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“He’s here,” John said a few minutes later. He held the menu so it covered most of his face.
Elizabeth peeked over her shoulder. J.R. didn’t glance their way as he gave a seated Ariana a side hug and kissed her cheek. Though J.R. was dressed and groomed respectably, compared to when he’d shown up on her property, a knot still formed in Elizabeth’s stomach.
The server returned. They ordered, then Elizabeth peered in Ariana’s direction again.
“How was your day?” John asked to distract her.
“Sorry. Work was fine.”
“But you can’t tell me specifics since everything is confidential.”
“That’s correct.”
“This is where you ask aboutmyday,” he drawled, aiming a grin at her. “Which was great. We’re breaking in a newbie to the team, so we practiced running live-fire exercises in the shooting house.”
“Isn’t that dangerous?”
“Compared to a deployment? Naw.”
She hadn’t figured John out yet, but learning about his mother gave her a good bit of insight. His mother had only been a teen, probably with little say in her decision, but she’d likely never told John her side of it, or how hard and heartbreaking that decision had been. Did she regret giving him up? Is that why she wanted to see him every year? It seemed more like torturing herselfandJohn.
He gave a wave to someone in the dining area and flashed a smile. “J.R. knows we’re here.”
John pulled her from her counselor mindset, which was a good thing. She was not his counselor, and he hadn’t asked her for her take on his parents’ and grandparents’ decisions.
“And based on J.R.’s body language, he’s not thrilled. Ariana looks like she’s explaining. Why don’t you wave to them?”
Really? She feigned surprise and lifted her hand in greeting. Once she had settled back, she said, “You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”
“After what you said earlier, I want her to know she’s not alone. And if we throw him off his game, all the better.”
“Ariana is so young and vulnerable. And trusting.” Like she’d once been.
“Need a real drink?”
“I’d better pass. I’m a lightweight and get chatty after more than one glass of wine. I don’t want to say anything to her or him I might regret.” Especially with the places her mind was going tonight with Ariana agreeing to go on a date with J.R.
“What kind of music do you like?” John dragged her attention away from her past and back to him. “I’m guessing some soft rock, pop country, easy listening, oldies.”
“How old?”
“Seventies and eighties. The nineties only had about fifty decent songs and forty of those were country.”
“I’m sure there’s more than fifty.”
“I don’t know. That’s when screamo took off. And gangsta rap and all that grunge crap.”
“Not a fan?” She did like that John spoke his mind rather than tell people what they wanted to hear.
“Everyone’s entitled to their opinion. I prefer classic rock or country. After a beer or two, I’ll listen to some pop. I bet you know all the words to Taylor Swift’s songs.”
“I don’t know all, but I could at least do the chorus for a few.”
“We should do a karaoke night at The Oasis.”
“Pass on the karaoke,” she said with a laugh as the server delivered their food.
“Come on. It’d be fun. Though Taylor’s got a song called ‘Dear John.’ I don’t like it. But I do like ‘Shake it Off.’” John sang and danced in his seat with a big grin, obviously not caring that he drew looks from half the people in the dining room.
