Page 28 of Forever Your Touch

“Thank you, Josephine.”

They slipped back into silence until they both fell asleep right along with the twins.

Chapter Eight

“Hey, babe!”

Jo sighed. This was the third time Ray had interrupted her. And it would be the third time she’d had to start over on her Let’s Play of the new horror game her subscribers asked for. It didn’t do to have the boyfriend talking in the background of one of her videos. Not like he wanted to be on her show, anyway. She’d tried several times to get him to do some quirky videos for Valentine’s Day or Christmas, but he just turned his nose up.

She got up and found him in their bedroom, packing for his week-long trip. He worked construction, and they’d be away on the job site.

“Yeah?”

He frowned, rummaging through a dresser drawer. “Why can’t I find my blue dress shirt?”

“What do you need a dress shirt for? I thought you were going to be on the site all day.”

“Because we might go out for drinks or something. I don’t want to wear work clothes.” He gave her aduhlook.

It was her turn to frown. She didn’t know if she liked the thought of him going out for drinks with the guys…guys she didn’t know. What if he…no. Ray would not cheat on her. In the years they’d been together, he’d never cheated. Not once. She’d trust him not to cheat now, even if he was four hours away around people who wouldn’t tell her if he was doing something he shouldn’t.

He’d earned that trust.

She went to the closet and found his shirt. “Here you go.”

“Thanks, babe.” He flashed her a smile and tucked the shirt in his suitcase. “Want to go out to dinner before I have to leave?”

This was the first time he’d asked her to go out since they’d arrived in New York. As much work as she had to do, a date night trumped it.

“That sounds awesome. Let me grab a shower, and I’ll be ready to go in half an hour?”

He nodded. “That works. Gives me time to finish packing.”

Jo rushed through her shower in record time, blew out her hair, and then dug through the dresser for a pair of nice jeans and blue lace top, a black tank under it.

She found Ray in the kitchen going through his phone. He looked up and whistled. “Looking good, babe. You ready?”

“Yeah. Where are we going?”

“Josh told me about this great burger place. Thought we could try it out. Make it a once a week kind of thing if I like it.”

“Sounds good.” She followed him out to the car, and they spent the next half hour talking about the new project his construction company was working on. They were building a huge apartment complex. Ray said it would end up being close to three months before it was finished. Which meant she was going to be by herself for most of the next three months.

Well, damn.

They ended up at a place called Burgerz. It was all brick and wood on the inside, where cozy tables and booths rested under soft lights. It smelled delicious. The smoky air only heightened the atmosphere. A waiter walked by holding a tray with a smoking pan. So, that was where all the smoke came from.

Once they were seated, Jo dived into the menu. The place offered a large variety of burgers, but they had salads and other sandwiches as well. This could easily turn out to be a favorite spot of hers, even if Ray decided he disliked it.

“See anything you like?” Ray asked, taking a sip of his Dr. Pepper.

“What isn’t there to like?” She grinned, trying to decide on one thing. “It all sounds so good!”

“I’m getting the southwestern burger with onion rings. You want to try it too?”

“No. I don’t like barbeque on my burgers. I think I’m going to get the chicken club. I had a burger for lunch.”

“How’s school?” Ray asked after the waitress took their order.

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