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Joel gave him a speculative look. "What's happening with you and Chloe?"
"Just getting to know each other," he replied, not wanting to talk to Joel about Chloe. "We're both busy."
"I was a little too okay with her being busy. And she was a little too happy to go slow. I think we both probably realized our relationship wasn't what we wanted it to be but hoped we could get there eventually."
"Are you trying to tell me something?" he asked, seeing the gleam in Joel's eyes.
"I don't want you or Chloe to get hurt. And, frankly, I don't see how you end up together, Decker. You don't stay anywhere for long. You're always eager to get to the next thing, just like your dad. Chloe will never leave Whisper Lake. Her roots go deep. She has all her friends to support her and Leo. I can't see her making a move."
Nothing Joel said was wrong or something he hadn't already considered. But not seeing Chloe anymore didn't feel like an option. "We'll just have to see how things go," he said vaguely. "When are you heading back to New York?"
"Not sure. A few days. Want to have dinner tonight?"
"You're on."
"Just so you know, I'm not rooting against you and Chloe. But I think one of you will have to make a big change. If you don't see that being you, then maybe you should think about what you're doing, Decker."
"That's good advice."
Joel laughed. "Yeah, and you're not going to take it."
"I'll think about it."
Twenty-four hours without seeing Decker had made her even more excited about her date on Saturday night.
The day before Decker had been tied up with the house and then had dinner with Joel, so she hadn't seen him since he'd given her a sleepy kiss before sneaking out of her house on Friday morning. That seemed like a long time ago. Besides feeling excited, she was also nervous. It felt different to go on an actual date with Decker. To put on makeup as well as a sexy dress and heels. It felt like a different kind of evening than just inviting him over for dinner with Leo.
Since she didn't want to disappoint Leo by going out with Decker without him, she told him she was going out with friends and then headed across town to meet Decker at her favorite Indian restaurant, which was just down the street from her café.
He was waiting for her outside the restaurant, looking like he'd put a little more effort into the night as well, wearing black slacks and a charcoal gray sweater, his hair neatly styled. Of course, that only made her want to run her fingers through his hair and mess it up. He greeted her with a long, passionate kiss.
"I missed you," he said.
"You're making me want to skip dinner."
"I had the same thought."
She shook her head. "One of us needs to be rational."
"What would be the fun in that?" he said with a laugh. "But you look beautiful tonight, so we should go inside and have a real date."
"I was thinking it feels like our first date," she admitted as they entered the restaurant. "You look nice, too. Not a trace of dirt on you."
"You should have seen me earlier. I spent a lot of today under the house, working on the plumbing."
"That doesn't sound fun."
"It was successful, so that's what matters." He paused, as she gave her name to the hostess. Then they were led to a table against the wall with a good view of the open-air kitchen but far enough away to be quiet enough to talk. "It smells spicy in here," he said as they sat down.
"The food is incredible."
"I'm looking forward to it."
"Let me guess, you love Indian food," she teased as they opened their menus.
"I do. We spent a month in India one summer. We traveled by train all over the country. It was quite an experience. The people are wonderful. The food is out of this world. And the poverty can be overwhelming."
"That's sad."
