Page 70 of Finding Forever

“Then we make changes.”

Rachel slipped on her coat. “And if they don’t?”

Beth smiled. “Then,” she said, “we get ready to open the doors.”

Chapter 36

Dave checked the chicken for the third time. It was still cooking. He closed the oven door and glanced at the clock above the stove. Beth wasn’t due until six-thirty, so that gave him another ten minutes to get everything ready.

He’d cooked dinner for plenty of people over the years. Carol. Mark. Friends. He knew his way around a kitchen well enough to put together a decent meal, even though he rarely bothered cooking anything elaborate for himself.

Apparently, none of that mattered when Beth was coming over. He’d bought the best ingredients he could find, taken twice as long to prepare everything, and had been hovering over the oven in case anything burned.

He stirred the creamy mushroom sauce simmering on the stove. The chicken needed a few more minutes, and he needed to stop behaving as though he’d never invited a woman to dinner before.

The doorbell rang.

Wiping his hands on a dish towel, he headed for the front door. Beth stood on the veranda holding a plastic container in one hand and a folder beneath her arm. Her dark green sweater brought out the warmth in her eyes, and the smile she gave him made him forget, briefly, that he had food cooking.

“Hi, Dave. Something smells wonderful.”

He stepped aside and closed the door behind her. “I’m baking chicken in a creamy mushroom and garlic sauce, with roasted potatoes and green beans.”

While Beth took off her jacket, she handed him the container. “That sounds yummy. I brought these.”

Through the clear lid, Dave could see at least two dozen cookies. “Chocolate chip?”

Beth nodded. “With walnuts.”

He lifted the lid and breathed in the familiar smell. Ever since Beth had brought some cookies to the arts center, he’d developed a serious addiction to them.

“As much as I’d like one now,” Dave told Beth, “I’d better leave them until after dinner.”

Beth smiled and followed him through the house. “Do you need a hand?”

“I’m almost done.”

Beth stopped when she saw the dining table.

Dave had bought flowers from the local florist and found matching placemats and napkins at the back of a cupboard.

“This is lovely,” she said softly.

The uncertainty he’d felt about making too much of the evening disappeared. “I thought we might as well make an occasion of it.”

“I’m glad you did.”

Dave walked into the kitchen and stirred the sauce. Behind him, he heard Beth open the folder she was holding.

“I brought something for you,” she said as she joined him. “This is the final program for the opening of the arts center.”

Beth had been working on the program for weeks and had been worried she wouldn’t have it finished on time. “Is it approved?” he asked her.

“By everyone.” Satisfaction filled her voice. “Natalie, the fire marshal, the health department, and every other person who has made me change something over the last three weeks.”

Dave took the copy she handed to him. Seeing everything laid out in neat lines made the opening suddenly seem real. Not long ago, the building had been full of dust, damaged walls, and a seemingly endless list of problems.

Beth tapped the middle of the page. “At noon, we cut the cake and have the official photograph.”