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Matt made the drink, then disappeared through the swinging doors into the kitchen. A minute later, he returned carrying a massive oval platter piled high with tortilla chips and toppings. He settled the plate in front of her.
“Holy shit, I forgot how big these were,” she said with an incredulous laugh.
Matt grinned. “Maybe I’ll steal one then.”
“Steal two, Matt, seriously,” she said, unrolling the napkin from around her silverware.
Her apartment was just down the block, and since she’d frequented Murphy’s so much over the past year, she was on a first-name basis with most of the staff. He gave her a wink as he moved down to New Guy. “Care for anything else?”
The guy’s gaze swung to Tara. “Are those as good as they look?” He had a slight drawl when he spoke, and Tara couldn’t quite place it. It wasn’t pronounced enough to be from someplace like Texas.
She smiled as she pulled a chip from the pile, the melted cheese stretching before it broke. “They’re freaking awesome. There’s just a metric crap ton of them.”
He chuffed out a laugh. “So I see.” He peered at the menu again, giving her a chance to appreciate the bulk of his biceps under a dark gray Henley. Because wow. “What else would you recommend that’s not that big?”
Tara mmmed around the first chip. The crunch of it combined with the gooeyness of the cheese and sour cream and the tanginess of the pico and chili. Oh yeah, getting out of her apartment was exactly what she’d needed.
Matt tapped at the plastic-covered menu in front of the guy. “Wings are good. Pretzel sticks and cheese dip are real good. The loaded potato skins and onion rings are also great, though they’re pretty big, too.”
New Guy glanced at her nachos again.
“You could share mine. I’ll never eat all these.” Tara wasn’t sure what possessed her to make the offer, except that there was no way she was going to finish them on her own.
The guy’s eyebrow went up, and she couldn’t tell if he was dubious or intrigued.
She shrugged as she ate a second chip. “Up to you, but if you don’t decide soon I’ll have eaten all the best ones.”
Amusement played around his mouth. “There are best ones?”
“Of course there are best ones,” she said, sucking sour cream off her finger.
The guy looked between her and Matt as if he was waiting for the punchline, and then his gaze latched onto hers. “What other appetizers do you like here?”
“Onion rings or wings, hands down.”
Matt chuckled. “She’s a regular.”
“No kidding,” New Guy said. “Let’s go with the wings.” The words were barely out of his mouth when he picked up his things and slid down to the bar stool right beside her. “You sure about
this?” His shoulders were broad enough that they nearly touched. And he was even better looking up close. Laugh lines crinkled the corners of his eyes. Two character-adding scars jagged on his forehead. A hint of black ink curled up the side of his neck.
“I offered, didn’t I?” She smirked.
He smirked back but held out a hand. “I’m Jesse. What’s your name?”
The move seemed a little old-fashioned, but she found it charming nonetheless. She returned the shake, thinking that his name fit the accent. “Tara.”
“Tara,” he repeated, as if trying out her name to see how it felt on his tongue. She liked the way it sounded in his deep voice. Jesse grabbed a laden chip. “What makes a chip better or worse, Tara?” he asked as he took a bite.
“Well, obviously, the more toppings it has, the better it is. And the less toppings, the worse. And the crunchier chips are better than the ones that get soft under the cheese.”
He hummed around a bite. “You have clearly put a lot of thought into this.”
“Clearly. Or maybe I just know what I like,” she said, instantly hearing the innuendo in the words. And his double-take revealed that he heard it, too. And Holy Hot New Guy why hadn’t she brushed her hair or at least put on some tinted lip balm before coming out tonight?
“Good to know,” he said with a chuckle. For a moment, they ate in silence, an odd intimacy between them from sharing the same plate of food. And then Jesse said, “So what’s a girl like you doing at a place like this at midnight all by yourself?”
Tara laughed. Then realized that he hadn’t been trying to make a joke. “Oh. Oh. You’re serious.” She laughed again. “Uh, what’s a guy like you doing at a place like this at midnight all by yourself?”
