Page 36 of Necessary Roughness

“That’s not what happened—”

“Of course it did, doll face. You brought me home and you haven’t left yet. One thing’s for sure. I learned my lesson.”

“Are you serious?” He’d called her doll face. Doll face? She was going to take that up with him later. Right now, she was too busy to dwell on it.

“Of course I am. Why would I lie to you?” He tried to look innocent. It wasn’t working.

“He’s not serious,” Jordan said to Tabitha. “I’ll tell you what really happened.”

“I was performing at Teatro ZinZanni. I fell off the trapeze and landed on her table. I screamed like a little girl too,” Tanner said as he put a perfectly done quesadilla on the plate in front of Tabitha. “She split her dessert with me while we waited for the aid car.” He served Jordan’s quesadilla too. “I’ll do almost anything for a good blackberry panna cotta. How about you, Jordan?”

Jordan wouldn’t know what a blackberry panna cotta was if it bit her in the face, but she nodded. “I’m sure it’s good.”

Tabitha had to know he was full of shit by this point, but she glanced back and forth between Jordan and Tanner like she was at a tennis match. “Wow,” she said. She took a bite of glazed carrots.

“How are the carrots?” Jordan asked.

“Delicious.” She glanced up from her food. “You should really consider becoming a vegetarian, Jordan.”

“I’m okay with vegetables—”

“Your skin will really show it if you keep eating meat.” She gave a delicate shudder. “I get women in my office all the time who can’t figure out why their skin looks so bad. I can figure it out the minute they walk in the salon—not enough sunscreen and tons of red meat. It’s awful for you,” she said.

“Huh,” Jordan said. She didn’t want to be rude, but she wasn’t in the mood for a critique of her skin. “What do you do, Tabitha?”

“I’m a Sharks cheerleader, but I’m an esthetician in my day job. I work for a salon in Bellevue. You should stop by sometime. I’d be happy to treat you to a minifacial.” Like the vast majority of NFL cheerleaders, Tabitha couldn’t make a living off cheering.

“That’s really nice. Thank you.”

“What about my minifacial? I need one,” Tanner insisted.

Jordan was torn between thinking he was the most ridiculous man she’d ever met and laughing at his attempts to tease Tabitha a little. She wondered why he’d asked her out in the first place, but she’d be dwelling on that one later. Mostly, she wanted to see what he’d do next. He didn’t disappoint.

“The effects of red meat, alcohol, and smoking don’t show up on men’s skin until later in life,” Tabitha informed him. “Their skin is thicker.”

“Well, that’s great to know.” He took another bite of his quesadilla. “Maybe I’ll grill up one of those steaks after all.” Tabitha averted her eyes.

Jordan had been on dates before that went south fifteen minutes after the guy picked her up or whatever. Typically, this had something to do with being asked to dinner by someone who saw her at a bar or a sporting event. They liked how she looked but they weren’t into her as a person, which became obvious when she tried to have a conversation. She’d always been as interested in a guy’s brain as she was the rest of him. She wanted to be with someone she enjoyed talking to and had something in common with. It was surprising how high of a bar that seemed to be, at least for her. She was dealing with it right now. Tanner had no problem starting and holding a conversation. He and Tabitha were not the proverbial “love connection,” but he still tried to bring her into the convo and fun. Jordan was torn between feeling jealous and enjoying the newly talkative and funny Tanner.

He’d kissed her last night, and he’d invited out another woman today. She wouldn’t be human if she wasn’t a little hurt. Why had he kissed her?

Jordan finished as much of the quesadilla, spinach salad, and prawns on her plate as possible, dropped her napkin on the table, and leaned back in the patio chair. “Dinner was delicious,” she said to Tanner. “Thank you so much.”

“You’re welcome. Thanks to you ladies for prepping the vegetables and getting everything on the table.” He nodded at Tabitha. “Thanks for the suggestion. I’ll have to make that again.”

“It was Jordan’s idea, but I liked it too. I’m glad you enjoyed it.” Jordan heard the bzzzt of a cell phone text notification. Tabitha pulled her phone out of her pocket and said, “Please excuse me. I’ll be right back.” She took a few steps away from the table, tapped in a response, and turned back to face Jordan and Tanner. “I know it’s rude to eat and run, but I have to go. Thanks for the dinner.”

“I’ll walk you out,” Tanner said.

“Uh, sure. That would be great,” Tabitha said.

***

TANNER REACHED OUT to grab his crutches and followed Tabitha out the front door a few minutes later.

“Thanks for stopping by,” he said. He braced himself on one crutch and reached out to give her a half hug. “I had fun. I hope you did too.”

Tabitha brushed her hair behind one shoulder and glanced up at him.

---