Page 35 of The Blind Date

If it weren’t for the hope shining in his eyes and the nervous look on his face, like this meant more than just a simple colleague dinner to him, I would have immediately said yes.

“I don’t know if that’s such a great idea, Owen,” I began in a small voice, not wanting to hurt his feelings or make things awkward between us.

"I know you want to keep things platonic, but I'm sure you can grab dinner with a co-worker after a long day at work, right?” He tried to persuade me, and with how hungry I was, midday being the last time I had eaten something, it was a difficult offer to turn down.

“What if it’s weird?”

“I promise it won’t be weird.”

“Well, Iamhungry,” I gave in with a sigh. “What about the restaurant down the street? I’m always in the mood for a burger.”

“Sounds great.” Owen grinned, looking far too hopeful for my liking. “I’m too hungry to make it any further than down the street anyway.”

My mouth salivated at the thought of a hearty meal after the intense workday. The closer Owen and I got to the restaurant, the hungrier I got, and if I didn't spot one of my closest friends sitting at a table, eating by himself, I would have ordered my meal right at the entrance.

“Fancy running into you here, Victor,” I called out to my friend, sliding into the booth beside him. Before he could greet me, I reached out to help myself to some of his chips, all but moaning at the taste of food after so long. I did not doubt that it looked like I hadn't eaten for days, but I couldn't bring myself to care. Not when I was this starved.

From the corner of my eye, I noticed Owen approach the table cautiously, unsure of whether he should join us or not. I squashed the uncertainty by offering him a friendly smile and sliding Victor's untouched Caesar salad across the table.

He smiled gratefully and slid into the booth opposite us.

“Not that I’m not happy to see you, Saff, but what are you doing here, and why are you stealing my food?” Victor chuckled, eying me stealing more of his chips.

“I’ll buy you more chips,” I promised as I ate some more of his food. “Don’t know why you ordered a salad at this time of evening, though. I didn’t even know you could order a salad after 8 pm.”

“I didn’t want to feel guilty for the cheeseburger.” Victor grinned, and almost as if with perfect timing, the waitress arrived to drop off said double cheeseburger. She was also kind enough to take mine and Owen’s orders. I ordered Victor another portion of chips but held off on the salad. It wasn’t like he was going to eat it, anyway.

“Why are you eating by yourself?” I asked casually, eyeing up his burger and willing for mine to arrive soon. “Shouldn’t you be at home, snuggled up in bed with Horatio after eating one of the fancy, home-cooked meals he cooks for you?”

"You can't tell Horatio,” Victor pleaded, sounding desperate. He even turned to Owen, as if to warn him not to say anything which was ridiculous as Owen had never met any of my friends before so would have no way of telling Horatio any of this. “You know I love Horatio with all my heart, but there’s only so much healthy food that I can take. Every once in a while, a guy needs a burger.”

“I can get behind that.” Owen chuckled, picking out the chicken from the salad and leaving most of the greens untouched.

“So, what did you do? Sneak out when he fell asleep so you could grab a burger and chips?”

“No, I told him I needed to head back to the office for something.”

“And he believed you?”

"I love the man, but he's kind of gullible," Victor chuckled. "I have about another hour before he's expecting me home, so I'm all good."

“How often do you sneak out to clog your arteries like this?” Owen asked curiously, forking through the salad. The frown on his face told me that he had eaten all the chicken but refused to believe it.

"Once every fortnight, I would say," Victor answered, his suspicious eyes lingering on Owen. "Not to be rude or anything, but who are you? And what are doing with Saffron? You should know that she's incredibly fussy, and if this is another blind date, well, you don't need me to tell you that it's not going well if you’ve got a third wheel.”

"This isn't a date." Owen was quick to deny which I was happy about, but the uncomfortable look on his face made me feel uneasy. Like he wished he could have answered differently.

I should have said no to grabbing dinner together when he asked.

“We’re co-workers,” I explained. “We just finished work and decided to grab dinner together before heading home.”

“Release gone wrong?” Victor guessed, having heard me moan about some of the lengthier releases in the past.

“Something like that,” I groaned, not wanting to talk about work anymore.

Thankfully, I was saved when the waitress dropped by with our food. It was now burgers and chips all around!

“This is the best burger I’ve ever eaten,” Owen all but groaned, having the courtesy to cover his mouth as he spoke.

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