Page 53 of Then Came You

When the woman’s head popped up, Gillian noticed that she was pretty in an obvious way. She looked like she’d spent a long time primping for her date. She had long, dark hair that was pin straight. How long must it have taken to accomplish that? Surely, it wasn’t naturally that smooth and glossy.

The woman’s fingernails were also long and painted in a rich shade of red that matched the color of her V-neck sweater. A delicate gold chain with a pendant on the end of it disappeared into her cleavage as she leaned forward and speared another bite of lettuce. Gillian didn’t even know her, but she hated the woman with a ferocity that surprised her.

Gillian had just shoved a fry in her mouth when Sam reappeared in her peripheral vision. Savannah was busy cutting into her juicy steak, and Lauren was spreading butter on a garlic roll, so neither had noticed him yet.

Once again, his eyes locked on hers, and she tried desperately to read what was in them. He gave her the briefest of smiles, so brief that she might have confused it with a grimace, and then he looked away. She watched him stroll back to his table and back to her, who beamed at him as he sat down.

“How is everything?” the waiter asked, sidling up to their table with someone else’s tray of food resting atop his beefy shoulder.

“Great,” Lauren said.

“You were right, the steak is very juicy, just the way I like it.” Savannah winked at him that time, and Gillian worried he might drop the tray.

Savannah’s back in business, Gillian thought somewhat enviously. Looking around the restaurant, it seemed like everyone was having a better time than she was. It didn’t matter what they were doing—flirting or enjoying the food and/or their date—everyone appeared to be happy, or at the very least, content. Everyone, it seemed, but her.

While she finished her meal, Sam’s words from the other night came drifting back to her. “I hope you’ll be able to move on someday, even if it’s not with me.”

Then he and his date stood up. They were leaving so soon? But what about the main course? All she’d seen the woman eat was a salad, but maybe that had been her entrée. Gillian knew a lot of women who ate like that, especially on a date, although she wasn’t one of them.

She glanced down at her plate of fish and chips so Sam wouldn’t catch her staring as he and the woman walked to the door. She swore she felt his gaze upon her, though. When she looked up, he and the woman were gone.

The words “even if it’s not with me,” continued to ring in her ears long after they’d left.

Chapter 18

Sam trailed Gillian’s car from a distance, hoping that she wouldn’t notice him. When she’d first left the restaurant, there’d been a few cars between them. Now she’d turned onto her street, and it was just him and her. If she’d ridden home with her friends, he wouldn’t have followed her, but when he saw her get into her car alone, he’d wanted to make sure she got home safely.

They were getting close to her house when suddenly her brake lights came on and she came to an abrupt stop. He figured there was probably a deer in the road, so he slowed down too. When she didn’t immediately start driving again, he worried that something was wrong.

The next thing he knew, she’d gotten out of her car and was standing alongside it, facing him with her hands on her hips.

Busted!

He inched the truck forward and parked behind her. As he got out, he mentally prepared himself for another confrontation. He walked toward her and stopped when they were two feet apart.

“Why are you following me?” Her voice was clear and strong, but not as angry as he’d expected.

“I wanted to make sure you got home okay. I noticed you had a few drinks and—”

She held up two fingers. “Two beers. I had two beers with dinner, Sam. I’m not drunk.”

“I believe you, but it’s a Friday night, and there are a lot of other drivers on the road who are.”

She glanced up and down the empty street. “Yeah. It’s really busy out here.”

His lips quirked up. He’d missed her feistiness, among other things. “How are you?”

She sighed. “I’m okay.”

“Did you get a security system installed?”

“Haven’t you noticed the sign in my front yard?”

“No.”

“So, you haven’t driven by recently?”

“I didn’t say that. I just didn’t notice the sign.” He had driven by a few times, but he must have missed it, which was unusual for him. Although he had been preoccupied ever since their argument.