Hitting the Mark

TWENTY-FIVE MINUTES LATER, Danni slid her laundry basket with clean clothes into the trunk of her car and slammed the lid. She turned and faced the street. Five minutes to go. She couldn’t seem too eager. She dug out her cell phone and dialed Cassie’s number.

“I’ve asked someone out for coffee,” Danni said as soon as her best friend answered.

“It’s snowing outside, right?”

Danni checked the sunny blue sky. “What are you talking about? It’s way past snowing in Reno.”

“That was sort of my point. You never get my jokes. How did this come about?”

“I insulted him, took his money, then apologized without really apologizing.”

“That’s like my last three relationships,” Cassie said, her teasing voice making Danni grin.

“He won’t show,” Danni said.

“Whew, that’s better. For a minute there I was afraid you were nervous. But then, your normal cynicism reappeared.”

“Nerves give men the upper hand on a date.” Was this a date? Meeting? Whatever. Nerves were never good. “You can never show them that you like them.”

“Absolutely. Dating suicide.”

“Do I detect a bit of facetiousness in your voice?”

“If you only detect a bit, then you need your hearing tested. Listen, Danni, since you’ve asked this guy out and that’s a first for you, why don’t you make this a date of firsts. Here’s a guy who knows nothing of your past. He’s not going to be judging you. You’re just a woman, he’s just a man. Enjoy each other’s company. Enjoy the moment. Why are you talking to me when there’s a man waiting for you? I’m hanging up now.” Click.

She smiled as she closed her cell. Cassie was probably right. Danni hadn’t consciously decided to treat this new guy differently than every other man who’d stumbled into her life. But she had, and that was a valid reason to be nervous.

After putting her phone back into her purse, Danni locked her car and headed to the coffee shop, leisurely passing by others on the sidewalk. Actually, the coffee shop was more like a bistro, with a selection of breads, teas and coffees. An electronic chime sounded as she strolled through the door.

Normally her glance would head straight for the refrigerated display cabinet, then she’d stop and look at the specials written on the chalkboard, or take a sample of the bread of the week. Not today. Instead, her gaze went directly to the seating area filled with fashionable glass-topped wrought-iron tables and matching chairs.

He was there.

He’d waited for her. Her steps slowed for a moment as she approached him lounging against one of the high-backed barstools. Her knees turned wobbly all of a sudden and she hadn’t expected that.

So, how should she play this? Classic vamp? No, that wouldn’t work—she wasn’t wearing the right shoes. Girl next door? No, she’d already blown her chance at innocence back at the Laundromat. She paused and that’s when he looked directly at her. He smiled. A slow, open smile that moved across those sexy, sensuous lips of his and every nerve ending in her body fired up.

She’d been right to be cynical. She’d been right to push him away at the beginning because this man was dangerous. This was the kind of man who made logical women say, “Sure, I’ll invest everything I own in your pyramid scheme.”

She had no clue how to angle her behavior. Cassie had suggested that Danni should just be a woman. Could it ever be that simple? Just be yourself. Whoever that was.

Danni realized she was smiling back. I’m an idiot. She slid into the stool beside him, and the waitress came by and asked for their order.

“You took my money and I don’t even know your name,” he said after a moment of silence.

“Danielle, but everyone calls me Danni.”

“I’m Eric.”

She shook his hand, his fingers feeling softly calloused. “So, Eric, do you usually pick up women while doing your laundry?”

A moment passed before he answered, his body relaxed. “Only on Wednesdays. Thursdays it’s the grocery store. Besides, that wasn’t a pickup.”

“It wasn’t?” Her feet began to tap under the table. Had he spotted something in her the way she had in him?

“You were the only person in the place using dryer sheets. Everyone else had the liquid stuff.”

She glanced up quickly, her gaze meeting his. Humor danced along the brown of his eyes.

“I was the only person in the place, period. You’re messing with me,” she said.

“A little. Besides, you clearly picked me up.”

Surprisingly, she liked him teasing her. Previous guys either took themselves way too seriously—rebels searching for clues—or they, like her father, took nothing seriously. Life was one big day at an amusement park. No waiting in line, only fun. Nothing subtle like bantering.

“Technically, you made the first move, so I’ll have to award the pickup to you.” Who knew what the ultimate prize would be for the winner.

He inclined his head as if to accept. Her heartbeat quickened. He wasn’t denying his making a move. Just a man meeting a woman. It could happen. It could work.

The waitress brought Eric his coffee and her a soft drink. “We have fresh chocolate cheesecake.”

Danni sucked in a breath. Cheesecake was one thing she could barely resist. But to enrich it with chocolate…that was almost too low a blow. Could anything be more decadent? Maybe Eric feeding it to her off his fork…

Her mouth began to water.

“Unfortunately, I’m flush out of cash. Just spent my last five dollars,” he said.

She glanced his way. His lips were twisting in a smile. “Bring us a slice,” she told the waitress. “Put it on my bill. Do you like cheesecake, Eric?” she asked when the waitress hurried away. His name tasted delectable in her mouth.

“I’m not one for sweet things.”

That was a point in her favor because she was a lot of things, but sweet wasn’t one of them.

“You’re a student?” he asked. “I noticed your book.”

“I’m going to court reporting school at night. I wait tables during the day. Wednesday is my free day.”

“You work at one of the casinos?”

Danni almost coughed. As if she wouldn’t immediately be “escorted” out of any casino. “No, a diner. What about you? You mentioned a hotel?”

“I only recently moved to Reno. The company’s putting me up in a hotel until I can find my own place.”

That explained the corporate haircut. That explained a lot of things.

“What is it that you—” The waitress interrupted her question when she placed the cheesecake on the table.

How could anyone talk with this tasty bit of heaven between them? Chocolate cookie crust, a scrumptious white chocolate ganache with a dark chocolate spiderweb design. With eager anticipation, Danni took a bite. She immediately closed her eyes and moaned. Ahhh, those spiders were always offering something bad for you. It was the ultimate in chocolate indulgence. The creaminess of the cheesecake melted in her mouth.