“I’ll call Grandpop right now on speaker phone.” As he dialed, he signaled for Vi to be silent.
Malcom answered, sounding surprised. “Hello, Blake. Is there a reason why you’re calling?”
“Yeah. I want to have dinner with you tonight, if there’s room at your table.”
“The dining room is closed Sundays. You know that.”
Blake raised his eyebrows at Vi. “I’d forgotten. Where are you planning to eat tonight?”
“The Sea Captain’s Café. Caroline and I have been several times.”
Her mouth watering—the restaurant served fresh-caught fish that was excellent—Vi licked her lips.
Blake nodded his agreement. “Why don’t Vi and I join you? We’ll carpool. What time should I pick you up?”
“Listen to you two harp at us to rethink what we’ve already decided to do? No.”
Well, shoot. There went that idea. Vi frowned, but Blake held up his finger signaling her to wait. He spoke in a calm voice. “Dinner ended abruptly the other night. It’ll be a way for the four of us to get to know each other better.”
A pause, then, “All right,” Malcom said, sounding less-than convinced. “But one word about us changing our minds and we’ll walk out. Picking us up is out of your way. It doesn’t get dark till around seven-thirty. We’ll drive ourselves. We like to go early and get a table before the place gets crowded. Meet us there at five.” Without another word, he disconnected.
Vi was flabbergasted. “Did he just hang up on you?”
“That’s his way of ending a phone call.”
“But you’re his grandson.”
“He is who he is.” Blake grinned. “And we’re all set.”
They high-fived each other, a brief contact of palms. No big deal, yet her body hummed. Probably because it’d been a while since a man had touched her in any way. Pathetic. Appalled at herself, she shifted in her chair. “I don’t know if we’re all set or not. You heard his warning.”
“We’ll work that out on the drive there.”
“Five o’clock is early for dinner. I haven’t eaten there in a long time and don’t know what to wear. What do you suggest?”
His gaze roved over her, from her tie-dye sweatshirt and well-worn jeans to her loose ponytail, making her feel acutely self-conscious. “What you’re wearing now is fine.”
Did his eyes have to fill with the warmth she’d noted earlier? Her cheeks burned, but she knew better. Every straight malegave a woman that look, regardless of whether or not she appealed to him. They were wired that way. “These are my grungy clothes. I can’t wear them to dinner.”
“Up to you. I’ll pick you up at your place.” He handed her his phone. “Pull up your contact info. I’ll do the same.”
They held their phones close together and shared the info. She put her jacket on to leave. At the door, she paused. “We still need to figure out a subtle way to bring up the subject of the prenup so they don’t feel ambushed. It’d be nice to figure that out in advance.”
“Like I said, we’ll come up with something on the drive to the restaurant. If not, we’ll play it by ear.”
“I don’t do well without a plan.”
“I’ll pick you up at four-thirty,” he said, effectively waving her concern away.
CHAPTER 7
Thanks to light traffic, Blake arrived early at the multi-unit complex where Vi lived. It was a nice area made up of newer townhouses. With spring in the air and the days growing longer, people were outside gardening in their small yards and visiting with each other or walking their dogs.
He passed a playground where kids played on the jungle gym and swings or shot hoops around a basketball court. Parking near Vi’s place proved impossible. He soon found the guest parking area and pulled into a slot. Minutes later, he knocked at her door.
She answered, her eyes wide with surprise. “I was planning to come out so you didn’t need to park, but you’re early. Come in.”
“There wasn’t much traffic.” Her dress highlighted her slender body. Tights and ankle boots showed off her nice legs. Damn, she looked good, good enough to kiss. As if. Theirs was a relationship borne out of a shared goal to stop their grandparents from making a big mistake.
