She grabs a brown menu and smiles at me. “Please follow me,” she says, turning and walking to the right and going all the way to the corner of the restaurant. My eyes are never roaming and making eye contact because if someone recognizes me, I’ll spend the whole meal wondering if they are taking pictures of me. She stops in front of a table with four chairs. “Is this okay?”
There are two tables next to it, but none are taken. “This works,” I say, going to the corner stool that puts my back against the wall but lets me have a view of the restaurant.
“Your server will be with you shortly,” she says to me, and I just nod, grabbing the menu. The sound of people chattering fills the air, as well as the sound of plates clinking when I feel someone beside my table, and I look up.
My eyes meet the bluest eyes I have ever seen in my life. She gives me a little smile, and I can tell that she is nervous since she is wringing her hands in front of her. The girl stands there looking at me. “Sorry, are you Zander?”
Chapter 4
Jillian
* * *
My heart is about to come out of my chest or my throat at this point. “Sorry, are you Zander?”
I ask him, and he just looks at me. His blue eyes are a bit guarded as he scans my face. The longer he doesn’t say anything, the faster my heart beats in my chest and the more nervous I get. His face gives away nothing as I stand here. I try not to let my eyes linger down to his muscled arms that fill out the gray shirt he’s wearing.
The minute the Uber dropped me off outside, I got this feeling inside me that made me even more nervous. During the whole ride over, I kept asking myself why I didn’t ask him for a picture. I kept asking myself why I didn’t confirm the date with him today. I kept asking myself why the hell I put myself in this situation. With every step I took, my heart just beat faster and faster.
When I walked in, the chattering filled the area, and the hostess made eye contact with me before I could turn and run away. I had no choice but to pretend that I was okay, even though I felt like I was going to yack all over the place. I asked the hostess if there was someone here alone, and she pointed at this guy in the corner. I walked over to him, my hands shaky and my palms so sweaty I had to hold them together to calm myself down. The sound of my heels clicking on the floor echoed in my ears.
His head was down while I made my way to him, but that was good because it gave me a chance to check him out. He was wearing jeans and a T-shirt and a baseball cap. My head was yelling to turn away before he looked up. The guy came to a date in a baseball cap? Talk about not making an effort. “I’m supposed to be meeting a Zander here,” I say as he just stares at me, and even if he wore the cap, I would forgive him because holy fucking shit, he is the hottest man I’ve ever seen. If he is desirable in a baseball hat, can you imagine how hot he is when he really makes an effort? “We were supposed to meet here at seven.” I start to word vomit and can literally hear Julia tell me to shut the fuck up.
He shakes his head. “I’m not Zander.” His voice comes out smooth, and my face suddenly gets hot, and I wait for the ground to open up and swallow me whole.
My eyes go big as I think of what to say. Sorry, I’m looking for a date and I don’t know what he looks like because I’m an idiot and thought a blind date would be fun. “I am so sorry,” I apologize, trying not to feel like an idiot. “I won’t keep you any longer. Have a great evening,” I say and turn around, walking away from him and waiting to trip over something and be roadkill in the middle of the restaurant. My eyes focus on my feet as I try not to make a spectacle of myself.
I walk back over to the hostess stand and see the same girl who smiled at me when I walked in here. “That’s not him.” She tilts her head to the side, not sure what to tell me.
“He is the only one who came in alone,” she says, pointing over at the guy, and I look and see the waitress taking his order. “Other than him, there are no other single guys.” She looks down at the paper in front of her. “Did you make a reservation?”
“It would be for Zander or Jillian,” I say, not sure if maybe Zander made the reservation. She looks down at her paper as the door opens again, and I turn my head, hoping to see a single man come in, but I see a couple instead. They stand behind me, waiting for the hostess.
“There is no one under that name,” she says, and if I didn’t feel like a loser before, I feel like one now. Especially considering the weird face she just gave me.
“Is it okay if I wait at the bar?” I ask, looking around the restaurant and seeing that it’s starting to get a touch busier than when I walked in. The door opens again, and five girls walk in.
“That’s okay, but if we need the seat,” she says, and I just nod at her and walk toward the back of the restaurant to the bar. I glance over my shoulder to look back at the stranger I interrupted and see that he’s on his phone. He laughs and picks up his hand, bending it to scratch the back of his head, and I see the muscles in his arms flex. “Jesus, Mary, and Joseph,” I mumble. How can he get hotter? Why couldn’t he be my blind date? I think to myself and turn, getting on a stool, ignoring the need to look back over and see if he’s still laughing.
The bartender comes over. “What can I get for you?” he says, and I want to say a bottle of wine with a straw, but instead, I smile.
“I’ll have soda water with lime, please.” I look down at my phone to see if I have a missed call. The screen saver of Julia and me greets me and nothing else. The bartender comes back and puts down a white napkin in front of me and then puts down the short glass of bubbly water with a wedge of lime in it. “Thank you,” I say, and he slides the paper bill to me. I grab the small clutch purse in my hand and take out my credit card. I look down the dark burgundy bar top seeing most of the chairs taken as people talk to each other. I look back over to the door and see a line of people, but no one is looking around for anyone.
My phone buzzes, and I pick it up so fast I’m surprised I don’t drop it. I turn it over and see that Julia texted me.
Julia: You look amazing.
I smile, opening the chat and seeing the picture I sent her right before I left home. It was me in the hallway of my condo wearing the black jeans that fit a touch tighter than I remember and the black silky tank top that went a touch lower in the front, showing off a bit more cleavage than what I usually wear.
Julia: How is it going?
I shake my head while I answer her and quickly look over at the hot guy who is not Zander.
Me: I just met the hottest guy I’ve ever laid eyes on. IN. MY. WHOLE. LIFE.
I press send and take another sip of water. The citrus from the lime hits my tongue right away, and then the bubbles explode on my tongue. It doesn’t take long for my phone to buzz, and I pick it back up to check, smiling when I see her name.
Julia: So, the blind date turned out to be hot. What are the chances? You should play the lottery!!!
I laugh. “Oh, the chances are slim to none,” I say to myself as I type out my response to her.
Me: He’s not my blind date. I thought he was and went over to introduce myself, and it turns out he’s not Zander.
Julia: SHUT UP!