Impulsively, she added a small bar of dark chocolate in the checkout line. She paid, put her items in her own bags, then returned her cart, making sure to grab the quarter she’d had to deposit to get access to the cart.
As soon as she got home, she chunked up the zucchini, squash, pepper, and onions, and doused them in a mix of olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper, and oregano and stuck it all in the fridge to marinate.
She changed back into her cleaning clothes and tackled the bathroom. Beau wandered in at one point and sneezed.
“You know you don’t like the smell of bleach,” Blaise said, shaking her head.
He sneezed again as if making her point. She laughed at him as he left. She got the bathroom finished and moved on to the bedroom, where she dusted.
Since the entire house was tiled, she didn’t own a vacuum. She had a stick version, but she usually swept, then sucked up the piles. Thankfully, Beau didn’t shed too much, but if shedidn’t keep up with it, she’d get tumbleweeds of dog hair drifting across her floors.
From the bedroom, she worked her way through the kitchen and finally the living room. She got the stick vac out, sucked up the piles, then touched up her area rugs.
By the time that was done, she was sweaty and ready to shower. That got her thinking about what to wear to Brick’s. She already knew he wasn’t going to dress up. He’d probably still be in the jeans and T-shirt he’d had on when he’d come to her door.
After the shower, she pulled on a robe and went to work on the veggies. She lined a cooking sheet with foil and then a sheet of unbleached parchment paper, and spread the veggies out before putting them in the oven to roast.
Once they were in, she went to dress. The thought of a sundress appealed to her, but Brick might think she was trying too hard. Or that she’d thought his invitation had been a date. Obviously, that wasn’t the case. He was clearly just being nice.
Casual. She needed to keep it casual.
She decided on tan linen shorts, and a white tank top with a coral linen shirt over it like a loose jacket. White sandals, gold earrings, and the diamond bangle that had been her last anniversary gift from Jay completed the outfit. On her left hand, she wore the eternity band she hadn’t taken off since the day they were married.
Her engagement ring sat locked in the small, built-in safe in her closet, along with a few other special pieces. The pieces she’d never part with.
A little bit of makeup over well-moisturized skin, and she was just about ready. She let her hair air dry, then pulled it away from her face with two French combs.
As she secured the last one, the oven timer went off. The house smelled great and the veggies looked even better.
She grated fresh parmesan over them, spooned them into a nice serving bowl, then grated more cheese on top. If he didn’t like these, there was no hope for any vegetable.
She covered the bowl with foil, stuck her phone and house key in her pocket and got Beau’s leash. “Come on, baby. Let’s go visit Brick.”
Beau’s tail wagged, but she knew he had no idea what was going on. All he knew was the leash meant they were going somewhere and that would bring new things to sniff.
They went through the backyard, the smell of a charcoal grill reaching her before they’d even gone past the gate.
Brick gave her a nod as she and Beau approached. He smiled at Beau. “Young man.”
Beau’s little tail wagged harder.
“If you shut that gate, you can take his leash off. Let him roam. There’s nothing he can get into.”
“All right,” Blaise said. “I’ll just put this on the table. We’re eating outside?”
“That okay?”
“Fine. It’s a beautiful night.” And, she thought, about to be a very interesting one, too.
Brick had put on an actual button-up shirt.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Cece lounged in her hammock on her screened porch, a generous glass of wine within reach on the side table, her Kindle in her hands as she read the book club book. She was now completely engrossed and she was loving that she had nothing more pressing to do than lay here and read it.
Peanut was in one of the chairs, snoozing away as the Gulf breezes washed over the porch. It was a beautiful night.
Dinner was baking in the oven: a trio of large potatoes that she’d rubbed in olive oil and sprinkled with kosher salt. When they were done, she’d slather one with butter, salt, pepper, and sour cream, add some chopped bacon and that would be all she needed. Maybe a scoop of chocolate ice cream later.
