's almost like fate had a hand in that."
"Now you sound like Tori. It's just a coincidence, Cassie. But we are having dinner together, tomorrow night." She turned to go into her bedroom.
"Now, that's encouraging. Wouldn't it be something if the two of you got back together, after all these years?"
She laughed. "I don't think there's much chance of that happening. He lives in Texas, and I live in New York. And he is a confirmed bachelor with no intention of getting tied down to one woman. He made that quite clear to everyone, tonight."
"I guess you're right. It's still romantic, though. The two of you were such a cute couple in high school. I envied my big sis for having such a hot boyfriend."
Rolling her eyes, she said, "I'll see you in the morning. You'd better get back to bed before the little princess decides it's time to wake up again."
"Clay can take the next shift. See you in the morning, sweetie. Sweet dreams."
"Goodnight, little sis," she replied as she flipped on the light switch in the bedroom and quietly closed the door.
She lay awake for quite some time, reliving the evening and the shock of seeing Dale again. He's hotter than ever. And he's single. And I am going to be in town for another whole week. The best part of that is that he is also going to be in town for another week. A lot can happen in a week. Maybe fate did have a hand in this. After all, this is supposed to be our year.
The next morning, she bounced out of bed and dressed in jeans and a T-shirt. She ran downstairs on feet as light as air and joined the rest of her family in the dining room.
"You're chipper this morning. You and Tori must have had a good time last night," her mother said as she handed her a cup of coffee.
"Or it might be the fact that she has a date with a certain brown-haired hunk, tonight," Cassie said as Cora glared at her.
"You have a date tonight, Cora?" Her dad grinned at her.
"Yes, you may as well know. Tori and I ran into some old friends from high school, and Dale was with them. He is in town this week, and he invited me to dinner."
"That's wonderful," her mother said as she passed a plate of bacon to her.
"You think it's wonderful? I thought you didn't like Dale." She looked at her mother as she took two slices of bacon and passed the plate to Cassie.
"I've always liked Dale. I just thought that, at eighteen, you were too young to be so serious."
"He's moving back to town to work in his dad's law practice," she informed them.
"Is he now?" her dad asked as he speared his eggs with a fork.
"His parents want to retire and travel in a few years. When they do, Dale will take over the firm."
"Wouldn't it be something if the two of you found your way back to each other, after all this time? You might want to write your own romance novel, instead of reading other people's stories," her mother said with a grin.
"Mom, I hardly think that will happen, with him living here. I live in New York, remember? And have you forgotten that the reason he broke off with me back then was because he didn't want a long-distance relationship. Besides, he made it quite clear that he enjoys being a bachelor and playing the field when we were all talking last night."
"Well, I hope you have a good time tonight anyway, honey."
"I hope so too, sweetheart," her dad agreed.
After the dishes were washed, they all said goodbye to Cassie, Clay, and little Adele as they prepared to go home to San Antonio.
"I'll go over to Gram's for a while and help you, this afternoon. I want to run to the mall, first. I'll meet you over there," Cora told her parents after her sister's family had pulled out of the driveway.
"Okay, honey, we'll see you there in a little while."
She grabbed the keys to her rental car and her purse and drove across town to the mall. After she had window-shopped in some of the shops, she finally purchased a form
-fitting simple navy-blue dress and a navy and maroon-printed kimono to wear over it. Navy pumps completed the outfit. The jewelry she had brought with her would look perfect with the dress. The only dress she'd brought with her had been the black suit that she had worn to her grandmother's funeral, and she wanted something dressy yet simple for her dinner with Dale.
She drove to her grandmother's house and spent the next three hours helping her mother clean out the kitchen. Then, looking at her watch, she asked, "Mom, do you mind if I quit on you early today? I'd like some time to get ready for my date."
"Go on and get out of here; we're going to call it a day soon, anyway."
She drove home and decided to soak in the tub while no one else was home. After the relaxing bath, she toweled herself dry and snuggled into her fluffy pink robe while drying her thick blonde mane. She slid into the new dress and carefully applied her makeup then brushed her hair into its familiar style and dabbed some perfume behind her ears and on her wrists. Surveying the finished product in the mirror, she smiled. "Not bad, Cora, not bad at all," she said aloud.
She heard the doorbell ring, and glancing at the alarm clock on the bedside table, she saw that it was six forty-five. She grabbed a small purse she'd picked up at the mall earlier and slowly walked down the stairs to meet her date.
He and her dad were deep in conversation when she reached the bottom of the stairs. As she entered the living room, she heard her dad say, "That's great, Dale, I'll bet your family is glad you're coming back to town."
"I'm sure they are. It will certainly take some getting used to, after living in Austin all these years."
"We'd love it if Cora Beth lived closer. But she seems to be happy where she is, so we don't say much," she heard her dad reply.
Her mother was sitting in the recliner. "It's really nice to see you again, Dale. We've missed having you around here."
"Thanks, Mrs. Watson. I spent a lot of fun times in this house."
"Ah, here's Cora Beth now. Honey, you look nice." Her dad smiled as she walked into the room.
"Are you ready to go?" he asked as he grinned at her.
"Yes, I'm ready," she replied as she drank in the sight of the gorgeous man standing in front of her. He was wearing an obviously expensive gray suit with a light blue shirt. The tie was gray and blue-striped.
Her Promised Dom (Dominant Men Book 3) Page 4
