It was a small establishment, but it had great charm.
Sunlight poured in through the floor- to-ceiling windows and the aroma of the food was so tantalizing it made my mouth water.
"I am so excited about Friday."
Shawna's soft blue eyes were lit with anticipation.
"Yeah, she'll take you," Steven told me dryly, "and not her big brother."
"Sooo not your scene," she shot back.
"You hate crowds."
"Just gotta establish some personal space, that's all."
Shawna rolled her eyes.
"You can't be a bruiser everywhere."
The talk about crowds had me thinking of Gideon and his protective streak.
"Mind if I bring the guy I'm seeing?" I asked.
"Or is that a buzzkill?" "Not at all.
Does he have a friend who'd like to come?" "Shawna."
Mark was clearly shocked.
And disapproving.
"What about Doug?" "What about him? You didn't let me finish."
She looked at me and explained, "Doug's my boyfriend.
He's in Sicily for the summer taking a culinary course.
He's a chef."
"Nice," I said.
"I dig guys who can cook."
"Oh, yeah."
She grinned, then aimed a glare at Mark.
"He's a keeper and I know it, so if your guy has a friend who's fine with filling the empty seat with no possibility of a hookup, bring him along."
I immediately thought of Cary and grinned.
But later that day, after Gideon and I had spent quality time with our personal trainers and had returned to his apartment for the night, I changed my mind.
I got up from the couch where I'd been trying unsuccessfully to read a book and padded down the hall to his home office.
I found him frowning at whatever he was working on, his fingers flying over the keyboard.
The glow of the monitor and the spotlight aimed at the photo collage on the wall were the only sources of illumination in the room, which left much of the large space in shadow.