“Just leave the saddlebags,” Matt said. “We’ll stay here and eat some of the leftovers for dinner this evening.”
“Oh, that’s right.” Sydney sat up, smiling once again. “Matt and I had dinner reservations tonight at Shane’s place. Why don’t you and Chelsea take it? It was for seven o’clock.”
Brad glanced at his watch, noting that it was only a quarter after three. They could make their reservation, but this must have been a part of Sydney’s plan all along in her campaign to force him into dating Chelsea whether he wanted to or not.
The problem was he wanted to—especially after spending the afternoon with her. However, it was unlikely she’d agree to see him again socially.
He quirked an eyebrow her direction. “What do you think? Have you eaten at our little brother’s restaurant yet? He trained with some of the top chefs around the world, and his staff is excellent. It’s not an experience you should miss out on.”
Chelsea pouted her lower lip out momentarily, and Brad could tell she wanted to say no.
“Give me a chance to make up for assuming this was a date or that you’d want to spend any time with the likes of me,” he said, wrapping her smaller hand in his. “It’s just dinner. You’ll have to eat tonight anyway, and what’s better than a five-star meal that someone else pays for?”
As he’d hoped, that provoked a smile, transforming her face into something so beautiful, Brad felt like he shouldn’t have the privilege to look at it.
“There’s that lovely grin,” he said, smiling in return. “Is that a yes?”
She nodded. “Only because I don’t want the reservation to go to waste. Someone should use it.”
“Glad that’s worked out,” Sydney said. “Now, you two get out of here. You are some of my favorite people, but I know how easily Brad gets embarrassed. Matt and I are about to become embarrassing.”
“My favorite thing,” Matt muttered, kissing Sydney’s neck.
Brad tugged Chelsea’s hand lightly, pulling her toward the horses. “We should hurry. I don’t think I can handle any more blushing today. My face is still hot from our ‘first time’ stories.”
Chelsea chuckled, following along with him amiably enough. “If your face had been any brighter, it would have started a forest fire.”
“I can’t help that,” Brad said as they reached the horses, and he grabbed Brownie’s saddle blanket off the top of the saddle. “I’m not used to telling my most embarrassing moments to a woman as beautiful as yourself.”
“You sure can be a charmer when you want to be,” Chelsea said, not seeming particularly charmed.
Brad slung the blanket across the horse’s back, following it with the saddle. Silently, he cinched up the straps before turning to face Chelsea. “I’m sorry,” he whispered. It wasn’t easy for him to apologize. In fact, he often ignored things he did wrong rather than having to admit them. “I was rude and presumptive, and you deserve so much better than that. You’re a special lady, Chelsea Taylor, and I want to get to know you better.”
She nodded. “If you help me figure out how to get onto this horse without a stepping block, you’re forgiven.”
Smiling, Brad set about explaining how to mount. As intimidated as he’d been to speak to Chelsea for the past year, she was certainly easy to talk with—funny, adventuresome, and apparently willing to forgive him for being a bonehead. He’d imagined her as being more serious, considering her extensive education and the professional field she chose. Maybe her easy nature would be the perfect match for him, helping him to be less uptight about everything.
Now, he just had to make the most of his second chance. He couldn’t screw up with her again.
Chapter 7
Chelsea wiggled her hips in front of the full-length mirror inside her small employee housing apartment, watching the way the silver dress hugged her curvy hips. She couldn’t help but smile at her reflection. Whether this date with Brad turned into a complete flop or something she wanted to do again, she always loved the opportunity to dress up.
Touching up the cherry red gloss on her lips, Chelsea glanced again at the clock. Brad said he would pick her up at 6:30 and it was 6:35. While she knew he had a busy job and likely ran late due to something business related, Chelsea valued punctuality. It was a mark against him in any consideration of a repeat date.
She’d let herself get carried away this afternoon, leaning against Brad’s firm muscles, imagining what he might look like with his shirt off, and assuming that the way he acted while riding Warrior was who he really was. It appeared that the persona he showed while at company parties—dour, grumpy, and unapproachable—was his true self. If that were accurate, she had no desire to spend more time with him. Still, it was a chance to go out tonight, and she did want to see if there was more to Brad than she’d first assumed.
Grabbing her matching silver clutch from the end of her small bed, Chelsea once again arranged the contents. If the night went bad, walking a half mile from the restaurant to her room across the beach wouldn’t be bad. She also made sure she had enough money to pay for her dinner. Considering Sydney had set this date up, Chelsea didn’t want to assume she didn’t have to pay. Plus, if Brad ended up being a horrible dinner companion, she would take care of her own expenses so he wouldn’t feel she owed him anything.
After a few more minutes, just as Chelsea picked up her phone to call Sydney and ask for Brad’s number, a light tap sounded against her doorway. Checking the peephole, Chelsea flung the door open. Fifteen minutes late to pick her up was more than being held up somewhere because of business. It told her that, to Brad, her time wasn’t as important as his.
However, his sheepish smile as he pulled a bouquet of white and pink lilies from behind his back stopped her before uttering the first angry word.
“Sorry, Chels.” He held out the flowers. “I know this doesn’t make up for my being late, but I hope it’s a start. I’m normally never late. This was the worst possible night for my manager over the housekeeping staff to have a family emergency. She needed to fly home immediately, so I set her up with our private jet to the Big Island and a flight to Missouri first thing in the morning. That took longer than I thought it would, and I didn’t have your number to warn you. I hope you didn’t think I stood you up. I’ve been looking forward to this all afternoon.”
Noting that her hands shook ever so slightly, Chelsea reached for the vase and accepted the lilies, turning to place them on the small desk to the right side of her doorway. “Something’s wrong with Noreen? Is it her daughter again?” Widening her eyes, Chelsea quickly shook her head. “Damn it. Forget I asked.”
She couldn’t let herself slip up and talk to Brad about one of her patients. She wondered why Noreen didn’t call her before heading to Brad, however. Noreen’s daughter had been going through a rough divorce last month, and the woman truly feared her daughter might hurt herself. All Chelsea could do now was pray Noreen called sometime soon to tell her that the daughter was safe.
“Noreen must be one of your patients?” Brad asked, quirking one black eyebrow. “Not that I want details, but I’m sure you must be worried if that’s the case.”
Appreciating his understand, Chelsea nodded. “Noreen is a good woman. She reminds me of my grandmother in a way. I hope she’s okay.”
“Your grandmother?” Brad stroked a hand across his jaw in a habit Chelsea was starting to recognize as something he often did. “Noreen is only my mother’s age. What makes you think grandmother?”
Remembering Brad didn’t know anything about her life, Chelsea forced a relaxed attitude and smiled. “My grandmother was like a mother to me, so I suppose I meant mother.”
“You’ll be happy to know that her daughter is safe,” Brad said, seeming to accept her glossing over the explanation about mothers and not asking any follow-up questions, much to Chelsea’s relief. “Noreen’s mother fell and broke her hip. She has to have surgery. Noreen really wanted to be there, and I agreed she should be. I’ve
given her the next month off to take care of her mom. She’ll miss our first big rush of guests over spring break, but we have a good staff here, and I’m sure it’ll be fine.”
Hearing that, Chelsea breathed a bit easier. Not that she was happy Noreen’s mom had to go in for surgery, but that was a better alternative than hearing Noreen’s daughter had committed suicide.
“Am I forgiven?” Brad prompted, cocking his head to the side. “I know it was an awful thing to do, being late to our first date. If it had been less severe I would have told her to wait until tomorrow, but she really needed to get to her family as quickly as she could.”
Chelsea nodded, her earlier irritation vanishing more quickly than she expected. Brad must care about the people who worked on this island. Despite it causing him to be tardy, Chelsea appreciated a boss who didn’t think his employees were nothing more than underlings he could walk on. She’d certainly been around that type often enough as she worked her way through college.
Brad offered her the crook of his arm. “We do need to hurry, though. My brother won’t give our reservations away just because we’re late, but I hate to cause too many problems.”
“Of course.” Chelsea stepped back into the room, snagging her clutch off the bed and walking out the door. She locked the deadbolt and slipped the key into her purse before accepting Brad’s arm.
Although he looked a lot different from the man on the horse in a T-shirt and jeans this afternoon, his black slacks and light blue dress shirt still couldn’t hide his muscles or stop her memory of feeling them when he’d saved her from falling out of the saddle. The man didn’t lack in the looks department. Brad most closely resembled his father and his oldest brother Quinn, having their thick black hair and stockier features. The rest of the family was fair skinned with light brown hair, favoring their mother, but Chelsea had to admit Brad was more handsome than his brothers were, even his apparent nemesis, Quinn.
They stepped into the elevator and Brad leaned forward to press the button for the ground floor, casually putting his arm around her waist instead of reclaiming her arm. It was comfortable, like his arm belonged around her, and Chelsea wasn’t sure what that meant. She’d never felt particularly comfortable with any man she dated and certainly not after one afternoon together.
“So, you’ve probably heard lots about me, being friends with my sister,” he said, his minty breath bathing her cheek as he pressed close to her. “Tell me about yourself, Chelsea. Where did you grow up? Where is your family?”
She wavered in giving him points back toward future dating possibilities. That wasn’t generally the first question a guy asked. As much as Brad resented being the middle child, he obviously cared a lot about family.
Still, family wasn’t her favorite subject. Without consciously thinking about it, Chelsea stroked the metal cross around her neck. “I don’t have any family left,” she whispered softly. “Let’s talk about something else.”
Brad’s body stiffened next to her, and she could sense his tension.
“I’m striking out here, aren’t I?” he asked. “I didn’t mean to bring up a painful subject. I just want to know everything about you. Sydney kind of forced us into this, but the truth is I’ve had my eye on you ever since you came to the island.”
Chelsea turned her head to smile up at him and bumped her hip against his. “Too shy to approach me? That doesn’t seem like you.”
The elevator came to a stop, and Brad stepped out first, standing in the doorway so it couldn’t close on her as he swept his hand out to indicate she should exit. It was a touch of chivalry that she hadn’t expected.
Once she passed through, Brad quickly stepped up and again offered his arm. “By the way,” he said as she took it, “I was so worried about being late, I forgot to tell you the most important thing.”
“Yeah? What’s that?”
“That dress is a man killer,” he murmured close to her ear. “You look so damn sexy that I can hardly think straight.”
* * *
Brad pulled Chelsea’s chair out for her, wishing Sydney had been able to reserve the chef’s table in the kitchen. It was booth seating in there, and Brad could have held Chelsea close while they ate. Still, his sister’s meddling had scored him this first date, and he wouldn’t quibble about the details.
Taking the chair to the right of Chelsea so they were still within easy touching distance, Brad spared a brief nod at their server when she dropped off water and promised to be back to take their order shortly. Briefly was all he could stand to take his eyes off his date.
Chelsea usually dressed in slacks and different blouses that covered her curves, but her dress tonight was something different altogether. He’d thought the tank top and jeans were sexy, but the dress was stunning. The shimmering silver plunged down to show a fair amount of cleavage, revealing a sliver cross nestled above her breasts. Brad thought he’d seen a chain around her neck this afternoon, but the cross hadn’t been visible. He wondered if she were religious or wore it for some other reason.
“What kind of food do you like?” he asked, forcing himself to tear his eyes away from her chest. “My little brother has trained with chefs all over the world, so the menu is a mix of different cultures. No matter what you order, I promise it’ll be great. He’s very talented.”
Chelsea glanced up from her menu and merriment seemed to dance in her sky blue eyes.
“What’s funny?” he asked, feeling himself smile back in reflex. Her amusement was catching, even if he did suspect she directed it at him.
“I’m surprised you sing the praises of your little brother, is all. I had a feeling you didn’t exactly get along with anyone except Syd.” Her eyes were still bright with interest and humor, so at least she wasn’t totally turned off by him being grumpy earlier when they talked about Quinn.
“It’s something I’m trying to work on,” he admitted. “I’ve always felt...” He shrugged and shook his head.
“Left out?” she supplied with a nod. “It’s not unusual for a middle child. No one thinks any less of you, but you have a hard time realizing that.”
Brad tried not to let her analysis offend him. After all, it was what she did for a living. He wasn’t looking for a therapist, though. He wanted a woman who could be as into him as he was her.
“Maybe leave the therapist talk in your office, doc?” He smiled and reached across the table to touch her hand and let her know he wasn’t truly mad. “The truth is, I think you’re right. Sydney’s been saying something similar to me for the past few months.”
“I didn’t mean to slip into therapist mode,” Chelsea said. “I’ve just been thinking about it a lot today. You were a different person while riding Warrior. At Quinn’s party for the art gallery, you seemed positively dour. I liked the man I saw today a lot better.”
She certainly didn’t back down when she knew she was right. Although Brad hated that she had seen all his prior grumpiness, he liked that she was sure enough in herself that she wasn’t afraid to tell him what she saw, even if he didn’t want to hear it.
“Quinn reached out to me at that party right before they announced the sex of the baby,” Brad admitted. “They want me to be a part of my niece’s life, and I love kids. We’re trying to work toward friendship, and I’ll be there for the baby.”
“Sydney had mentioned how good you are with Ryan. Do you want kids of your own one day?”
It was serious talk for a first date, but he could go with the flow. Besides, Chelsea was already thirty. It seemed she’d put her schooling and career ahead of starting a family. If it was because having children wasn’t part of her plan, it’d be better to know that now before his crush on her developed into something more.
“What are your thoughts on kids?” he asked, turning the tables on her.
The words came out harsher than he intended, and the gruffness hung in the air between them while she stared at him, not speaking. He really had to stop letting the jerk in him take over when
he talked to her.
“I didn’t mean for that to sound so—”
“Have you all had a chance to decide?”
Brad started at the cheerful voice of their server, and Chelsea looked away to glance at the menu.
“I’ll have the salad with raspberry vinaigrette,” she said softly.
At least she wasn’t leaving.
“And for your main course?” the server asked.
“Beef Wellington.”
Breathing a sigh of relief, Brad ordered his standard medium-rare T-bone steak.
Once the server left, Brad turned on his most charming smile, hoping to brush away his earlier harshness. Perhaps he didn’t have to know if Chelsea wanted children this very second. After all, those were questions for the future, not a first date.
“Let’s talk about something else. Sorry for snapping at you.”
She nodded it acknowledgment. “What should we discuss?”
“You chose an interesting profession,” he said, feeling that should be a safe topic. “What made you want to do it? Is it a desire to help people?”
The relief apparent in her blue eyes as she brushed her dark hair behind her shoulder told Brad he’d made the right conversational choice.
“Mostly,” she said. “I had some rough stuff happen when I was a girl, and a child psychologist helped me a lot. Without his help, I wouldn't have been able to handle that stress. The idea of being the person to do that for someone else was a powerful motivator.”
Was he supposed to ask what happened in her past? She’d entirely closed down when he asked about her family, which clued him in that it was likely them that caused whatever trauma sent her to a psychologist. She had said her grandmother was like a mother to her. Knowing full well how horrible some parents could be, Brad didn’t think it would be a good idea to ask about them. Although his parents were wonderful and loving, keeping their children close to them and having weekly family dinners, Brad knew many families didn’t have that sort of relationship. As much as he had resented his siblings over the years, hearing how abusive some families became was quite the shock.
Love's Ride (McCallister's Paradise Book 4) Page 5
