“It surely is. But I thought you were an adult, and I didn’t need to ask for permission.”
“I am an adult. Why would you say something like that to me?”
He checks me out, his gaze moving from my eyes to my knees that are neatly pressed together and pointed to him.
“I hope you’re not blushing,” he says.
“I’m not blushing.”
My cheeks are ablaze.
“Why am I off limits to you?”
He takes in a long breath and looks away.
“Because it’s the right thing to do. And I should be off limits to you, too.”
“I’ve never thought about you in that way.”
He flicks his eyes to me, challenging me to bring some facts to support my statement.
“I truly haven’t. I couldn’t afford to. My life is complicated enough even without a grumpy and hot 'I-don’t-know-his-last-name man in it.'”
“My point exactly.”
I’m disappointed with where our conversation is headed, so I close my mouth, slump in my seat, and stare out the window, trying to think about something else.
A few moments pass.
“My boss said you had the power to close the restaurant down if I didn’t do what you had asked of me.”
“People talk a lot of stupid things.”
I move my attention to him, my bullshit meter entering the red zone.
He masterfully avoids certain topics.
“You’re not truthful with me.”
He weighs his answer.
“What if I were?” he finally says.
“Who has that kind of power?”
He shrugs a shoulder and remains focused on the road.
“I don’t know,” he says casually. “People who have nothing to lose. People who stop at nothing to get what they want.”
“Like you this evening. You wanted to have me in your car so you can tell me I wasn’t in the cards for you,” I joke.
We both laugh.
“I felt bad about last Friday,” he admits. “I truly was. It wasn’t your fault that I had to be there, playing Santa. Only later did I realize you’d put so much effort into organizing that event,and I gave you a hard time for nothing. And then I saw your ex… What’s his name?”
“Joachim.”
He nods.
