Page 48 of Sweet Somethings

He parked down the street from her apartment and insisted on walking her to the door. On the way, he said, "Do you have a date for the Sweetheart's Dance next Saturday?"

"I'm actually going to be working the dance. The organizer talked to me about providing a dessert table."

"So bring your desserts and then be my date. I'm a good dancer. I promise not to step on your feet," he added with a smooth smile.

"I—I don't know," she said, not wanting to hurt his feelings but also not sure another date was in the cards. "It's hard to mix business and pleasure."

"Just think about it," he said. "You can give me your answer later."

"I don’t want to stop you from asking someone else."

"You're the only one I want to go with."

"That's very flattering and I'm sure quite untrue. Donavan and Sara told me you're one of the most eligible bachelors in town."

He stopped in front of her door, the tension leaving his eyes at her comment. "You asked them about me?"

She realized quickly that she'd given him the wrong idea, but she could hardly take it back. "Your name came up one day."

"I'm single for a reason, Juliette. I've been waiting for the right woman, and I have a feeling you and I could be good together. You're a businesswoman. You're ambitious and hardworking, and I respect that."

"Thank you. But we barely know each other."

"It doesn't have to take long to know someone is right for you."

She actually agreed with him. Unfortunately, things didn't feel right with him, and she didn't think they ever would.

"Anyway," he said. "I know I'm rushing you. I'm just a man who likes to go after what he wants."

He leaned over and kissed her. It wasn't more than a brief peck, but it still felt cold. She wondered if it felt that way to him.

Apparently not. He lifted his head, gave her a smile and said, "I'll see you soon."

After he headed down the street, she unlocked her door and stepped inside. She paused on the landing. She didn't feel like going upstairs to her apartment. She felt unsettled, not because the kiss had had any impact, but because it hadn't—because she'd wished that it was Roman's mouth on hers.

She never should have gone out with Doug. Her real motivation had been to learn more about the fire, and she'd done that, but she'd also given Doug the wrong idea. She didn't want to hurt his feelings, but she needed to end things before they went any further.

She'd like to do it now, but it seemed a little too cruel to run after Doug just to tell him she never wanted to date him again.

But she had to do something with her restless energy, which meant she had to bake. It was the only way to burn off some steam.

She opened her door and stepped back out on the sidewalk, shocked to see Roman walking away from her door. "Roman," she called.

He turned around, giving her a wary look.

"What are you doing here?" she asked. "Were you coming to see me?"

"I was taking a walk. I was going to say hello, but I saw you kissing Doug good night," he said, a terse note in his voice. "I didn't want to interrupt."

"Oh, I didn't see you."

"It didn't look like you did. How was the date?"

"It was all right."

"Well, I'll see you around."

"Wait," she said, not ready to let him go. "Do you want to come up for a minute? My apartment is upstairs."

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