“That’s only because I wasn’t attracted to him, which was why our relationship didn’t go anywhere in the end. But having problems talking to the waiter wasn’t the worst part. That would be when out of frustration, I dropped my head in my hands and knocked over my water glass. The waiter jumped back, trying to avoid water splashing on him.
“He stepped on the hem of a girl’s prom gown right behind him and she went flying forward. Into the waitress who was about to serve a table their pizza. The pizza slid off the pan and landed on a little old lady’s head. Unfortunately, she was wearing a wig, and it and the pizza landed on the floor.”
Violet and I exchange glances, then burst out laughing.
“Okay, you win,” I say, eyes filling with tears at the image now in my head. “That’s got to be the most embarrassing date ever. I can’t top that.”
Violet snickers. “Me neither.”
“That doesn’t matter.” Sophie points her knife between us. “You both owe me a story to make me feel somewhat less mortified.”
Violet turns the heat off under the saucepan. “All right. I went on a date with a guy in college who was a complete bore. All he did was talk about himself the entire time. In third person. He’d say things like, ‘Peter was starting quarterback in high school, but decided to focus on his law degree in college’ or ‘Peter has been nominated for some boring award you wouldn’t care less about.’ All right the last one wasn’t completely true. The award had a name, but I didn’t care enough to remember it.”
“Oh God, the guy sounds creepy,” I say.
“I know, right? But it turns out I wasn’t on a date with Peter. It was his friend. He wanted to make sure I wasn’t some crazy weirdo before his friend, Peter, went out with me.”
This time it’s Sophie and I who are laughing hard.
“I assume you never went out with the real Peter after that?” Sophie barely gets out.
“Definitely not. I still have no clue who he was. I never met him. It was his weird friend who asked me out on his behalf.”
That sets us both off laughing again…no thanks to the wine Sophie and I have been drinking.
Once she and I finally stop giggling, both women turn to me, expectantly. “Seriously, I can’t top either of those stories. The worst I’ve had to deal with is a few boring guys who loved to boast about their daddies’ money. That, and the blind date that almost got me arrested.”
Both women gape at me. Sophie gestures for me to keep talking. “I vote you tell us about the blind date.”
Violet agrees.
I share with them about how the guy had stolen a Ferrari before picking me up for our date, how our date had ended with the cops chasing us, and how my date and I were hauled down to the police station.
Violet grabs an empty vase from the cupboard. “And the winner of the worst dateeveris Kate.” She hands me the vase while she and Sophie crack up.
Grinning, I press my hand to my chest. “Oh, this is such an unexpected honor. I didn’t even prepare an acceptance speech.”
That has them doubling over with laughter.
Dinner is pretty much a duplicate of girls’ cooking time, minus the worst dating tales. There’s plenty of laughter and sharing of funny stories. Deacon also entertains us with his own antics, with Maui and Charlie as his assistants.
Afterward, once we’ve finished cleaning the dishes and the table, everyone goes off to do their own couple-or-family-related things.
“Let’s go for a walk,” Noah says in my ear so Charlie can’t hear.
“All right.” Because it’s late June, it’s warm enough to go outside without a jacket.
I slip on my boots, which I wear practically all the time now.
Holding hands, Noah and I walk our usual route to the barn. Crickets chirp from the long wild grass, accompanied by birds in the nearby trees.
Neither of us talks much as we walk. That’s nothing new. There’s something comforting about being with the man you like while blanketed by the sounds and scents of nature.
And let’s not forget the tantalizing scent that’s all Noah.
We stop at the tack room so he can grab some clean horse blankets, then head down the trail to the river.
We end up at a small sandy cove that I’ve never been to until now. Noah stretches a blanket out on the sand near the water’s edge and folds the other one into a long makeshift pillow. Not far from us, a tire swing dangles from a large cottonwood tree.
