bad idea.” Le Veque was a local restaurant with an incredible wine list, and the owners were good friends of my parents.
I began to get excited at the idea of arranging a special tasting to test El. I even managed to pretend I didn’t love the idea of sitting in the small romantic restaurant at her side, tasting wine together.
“Why don’t you call Peter and arrange it for tomorrow evening? That will be her final bit of training before we open Saturday.”
“Are you sure you can spare us here?” I glanced around. The office was a disaster, but the public spaces out front were pristine after the three of us worked all week to get them ready for the opening.
“If it hasn’t been done by now, it isn’t happening, whatever it is,” Mom assured me. “You and El deserve a nice night out.”
“It’s training,” I corrected her.
“Of course.” She winked at me and I pretended not to notice that my mother seemed to be just as motivated by the idea of me and El together as I had begun to become.
I went out to the front and picked up my phone, dialing Le Veque and asking for Peter. I explained to him what I had in mind and he assured me he’d be happy to set it up. I knew that calling in a favor for a Friday night was undoubtedly a tall order, but Peter and Dad had been good friends, and I also knew the man would accommodate me if he could.
“Thank you,” I told him, hanging up. That unfamiliar feeling was making my cheeks feel funny again, and a glance in the mirror on one side of the tasting room told me that I was, indeed, smiling again. I’d been doing a lot of that lately.
I was just about to text El to tell her to plan for a training field trip the following day when I caught myself. I couldn’t text her from my phone. She thought this number was Chad’s.
“Dang it.” I scrubbed a hand over my face. This texting situation had gotten a little bit out of control. Nothing could ever actually happen between me and El unless I changed my phone number. Or told her the truth about the fact I’d been basically pretending to be someone else.
A sigh escaped me as I went to the Cunning Ham’s landline and dialed her number.
“Hello?” She answered, her voice full of sparkle and fun.
“El? Hi. It’s Boston.” Why was I nervous? I wiped my palms on my trouser legs.
“Oh,” she said, her voice becoming slightly wary. “Um, is everything okay?”
“Yes, all good.” My stomach danced around, distracting me from what I’d called about.
“Oh, okay.” She paused. “What’s up?”
“Well, I wondered if you could wear something nicer to work tomorrow.” The second the words were out, I knew they were wrong.
El made a little gasping noise, the way someone sucks in a sharp breath when they’ve been surprised. “Oh.”
“Not that there’s anything wrong with the way you dress normally,” I said, trying to pull myself out of the hole that already felt miles deep. “I just meant, like a dress? Or maybe just, um . . .”
“Sure. I can try to dress more appropriately, Boston.” El’s voice had gone cold and the edge in it nearly shredded me.
I blew out a breath. “What I’m trying to say is that we won’t be working at the winery tomorrow evening. I’d like to take you to Le Veque for your final training.”
“Le Veque?” The anger was gone, replaced by a squeak of surprise.
“Yes. Have you been there?”
“No. It’s, uh . . . well, I’ve heard it’s nice.”
“It is. The owner is a friend of the family, and I’ve arranged for us to do a blind tasting there. Your final challenge before we open.”
“Oh. Okay. I understand.”
“I wasn’t saying your usual clothes are inappropriate, El.”
“Of course not.”
“Or that you don’t always look fantastic.”
“Oh. Well, that’s kind.”
“You always look amazing.” Now my mouth was going on and I couldn’t seem to stop it. Words just kept coming. “I think you’d look beautiful in anything, I just wanted to let you know what the plans were so you could put a little extra thought into tomorrow’s clothes. I mean, if you want to. You know, for the restaurant.”
“Boston.” She interrupted my humiliating rambling.
“Yes.”
“Thanks. I look forward to it.”
“Okay. Good. Yes.” Stop saying yes!
“See you tomorrow.”
“Yes.”
“Hey, is this your cell? I’ll save it in my phone since we’re going to be working