by Nicole Ellis
Parker nodded. “I’ve been thinking about branching out into investing in real estate myself – not just selling it.”
“Really.” He was silent for a minute, thinking about Parker’s offer. “So how would it work?”
“I was thinking that we could go in on the properties together and you’d be in charge of the renovation with limited input from me. We could figure out an equitable way to split the profits since you’d be putting in more of the day-to-day work on the houses.”
“That could work,” Patrick said slowly. “But I’m not the type of person that can just slap some paint on a house and call it good. When I choose a house to work on, I want to be able to bring it back to its original glory. No cutting corners.”
Parker nodded vigorously. “I completely agree. There are plenty of clients out there who want completely renovated houses from the early 1900s and they’re willing to pay for it. You wouldn’t need to cut corners in quality.”
A wide smile stretched across Patrick’s face. This project with Parker might be just what he needed to get out of the funk he’d been in since Nina left.
He held out his hand. “Let’s make this work, partner.”
Parker grasped his hand and shook it. “Okay, partner.”
They stood there for a moment, grinning like fools.
Parker cleared his throat. “Hey, it’s getting late. Do you want to walk over to the pub and grab some hot wings? I think there’s a game on tonight too.”
“Sure, I’d like that.” They brought their snacks and empty bottles into the kitchen, then set out for the pub on Main Street. The sidewalks were full of tourists ambling slowly down the concrete, chattering away while enjoying pre-dinner ice cream cones. Luckily, the pub wasn’t too busy yet. He’d never spent too much time up in Candle Beach, but it was a cute town and he was interested in seeing more of it.
Receiving an invitation to become business partners hadn’t been what Patrick had expected when Parker invited him over for beers, but he couldn’t have been more pleased. With his friend’s investment, he’d be able to take on more projects than he could before and not have to worry so much about any financial implications. It would be a winning situation for both of them.
A week after school started, Sarah’s cell phone rang while she was making dinner, cutting off the nineties easy listening station she’d been listening to via her phone.
“Hello?” she asked, the phone pressed tight against her ear as she continued to chop onions for French onion soup. A tidy pile of sliced onions sat in a navy-blue glass bowl off to the side. Only three more to go.
“Hi Sarah, it’s Patrick.”
Her heart raced at the sound of his voice and she forced herself to calm down. “Oh, hi.” An onion-induced tear escaped her eye and she set the knife down to brush it away.
“I was calling because I gave my friend Derek your phone number and he said he’d be calling you. I wanted to give you a heads-up about it first.”
He still wanted to set her up with his friend? She hesitated, then said, “Thanks for letting me know.”
“He’s a great guy,” Patrick reassured her.
“I’m looking forward to meeting him.” More tears sprang from her eyes and she sniffled to keep her nose from running. She loved to cook, but onions made her cry every time she used them. Her last apartment’s kitchen had a fan over the prep area, which had helped, but her rental house’s tiny kitchen had cupboards above all of the counter space.
“Are you okay?” His voice was full of alarm. “You sound like you’re crying.”
“Uh-huh. I’m chopping onions for dinner. I love French onion soup, but preparing it always makes me cry.” She held the phone away from her face while she swiped at her eyes and nose with a Kleenex.
He laughed, and she could picture his dimpled smile through the phone line. “Okay, I won’t keep you any longer. I wanted to ask you though – do you want to grab a coffee sometime and compare notes on how we’re using drama in the classroom? I’d love another local teacher’s input on the program I have planned for my students.”
“Sure, that would be great.”
“You sound busy right now, so I’ll give you a call later to set something up. I hope your soup turns out delicious. I’ll talk to you later.”
“Bye.” She hung up the phone and set it down on the counter in front of her, her stomach churning with a mixture of excitement and nausea. The music station turned back on now that the call was over and Savage Garden came on singing about being truly, madly, deeply in love.
She wanted to find love like that, but did she really want to be set up on a blind date? It was a little late to back out though, if Patrick’s friend was already planning to call. And maybe he’d be just as great as Patrick. Wasn't that what she was hoping for? Her stomach flip-flopped again, but whether it was from nerves, or the pervasive onion odor in her kitchen, she didn’t know.
6
Patrick’s friend Derek had called her to set up a date and they’d settled on a movie at the theater in Haven Shores followed by dinner. Since he lived in Haven Shores, she’d told him that she’d meet him at the movie theater.
When she arrived, she scanned the parking lot, looking for a man of medium height with sandy-blond hair. She saw a possible candidate walking along the sidewalk, searching for someone. She hurried over to him.
“Are you Derek?” she asked.
His eyes lit up, as though he liked what he saw. “Yes. Sarah?”
She nodded. “I was worried I wouldn’t be able to find you. I didn’t realize it was opening night for the latest superhero movie.”
“Me neither.” He flashed her a grin full of pearly-white teeth. “Do you want to do something else?”
“No, this is fine.” She pushed her way through the crowd until she was close enough to read the names of the movies that were playing. “What do you think about the romantic comedy?” She pointed at the sign. “It’s playing at six o’clock.”
A look of pain shot across his face, but he smiled. “The romantic comedy it is.”
It obviously wasn’t his first choice and she didn’t want him to hate the movie.
“Are you sure?”
“Of course. If that’s what you want to see, it’s fine with me.”
“Okay.” She shot him a dubious look, but he went to the counter and came back with tickets for the next show. They walked inside, and Sarah glanced at the concession stand. To her, the movie theater popcorn was always the best thing about attending a movie in a theater.
“Did you want to get something?” he asked. “I thought we might skip it since we’re going to eat dinner afterward.”
He had a point, but the aroma of butter and freshly popped corn was too enticing.
“Maybe just a small container of popcorn?” She smiled. “I love it.”
“A small container it is.” They stood in line and he paid for a small popcorn and a soda for her and a bottle of water for himself. She offered to pay, but he refused her money.
When they were seated she offered him some popcorn.
“No thanks, I try not to put anything like that in my body. I’m in training for a marathon.”
She noticed for the first time that there wasn’t an ounce of fat on his body.
“A marathon? That’s great.”
The previews started, and the crowd hushed.
“You’ll have to tell me about the marathon at dinner,” she whispered to him.
He nodded, then turned his attention to the screen.
He seemed standoffish, but she assumed it was because they’d just met. Although he was good-looking, she didn’t feel an instant attraction to him or a sense of ease when she was with him. Hopefully that would get better at dinner, because she really wanted the date to go well. She was tired of being one of the only single people in her group of friends.
When the movie ended, she stood, but he motioned for her to sit back down.
“The credits are still rol
ling,” he whispered.
He didn’t see her raise her eyebrows because his attention was fixed on the movie screen. Finally, the screen went dark. She glanced at him to see if he was ready to go.
He rose quickly then strode to the back of the theater, as if expecting her to follow. When they were outside the theater, he stopped near a tree.
“What did you have in mind for dinner?” she asked, almost afraid to find out.
“I was thinking the vegetarian buffet on Eighth Street.”
Her stomach rumbled. She’d been leaning toward a steak or something. She hadn’t had time for lunch and the popcorn had only served to whet her appetite.
“Uh, maybe we could get something heartier?”
He sighed. “Everyone always has so many misconceptions about vegetarian food. It’s very filling.”
That may be true, but it wasn’t a steak. “How about we go to the Thai restaurant down the street? I saw it on the way in. They’ll probably have tofu or other vegetarian dishes you could eat.” She could almost taste the beef pad khee mao noodles and tom kha coconut milk soup.
He stared up at the sky and then back down to her. “Fine. We can do that.”
“Do you want to walk? It’s a beautiful night.” The streetlights were on and the air was fresh and crisp.
“Sure. Always good to get more exercise.”
She breathed a sigh of relief. Finally, she’d come up with an idea that he didn’t hate. This wasn’t the worse date she’d ever been on, but it certainly wasn’t the best. How had she ever thought that he might have been just like Patrick?
They walked down the street toward the Thai restaurant together, but she fought for something to say to him.
“The leaves are gorgeous, aren’t they?” She waved her hand at the orange, red and yellow leaves that were scattered on the sidewalk and street. “This is one of my favorite times of year.”
He nodded. “I prefer spring though. I’m not a fan of fall because of all of the holiday nonsense. I mean seriously, I can’t even go into a store without Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas being shoved at me from all directions.”
Her eyes widened. What kind of person didn’t like Christmas? She’d better not tell him about the four boxes of Christmas decorations she had packed away in a storage room in the basement – or that she planned on putting them up soon.
They arrived at the Thai restaurant and he opened the door for her.
“Table for two?” the hostess asked, menus in hand.
Derek nodded curtly. The hostess seated them near the kitchen.
“Can we move to a different table? I really don’t like being near all that noise,” he said.
“Of course, sir.” She led them over to a different table, in the opposite corner of the restaurant.
Sarah couldn’t help but wonder if they’d make it out of the restaurant without one of the chefs or waitstaff spitting in their food. Maybe they would have been better off with the vegetarian place.
When they were seated and had ordered, the silence between them was deafening.
“So, what did you think of the movie?” Sarah sipped from the Thai iced coffee the waitress had brought her.
“Eh,” he said. “It was rather formulaic.”
She stared at him. “It’s a romantic comedy. They’re supposed to be formulaic. It’s all about the relationships between the main characters.”
“I suppose, but I think a different movie would have been better.” He leaned forward to drain half of his glass of water with his straw.
She didn’t know what to say. He’d agreed to the movie and he hadn’t wanted to leave until the credits were over with. Now he was saying it was awful? She felt nauseous. This guy definitely wasn’t like Patrick.
“So, what do you do for work?” she asked politely, wishing that the kitchen staff could prepare their food more quickly.
He puffed up. “I’m a banker with First Shores Bank.”
“Oh. That must be, um…interesting. Do you get much contact with clients?”
“I do.” He smiled. “I help them with loans and investing for the future.”
He seemed to actually enjoy his job and she warmed a little to him as he told her more about his position at the bank. Soon, the waitress brought their food.
She dug into her five-star spicy pad khee mao and swooned. “This is delicious.”
He looked at her food and grimaced. “I don’t know how you can eat such spicy food. It’s not good for your digestion.”
Her fork stopped midway to her mouth. Why did he insist on being so negative? She shrugged. “I happen to like it this way and I’ve never encountered any stomach issues from spicy foods.” To prove her point, she shoveled the food into her mouth and made a show of how good it tasted.
He just shook his head and put a bite of brown rice and tofu into his mouth. Her brother Adam always teased her about having a cast-iron stomach but, for some reason, Derek’s words didn’t seem like teasing in good fun like Adam’s.
“Patrick tells me you’re a teacher.”
She set down her fork and felt enthusiastic for the first time that evening. “Yes. I’ve been teaching since I graduated from college almost ten years ago. I started out in first grade, but I’ve moved up to fourth grade now, which I love.”
“Doesn’t it get boring being around little kids all day?”
Boring? Did he hate kids too in addition to all of his other bad qualities? This was quickly sinking into worst-date-ever territory.
She flashed him a grin. “Nope. I love teaching. Their minds are like sponges, soaking up everything I can offer them. There’s something special about that.”
“Hmm. I couldn’t handle being a teacher. My own nieces and nephews are stressful enough to be around.”
“Oh.” She looked down at her food and picked out the last piece of chicken in her soup. She chewed it slowly to give her time away from talking to him, enjoying the creaminess of the coconut milk, the tang of lime and lemongrass and the savoriness from a generous dose of fish sauce. So far, discovering this restaurant had been the only good thing about this date.
“How is everything going?” their waitress asked as she stood in front of their table. “Does everything taste okay?” She looked pointedly at Derek, who’d barely touched his food.
“It’s delicious,” Sarah said before he could say anything.
The waitress smiled at her, glanced at Derek, and rushed off before he could reply as well.
He frowned at Sarah. “I was going to tell her the rice was undercooked."
She sighed and surreptitiously pulled her cell phone out of her purse, glancing at it from under the table.
She tapped out a text to Maura. SOS. If she didn’t get out of there soon, she was going to scream.
A minute later, Maura called.
“Oh, I’m so sorry to hear you’re not feeling well. I’ll be right there.” Sarah hung up her phone, grabbed her purse, and stood from the table. “My friend isn’t feeling well, and I need to go take care of her.”
He looked up at her in surprise, as if he’d thought the date was going well. “Do you have to go so soon?”
She forced an expression of regret. “Yeah, sorry about that. She’s really sick and she doesn’t have anyone else to help take care of her.”
He pushed the food aside and called the waitress over to get the bill. She hurried back with it and set it in the middle of the table. Sarah reached for it and handed the waitress her credit card.
“I’ll take care of it. You got my food at the theater and you didn’t seem to like this much.”
He opened his mouth, as if to disagree, but then shrugged. “I’ll buy you dinner next time.”
Next time? Was he insane? There was definitely not going to be a next time, not even if he were the last man on earth. What had Patrick been thinking when he set her up with Derek? She’d thought she and Patrick had a good connection, but maybe he didn’t know her as well as she’d thought.
The waitress returned with the bill and credit card and Sarah signed for it, giving the waitress a nice tip for having to deal with Derek.
Sarah pressed her lips into a thin line and didn’t address his remark about a second date. She could only hope he’d lose her phone number. “Well, thank you for a nice evening. Don’t hurry out of here on my account.” She scurried away as quickly as possible, almost sprinting to her car for fear that Derek would stop her.
She really did drive to Maura’s house afterward but, of course, her friend wasn’t sick.
“That bad?” Maura asked when she opened the door to Sarah.
Sarah nodded. “Yep. That bad.”
Maura motioned for her to come in and offered her a glass of wine. As she handed the full glass to Sarah, she said, “Maybe the next time someone plays matchmaker, things will turn out better?”
“I’m never going out on another blind date.” She sighed. “This was horrible. I seriously don’t understand why Patrick would have set me up with him. We had nothing in common. I foolishly assumed that since they were friends, he might be like Patrick, but Patrick is so much friendlier, kinder and, above all, much more interesting.”
Maura eyed her with a sly smile on her face. “Uh-huh. And of course, you have no interest in Patrick, right?”
“None. Besides, he’s engaged.” Sarah resolved that her assertion was true, or at least she’d do her best to make it true. There was no point obsessing over a happily-engaged man.
“Okay then.” Maura changed the subject. “It’s still fairly early. Do you want to grab dessert at the Bluebonnet Café?”
In her hurry to escape from Derek, Sarah hadn’t finished her noodle dish at the Thai restaurant and she was still hungry. It had pained her to leave it on her plate and not get it to go, but any more time with Derek would have been too much.
“Dessert would be great. They’d better have something high calorie and chocolate though. I need that tonight.”
Maura laughed. “Let’s see if they have something that can drown out the memory of your bad date.”
As she walked to the café with Maura, Sarah was suddenly grateful for the friends she’d made since returning to Candle Beach. She hoped to someday find her perfect match and build a family with him but, if she didn’t, at least she had good friends.