Page 24 of Second Time Around

“Why not? You like my mom and her cookies.”

“Don’t forget about your dad and sister,” she scolded.

“Them too.”

She noticed he’d purposely omitted himself, and she felt a pang of regret. Where would they be if prom night had gone as planned? Would they have ended up together or gone their separate ways regardless? There was no way to know.

“My parents would love to see you. They still talk about you all the time.”

The trail followed a creek now, and the water gurgled happily. A family with two small children crouched at the creek’s edge, poking sticks into the water and pointing out fish and frogs.

“First the brownie and now sugar cookies. Are you trying to fatten me up?” she said.

He gave her an appreciative glance. “You look great just the way you are.”

“I wasn’t fishing for a compliment.”

“I know, but I gave you one anyway. Can we sit down for a minute?” He pointed to a bench overlooking the creek.

She should have said no. She hadn’t come here for a romantic stroll. She’d come with a specific goal in mind—to demand he leave her alone. Somehow her plan had unraveled, and to her chagrin, she nodded and followed him to the bench. She waited for him to sit down first, but the dirty rat sat smack in the middle.

“Uh-uh. Scoot,” she said and motioned like she was swatting away a fly.

He smirked and then barely scooted over. Since she’d been on her feet all day, she decided not to argue, and she sat down, her left butt cheek hanging partially off the bench. If he’d noticed, he didn’t say so.

“Asking you to come and have dinner with my family isn’t the same as a date, Jen.”

“I know that.”

“You’ve made your feelings about me perfectly clear. If you say yes, I know it isn’t because of me.”

Somehow this conversation had gotten away from her. She attempted to swing it back around. “I asked you here to tell you—”

“To stop sending you referrals. I got it.”

“But that’s not all.”

“What else is there?”

She motioned between them. “I need you to understand that this…that we…that nothing is ever going to happen between us.”

“Okay,” he said solemnly.

If he felt disappointed, he was trying hard not to show it. Suddenly she wasn’t sure how to feel about that.

“So, now that we have that out of the way, will you come to dinner?

Maybe it was the gorgeous night, the peaceful setting, or his hopeful gaze. Maybe it was the allure of a home-cooked meal and freshly baked cookies, or maybe it was a combination of all those things. Something made her nod not once but twice in rapid succession.

Then, as if the night weren’t beautiful enough, he gave her that megawatt smile that had melted her teenaged heart. Good thing she was older and wiser now; she wouldn’t fall victim to it this time.

“I need to go,” she said, standing up abruptly.

“So soon?”

“I’ve been on my feet all day, and I’m anxious to get home.”

Surprisingly, he simply nodded, and they retraced their steps to the parking lot, where she said a quick goodbye.

The only reason she’d agreed to have dinner with him was so she could see his family. Well, that and one other thing.

“Damn sweet tooth!” she snarled as she drove away.