Page 11 of Grace on the Rocks

Chapter 5

Okay. She could do this. She had been on plenty of dates before. This one was no different.

Except that it was.

Emma was going on a date with Kyle Underwood, right wing in the first line of the Newport Beach Seagulls hockey team. She was going on a date with a hockey player.

Currently, she sat in her car, in the parking lot of the trendy sushi restaurant The Canary. The lot itself was relatively full, but it was nothing compared to the weekend. For whatever reason, Emma couldn’t exactly get up and head in the restaurant just yet. She needed to get a hold of her nerves. She needed to relax.

Though the engine was off, the radio was on and Taylor Swift came through the speakers, singing about being fearless during a first date. It was upbeat and fun, but it didn’t get the tension in her muscles to relax like it normally would have.

She reached up and pulled her vanity mirror down so she could inspect her makeup. As usual, it was light but she decided that maybe she should put more effort into it in order to show Kyle that tonight was actually special to her. Not that she assumed he noticed the makeup she wore on a day-to-day basis or that she believed tonight was more than just a casual date between two people who seem interested in each other.

Shaking her head, she flipped the mirror closed and glanced down at her attire. It had taken an hour to choose an outfit she was comfortable with which was ridiculous because the only time Emma actually cared about what she wore was when she was on stage. Even so, she went through at least half a dozen options before finally settling on dark skinny jeans and a relatively loose white, three-quarter sleeved shirt with thick, navy blue nautical-style stripes running across it. On her feet were black high heels with red bows, and her hair was pulled back into a sleek ponytail, her bangs bobby-pinned and hair sprayed in the shape of a small, fashionable bump. Her multiple fly-aways actually added to the look, framing her face, softening it.

She never used hairspray. It made her hair crunchy and it smelled horrible and yet there it was, holding her hair together.

She stopped herself before she started to think about why she was making such an effort.

“You’re being ridiculous,” she told herself as the song changed. “This whole thing is ridiculous. You need to calm down. Breathe.” Emma pushed her shoulders back and took her own advice, breathing in through her nose and out with her mouth three times. “There. Now just remember, Kyle Underwood is a twenty-five-year old guy who happens to play hockey for a national team. There’s nothing special about him; he’s just another guy. You have no idea where this is going, if it goes anywhere. One step at a time, Winsor. This is one date. You’re not planning a wedding, are you?”

Emma started laughing at her last question. The thought of her getting married to anyone, let alone Kyle Underwood, was amusing since she had absolutely no plans to ever tie the knot. Yeah right.

“In retrospect, there’s no reason to get nervous about it because it’s probably going to go nowhere,” she continued. “Kyle Underwood is a pretty good looking hockey player. You think he wants to settle down now? And you for sure don’t want to settle down, Winsor. Stop with the butterflies and get your ass out there.”

Giving herself a nod of encouragement, Emma turned off the car completely and grabbed her keys. She could do this. If she could choreograph an entire dance routine in ten days after Crystal had a mental breakdown and couldn’t pull it together, Emma could go through one date with a hockey player. She wouldn’t even break a sweat.

Emma walked to the front of the restaurant where a pretty hostess was on the phone, taking a reservation. She gave Emma a warm smile and lifted a finger, indicating that she would be with Emma in just a minute. Glancing around, Emma realized the restaurant was busier than the parking lot actually revealed. A handful of couples where waiting to be seated while the bar was practically filled with those that wanted some appetizers and drinks before they got their tables.

“Hi!” the hostess said brightly, grabbing Emma away from her thoughts. “How may I help you?”

“I’m actually waiting for someone and I’m not sure if he’s here or not,” Emma said. “He’s tall, probably...” She raised her hand above her head to indicate her estimated height for Kyle. “He has, like, dusty blond hair and really piercing blue eyes. Like Hugh Laurie’s. And he has really broad shoulders.”

“Oh.” Suddenly the hostess’s voice turned flat and the look she was giving Emma was almost accusatory. “You mean Kyle Underwood.” She dropped her eyes and gave Emma a once-over before locking eyes with Emma again. “You’re not his type.”

“Excuse me?” Emma couldn’t believe the quip that had come out of the hostess’s mouth, but the hostess started talking before Emma even knew how to react.

“He’s at his usual table.” Instead of actually showing Emma over like she probably should have, the hostess jutted her pointed chin to the secluded table in the back corner of the room, and before Emma could ask for clarification, the hostess motioned for the small group behind Emma.

Well.

Instead of feeling offended or put off, Emma felt herself smile. The entire situation she had just found herself was hilarious. She wasn’t Kyle’s usual type? He brought all his dates here? And suddenly, she relaxed. When she reached Kyle, she was smiling.

“That’s unexpected,” he said, standing. “I wasn’t expecting Diana to be working tonight, but every once and a while...”

Emma quickly took in the sight of him. He really was tall, and the fact that he was wearing nice clothing only emphasized that fact. The white, long sleeved collared shirt tucked in neatly to grey slacks. He looked good. Guys always looked better in suits, and Kyle was no exception. His hair was still styled so that the locks that might have framed his face were pushed up into careless spikes. If she was being honest with herself, Emma felt underdressed in comparison to him. But it didn’t matter now, did it?

“Let me just get this straight,” Emma said, taking a seat. “You normally take all your dates here, and not only that but you have a usual table? I’m sure you eat the same thing and follow the same script, too.”

“My dates don’t normally call me out,” Kyle said. His voice was teasing but it had an undertone of uncertainty, as though he wasn’t quite sure how Emma was going to react.

“Oh, let’s clarify that,” Emma said. “This isn’t a date. If your ex-girlfriend works at the restaurant you usually take your quote-unquote dates, they’re routine.”

“Then why are you still here?”

“Um, for the free meal at one of my favorite restaurants,” she pointed out, grabbing her menu. “By the way, don’t count on getting laid after this. Oh, and you should probably know that I have a pretty big appetite.”

“Has anyone ever told you how blunt you are?” Kyle asked.

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