I could tell he was inside his head with thoughts, biting his lower lip. There was something on his mind and he wanted to say it, I was sure of it.
Taking a sip of wine, he grinned, and set the glass on the table. “Oh . . . Dee wants you to call her when you’re done eating with sexy Nick.”
I blinked.
“Oh wait, was she talking about me?” His bottom lip quivered as he took another bite of food, avoiding eye contact like what he’d said was completely normal. “Do you know another Nick?”
I set my fork down. “I can’t believe you read the text message on my phone.”
He threw up his hands in defense. “Hey, the phone vibrated and lit up like a Christmas tree when I was standing by the kitchen counter. What am I supposed to do? It was impossible to ignore it. It wasn’t like I was waiting there, praying for a text to appear on your phone.”
“Right . . .”
“Oh—and Dee needs to know where you want to eat for your next date.” Nick laughed.
Scoffing, I balled up my napkin and threw it at him. It bounced off his forehead.
Nick grabbed the napkin from his lap, handing it back to me. “You dropped something.”
I shook my head and poured myself more wine. For some reason I gave him more, even though he didn’t ask for it or deserve it.
I fought hard to hold back a smile, even though I was embarrassed. Maybe it was because that was the third or fourth time I’d embarrassed myself with the man, and it was starting to become a regular thing.
I pointed my fork at him. “Say you’re sorry.”
“For what?”
“I can give you a list.”
He chuckled. “I’m a big fan of lists, but I didn’t do anything wrong.”
“That was a private message from Dee to me. You read it.”
“A private message in public view. You’re dating . . . what’s the big deal? Everybody dates at one point or another because they want someone in their lives. And those who say they don’t need anybody are lying. Personally, I love being in a relationship, although there’s nobody in my life at the moment.”
“Probably because people don’t appreciate you invading their privacy.”
“I can assure you, that’s not it.”
“Yeah, then why are you single?” I took a sip, waiting for his answer.
Nick chuckled. “You mean, what’s wrong with me? Hey, you’re single. I could ask you the exact same thing.” He took another sip of his wine. “Although I already know the answer. We don’t need to go there.” He grinned. “This lasagna is fantastic.”
I stopped chewing. “Please. Enlighten me. Tell me why I’m single.”
This oughta be good.
“You’re a stunning woman, I’ll tell you that much.”
I blinked.
What?
That sounded like a compliment.
Okay, it was definitely a compliment.
Why was he complimenting me when he was supposed to be telling me why I was single?
I felt the patio heating up.
I took another sip of wine, waiting for him to continue because I really didn’t know if he was being serious or yanking my chain. My bullshit detector was not even moving at this point. I could only assume it was faulty and needed a tune-up because why would he compliment me when he was supposed to be giving me a list of my faults?
I waited for him to continue.
“Some people might say that your beauty is off the charts,” Nick continued.
I don’t get what’s happening here. Nick was not my type at all, but why did I like that he thought I was beautiful?
“Most men would never have the confidence to approach someone like you because they think you’re out of their league.”
I nodded. “You’re saying I’m single because I’m attractive. Is that it?”
He shook his head. “No—that has nothing to do with it.”
I let out a frustrated breath and took another sip of wine.
This guy was going to drive me crazy.
“Other people might say that you’re single because of the attitude that you exude.”
“What attitude?”
“It’s like you have a sign on your forehead that says Back Off. Or maybe back is not the correct first word.” He laughed.
I crossed my arms. “You’re saying I’m single because I don’t want men to waste my time and I let them know it?”
“Nope. That’s not it, either. Some men are courageous or just plain dumb and will still try to ask you out anyway.” He held up his wine glass. “I love the wine, by the way.” He took another sip. “Delicious. Here. Have more.” He topped off my wine, even though I didn’t ask for it.
Nick was going to make me scream.
Why was he stalling?
Was he going to tell me why I was single?
What on earth was taking him so long?
I swear this man is part sloth.
Finally, he glanced at me again. “You’re single because you put your job first, above everything else in your life. You’re a workaholic.” He held up his hand, like he thought I might object. “And before you get all bent out of shape, I’m not saying that there’s anything wrong with that. You get to choose exactly how you want to live your life. If that’s what makes you happy, then more power to you. You’re happy, right?”
I opened my mouth and closed it.
Happy? Me?
I wouldn’t necessarily say that I was happy.
But I wasn’t depressed, either, so there was that.
Nick continued to stare at me, waiting for an answer.
Now, I just needed to decide if I was going to lie or not.
Chapter Fourteen
RUTH
I had read somewhere that female dragonflies fake their deaths to avoid males. I was trying to decide if I wanted to do just that, because I really wasn’t in the mood to answer Nick’s question.
He was still staring at me. “It’s not a difficult question. Either you’re happy or you’re not.”
“And if I am and I know it, do I need to clap my hands?”
He chuckled. “Sure. Why not?”
I sighed. “I don’t feel the need to analyze my emotions minute-by-minute and day-to-day as I bust my butt working toward my goal. If it makes you feel any better, I know I’ll be over the moon with happiness once I take over the company as managing partner.”
He nodded. “Okay. Fine. Basically, you’re saying that you’ll enjoy the destination when you get there, but not the journey.”
“In essence, yes.”
“Once again, I’m not judging, just observing and commenting, but it does bring up another interesting question.”
“Interesting for whom?”
Nick ignored me. “Why can’t you enjoy the journey as much as the destination? Sounds like double the fun to me unless you don’t like your job.”
Who was this guy? My non-appointed, annoying career counselor and spiritual guru?
He cocked his head to the side. “You don’t like your job, do you?”
“Whether or not I like my job does not determine how good I am,” I said. “I’m the best in my field. How many people can say that?”