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“I would have been one day, I think. I had one more year of school to get through before I could go for a Ph.D, though.”
“Hello there, folks. I’m Steven. I’ll be your server tonight,” the waiter said as he approached their booth, notebook in hand.
“Hi, Steven.” Palmer’s dad looked down at the menu for a moment. “I don’t think we’ve had a chance to look at the menu yet.”
“Can I get you something to drink while you think about what you want?”
“Honey?” her father said to his wife.
“Iced tea,” her mom said.
Palmer glanced at Elizabeth.
“Oh. I’ll have the same, I guess.”
“Lemonade,” Palmer requested.
“Same for me,” her father added. “You know, if you two mix your drinks together, you’ll make an Arnold Palmer.”
“I’m sorry?” Elizabeth said, shaking her head in confusion.
Palmer placed a hand on Elizabeth’s thigh and laughed at her father, who was one of the biggest nerds she’d ever met.
“Don’t worry about it. Do you want an appetizer?”
“I don’t know. Whatever you order, I’ll try.”
“Yeah? They have an artichoke spinach dip I like, and Mom usually gets the mozzarella sticks.”
“Okay,” Elizabeth said.
“Have you ever had a mozzarella stick?” Palmer asked, smiling at her.
“No,” Elizabeth replied.
“We should have taken her someplace nicer,” her mother said.
“Oh, no,” Elizabeth replied. “No, this is perfect.” She smiled at Palmer’s parents. “This is exactly what I wanted.”
Elizabeth’s hand moved on top of Palmer’s, and she entwined their fingers. Palmer smiled and knew she was blushing but couldn’t do anything about it.
“We should get the blooming onion appetizer,” her father said. “It’s deep-fried, terrible for you, and delicious.”
“Maybe no onions,” Palmer suggested.
Then, Elizabeth turned to look at her. The smile she had dimmed only for a second before it went wide again.
???
“Your parents are lovely,” Elizabeth said as they walked to her hotel room door.
“They’re good people, yeah.”
“Please thank them for dinner again for me. It wasn’t necessary for them to pay. I’ll treat them later in my trip.”
“They don’t mind, but I’ll tell them,” Palmer said as they arrived at Elizabeth’s door. “So, can I come in with you? We haven’t really had any time to just talk.”
Elizabeth unlocked the door but turned around instead of walking inside.
