Her mouth dropped open, and a half-laugh, half-gasp escaped. “Of course not.” She still had no sane explanation.
He sauntered closer, his hands raised. “I’m not judging you. I have Native American ancestors. They had dances for all sorts of things.” His tongue ran over his teeth. “Although, not the waltz.”
“I, um, Zia just taught me to waltz, and I was practicing.” Perhaps that still didn’t make a lot of sense. She cleared her throat. “At the end of every month, we have a celebration and invite other co-ops to come. There’s always dancing.”
“Oh.” He still regarded her with amusement. “Is there someone in particular you wanted to waltz with?”
Did he realize she was learning so she could dance with him? Had she been that obvious in her interest? Her cheeks flushed with embarrassment. Of course he knew of her interest. She’d almost kissed him under a peach tree, and the fact that he kept his distance after that meant she ought to stop chasing him and save her pride.
She folded her arms and forced a light tone. “Well, you never know who you’ll meet at a dance.”
“True. You might meet someone who’s tall, dark, and handsome.” The way he said the words made it clear he knew he was tall, dark, and handsome.
“A man’s looks aren’t nearly as important as how he acts.”
“How should he act?”
She pursed her lips in thought. “He should be attentive.”
He waited to see if she would add more to the list. She didn’t. “Attentive?” he repeated. “That’s it? You’ve got low standards. I like that in a woman.”
“I’m surprised you like anything about me.”
She’d taken the joke too far, made it too personal. His head jerked in surprise. “Why would you say that?”
“Maybe because you’ve ignored me for the last five days.” Not that she’d been counting, obviously.
He put his hands in his pockets and rocked back on his heels. “Well, I may not know a lot about harvesting, but I figure it’s never a good idea to pay too much attention to the boss’s daughter. That seems like the fastest way to get yourself on permanent manure duty.”
Was that really the reason? “My father wouldn’t do that to you just for talking to me.”
Enzo nodded, amusement back in his eyes. “Good to know. How friendly can I get with you before I find myself shoveling fertilizer every day?”
“As friendly as I want you to be.”
His eyebrow quirked up. “And how friendly is that?”
She bit back a smile. “I haven’t decided. Maybe you should be friendlier and find out.”
He held out a hand to her. “How’s this for friendly; I’ll help you practice the waltz. You’ll find it works better with two people.”
The evening had just taken a sudden turn for the better. Almost as soon as she thought this, her mood plummeted. “Neither of us has gloves. It’s a rule here. You’re not supposed to touch anyone’s skin.”
He tilted his chin down. “You don’t actually think I might have some truth serum on me, do you? Why would I be wandering around an empty cornfield with that on my hands?”
He had a point. But rules were rules. Her parents said if you always kept them, they would protect you when it mattered. If you picked and chose, you’d eventually choose wrong. Still, she could trust her future husband, couldn’t she?
It was her turn to cock her head. “So, whatareyou doing wandering around the cornfield at quarter after seven?”
He shrugged with an air of resignation. “I felt restless, so I decided to take a walk.”
“You felt restless after a day of harvesting? Most people just feel tired.”
“I’m not used to sharing a room with nine other men. Sometimes I want some quiet.”
“I understand. I go off by myself to read. Otherwise, people are always interrupting me.”
“Exactly.” The phone started a new song. “Pretty soon it will be too dark to dance.”