Chapter 4
On Monday, Nate threw himself into paperwork. When he caught himself peering out of his office window for the sixth time, and starting each time he saw someone dressed in red pass his door, he mentally slapped himself and turned his mind to lunch. The last thing he needed was to be thinking about a woman who probably wasn’t even interested in him, except for her guilt over his injury. He made sure he had his wallet and headed out the front door. He turned left and came face to face with Kelly. Seeing her again made him catch his breath—dressed in a skintight black knit bodysuit with a crisp white shirt over the top, and big black boots, she was a spectacular sight.
“Hey,” she said, “looks like I nearly missed you.”
“Just grabbing some lunch.” A pause, to take a second to talk himself into the next sentence. “Want to join me?”
“Sure.” She fell into step beside him. “Are you one of those managers who takes three hour lunches? If so, I have to warn you I’m due somewhere at three.”
He laughed like that was the funniest thing he’d ever heard. She had no way of knowing that he’d never taken a long lunch break in his entire working life. “An hour is all I have. At two o’clock I have to be at the local bowling club to present a trophy.”
“That sounds thrilling.” She smiled. “Where are we going for lunch before that scintillating appointment?”
“I was going to have pizza.” He stopped walking and turned to her. “Do you need something a bit lighter than that? I’m pretty sure they serve salad.”
“Why would I need a salad?”
“You said you were a model.”
“Ha! I eat like any normal person. You don’t need to make special arrangements for me.” She giggled to herself as they continued up the street.
“Sorry. Everyone says models don’t eat so….”
“Yeah, that’s true for some people. Runway models have periods where they have to stay super skinny. I mostly do photographic work though.”
“Oh. Okay. Sorry.”
“Don’t be. Let’s just get our hands on that pizza!”
He laughed and led her across the road to the pizza place on the corner. They quickly found a table and placed their orders. When the waiter brought their water, Kelly leaned back in her chair. “So, how’s the bite?”
“It’s pretty good. It aches a little but the antibiotics will make sure there’s no infection, so the doctor tells me.”
“Fang sends his apologies.” She smirked and Nate grinned at her. “I, of course, am eternally sorry about your hand and the car. I suppose you don’t have a cost for the seat yet?”
“Not yet. The car is booked in for a quote on Wednesday.”
“Ahh… okay. So, we wait. How was your weekend?”
“Full of trips to the hardware store. I built a letterbox. Yours?” He groaned to himself as he realised how boring he must sound.
“That’s funny. I went to the store a couple of times too. Nothing as exciting as a letterbox, though. All I needed were some hooks for the back of the bathroom door.” She smirked at him again.
“Are you making fun of me?” He moved his arm so the waiter could place their food on the table.
When he was gone she looked over at him. “Not at all. I’m making fun of both of us. What an exciting pair we are, huh?”
“Yes, well, at least you have the prospect of some fun. I’m sure your work is exciting.”
“Sometimes. It’s almost all in the studio so some days it’s quite boring.”
“I don’t think you can get any more boring than the life of a bank manager.”
She frowned at him and pulled a slice of pizza onto her plate. “It’s not a competition. Besides, it’s totally up to you how exciting your life is. If you’re bored, do something to shake it up.”
He smiled down at his plate. “I’m not a shake it up kind of guy.”
“Again, that’s your choice. Your Friday was anything but boring, wasn’t it?” She laughed outright this time and he gave her a wry smile in return.
“I’d have to agree with that. I’ve definitely never had half a boarding kennel fight it out in the middle of our customers.”
“What do you normally do for fun then, Nate?”
The way she said his name had his eyes flying up to meet hers. The pizza cooled on his plate as he stared at her.
Now’s your chance. Ask her out.
“I quite like going to the movies.”
“Me too. What kind of movies do you like?”
“All the popular ones. Anything with a lot of action usually appeals. Nothing by Woody Allen.”
Ask her.
“Agreed! Anything good out at the moment?” She chewed as she spoke and he tried not to smile. Even chewing, with her mouth full of food, she still did something to his insides.
Do it!
“A couple of new releases came out last Thursday.” He pulled his phone out, pulled up the list then slid it across to her. “You can see the two new ones at the top.”
She glanced at the phone while she ate her lunch. “At least one of those look interesting. Do you normally go to the local cinema at the junction?”
“Yeah. I don’t see much point in travelling to the city. I usually just wait if the movie I want to see isn’t on. That movie,” he pointed at the screen, “is about renovating a house full of problems, funnily enough.”
“Hmmm.”
Ask her out you bloody coward. Ruben and Jasper will tease the shit out of you if you chicken out.
“Can I interest you in a movie on Tuesday?” The words stuck in his throat but he forced them out before he could change his mind. “The renovation one if you’re game.”
“Tuesday because that’s the cheap night?” Her eyes sparkled as she grinned at him and took another slice of pizza. So far, she was out eating him two slices to one.
“Tuesday because asking for tonight seemed too desperate.”
Might as well start off being honest.
She looked up at him and grinned. “I’m free tonight and it’s on at seven. Does that suggestion make me the desperate one?”
“I can’t imagine you’d ever be desperate for male company. It just so happens, though, that I have a vacancy in my social schedule tonight, so let’s do the movies.”
“Excellent.” She finished her pizza and sat back with a satisfied smile. “Meet you there? It’s just two blocks from my house.”
“Okay, are you sure? I can pick you up if you like.”
“If you pick me up, it kind of makes it a date.” She watched him from under her lashes. “Are you ready for that kind of commitment?”
She’s totally got you worked out. Idiot.
Their whole conversation today had been this back and forth, almost like teenagers. Each wanting the other to suggest something so they didn’t have to be the one to put themselves out there. Instead of stretching it out any longer Nate took the bull by the horns and said exactly what he was thinking. “I’m naturally suspicious of beautiful blondes in killer red heels who cause all kinds of commotion in confined spaces. But I’m willing to give you the benefit of the doubt this one time.” It was Nate’s turn to smirk as shock made her mouth drop open.
“You think I’m beautiful?”
“To quote my earlier self, aren’t you a model? Surely you already know this.”
“Well, I guess. I might not have known you for long but you don’t seem like the kind of guy to say that to too many people.”
“You’re right, I’m not. Consider this a momentous and historic occasion.” He glanced at his watch and signalled the waiter for the bill before returning his clear gaze to her.
“Maybe it’s a sign.” She was smiling again, giving him that look that said she saw right through him.
“A sign of what?”
That I’m already hoping she’ll agree to a second date.
“That the winds of change are blowing.”
***
At six thirty Nate knocked on Kelly’s door and heard her shushing Fang as his barking echoed off the walls. She opened the door with him tucked under her arm and Nate rolled his eyes. “The welcoming party is alive and well, I see.”
Fang licked his lips and wiggled under Kelly’s arm before she scolded him and turned away. “I’ll just lock him up and then we can go.”
“I hope you don’t leave him near soft furnishings when you’re not around.”
A peal of laughter carried down the hall as she pulled a door closed. “I laughed but that’s not even funny. Here, look at this.” She beckoned him inside and he followed her down the hall. He gulped as he realised they were in her bedroom. She crossed the room and pointed at the skirting. “Forget the soft things he likes to eat, the little bugger chewed this wood one afternoon when I was out longer than I expected.”
“Wow. He just eats anything. Now that he has a taste for human flesh, you’re in big trouble.”
She laughed again and led him back to the front door. “As soon as I get the fence in the backyard fixed he’ll be able to go outside during the day. It’s about time the postman was terrorised a little.”
“What’s wrong with the fence?”
“There are gaps underneath that he can get through. You might have noticed that when he doesn’t want to be caught, there is almost zero chance of getting your hands on him. I can’t risk him escaping.”
“Yeah, I remember the instant reward of catching him.” His thumb throbbed in response to the memory of that sharp bite. “You’ll have to replace all that skirting board.”
“I know.” She sighed and grabbed her jacket from the arm of the couch. “That’s a job for another time. I’m going to wait until the fence is done, just in case he eats any other part of the house before he can go outside.”
“Good plan. You know, if you play your cards right, and your dog promises not to eat me, you might be able to bribe me to help you.”
“That sounds tempting.”
What are you doing?
She locked the front door and they walked to Nate’s car. He drove slowly down the laneway as she asked her next question. “What kind of bribes do you accept? I think I’m going to need quite a bit of help around the house.” She grinned as a fleeting look of panic crossed his face. “I hope you’re going to relax at some point tonight, Nate. My dog might bite, but I don’t.” She glanced out the window before looking back at him. “So, what’s the bribe?”
“I’ll have to think about that. I’m notoriously cheap, so it should be simple enough.”
I suspect I’m going to want something money can’t buy.