Page 134 of The Diamond in the Rough

I frowned a little as the front door bells went off, then froze.

So did Raj, who had just walked through said door. He had on a t-shirt in a vibrant dark orange and a pair of dark blue jeans. One foot wore a canvas sneaker, and the other was still in a boot, although he wasn’t using the cane anymore.

“Um. Hi.” He sounded uncertain, which threw me off. Raj Parikh never sounded uncertain.

“Hi,” I repeated back. “Can I help?”

“Oh. Um. No. I just…” He ran a hand through his dark hair, disrupting the thick waves. “Do you have plans for dinner?”

I stared at him, struggling to follow. “No?” The only way the question made sense was if he needed my help with a case, but then why did he saynowhen I asked how I could help?

He shifted from his good foot to the other, then winced and shifted back. Then cleared his throat, his dark cheeks turning slightly darker. “Would… would you have dinner with me?” he blurted.

This didn’t really alleviate my confusion, since I’d thought?—

But I’m bad at reading people, so I guess maybe the occasional friendly dinner fell within the parameters that he’d placed on our interactions. “Okay,” I agreed.

He visibly relaxed, then smiled, showing teeth that were very white against the dark of his skin and beard. “Okay. Good. Are you—do you have much yet to do here?”

I shook my head. “Just packing up.”

He nodded. “I can wait. If—that’s okay?” The uncertainty was back.

“I’ll just be a minute or two,” I told him. “You can sit if you want.” I gestured at the couch.

“I’m good,” he replied, leaning against the frame of the front door.

I nodded in return, then went about finishing my closing-up routine, doing one last check of both my individual and the company emails, making sure to save everything I had open, then hibernating the front desk laptop, which I then slid into a drawer and locked.

I went down the hall, checking the lights for the conference room and family room, making sure Ward’s and Mason’s office doors were locked, and letting Beck know I was leaving and she’d need to set the alarm.

“Yep. See you Monday!”

“Have a good weekend, Beck.”

“You, too.” She was already re-engrossed in her computer, deep into researching the factory.

Back at my desk, I picked up my backpack, then looked at Raj, who had been watching me. “Okay,” I said, suddenly nervous. “I’m ready.”

He stood away from the door frame, then pushed it open and held it for me. “You like Thai food?” he asked.

I nodded.

“My Noodle?” he asked, naming one of Hart’s favoriteplaces to get takeout. It was several blocks away, and while I had no problem walking, I didn’t have a sprained ankle.

I nodded again. “Are you okay to walk that far?” I asked him.

He snorted. “I’ll be fine.”

I had to walk fast to keep up with his longer stride, even with the boot. “How is your ankle?” I asked.

“Annoying,” came his reply. “But they tell me it would heal faster if I stopped using it so much.”

“We don’t have to walk to dinner,” I said, stopping.

He paused, then looked back at me. “Rayn, it’s fine. I’d rather it be sore and used than get stiff and weak because I’m babying it.”

I wasn’t certain whether or not his logic actually made sense, but it was his ankle. I caught up with him, and we resumed walking.