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Joyce giggled. “Part of it, at least. I said what we’d rehearsed, that I wanted to begin incorporating plants into my decorating jobs.”
Catherine took a sip of iced tea and swore she could still taste Luke. It was such a distracting thought, she sat up and jarred Smoky out of his sleep. He leapt off her lap and went strutting away toward the camellias.
“He bought the story, didn’t he?” she finally had the presence of mind to inquire.
“Of course, although there was a hint of suspicion in his eyes. Did I mention he has the most beautiful blue eyes?”
“Yes, you did. Now go on. What else happened?”
“He complained the place was too crowded to talk and asked if I’d like to go down the street to get a cup of coffee. This time I said yes, and we sat at a tiny corner table at Starbucks for hours. They make a delicious Chai iced tea, by the way.”
“I’ll remember that, but I know you wouldn’t have stayed for hours if you hadn’t liked what you heard.”
“No, I wouldn’t. Cut your losses and escape the losers I always say. But while Shane may be young, he’s one of the most focused individuals I’ve ever met. His dad died when he was in his teens, and he took over the operation of his family’s nursery business before he’d graduated from high school.
“He earned a college degree in business by attending classes at night, and his firm is doing so well that his younger brother and sister, a set of twins, are at the University of California at Santa Cruz, also majoring in business. He believes a concern for the environment, as w
ell as our own well-being, just naturally increases everyone’s desire to fill their homes and offices with healthy plants.”
“He discussed the nursery business all evening?”
Joyce shook her head emphatically. “No, that was merely the beginning. We talked about all sorts of things, politics, world problems, where we wanted to be in five years. He’s such an open man, it was easy to confide in him.”
She hesitated briefly and with a small sigh grew thoughtful. “He said he hoped to marry soon and have at least two children. When I admitted I was afraid I might have missed my chance to have a family, he assured me that I hadn’t. He seemed so sincere, but it will take awhile to discover if that’s merely a pose, or the way he truly is.”
“What does your intuition tell you?” Catherine inquired.
“That he’s real, but that doesn’t mean he’ll fall madly in love with me.”
“It doesn’t mean that he won’t either. Did he ask to see you again?”
“Yes, he walked me to my car, kissed me good night, and I mean really kissed me, and said he’d like to take me to dinner tonight. I usually make a man wait a few days, but I didn’t even consider it with Shane. I just blurted out, ‘Yes!’, and thank God, he didn’t appear too startled.”
“He must have enjoyed talking with you and expected you to accept his invitation.”
“I suppose. Now all I have to do is hold myself together until tonight. Maybe I should suggest we go to China Town. When are you seeing Luke again?”
“I’ll see him Monday morning at Lost Angel. We hope to get the kids involved in painting a mural, and I’m really looking forward to it.”
“Wonderful, but didn’t he want to make plans for another date?”
“Frankly, I think he was too tired to plan more than driving home, but you needn’t worry. We’ll go out again.”
Joyce studied her friend’s confident smile. “I hope you’re right, but I’ve found if a man really likes me, he’ll ask me out again when he brings me home. It’s always the guys who say they’ll call, who vanish without a trace.”
“Luke can’t disappear. I know where he works,” Catherine insisted, but it was yet another reminder of how unsettling it was to be with someone who preferred not to plan. It was a way to avoid disappointment that was true, but it seriously hampered delicious anticipation.
First thing Monday morning, Catherine called her gynecologist and requested a new prescription for birth control pills. She’d recently seen her, and the conscientious physician agreed to call her pharmacy so that she would be able to pick up the prescription that same day. While Catherine would have to wait until after her next period to begin taking the pills, she was relieved just to have put her plan in place.
When she arrived at Lost Angel, Dave was in Luke’s office, and from the volume of their voices, she doubted it was wise to disturb them and hung back.
“Go on,” Pam encouraged with a bracelet jingling wave. “Luke will be glad to see you.”
Catherine hoped he would be, but rather than intrude, she settled for a quick peek in the door. “I just wanted to let you know I’m here, but I’ll come back later.”
Luke stood. “No, come on in. This concerns you as well. It seems after taking the weekend to check out the neighborhood, Dave chose Toby McClure’s Victorian.”
She was enormously pleased and beamed her approval. “You like it too?”
