“I was considering it.”
“You’re honest to a fault I see,” Isabel took her seat and glanced at the wine on the side of the table.
“Why would it be a fault? Wine?”
“Yes, please.”Her response came almost too quickly.
I poured a small amount for her to try. “If you don’t like it, we can get something a little less dry, but this one...”
“It’s delicious.” Her expression suggested she wasn’t appeasing me, either. She twisted the bottle at the base to look at the label and looked up at me questionably. “You’re telling me you’re an honest businessman?”
“There’s no other way for me, unfortunately. I don’t like the idea of having to remember who I said what to.” I took a sip myself. “Nobody’s worth a lie.”
Her brows creased. And then a slight nod, as if she were analyzing me.
When she stayed silent, I elaborated. “Telling a lie implies you care about what people think. Or that their feelings matter to you.”
“Ah. So, you’ve never told your mother that youmeantto call?”
I blew out an audible breath and watched her with some amusement.
“What?” She jerked back.
“We’ve been on this date for five minutes and you’re already asking about my parents? Rushing things a bit,Just Isabel?”
“Ooh…oh you’re right. I should be careful—you might decide to flee if I get too clingy. Just so I know, where do you draw the line?”
I laughed.
Her eyes shined in the dim light as she smiled brightly at me. “No, really. Tell me. I’m genuinely curious. Calling you on an hourly basis? A singing telegram on our two-week-aversary?” she laughed along.
I watched her for a moment. “I draw the line at lying. I don’t tell them and I don’t tolerate them.”
I noticed her swallow and set down her wine glass, which made me frown.Shit. I was so used to the upper hand and setting people straight off the bat, that I answered her without a second thought. I hadn’t meant to offend her.
“I am so sorry. I just crashed our party, didn’t I? Here, have more wine.” I topped off her glass. This seemed to win her over at the start of the night.
She simply smiled and held the stem of her glass out to me. “Thank you.” She attempted to regain composure and looked at me. Despite the hesitation in her eyes, I noticed how beautiful she was. Gold tinted lights illuminated her skin. Her dark hair rested over her shoulders, highlighting the sheer beauty of her face.
She took a long sip and a deep breath, shooting a polite smile my way before lifting the small menu off the side of her plate. “What do you like here?” her tone suddenly formal.
Just as she asked, a server approached, placing our appetizers on the table.
“I preordered the apps. I hope you don’t mind,” I told her. But it didn’t do much to her mood. She simply nodded and placed down her menu. Her eyes everywhere but me.
I’d lost her. Had I really screwed this up in the first ten minutes? I could fix this. But how? Trying for a woman wasn’t something I ever needed or wanted to do.
In this case though, it was both.
“Can I ask you something?”
Her eyes darted up.
“Would you go into business with an old friend?”
The question seemed to have thrown her off. “That seems odd. Would this friend be someone I’ve always been close with and trust or have I not seen this friend in some time and happen to now be involved in a business transaction with them?”
I was impressed with how quickly she followed. “The latter.”
