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“Thanks, Jo. I’ll tell Carrie what you said.” Dan stood. “I’m taking my coffee to go. Thanks, man, for getting everyone together. This was good.”
Dan said his goodbyes, and I slid into the vacated space facing Jo. “So, is this your first time to The Boathouse? I haven’t seen you here before.”
“You come here a lot?” she asked.
“Yeah, I guess you could say that. Less now that I can cook a few things.”
“I came for lunch with Emily when we talked about the farm meals. The chowder’s pretty good.”
“High praise from a chef. How’s your drink? You need another?” I asked.
“I don’t think so. This is my third on an empty stomach.”
“Third? You need some food.” I grabbed a menu from the other side of the bar. “Bad day?”
“No. A couple of guys came over to order for themselves and bought me one too since I let them squeeze in to catch Jake.”
“Yeah, I saw that. So generous of them.”
“I think so.” She looked at me with indignation.
“You don’t seriously believe that’s why they bought you a drink? Because they were being nice?”
“What, you think they were hitting on me?”
“Yes, Jo. They were hitting on you. You look surprised.”
“Well, they were both kinda hot, you know, fit.” She straightened up and looked around like she was looking for them again, and the hair stood up on the back of my neck. I wanted to rest my hand on her chair to show others she was mine. But she wasn’t.
“I wouldn’t know if they were hot. I do know that little red sweater is asking for attention.”
She stretched the hem and smoothed it down. “Really? It’s new. Emily picked it out for me. The boutique inside The Elliot had a clearance sale last week. She said the color made my eyes pop.”
“It’s making eyes pop, for sure.”
She lowered her gaze. Was she blushing? That was new for Ms. Tough Professional Chef. I liked it.
“Stop teasing, Lucas. I can still poison you when you aren’t looking. Tall, charming, and handsome usually gravitates toward tall, thin, and pretty. Last I checked, that’s not me.”
Did Jo not realize she was pretty? Most of the women I usually rubbed up against sure as hell knew they looked good. They didn’t need me telling them. A few sweet words greased the wheels initially, but once the train was rolling, I put my energy elsewhere.
Looking at Jo tonight, I couldn’t imagine she didn’t see it. Those chef clothes hid a curvy little body that I wouldn’t mind seeing more of.
“You guys want some food?” Jake asked, with a glance at the menu in my hand.
Jo thumbed toward me. “My boss says I should eat.”
Boss? I wasn’t her boss. We were … what were we exactly? Teacher and student, that could be hot. But co-workers or client and vendor? That sounded like work. I didn’t have sex with women I worked with. Fuck.
12
JO
“This food is delicious.That pork loin, it’s so tender,” Donna said. Her expression was almost awe.
“The magic is in the braising. Slow and low with some spices and vegetables,” I said. “This recipe is my dad’s favorite. I make it for him every time I’m home.” Which hadn’t been much lately.
“It falls apart at the touch of a fork, and there’s barely any fat.”
