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Charlie squirmed in his seat. Did she really think that? Okay, he did look at her a lot. Hello? She was a beautiful woman. He just wanted to get to know her. Maybe he stared too long now and then, but did he make her uncomfortable? That was the last thing he wanted to do.
Before he could speak, she laughed softly and shook her head before looking away.
“I’m kidding,” she said quietly.
Charlie nodded, hoping his whole body wasn’t sagging with relief.
“I’m a graphic artist. Um.” She licked her lips. “Went to school for a couple of years. And then…” She flicked her gaze over him and looked away quickly. “Life happened. So, I’m mostly…self-taught. I do a lot of web design.”
Curiosity piqued with the life happened comment, Charlie watched the warmth, the life, drain from her cheeks.
“Yeah? Are you good at it?”
“Good enough to do a steady business.” She met his eyes boldly.
“You should do a site for Mom.”
“Maybe your mom should be the one to say so.”
Renita appeared again, this time with Tatum’s burger and fries in a red basket like Charlie’s.
“Your food’s gonna be cold.” She eyed his burger as she reached for the ketchup bottle.
“Maybe.” He shrugged. “But I wasn’t going to sit here and eat in front of you.”
“I like your mom,” she announced.
The sudden change in conversation topic surprised him, but her sentiment didn’t. Everyone liked his parents, one of the reasons their business ventures always did so well.
“I do, too.”
This time, Tatum laughed out loud. Their eyes met, and Charlie felt the dare in the look. Rather than comment on her laughter—even though it sounded like music—he turned his attention to his food.
“She makes good coffee.”
“She does,” he agreed.
“And good boys.”
6
Tatum felt his eyes on her as she chewed and swallowed the first bite of her burger. When she met his eyes, he arched his brows, making her wonder if he was amused or put off by her comment.
“What?” She tipped her head and reached for a couple of fries. “Upset that I called you a boy?”
“More like surprised that you called me good.”
That comment amused her a bit, but she bit her lip to keep her mouth still. No sense in leading this guy on. He might be a nice guy, a good guy, but she didn’t have time for dating, and she wasn’t interested.
“You all seem like good family guys,” she spoke quietly and grabbed her burger for another bite.
“Then why don’t you ever talk to me?”
“Because I don’t see the point.”
Charlie aimed a frown at her. “What does that mean?”
“I’m not interested,” she said simply.
