Page 21 of 40 and (No Longer) Fighting It
Lily paused with a bite of lamb halfway to her mouth. “Claire?”
At the head of the table, JD began to laugh. Lily glanced from him to Linc and back again, obviously struggling to pull together the connections.
“I can see you haven’t spoken to Claire in a couple of days,” Linc said.
“No. Things have been busy at the office.” She narrowed her eyes on Linc. “Why would moving up the kitchen reno help your business with Claire?”
“Oh, this has nothing to do with business.”
Lily’s eyes went wide. “So…let me make sure I’m getting this straight: you want to date Claire.”
He smiled, enjoying the sense of determination that filled his chest at her words. “I do.”
“Okay.” The way she dragged out the word, he took it as more of an acknowledgment of his statement than actually comprehending, especially when she shook her head. “What does the kitchen have to do with that?”
JD cleared his throat. “Our friend here is looking for an alternative kitchen.”
“Why?”
“One,” Linc said, “because I have to begin menu development on the restaurant. It can sometimes take months of trial and error, and one can never begin too soon. And two”—he grinned—“Claire is the only one I know personally in town with a commercial kitchen I can use if this…hovel…isn’t available.”
Lily pursed her lips. “That’s sneaky.”
“I always find a way to go after what I want.”
“And you want Claire?”
“I’ve wanted to get to know her since New York.”
Lily watched him as she took another bite, taking her time assessing him, it seemed. “I assume you’ve talked to Claire since Sunday,” she finally said.
“I have.” And since Lily was Claire’s best friend, he felt safe in saying, “We discussed some things that happened in New York while she was at the institute, and I made it clear I’d like to pursue her.”
“For what?”
JD choked on a swallow of wine. When his throat was clear, he grinned at Linc. “Lily doesn’t believe in pulling punches.”
Apparently.
“I learned the hard way, quite recently, that pulling punches doesn’t serve anyone,” Lily said. “Particularly anyone close to me.”
Linc nodded, catching the warning underlying her words.
“I’d like to date her, Lily.” He wouldn’t go so far as to admit to her friend that he was desperate to get Claire into bed, although there was that too.
“But you’re only here for another ten days or so.”
He shrugged. “That could be extended if I had a good reason.”
Lily considered that, a spark of amusement growing in her eyes. “Has she told you about your nickname yet?”
Dread started in his belly. “What nickname?”
Lily snickered. “Let’s just say, she had a nickname for you back in New York. I may be the only one who knows it, but”—her snicker became a full-on laugh—“it is far more appropriate than I ever knew back then.”
“Uh-oh.” Linc glanced at JD, who looked as clueless as Linc was. “I’m not sure I want to know.”
“I do,” JD said.
