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“It seems a shame to not get the exact dessert you want on such a big night. There’s an ice cream parlor closer to the beach. Maybe we can walk down there after we eat and see if they have it on the menu.”
“Oh, uh…”
There was a definite hesitation there, and Jackson figured she was probably uneasy with taking a walk around town with a stranger—which was smart of her.
“No pressure,” he blurted. “It was just a suggestion. Besides, maybe you should give the peanut butter brownie a shot? You may end up with a second favorite dessert.”
“Good point,” she said, visibly relaxing.
Before he could say anything else, Jamie was back with their food.
After that, the conversation was easy and comfortable and somewhat vague. Jackson realized they talked about food and music and one topic seemed to flow into the next without either of them touching on anything personal. He found out she was new to the area, but she didn’t offer any insight into where she was from and he didn’t feel comfortable asking. They had such an easy camaraderie that he was afraid to ruin it.
She offered him a bite of her burger, and he did the same with his. Both were stellar, and he knew he’d be coming back here a lot.
Possibly for lunch and dinner.
Daily.
They were finishing up their meals when Jamie stepped up on the stage and announced that some local band was going to start playing in a few minutes. Jackson wasn’t a fan of live music in small places, but he also didn’t want to leave just yet.
“Have you ever played darts?” he asked Savannah.
“Um…no.” She glanced around and seemed to notice the boards. “I can’t say that I have.”
“Oh.”
“But I’ve always wanted to try.”
It was crazy how happy that one little sentence made him.
Sliding out of the booth, he held out his hand to her and led her over to the dartboards.
“Okay, so basically, we each get three darts and the object is to…”
“Hit the center?” she asked with a sassy grin.
“Yes, hit the center.” He explained the point system to her and then took his turn first so she could see how to stand and how to throw. It had been a long time since he’d played and his aim wasn’t great, but he figured that worked in his favor.
Walking up to the board, he retrieved his darts and walked back over to her. She was examining her darts and the look of utter concentration on her face was bordering on adorable.
“Okay,” she said after a minute. “So…I stand on this side of the line, with my feet like this, and then aim and throw, right?”
It was a little oversimplified, but he nodded. “Go ahead and take a couple of warm-up shots. We won’t start keeping score until you’re comfortable.”
Taking a step back, Jackson watched as she took her first shot.
It bounced off the board and hit the ground.
“No big deal. That happens a lot,” he explained.
Savannah adjusted her stance, aimed, and threw.
The dart stuck in the wall.
“Dammit,” she hissed, and looked over at him apologetically. “Third time’s a charm, right?”
“Absolutely!” Then he held his breath and prayed she’d at least hit the board.
