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My brows shot into the sky. “Awhat?”
I hadn’t heard that word in ages. He couldn’t be serious.
Oh, but hecouldbe serious. And with the look in his eyes, I had to prepare myself for the fact that this date would be serious too.
***
Cozy lanterns splashed warm light over the restaurant as we walked inside. Andres held my waist loosely and guided me to the hostess stand made of maple wood dashed with orange. Red plaid clothes covered the tables behind her, the open seating arrangement simpler than I had anticipated. Colorful cloths hung in the doorways parted by gold bangles and murals expanded every wall, rich with oceanic scenery, flourishing fields, and glorious stretches of forests.
This wasn’t what I expected with someone like Andres. Given that Bella had tried to label him a billionaire, I had anticipated going to a fancy restaurant out of town, a place where the menu was in a different language. But no, Andres had taken me into Wolfcreek to a lovely little place calledMedallion.
The woman at the hostess stand smiled brightly. “Andres!”
She had rosy cheeks, ember eyes, and sandy blonde bangs with almond brown hair hanging around her shoulders. She wore the usual hostess uniform, black slacks and a black blouse, and grabbed two menus while walking around the podium.
“Ginny, this is Sadie,” Andres said as he greeted the woman with a hug. “She’s my fiancée. We’re having a date tonight.”
She gasped. “Wow, so Miss Lena was right about you being heckin’ gorg.”
I blinked a few times.Miss Lena?
Andres chuckled while hugging me to his side. “She’s more than gorg, Ginny. She’s a bombshell.”
“Totes,” Ginny agreed, and then waved for us to follow her. “Miss Lena is in the office. I’ll let her know you’re here. Do you want Frank or Marvin today?”
“Both of them give great service, so dealer’s choice,” Andres replied with a dashing grin.
Our walk through the dining area felt heralded by angels. Everyone turned their heads as though prompted by trumpets, and the wait staff paused near the double doors of the kitchen to wave at us. Andres was a celebrity here. Did he come here a lot?
And then it hit me. This had been his plan all along. He wanted to take me somewhere that knew him super well so he could keep up the ruse. I almost felt stupid for getting excited about a fake date, and I felt self-conscious about the deep-cut dress I was wearing in bubblegum pink with gems decorating the fabric. Too tight, too formal, too short for a little place like this.
But people didn’t glare at us or make a fuss over our clothes. Andres himself looked dapper as hell in his black button-down shirt and dark slacks with matching wingtips. The top three buttons of his shirt stayed open, revealing a tuft of thick blond hair. I kept my focus on that while we were seated.
Ginny smiled hard enough to crease her dimples. “It’s about time this grumpy jerk got a good girl in his life.”
I stared aghast for a second, trying to figure out whether she was just teasing him or being totally rude. When Andres laughed, I got my answer.
I chuckled nervously and nodded. “Yeah, he sure is grumpy.”
“You must have the patience of a snail climbing a tree.”
“Yep. Patience of a snail.”
Ginny giggled and then bounced toward the kitchen. A waiter named Marvin collected our order—chicken parmesan with baked ziti and fried meatballs for the table—before heading in the same direction. He looked the complete opposite of Ginny, too serious, too tanned, too gloomy. But the service he delivered was far from abysmal and I was impressed by how Andres brightened the young man with a smile.
“What is this place?” I dared to ask when everyone had finally left us alone. “Miss Lena—is that your mother?”
Goddess, the guy actuallyblushedwhen he reached for the basket of biscuits Marvin had left with us. “Yeah, uh…My mother owns this restaurant. She’s been bugging me to bring you here.”
“I’m sure she hardly bugged you at all.”
“My mother really likes you.”
That statement hung in the air like a death sentence. It made me incredibly happy, and then it tore me to pieces. His mother liked me. What wasthatsupposed to mean?
I awkwardly picked at the plaid tablecloth, turning my attention to the murals. I tried not to think about how I was duping his mother, or the wait staff, or that irritatingly bubbly hostess. The people here seemed real nice, and I was just lying to their faces with my loud dress and louder silence.
Andres took my hand. “Sadie, I need to—”
