Page 43 of Something Blue

He gathered all of the courage left in him and took her hand. “Starting this moment, day one from this moment on, we are officially dating.”

18

Sadie

Those words struck fear and hope into her heart simultaneously.

Dating?

Did that mean they were a real couple now? How had crying about a lost opportunity turned into dating an even better man in the next? With no words left to say, she followed him to the condo to change and then out to the parking lot.

A picture of Chase flashed in her mind as Andy led her to the car. Her visit with him was quick, but it had shaken her to the core. In less than three minutes, Chase had given her more attention than he’d shown her in years.

Right away, he’d asked how solid her relationship was with Andy. After shrugging away his interest in her fake relationship, he’d turned the conversation to her. He complimented her new hairstyle, her clothes, even her new courage. Right when she’d mentioned she should probably get back to Andy, he added something that made her sick to her stomach even now.

“I was worried this wedding would hurt you. If that one year had been different, we might be the ones walking down the aisle together.”

Both regret and disappointment played mayhem with her emotions, and it had been all she could do to keep the tears at bay until Chase left. How could he say something like that after knowing about her mother? Why had she spent so much time pining after him?

And now Andy was like a white knight, saving her from her grief and filling her entire being with hope and love. It was scarily too good to be true.

“Ready?” Andy said, pulling her away from her messy, unsure thoughts. He stood by the car, holding her door.

She forced a smile and climbed into the seat. “Thanks,” she whispered. If they were together, even in a trial relationship, at least she could cling to one truth: she liked Andy, and he liked her.

Sadie rubbed her hands together as Andy started the car and headed out to the main road. A remnant of the tingle she’d felt when he’d held her hand still remained. After a few seconds of fiddling, she clasped her hands tightly together, unsure if she wanted to feel it again. Thankfully, he kept both hands on the wheel as he drove to a restaurant she’d never been to before.

“Tanner looked up the best restaurants in Destin, and this one comes highly recommended. Reviews say this place has great crab legs,” Andy said.

He maneuvered into a spot, then hurried to open her door.

Sadie swallowed painfully. How could she even get a bite to go down? The tingle returned as he took her hand and led her toward the Crabby Bill’s Restaurant. The outside reminded her of a shack, with nets hanging on the sides of the porch. A handful of plastic crabs had been thrown into the nets haphazardly, giving the whole place a cheap look.

“Are you sure this place is okay? I’ve eaten pretty good seafood in Destin, but have never come here.” There was a line of couples waiting outside the door.

One of the guys looked over at them and smiled. “Best crab cakes around. Good legs. Excellent service. You can’t beat their food.”

Andy winked at her and thanked the man. “Looks can be deceiving. Think about our Thai restaurant.”

She shivered as he said the word our, as in “our.” There was actually a we to speak of now.

After waiting a solid half hour, a waitress with stringy, long hair led them to one of the last tables available. “Welcome to Crabby Bill’s. I’m Ruth. What do y’all want to drink?” she asked, laying the menus down in front of them. Her southern accent was strong and full of charm.

Sadie scanned the drink menu and picked a fruity drink with an umbrella.

“Coke for me,” Andy said.

After the waitress left, Sadie scanned the menu. Her stomach churned as she looked at the list of entreés. She looked up and saw the hunger in Andy’s eyes. Literal hunger this time.

“I want some crab cakes for sure,” he said. “But we could get a lobster plate, maybe some crab legs. I’ve never had oysters before, but if you like them, I’m willing to try. I love a good deep-sea catch. Maybe some steelhead trout?”

Despite feeling uneasy about eating seafood again, she couldn’t help but smile at his eagerness. When she didn’t respond, he met her eyes and gave a shaky smile.

“What?” He wiped at his mouth. “Do I have something on my face?”

She laughed and shook her head. “I’m . . . observing. I don’t feel like eating anything big, but I’ll take a few bites of whatever you get.”

He gave her a smirk. “Oh, I’ve heard that before. You’ll end up eating it all. Fine, fine. I’ll order several choices. It’s not like Vegas has fresh seafood readily available. Let’s go all out.”

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