but had recently moved back to Virginia. Amanda had met him for the first time at a cookout and encountered him a few times since then.
He was a handsome man. Mature and affluent-looking. Dark eyes and hair with a hint of silver.
Amanda had no idea how old he was. Definitely out of her range. He was someone’s uncle. Not friend material.
“Oh. Yeah. I’m meeting someone for dinner.” She glanced around. “What about you?”
“I’m meeting someone too. Can I join you while we wait?”
She hesitated, not because she had any problems with Robert but because she preferred a little privacy to control her jittery excitement.
Evidently she hesitated a little too long. He arched thick, dark eyebrows. “I can wait on the other side of the door if you prefer.”
“Oh. No. Sorry.” Her cheeks grew hot, which was annoying. She was usually very composed. In fact, she was known for being in control and always having a clever zinger at the ready. So why did she suddenly feel flustered? “Please sit down. I’m just kind of distracted.”
He nodded and sat on the bench beside her, stretching his long legs out as he did. He wore well-tailored gray trousers. And very expensive leather shoes. “Date?”
She hesitated again but then admitted the truth. “No. Just dinner with a friend.”
“You don’t sound sure about that.”
She frowned. Maybe the comment could be interpreted as friendly and natural, but his tone made it sound kind of presumptuous and sardonic to her. “I am sure. It’s dinner with a friend.”
“Okay.” His eyes glinted, and his mobile mouth twitched slightly.
Her shoulders stiffened, but she managed to keep her voice as cool and dry as his was. “I don’t think I asked whether you thought it was okay or not. And what about you? Is yours dinner with a friend?”
“Oh no. Mine is definitely a date.”
She sniffed. “Girlfriend?”
“No. I don’t have girlfriends. Just dates.”
She should have found him obnoxious. He was, in fact, slightly obnoxious. But she was also intrigued. He was different from anyone else she knew. Like there was so much more going on beneath his utterly cool surface. “That sounds pretty impersonal.”
“It is impersonal. That’s the way I like it.” He raised his eyebrows again. “Does that offend you?”
“No. Why would it? You’re a free agent and can have any sort of relationship you want. As long as a guy isn’t trying to date me like that, I really couldn’t care less.”
“Ah. Understood.” He smiled. A small one but real. “My date is late. What about yours?”
“My friend...” The correction was automatic as she glanced at her phone. “Is six minutes late. But he’ll be here. He’s a great guy.”
“Is he?”
“Yes.”
“From your tone, I assume you’re distinguishing him from me and making it clear he doesn’t indulge in impersonal dates.”
She tried not to laugh. She really did. But his dry, lofty tone was simply too amusing. She choked on a little giggle and managed to keep a straight face. “Exactly. Some guys are actually nice, you know.”
“Are they?” His eyes moved from her face, down her body, and back up again. “And some guys aren’t late for dinners with friends who have gotten all dressed up for them.”
“I didn’t get all dressed up for him!” She looked down at herself, suddenly worried she’d overdone it after all. “I like to look nice. Since you don’t know me, you have no way of knowing whether I’m dressed up special tonight or not.”
“If you say so.”
“I do say so.” He wasn’t quite so funny anymore. She made a face at him. “Are you always this obnoxious?”
“Usually. You’ll get used to me eventually.” He smiled again, his handsome face softening in a way that was ridiculously attractive.
“So you’re sticking around Richmond?”
“Yes. I’m sticking around.”
“Great,” she muttered.
Dave better get here soon. Robert Castleman was ruining her night, and it hadn’t even really started.
Her phone buzzed again, and she looked down at it, assuming it was her mother.
It wasn’t. It was Dave.
Hey—we’re still studying. Rain check for dinner?
She stared down at the words, all her jitters chilling into a frozen weight that sank from her chest to her gut.
“So your nice guy bailed on you?” The question was just as cool as before, but it was gentler somehow. Like he’d managed to see how crushed she was even though she hadn’t moved or changed her expression.
“He didn’t bail,” she said, lowering her phone and standing up. “Something came up.”
“If a guy can’t prioritize dinner with you, then he’s not worth putting much