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“The chowder was excellent,” she said, pushing her bowl aside. Talia had also gone with a big salad, and was contemplating an actual dessert before the man-feast she had planned for later. “I don’t suppose you’d be up for sharing something chocolate?” she asked.
“My favorite,” he admitted, giving her the sexiest smile. “I know it’s not something guys usually admit, but I’m a closet chocoholic. I have a desk drawer at work dedicated solely to candy bars.”
Mmm.A man not afraid to mix things up.
“What’s your favorite?” she asked as she perused both the dessert menu and him, alternately.
“There’s a company in Colorado that makes these unbelievable organic cup-thingies with just two ingredients, dark chocolate and honey.”
“Sounds good. I’ll have to try those,” Talia replied, imagining what the confection would taste like, licked from Fleet’s lips.
“Stop by any time,” he agreed easily, clearly not knowing where her mind had gone. He indicated the paper she held which told of the night’s dessert offerings. “Have you picked for us?”
“How about a molten chocolate cake?” she asked. “It comes with vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, or…”
“…both?” he finished with a grin. “I sure hope so.”
“Yup,” she beamed, putting down the menu. “Both, it is.”Damn.He was a man after her own heart.
As they waited for their final dish, Fleet asked more about her day.
“So, tell me about the drills you held earlier. Talk about the asshole who wanted to harsh your high.”
“Nice drug reference,” Talia answered, becoming a little more cautious with that mention. “Umm, am I to suppose you…smoke? The music industry and all…” She waved a vague hand around wondering if she sounded like an antiquated idiot, or if she were, indeed, spot on.
“Well,” he prevaricated for only a second. “It’s a pretty normal activity for musicians,” he cautioned. “And for myself… I still smoke occasionally,” he admitted. “Not nearly as much as I did a few years ago. Does that bother you? I respect the laws in Maine, and I don’t go over the legal limits.”
Talia shrugged. How did she answer this without coming off as “establishment”?
She sighed. “I’m not a huge fan,” she told him honestly. “And not just because we get tested regularly at the station. It’s more from…the baggage I have that we’re not ready to discuss.”
Fleet held up a hand. “Then we won’t talk about it,” he told her definitively. “And I won’t smoke if we’re going to start seeing each other.” He spoke frankly. “I can take it or leave it these days, and if you’re the incentive…”
“No, no, no,” Talia demurred. “You don’t need to give up anything for me. I just won’t be comfortable if you smoke while we’re together.”
“Not a problem,” he reiterated seriously. “It’s not an integral part of my life any more. You know, like drinking,” he led. “I might have imbibed a lot when I was in college, but now I’m such a lightweight, two beers and I’m ready for bed.”
“Me, too,” Talia laughed. This was good. Swapping where their heads were at. And she believed him about his weed use. “In college, I was known to have a few…lost nights after rounds of shots with my girls.”
Fleet grinned. “I was a shot guy only once,” he chuckled. “I embarrassed myself monumentally after imbibing an unknown number of tequila shots in my freshman year, after which I swore off them forever.”
“Oooh, tell me,” Talia poked. The topic was a lot sweeter than rehashing her day with her complicated squad-mate, Doug.
Besides, she had drinking stories of her own to share.
Twenty minutes later after becoming bust-a-gut-mirthful over some seriously debauched anecdotes—and a decadent dessert she attempted not to snort out her nose—Talia had a better picture of the man Fleet had been in college; a light-weight, studious nerd with a side hustle of extreme sports. It was an unexpected, but very sweet combination, and was probably why he came off a little shy. The nerd in him, clearly still kept things low key.
Talia found she really liked all that about him, and as they settled the bill—she insisted on paying half, which Fleet didn’t like at all—she figured she’d had it right, earlier. If a kiss was going to happen tonight, he’d be too shy. She’d have to be the one to initiate things.
“You want to call it a night, or prowl around town for a bit?” he asked, obviously remembering that she had drills tomorrow.
Talia looked at her watch. “It’s only nine. If I’m tucked in by eleven, I’ll be good.”
“Which gives us…?”
Talia laughed. “It’s only a nine-minute drive home for me,” she told him. “So we have at least an hour.”
“Nine minutes, huh? You live…?”
