That was what had worried me the most about this weekend. There was only a small fridge in my cottage so I’d need to venture to the restaurant for all of my meals.
He tipped his head toward the dining room. “The restaurant is busy with day-trippers who just arrived off the boat. Why not share a table instead of eating alone? I promise I’m good company.”
He smiled, revealing a dimple, and held his hand out to me. “I’m Ryker Macklin. My friends call me Mack.”
“Ally.” My body tingled when he’d said his name was Ryker. It was sexy. There was no way I’d call this man Mack. I shook his hand, making a point not to give him my last name since we’d only just met.
“Now that we aren’t strangers anymore, would you like to have lunch with me?”
“Um, sure.” Why was I agreeing to eat with a stranger? A very hot stranger? I was supposed to be regrouping, taking stock of my past relationship, figuring out where I screwed up so it wouldn’t happen again. Not jumping into something else.
“We’ll share a table,” Ryker said to the host.
The host raised a brow and directed his question at me. “Yeah?”
I swallowed. “Yes.”
The man’s hand stayed on my elbow as the host gestured for us to follow him to one of the last free tables by the window. Ryker pulled out my chair for me.
Once we were settled with the menus placed in front of us, Ryker rested his elbows on the table, carefully studying me. “You look really familiar.”
“Yeah?” I was positive I’d never seen this man before. I would have remembered him, especially his eyes. Now that I had a chance to see him up close, I noticed that his eyes were actually flecked with yellow.
“I swear you went to my high school. You look just like this girl who was a few years older than me.”
“Where did you go to school?” I doubted he knew me. It was either a ridiculous pick-up line or a case of mistaken identity.
“Palmetto Ridge in Naples.”
I almost choked on the water I’d been drinking.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
After coughing for a few seconds, I was able to recover and take a deep breath. “Yeah, sorry, that went down the wrong pipe.”
“Did you go to Palmetto Ridge?”
“I did. Graduated 2005.”
His eyes widened. “I graduated 2007.” He paused for a second, a smile spreading slowly over his face.“You’re Allyson Brooks.”
My cheeks felt hot under his scrutiny. He clearly remembered me. I tried to rack my memory for a boy with his unique eyes but I couldn’t place him. “It’s Ally, but I’m embarrassed to say I don’t remember you.”
“You were unforgettable back then, at least to my teenaged self.” His finger traced the lip of his water glass as he considered what he wanted to say.“You were popular.”
“I don’t like to describe myself that way.” I picked up the menu to have something to do with my hands. I desperately wanted to give him a reason why I didn’t know who he was but he knew me. “Back then I only had eyes for upperclassmen. I wouldn’t have paid attention to someone younger than me, no matter how good looking they were.” I couldn’t believe I said that out loud. I glanced at him, hoping he didn’t catch what I’d admitted.
He smiled. “You think I’m good looking?”
I waved him off. “You know you are.” Maybe it was most recent letdown with a man but I wasn’t going to pretend to be something I wasn’t. I was going to be upfront and honest.
The waitress passed by our table. “Are you ready to order?”
Ryker spoke, never taking his eyes from mine. “Can you give us a few minutes?”
“Of course,” she said before walking to another table.
I picked up my menu, thinking I should pick something before she came back. When I glanced up, Ryker was watching me thoughtfully. “What?”
“You’re different than I imagined.”
He’d imagined how I was? “And you can tell that from one brief conversation?”
“I can. You’re beautiful, intelligent, kind, and humble.”
My face heated at his words. My ego had taken a beating at Jon’s betrayal. “That’s sweet of you, but you can’t possibly know that.”
“I’m a pretty good judge of character.”
“I guess I’m at a disadvantage then, because I didn’t know you at all in high school and we’ve only just met.” How could he know me from a few exchanged words?
“Don’t you have some instinct about me?”
I studied his face, his elbows resting on the table, the sleeves of his shirt rolled up to reveal his muscular forearms, the strong line of his jaw with a day’s scruff, his soft lips. “No,” I said softly.
“Then you don’t trust yourself. You must have had some feeling about me or you wouldn’t have agreed to have lunch with me.”
I had to look away from the intensity of his stare. He was right. After Jon’s betrayal, I didn’t trust myself, my choices, or my taste in men, but I’d agreed to have lunch with him. My initial instinct was that he’d be a distraction—one I desperately needed.
“What happened to you that you don’t trust your instincts? They’re usually right, you know.” His voice was low and husky.
I snorted. “That’s definitely not the case.” He continued to watch me, not saying anything. I sighed. “I’m supposed to be here with my boyfriend. I planned this romantic getaway for Valentine’s Day, but—”
“He didn’t want to come? He was working, what? I can’t imagine why he’d miss this opportunity to be alone with you.” He waved his hand at the window, which overlooked the water.
I shrugged. It was too painful to admit out loud. I was embarrassed that I’d been such a fool, trusting Jon to be faithful. “I found him in our apartment with another woman.” I winced at my bluntness. I hadn’t meant to blurt that out, especially not to him. Why couldn’t I remain mysterious? A beautiful stranger he’d met on a day trip to the island. I didn’t need him to know I was rejected by my long-term boyfriend in the worst way possible.
“You’re fucking kidding me.” His eyes turned hard and his face was tight.
I shook my head. “I wish I was.”
“Then he was an idiot.”
I took a sip of water to cover the emotion rising to my face. My friends had similar sentiments but nothing had penetrated until this man. I wanted to change the subject—divert his attention from me. “Are you dating anyone special?”
“No. It’s tough to meet anyone on Sanibel. I usually have to go to Ft. Myers to meet new people. The island is small, workers come just for the day, tourists are here only for a week, and I’m looking for something more permanent.”
That sounded good—something permanent. That’s exactly what I had thought I wanted with Jon. At thirty-two years old and after dating for three years I thought he’d propose on this trip. But we were clearly not on the same page. I didn’t realize that until I’d gotten the very unnecessary visual of him moving on.
When was the last time Jon and I had a real conversation about where we were going, where we stood? Maybe if I’d paid more attention it wouldn’t have happened. I could have prevented it. “Well, I’m not looking to meet anyone. I thought I was with the guy I was supposed to be with, but I was wrong.”