“I’m sorry. I really liked him for you.” It’s a stretch. Brennan was… okay at best. He liked to talk about himself. A lot. She brought him to dinner once, and he came to Callie’s fifth birthday in January and cornered me to “talk business,” like we were a club Rosalie wouldn’t fit into. As if. Her budget spreadsheets speak for themselves.
The look Rosalie gives me says she knows I’m a liar. “He’d see movies without me and then tell me the endings.”
“Unforgiveable.”
“He also threw cheddar popcorn to the monkeys at the zoo even though there were signs everywhere saying not to feed them.”
“You saw monkeys?” Callie asks from the back seat, suddenly awake. “And had popcorn without me?”
I almost make a joke about Rosalie hanging out with zoo criminals, but I wouldn’t be teasing my daughter, I’d be teasing Rosalie, and that’s a short drop into relaxing things even more than we already have. I like that we’re professional with each other.
I trust her with my life, but being too friendly is asking for trouble. I already find myself trying to match her wit, and she has this way of making everything feel casual and fun. But that’s a perk for the kids. Not for me. So, unless she needs something, I keep my distance.
Setting the jealous-girlfriend thing aside, she’s in my house every day. She uses my car. She puts away laundry in my room. Rosalie practically knows more about my kids than I do. I never, ever want her to feel anything but comfortable and confident in navigating all that.
It’s kind of lonely, though.
Chapter 4 – Your Red Flag is Showing
Liam
Maggie looks around in awe as the hostess leads us to our table in this cavern they call a restaurant. Despite being a difficult place to get into, it’s not overly crowded. It’s dark and cool inside and decorated all in black except for the vibrant green potted palms. I think they want people to forget about life outside and keep ordering more wine in their secluded jungle.
I pull out Maggie’s chair and go to sit in mine across from her, taking the menu from the hostess and cracking it open. The menu font is so small that I pull out my phone and use the camera zoom to confirm what I already suspected. They have a tasting menu I know Maggie is going to want to try, and they don’t post prices.
Maggie gives me a smug look over the top of her own menu. “Stop looking so grumpy and just enjoy the experience.”
“Oh, I plan to. But I told Rosalie I’d be home before ten.”
She stares at me, then down at her menu before closing it witha snap, making her shoulder-length jet-black hair lift before falling back into place. “Fine. We won’t do the tasting menu. I’ll get their ahi tuna and two sides, but you owe me.”
“Thanks.” I reach out my hand and cover hers, and she leans over to give me a quick kiss. Maggie doesn’t hold grudges for long, but she does enjoy a good dramatic pause. It’s a specialty of hers.
When she sees me touching my mouth to check for lipstick transfer, she holds up her clean water glass. “It’s lip stain. It won’t transfer to anything.”
“A technological marvel.”
“I think so. Right up there with the miracle of flight.” Lacing our fingers together, she leans in again. “Speaking of, when are we going to get away for a weekend, Liam?”
This isn’t the first time she’s asked, and it’s not a question about destination as much as a question about when we’re going to become more involved. I like her a lot. But I don’t love her, and we’re not tied to each other in any meaningful way. I’m old-fashioned when it comes to intimacy and hesitant to explain it. Not that I think she’d scoff. If anything, it might embolden her to try harder.
I’m pretty sure she thinks I’ve got some hidden passionate side she’ll find if she just digs deep enough. She’s not the first woman to look for it, but Esther took anything that was uninhibited about me and burned it up long ago.
There are no hidden layers here. I’m just changed.
I’m saved from answering by the waiter coming over to get our drink orders. It’s a relief. There are only so many ways of tiptoeing around telling someone else you’re just not that committed. I use the word “new” a lot, but now that we’ve been dating for four months, it’s not the buzzword it used to be.
We know what we want, so Maggie orders the ahi tuna steak, I get the spring rolls, and we both order salads. I’ll leave hungry, but chances are, a half a pan of brownies will be waiting for me when I get home, and I’d be lying if I said I’m not looking forward to it. If nothing else, it gives me a reason to get up early tomorrow and go for a run.
“How’s work?” I ask.
She shrugs. “Grueling. The company we’re working with now had a terrible accountant. The government thinks they hid money, but it’s more like ongoing incompetence and too many accounts. This one might go to court. I’ve never seen anyone launder money by accident before.”
“Would I recognize this company if you told me the name?”
She smiles. “Not a chance, Liam. We don’t reveal names of clients. You, of all people, should know better.”
“I do know better. The company I’m consulting for right now has a gossip problem. A bad one. It’s practically shut down their operations.”