by Meg Jolie
I was surprised by the question. I shook my head. “No, not at all. It’s really nice to be done with school.”
“That’s not exactly what I meant. You must miss your friends?”
Again, I shook my head. “I, uh,” I stammered, “I didn’t have many friends there.” His expression seemed doubtful so I continued. “My mom got sick just a few months after I moved. It was such a bad time in my life; it was all I could do to keep up with my studies. Making friends wasn’t a priority.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t think about that,” he said quietly. “That had to have been a really hard. Trying to get through school. Being so far away from your family. Not having any friends around…”
I didn’t want the conversation to somehow stumble onto Jason. It was far too early for that discussion. Or, with any luck, I’d never have to mention Jason at all. Before I had to think of a way to tactfully change the subject, our waitress came back.
“Can I interest you in dessert?” she asked.
Alex turned to me. I was already shaking my head but that didn’t stop him.
“I’m sure you’ve had tiramisu before,” he said. “But I’m sure you’ve never tasted anything like Bianca’s tiramisu. The cannolis are fantastic too. Or…have you ever tried crostata? The peach crostata is excellent.”
I shook my head, feeling slightly embarrassed. “To be honest, I’ve never tried any of the desserts you mentioned. I’ve never even heard of crostata. I’ve only been to an Italian restaurant a few times and I’ve never saved room for dessert. In fact, I didn’t save room this time either.”
“Sure you did,” he said as a smile spread across his face. He turned back to our waitress, who was waiting patiently. “Can you bring me the dessert sampler, please?”
She smiled. “I’ll bring it right out.”
I felt my eyes widen. “A dessert sampler?” My hand floated to my already full stomach.
“It’ll be so worth it, I promise,” Alex assured me.
Half an hour later, I was full to bursting. We’d taken our time with dessert, concentrating—again—more on the conversation than the food. But Alex was right. All of the desserts were incredible. The sampler was just the right size, a bite for each of us, of each dessert on the menu.
“Something wrong?” he asked. His expression was somewhere between amused and curious.
I had been running a fingertip across the fake, silk petal of one of the flowers that made up our centerpiece. I hadn’t realized what I’d been doing until he called me out on it. I discreetly pulled my hand away and tucked it safely onto my lap.
“No,” I said with a self-conscious laugh. “I guess I’m just turning into a bit of a flower snob.”
“Meaning?”
“Meaning this restaurant is beautiful, so classy. I’m just surprised the flowers aren’t real. Not that it’s a big deal. I mean, a month ago I never would’ve noticed,” I hurriedly added.
He raised his eyebrows. “I never thought about it like that before. You have a good point. Real flowers would be a nice touch.”
I was sure he was just humoring me, now that I was working with a florist.
“Things must be working out with Claire. It sounds like you’re thinking like her already.”
“We work well together. I’m just not sure that we’re going to be able to turn it into a long-term arrangement.” Now that I had firsthand knowledge of her books, even with the added business online options and a small gift shop might provide, I just didn’t see how it would be feasible no matter how badly we both might want it. I didn’t want to get into that but Alex was able to read between the lines.
“That’s too bad,” he said. “But maybe things will turn around.”
He was probably too polite to delve into questioning me more on the financial aspect. I didn’t get a chance to find out. Our waitress returned again, setting a small leather folder on the table.
“Thanks, Ashley,” he said.
“You’re welcome. I hope you enjoy the rest of your evening,” she said before leaving to check on another table.
“I guess we’re done here, unless you want anything else?” he asked me.
I was sure he couldn’t be serious. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d eaten so much.
“I’m good, thanks,” I said.
He opened the folder and pulled out the receipt, signed the bottom, and slid it back inside.
“Ready?” he asked.
I nodded and we stood. He tugged his wallet out of his pocket, rummaged through it and pulled out a bill to toss on the table.
I glanced at it, wondering if he’d meant to leave so much. I thought it was rude to ask, so I didn’t. He grinned sheepishly at me and then led the way out of the restaurant.
Apparently he was a big tipper. A real big tipper. Then I realized something else. When the bill had come, he’d simply signed the receipt inside. He hadn’t taken out any cash for that or even a credit card.
“So what’s the deal here?” I asked as we made our way across the street to the parking lot. “Do you have a running tab?”
He shook his head and laughed quietly. “Uh, not exactly.” I didn’t think he was going to elaborate but after a few moments, he did. “My parents own this place. They’re supposed to be semi-retired, they have a manager. But it’s not uncommon for them both to be here anyway. Obviously they weren’t here tonight or they would’ve pounced on us,” he admitted with a chuckle.
“Huh,” I said with a little nod of my head as I let that little tidbit settle in.
“My meals are always comped but I have to sign off on them. That’s why I like to leave a pretty decent tip. Especially when Ashley’s my waitress. She has a kid and the dad’s a real dead beat. I figure if I don’t have to pay for the meal, I can afford to leave a decent tip.”
I stopped once we hit the sidewalk next to the parking lot. “Your parents own Bianca’s?”
“I hope you don’t think I’m cheap for taking you here. Honestly, it is the best restaurant around and I swear to you, I’m not being biased. I’d bring you here even if my parents didn’t own it.”
I nodded. “I can’t disagree with that. The atmosphere is amazing and the food was incredible.”
He grinned at me. “Yeah? You’re not just saying that? Because if you don’t like it, you can tell me. It won’t hurt my feelings, I swear.”
He seemed so attached to the place, I wasn’t sure that I believed him. Not that it mattered because it wasn’t an issue.
“It truly was fabulous and honestly, I could eat here every night. Or not, because I’d probably turn into a blimp.” A thought occurred to me. “So is your family Italian?”
He laughed and we got moving again as a light mist started coming down. “Not that I’m aware of. My parents met in college. They were both studying abroad.”
“In Italy?” I guessed as we reached his truck.
“Yes,” he agreed. “They both fell in love with the country…and apparently, especially the food. It took a lot of years and a lot of work for everything to fall into place. But they opened Bianca’s when I was in first grade.”
“And the name?”
“Oh, yeah. Mom spent a lot of time at a little bistro while they lived there. A woman named Bianca owned the place. Mom worked there while she was going to school. Bianca kind of took Mom under her wing. To this day, Mom claims that everything she knows about Italian food came from Bianca. So she thought naming the restaurant in her honor was only fitting.”
“Very cool,” I decided.
He nodded. “I always thought so. Bianca even came to visit us…oh, wow, it was years ago…but she seemed really touched.”
Only moments after we were inside the cab of his truck, the mist turned into a heavy downpour. Lighting split across the sky, forking out as a clap of thunder shook the vehicle.
“Looks like we won’t be heading to the game,” Alex said.
I glanced at the dashboard clock. “We stayed at the
restaurant so long we missed most of it anyway.”
“I guess we did,” he said as we pulled out of the lot. “Maybe we’ll have to catch a game another night.”
With thunder and lightning in the area, it would be canceled now.
“I guess I should just take you home,” Alex said.
“I guess so,” I agreed as the rain spilled across the windshield.
“I had a good time tonight.”
“Me too,” I honestly said.
He sliced a glance at me while he pulled onto the road. “Since we had to cut tonight short, any chance you’d want to get together again tomorrow night?”
“Definitely.”
Chapter 13
As it turned out, we got together every night that week.
I cooked him dinner one night, we went out for burgers the next. We managed to catch one of Sean’s ball games. By the time Friday night came around, we decided on pizza and a movie.
On Saturday morning, I woke up with a smile on my face. I knew Alex had plans for us today but he’d been very secretive about them.
“Good morning,” Claire said when I padded out into the kitchen. She was sitting at the bar flipping through a magazine and finishing off a piece of toast. “You look happy this morning.”
I just grinned at her as I pulled a mug out of the cupboard.
“Things must be going well. You’ve been together every nigh this week,” she unnecessarily pointed out.
“Yeah, it’s been really nice. And we didn’t even really plan it. It just kind of turned out that way. But I’m not complaining.”
“What do you have planned for tomorrow? Have you got something going on with Alex? Or do you maybe want to hang out?” she asked.
“No, no plans with Alex,” I said. “I think tomorrow, I’m going to go see my dad. It’ll have to be just a quick trip but it’s long overdue.”
“Want some company?” she asked. “I could get away for the day if you don’t want to make the drive alone.”
“That would be great,” I agreed. I’d been talking to Dad frequently, so that was a definite start in mending our relationship, but I had yet to sneak in a visit. “I plan on leaving pretty early though.” It was a three hour drive and I wanted to make it worth my time since it was just a day trip.
“I can be ready—”
The phone rang, cutting her off. She leaned over, glancing at the caller-ID. She hesitated a moment before picking it up.
“Hello?” I heard her say as I poured myself a cup of coffee. “Hello?” she repeated as I turned around.
I looked at her with raised eyebrows.
She frowned as she leaned over to hang it up.
“Wrong number?” I guessed.
“Probably but I have no idea,” she said. “The number comes up ‘blocked’ and then they don’t say anything.”
I rested my elbows on the breakfast bar across from her. “You say that like it’s happened before.”
She shrugged. “That was only the second time. It could be just a prank. Remember when we were kids? Before caller-ID? We used to prank people all the time.”
I rolled my eyes and laughed. “Oh, yeah, so mature of us,” I said sarcastically. Only we hadn’t hung up. We’d said the most ridiculous things.
“So, back to Alex,” she said with a wink.
Smiling, I shook my head. “What about him?”
“Do you think it’s going somewhere? Or is it too soon to tell?”
“Well…” I pretended to think it over though I had my answer. “Yeah, I think it could definitely go somewhere.” I paused, trying to get a handle on my emotions. Finally I said, “I really like him a lot. He’s easy to talk to. He’s fun to be around. He’s such a gentleman. I mean, he opens doors.” Not just for me, but when we’d been out, he had a habit of opening them for everyone. “He pulls out chairs. He also insists on helping me clear the table and do the dishes.”
Granted, my dad was from an entirely different generation but until Mom had gotten sick, I’d never once seen him help her out in the kitchen. Hell, I’d never seen Sean help Claire out in the kitchen.
And Jason? Yeah. Right.
I thought of our date at Bianca’s, how he’d ordered the dessert sampler because he’d wanted me to be able to try everything. I had also realized that he was a big tipper, and not just when his meal was comped. “He’s really thoughtful, too.”
“Ah,” she said with a silly, dreamy sigh, “what’s not to love?” Then she sat up straight, serious again. “Oh! I almost forgot to tell you. We ran into Dane and Morgan last night. We’re meeting them for drinks at The Bear’s Den. Morgan said we should invite you and Alex to come along.”
“Really?” I asked, unable to hide my surprise. I barely knew them. It took me a few seconds to realize that it probably wasn’t me that warranted the invitation. “I forgot that they know Alex. They all went to school together.” Now the invitation made sense. “I’m not sure what he has planned but I’ll mention it to him.”
“What time is he coming to get you?” Claire asked.
“In a little over an hour,” I said. “I should probably finish this cup of coffee and hop in the shower, if you’re sure you don’t need me to work today.”
She waved a hand at me dismissively. “This is one of the rare, quiet Saturdays. I just have a small wedding to deliver to. Trust me, you don’t want to offer to give it up. I’m sure Dottie has everything completely under control but even so, I should really get moving.”
We both set about getting ready for our days.
Picking out an outfit today wasn’t too difficult. While Alex had been secretive about our date, he’d given me one monster-sized hint: Wear a swimsuit.
I opted for a simple black bikini with a matching bandeau cover up. It was just long enough to make me feel as if I wasn’t showing off too much skin. After some rummaging around, I found my beach bag and tossed in a towel and change of clothes for good measure.
Alex was right on time and instead of waiting for him to come in, I went out to meet him.
“Someone’s in a hurry,” he said as I slid into his truck.
“It’s just such a gorgeous day, and we’re obviously going to the beach. So yeah, I guess I am,” I admitted as I buckled up.
“You think we’re headed to the beach, huh?” he asked.
Actually, I had no idea. It made sense, but so did the waterfalls at the state park. Maybe we were going there. He was trying to be secretive but really, there weren’t a lot of options. I hadn’t been back up to the waterfalls since the first day he’d shown them to me. That day, the rain had come back in, sending us on our way. I wanted to explore the park more thoroughly but hadn’t found the time yet.
Alex was aware of that and I could see him wanting to make it happen.
Maybe that’s where we were going? It could also warrant a swimsuit.
“The waterfall was nice so I wouldn’t mind going there, either,” I pressed.
“Well, you’re wrong on both accounts,” he said. He glanced at me and I realized I was pouting when his laughter rippled through the cab of the truck, sending tingles down my spine. “You really don’t have a lot of patience, do you?”
I shrugged. “Does any female?”
He nodded contemplatively. “True. Okay, we’re going to my parents’ house for the day.”
I felt my eyebrows shoot up. Meeting his parents? That’s the kind of thing a girl would like to have a little bit of warning about. Not to mention, I would have definitely rethought my attire. A bikini and a simple cover up didn’t quite seem appropriate. Neither did the change of clothes I’d packed. I’d just tossed in a tank-top and a cut off pair of jeans, assuming the whole day was going to be a casual event.
“Your parents’?” I asked, trying to keep my tone neutral.
“Yeah.” He glanced at me and must’ve seen the slight trepidation on my face. “Oh, hey, we’re going to their house. But they’re not home.” He chuckled again. “Are you tha
t against meeting my parents?”
“What? No, it’s just…I would’ve tried to look more presentable, that’s all. I mean, you did say today would be private and casual.”
“It will be,” he assured me. “My parents’ house is on a lake. I thought if you’d like, we could take the boat out for a few hours. Their beach is also pretty private. I packed some steaks in the cooler. They’re marinating now but I thought I could grill them later. I also stopped at the deli and got a few different kinds of salad. So, I thought we could make a day of it? Having the beach to ourselves?”
I nodded, smiling. “That sounds fabulous. Where are your parents, if that’s not too nosy of a question?”
“Not at all,” he said. He flipped his blinker on, readying for a turn that would take us off the main road. “Every summer they take a road trip to visit some friends out east.”
Minutes later, we pulled onto a long, tarred driveway. It curved through the trees, ending in front of a structure that seemed to more closely resemble a mansion than a house.
“Wow,” I muttered. “This is where you grew up?”
He shrugged sheepishly. “Yeah.”
“It’s gorgeous,” I said.
He glanced at it and then back at me again. “I guess. It was one of the first houses my uncle built. Are you ready? Do you need help carrying anything?”
“No,” I told him. All I had was my beach bag. Something I could easily sling over my shoulder. “Do you need help carrying anything? You mentioned you brought a cooler.”
“Nah, I got it all,” he said as he got out of his truck.
I opened my door as well. I was hit by warm, humid air. It was a completely perfect summer day. A light breeze flitted around my face, playing with a few loose strands of hair that had managed to slip out of the knot at the back of my head.
I waited for Alex to lug the cooler out of the back end. Then I followed him down the sidewalk. A colorful array of flowers decorated the flowerbeds that lined the walkway. When we reached the front step, he set the cooler down as he dug out a key.
“What do you want to do first?” he asked as the door swung open. “Boat ride? Or just hang out on the beach? I know you said it’s been a while since you water skied but that’s the real reason I brought you out here. You said you used to enjoy it. I thought you might have fun.” He hoisted the cooler up again and I followed him inside.
