AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I’ve worked with them a time or two,” Fleet admitted. “Alley, or Chick as she’s known onstage, is a very talented writer. I see them going places.” His stomach growled, and he bent his head to the night’s specials; half of which were elaborate vegetarian choices, and the reason he frequented this place. “Sorry. I’m really hungry.”
“Don’t apologize,” she said. “I have an enormous appetite.”
He liked that she not only did, but that she’d admit it.
They soon placed their orders and began to make small talk.Verysmall talk, it seemed.
Fleet couldn’t be mistaken that when either one of them started probing deeper into the other’s past, the subject got changed. He was used to dealing with—or more accurately avoiding—his own boogeymen. Now it was fascinating to find that Talia, who seemed very straight-forward to him, seemed to have a few things in her closet, as well.
“We’re skirting around a lot of stuff here, aren’t we?” Fleet dared, after the third time one of them segued off a subject to mention the lovely October weather they’d been enjoying.
“Yeah. We are,” Talia sighed. “But I’m okay with it if you are. As long as it’s both of us being reticent…” She took a bite of her bottom lip and didn’t finish.
“Itisboth of us,” Fleet admitted. “And I’m fine with that. I’m all for getting to know you slowly before we bring up all our baggage.”
She looked relieved, giving him a huge smile. “Nice. Because I’m attracted to you, Fleet. I’ll readily admit that. But I don’t generally date, because I’m not ready to spill all my problems with someone right out of the box. You can’t imagine all the anger I’ve stirred by being…vague.” She brightened further. “As long as you’re not pissed that I’m holding back, I’m really interested in dating you.”
Well, hell.Talia was a lot braver than he was. She’d not only placed her bet on the table, she’d called on him to do the same. What could he do but show his cards?
“Okay. Here it is.” He gathered his courage. “I haven’t been able to get you out of my mind since the wedding, Talia. I’m all in for dating. But I—”
“Fleet!” A feminine voice cut off the caveat he was going to send Talia.
He knew who it was. Not great timing, but not awful either. It would give Talia time to digest the fact that he had secrets, too.
Fleet got to his feet and gave Alley a hug. “Alley, this is Talia. Talia, Alley, or Chick as she’s sometimes known.” Funny, he’d been so preoccupied, he hadn’t even realized the band had ended their set.
“Nice to meet you, Talia,” Alley said with a smile, holding out her hand.
Talia took it. “Same,” she said with a grin. “Fleet has been schooling me on music. He says you’re a really good writer.”
Alley beamed. “That’s high praise coming from him.” She turned to Fleet. “And speaking of which, what did you think of the song we just played? It’s new, and I think we need to get some studio time with you to record it.”
Fleet wanted to smack himself. Had he heard a word of the new track?Nope. Not a one. He’d been so absorbed with the lady next to him, the world could have blown up and he wouldn’t have noticed. How out of character was that? Never, not once in his memory, had he paid more attention to his table-mate than to the music being played.
Shit. Alley’s waiting for an answer.
“Uh, yeah. It has a lot of merit,” he told Alley. “Give me a call on Monday and let me know when you’d like to come in.”
Alley rolled her eyes as if she knew he was full of shit. Which she probably did, because normally he’d engage with all kinds of suggestions regarding the nuances of her new creations. But bless her, she didn’t miss a beat.
“Yup. We’ll talk,” she smirked, then turned back to the woman beside him. “It was very nice meeting you, Talia. I have a feeling I’ll be seeing a lot more of you in the future.”
She would if Fleet had anything to say about it.
Headache be damned, this night had turned out to be stellar.
CHAPTERTHREE
Had she come on strong?Yes.Did she regret it?Hell, no. It was a fault of hers, or a strength, depending on who you talked to. She always made up her mind, for better or for worse, then went for it. Which she’d done tonight. Talia did an internal shrug. Fleet might as well get used to it if they actually ended up dating.
In truth, she’d been tired of waiting for Fleet to call, and every time she’d asked Everlee if she was barking up the wrong tree with Fleet, Ever had assured her she was not. And now she knew—sort of—why he’d hesitated. He had skeletons in his closet, just like her, which had precluded him from being the one to initiate contact. Talia just hoped that by being up front regarding her own baggage, which remained tightly packed, that he wouldn’t feel like he had to spill his guts to her, unless it became necessary.
Fleet was just damned hot, and Talia was interested in seeing if they had any physical chemistry and similar interests before they dug more deeply into each other’s back stories.
On the surface, she liked that he had the music thing going—something that was pretty much a mystery to her—because digging into new endeavors satisfied her ever-curious appetite. And hiking? That was an addition to the feast that was Fleet, along with the unexpected side-dish of bouldering…which she was suddenly dying to try.
She mentally cheered. The table was set, now if she could just work things out so that when they left the restaurant he’d kiss her, she’d be able to tell if things between them were worth pursuing.
