“So,” she said, “let’s go multitask. I’m happy to provide the female point of view for your work research.”
“Right.” He grabbed the handle and pulled the solid door open. “After you.”
They walked inside and looked around. The interior hadn’t changed since his brother’s wedding, except the crowd was all strangers instead of family. It was actually a relief not to know anyone. He didn’t have to keep up pretenses in front of the people who knew him best.
A long bar was straight ahead, and booths lined the perimeter of the room. There was live music, and couples were dancing in the area set off for it. To the left was a separate room with pool tables and a flat-screen TV to televise sporting events. A baseball game was on now. Next to it was a restaurant with booths and tables.
Gabe pointed it out. “I think that’s what we’re looking for over there.”
“Works for me,” she shouted over the music.
He settled his hand at the small of her back, an automatic, intimate gesture that still felt rusty, clumsy. Something he hadn’t done in a long time. Something he’d missed doing.
“There’s a corner booth,” he said. “It’s quiet in here.”
She nodded and headed for it, then slid onto the bench seat. Looking around, she said, “This part is new.”
He nodded. The lights were dim, but no flowers or white tablecloths decorated the table. No candles, either. But cozy pictures of taverns and lighthouses hung on the walls. It seemed like a good place to talk and get to know someone. That was Make Me a Match information he tucked away. Because suddenly Courtney was quiet. She was doing her own inspection of the decor, looking everywhere and at anything but him.
The silence stretched between them. It was odd, because every other time he’d seen her, they’d had no trouble finding something to say. Even in the car on the way here, conversation had flowed freely. But that was in the dark. Now that they were actually “on a date,” the awkwardness was like an unwanted chaperone.
They did know how this was going to go. Courtney was right about that. But one of their rules was to have fun. Go through the motions of getting to know each other. That required communication, and he had a plan.
A server walked over to their table. “I’m Marie, and I’ll be taking care of you tonight. Can I get you something to drink?”
“I’d like a glass of chardonnay,” Courtney said.
“Beer for me.”
“Coming right up.” She put menus in front of them. “You can look these over while you’re waiting. Unless you’re ready to order now.”
Courtney opened one. “There’s a lot here. You’ve been here before, Gabe. What do you like?”
“Wow. Everything.” He thought for a moment. “But if you make me choose, I’d have to say the seafood risotto or trout amandine.”
“I need a minute.” Courtney looked at the server, then across the table at him. “Unless you’re ready.”
“No.” He hadn’t even opened the menu, because he was too caught up in trying to figure out what she was thinking.
“Take your time,” Marie said. “I’ll get those drinks then check on you in a bit.”
“Thanks.” He glanced at Courtney, but she was still focused on checking out the food choices and holding that menu up like a shield.
Gabe reached into his inside jacket pocket and pulled out several folded pieces of paper. He figured it best to confront this head-on. “Do you feel as awkward as I do?”
Her gaze lifted to his. “Yes. And it’s weird, because I didn’t expect this.”
“My aunt did.”
“Wait—what?” She blinked at him. “She knows about this?”
“Not our arrangement, if that’s what you’re asking. Just that I was taking you out to dinner. It’s important to get the word out to my family, and Aunt Lil is the best way to do that.” He thought about it and felt a little bit bad about deceiving his family. But what they didn’t know wouldn’t hurt them, and they’d never find out. “My guess is that everyone already has the four-one-one on us by now.”
“Okay.”
“She was delighted, by the way. In case you were wondering.”
“No, I—” She stopped and shook her head. “Of course I was wondering. So she approved of you asking out the woman whose daughter goes rogue in your office?”
“She thought you and Ava are both charming. And actually said she wished she’d thought of pairing us up at Sunday dinner.”
“Ember would be heartbroken.”
“She’ll survive,” he said wryly.
She grinned, then pointed to the papers he was holding. “What do you have there?”
“Dating profiles.” He handed several sheets across the table to her. “The one Ava filled out for you and the other one I did for me.”
“Really? I thought you were going to destroy mine.”
“Yeah.” He’d put it on his desk but never got around to shredding it. Why was that? “I’ve been busy. It slipped my mind.”
Courtney seemed to accept that, but it could have been she was preoccupied checking out the first page of what he’d given her. She started to hand it back. “This is yours. You must have mixed them up.”
“No. You read mine. I’ll pick random questions, and we’ll see what Ava said. According to Aunt Lil, this will be helpful in getting to know each other.”
“It could get more awkward,” she warned. But there was laughter in her eyes. “I have no idea what Ava might have said pretending to be me.”
“And that’s the cool part. It doesn’t matter because we aren’t about impressing each other. This is just for fun.”
“True.” She tucked a strand of silky brown hair behind her ear. “Shall I start?”
“Ladies first.”
“Ahem.” She skimmed his first page, then cleared her throat. “‘What two or three things do you enjoy doing in your free time?’ Your answer—work, work and more work. Seriously, Gabe?”
“At Make Me a Match, we advise clients to be brutally honest on these things. The fact is, I like to work.”
“You left part two of the question blank. What you do on a typical day off.”
He’d gotten in the habit of not having leisure time. It provided too much opportunity to dwell on things. “Days off are rare. I reserve them for obligatory family stuff.”
“A workaholic.” She shrugged. “I should have known when you combined our fake date with a work thing.”
“I thought you said I was multitasking.”
“Now I know better,” she said. “That profile you filled out puts a finer point on it.”
He hadn’t always been this way. “Let’s see what your daughter said about you.”
“Oh boy.”
He scanned the paper. “So, your leisure time is spent going to movies, reading books and hanging out with your daughter.”
“She’s got quite the imagination. Those are the things I like to do. But reality is more like cleaning house, shopping for groceries and nagging said daughter to clean her room and do her homework.”
He laughed. “So, you’re a workaholic, too.”
“By necessity, not choice. Like you.” Her look said she wondered why that was.
For him it had happened because of fate. Margo died. It was out of his control, and he had a hard time reconciling that. Their server delivered their drinks and said she’d be back in a few minutes to take their orders.
“Okay,” he said. “Let’s do another one. I’ll go first this time.”
“Be my guest.”
“‘What are you passionate about?’” he read.
“I can hardly wait to hear Ava’s response.” She took a sip of ice-cold wine, then waited.
He looked at the page and read, “‘I’m passionate about being a nurse, saving lives, getting pa
tients back on their feet and helping them live their healthiest lives.’”
“Wow. That’s actually true. I didn’t realize Ava knew me that well. She was listening.” Courtney looked surprised and pleased. She held up the paper. “Now you.”
“Remember I did this in a hurry.”
“Disclaimer noted,” she teased. Then she read, “‘I’m passionate about career and family.’ That was short and sweet.”
“Those two things speak for themselves.”
“Family, maybe. But what makes you passionate about your work? Off the top of your head. Elaborate.”
He thought for a moment. “I like saving companies from ruin.”
“You’re a knight in shining armor. A rescuer.”
“Nothing so romantic. I don’t like failure or waste. Preventing both energizes me.”
“Hmm. That’s still noble,” she said.
“Takes one to know one. You save lives.”
“Just doing my job,” she insisted humbly.
He’d been glancing through the questionnaire, and one of Ava’s answers made him laugh. “This one is, ‘Would you date someone who has children?’”
“Oh my gosh. What did she say?”
“I quote—‘I can’t even believe there’s any question about that. Anyone who wouldn’t go out with someone who has kids is just a jerk to be avoided. Children are awesome.’”
She groaned. “Ava might as well have said her mom is just desperate to find a man.”
“But we both know that’s not true,” he said. “We are here because her mother doesn’t want a man.”
“Impressive. You are a man who listens. Now let’s see how you answered that one.” She ran her index finger down the page to find what she was looking for. When she did, her eyebrows rose. “You say right here that you like children.”
“Why are you surprised?”
“I guess I shouldn’t be. You don’t have any kids, yet you filled in at the last minute for a freshman motivational talk at the high school, and you tutor math. Finally, you didn’t throw Ava out of your office. Actions speak louder than words.”
He shrugged. “Just the truth and nothing but.”
“Ava’s right. Even though until tonight you’ve never taken anyone’s mother out on a date, you’re a nice man, Gabriel Blackburne.”
“It’s our secret.” He liked the way she was looking at him, as if he’d done something wonderful. But he hadn’t. “Are you ready to order yet?”
“Yes. I’m starving.”
“Okay, then.” He signaled their server.
Gabe found that he was hungry, too, and not just for food. But he would deal with that later. For now the ice was broken and the awkwardness disappeared. They ordered dinner and split a decadent triple chocolate dessert after solemnly promising not to feel guilty about it. Conversation flowed nonstop about everything from raising Ava to sports and books. Time seemed to stand still. As much as he unexpectedly found himself wishing that was the case, it didn’t.
“Holy cow,” Courtney said after looking at her watch. She appeared to be genuinely disappointed. “It’s getting late, and I have to work tomorrow. We should probably—”
“Yeah. I’ll take you home.”
“And we’ve monopolized this table. I’m feeling bad for Marie. We’ve cost her money in tips.”
“Not to worry. She received a very generous one. That made her happy, along with the fact that her shift was just a little easier because we took up one of her tables.”
“You paid the check?” When he nodded, she asked, “When?”
“You were in the ladies’ room.”
“But I was going to split it with you,” she protested. “It’s only fair since this isn’t really a date. We’re both getting something out of this, and my investment should be the same as yours.”
“It’s no big deal.”
She pulled out her wallet and started to remove some bills. “I’ll give you my share now.”
“I can’t let a woman pay for dinner. It might make me a chauvinist, but I can live with that. My parents didn’t raise me to let a woman split the check when I asked her out.”
“That’s incredibly sweet and annoying at the same time.” She sighed. “I’ll pick up the next one.”
No way he would let her, but that was a discussion for another time. “We’ll deal with that when it comes up.”
“You’re already not going to let me, right?” Her eyes narrowed on him. “This is a rule we should have discussed.”
“Which is why we agreed that if anything comes up, we can adjust the ground rules accordingly.”
“Okay.” She put away her wallet and picked up her purse. “From now on, if there’s a check involved, we will split it. Consider the rules adjusted.”
Over his dead body. “You’re very bossy.”
She grinned. “Oh, and thank you for dinner.”
“You’re welcome.”
Gabe drove back to her place and walked her to the door. The condo porch light was on, and Courtney fitted her key into the lock.
She looked up at him and smiled. “That went well, I think. We can evaluate the results with our families and compare notes on the reaction.”
“Okay.” He would agree to anything if she kept smiling at him like that. “You look pleased about something.”
“Yes. I just had a thought.”
“Are you going to just keep grinning? Or do you plan to tell me?”
She glanced around to make sure she wasn’t overheard. “We don’t have to muddle through the first-date good-night-kiss pressure. That’s such a relief.”
“Yeah.”
That was a flat-out lie. She’d leaned toward him to whisper this observation, and her breath skimmed his cheek. The scent of her skin crept inside him and touched off fires everywhere. His body was feeling the heat. Dating might be a pretense, but wanting to kiss her was all too real. All night the prospect of doing it had popped into his mind every time he looked at her mouth.
This was something else that hadn’t surfaced in their conversation about setting parameters. He was trying to come up with a fix to the problem when the door suddenly opened. Light from inside spilled over them, and Ava stood there.
“I heard voices out here.” She looked at her mother. “Just invite him in, Mom. I’m still up and bored, what with being grounded while you went out and had fun.”
Courtney’s eyes widened when she looked at him. “It’s up to Gabe. Would you like to come in?”
Choices, he thought. His lonely rented condo all by himself, or lively conversation with Courtney and Ava. But, once again, that wasn’t in the ground rules.
“It’s getting late. Your mom has to work tomorrow. So, I’ll say good-night.” He leaned forward and kissed Courtney’s cheek, a quick, impersonal touch. All it did was make him want more. “I’ll call you.”
“Okay. Good night, Gabe. And thanks again for dinner.”
He walked back to his car, feeling a little unsettled. Probably because he hadn’t let himself feel anything for a long time. There was no denying his attraction to Courtney, and he hadn’t factored that into the fake-date equation. Thank goodness for Ava. The interruption had stopped him. If he’d kissed Courtney, she’d think he was one more jerk taking advantage of a situation that wasn’t real.
He hadn’t expected this strong reaction and realized he should have. She was a beautiful woman, and he was a guy responding to her. Things weren’t any more complicated than that. So, problem solved.
* * *
After changing into her pajamas, Courtney was in the bathroom taking off the pound of makeup on her face. A little wistfully she dragged the washcloth over her cheek, the spot where Gabriel had kissed her. It was impersonal, just for show, when Ava had interrupted them. If Courtney had turned her head at just the
right moment, his lips would have found hers. And what would that have been like?
The thought made her shiver in an unfamiliar yet delicious way. But indulging the fantasy of this being more than they’d agreed to was asking for trouble. That peck on the cheek was nothing more than a charade, and she needed to remember that.
“Knock, knock.” Ava walked into the bathroom and sat on the side of the tub. “How did it go?”
Courtney wanted to say it had gone better than planned but bit back the words. That would require an explanation and make the whole pretense blow up. “Dinner?”
She realized soap and water wasn’t working on the eye makeup and wet a cotton swab with mascara remover. “The food was great. I had seafood risotto. Would have brought you leftovers, but we finished everything. Gabe had trout amandine and gave me a bite. Really good, too. And then we shared a dessert. Chocolate. Finished that, too—”
“Mom, I don’t care about what you ate.” Ava rested her elbows on her knees. “What was it like? What’s he like?”
Courtney realized her daughter wanted feelings, impressions, and that was so much more complicated than the basic facts of menu choices. But if this plan was going to succeed, she had to really sell it.
“Well, where do I start?” That was a stall.
“What kind of car does he have?”
“It’s a sporty two-passenger Mercedes. One of the pricey ones, I think. Black.” The color suited him. There was something dark he carried around when he wasn’t making an effort to be charming. And the style of his luxury vehicle revealed a lot. It wasn’t a family car. “The seats are leather.”
“So you can check off the nice-car box.” Ava’s look said she was eager for more.
“He opened the door for me.” Again, she was a sucker for a gentleman. Recalling that detail gave her a funny little shimmy in the pit of her stomach.
“Cool. And?” the teen prompted.
“First dates are hard.” Especially when it’s not a date at all. “Conversation was awkward at first. But Gabe came to the rescue.”
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