much they worked. What people speak about is their love of family, the fun adventures they took in life, and those moments that took their breath away. The people who were workaholics always have regrets.”
“Those who don’t work at all must have regrets too, because they can’t afford to take adventures. It’s crucial to work so you can live, so you can have a roof over your head in a safe neighborhood with food on the table,” she argued.
He laughed. “There is balance in life, Avery. Trust me, I’ve been a workaholic most of my life. But in my line of work, I learned early on that I also had to let off steam. We all do that in different ways. Some look for thrills, and some seek peace. And healthy people have a little of both.”
“There might be some truth in that, but it’s hard for me to let go.”
Appetizers were set before them, and she absently reached for one. She slipped it in her mouth and flavors exploded on her tongue. Her full attention was drawn to the plate.
“This is amazing,” she said. “What is it?”
He took a piece and chewed, sighing in delight. “It’s shrimp ceviche, a favorite of mine, and this is probably the best I’ve had.” Maybe his hormones were on the same path as hers and everything tasted better, looked better, smelled better, and felt better.
“I agree,” she told him. “I’ve never had it before, but now it’s going to be a favorite.” She took another piece.
“We’ll work on balancing your life,” Carl said, bringing her back to their conversation. She chewed thoughtfully before speaking again.
“How do you know we’ll be around each other long enough for you to help with anything?” She hated the vulnerability in her tone. She respected strength and pounced on weakness. But with this man, it seemed she was in an upside down world.
Carl took a moment to answer. But when he did, his words made her heart thunder.
“When I moved to Francisco, I wasn’t planning to start a relationship. I love my freedom, love going anywhere at anytime,” he began. His pause lasted a while, but she sensed he had more to say. “Meeting you definitely wasn’t in the plans, but I’m glad plans have a way of kicking your feet out from beneath you, because there’s no place I’d rather be than right here, right now, with you.”
“I’ve felt the exact same way my entire life. Relationships are messy. I’ve done a bit of dating, but even that was too much work. I prefer to focus on my career. But I’m at a crossroads right now, sort of floating into the sky like we did earlier in the hot air balloon. And I’m finding that I really like being with you. I don’t know what that means.” Maybe she shouldn’t drink wine. It was making her too honest. That could be a dangerous thing, being an attorney. Honesty was subjective in her line of work.
“Since this has been a surprise for both of us and we don’t know what will happen, I think the best thing we can do is not question it. Let’s just see where it goes. Let’s enjoy each other, stop fighting the feelings, and live for the moment. We might find it’s something we like more than total organization,” he suggested.
Carl fell quiet as the music stopped and the dancers bowed and left the stage. She watched them walk away as she processed his words, then turned her focus to the closest fire pit, watching as the flames danced on top of the rocks, colors shifting and crawling over one another.
Could she live in the moment?
Could she allow herself to be that free?
She’d been doing it all day, and she felt pretty good about it.
“It scares me,” she admitted.
“What scares you?” he asked. His fingers crawled even higher on this pass on her thigh, his pinkie finger whispering across her lower belly. Goosebumps sprung over her arms as she squeezed her thighs shut to ease the pulsing. If she didn’t get relief soon, she might embarrass both of them with cries of ecstasy as she came from nothing more than his words, his breath against her neck, and his fingers gliding across her clothed body.
“I like you. It scares me how much I like you,” she said, her voice husky, her words barely above a whisper.
Before he could answer, the waiter brought their salads. She’d lost her appetite, which was something new, but