Page 73 of Partner Pursuit
Jake was waiting at the bar, which was against one wall, taking up the front third of the restaurant. She could barely see the mirrored back behind all the bottles of alcohol and the sparkly lights. He came over and kissed her firmly on the lips. He put his arm around her and notified the hostess they were ready.
“Trust you to find a restaurant named Live Bait,”shesaid.
“Yes, it’s not the most romantic place, but it’s fun,” he said. “And the foodisgood.”
“It’s classic you.” The relaxed vibe, a group of friends standing in a circle, beers in hand, laughing at some joke—it was a place designed to foster informality and high spirits.
“I hope I don’t smell of stale beer,”he joked.
“No.” She hugged him close. “You smell ofyou.”
“Eloquent.”
“I didn’t get a lot of sleep last night.” She winked at him. Pop music was playing, and some people were swaying by the bar. They walked to the back of the restaurant where whitealuminum-sidedtables with colorful plastic chairs were surrounded by turquoise booths on the side. Fishing nets, Mardi Gras beads, and a large mounted swordfish decorated the walls. The waitress seated them at a turquoise booth and handed them menus.
“Work was a bit tough today. I was distracted,”shesaid.
“Distracted, huh?” He smiled and took her hand acrossthe table.
She leaned forward and gazed into his eyes. “Most definitely.” Maybe they shouldn’t have gone out for dinner. She didn’t have much appetite for food. The waitress interrupted the moment, and she quickly echoed his order for fish tacos.
“My friend Rory is having a Halloween costume party. Do you want to go with me?”he asked.
“Yes, definitely,” she said, happy that he was asking her out for something in the future.
“When do they make the partnership decision again?”he asked.
“December.”
“No hints?”
“Not as far as I can tell. But then I may not be that good at reading tea leaves.” Audrey sipped her water. “You, for example. I had a really hard time figuring out if you were interested. Why did you takesolong?”
“What? It was almost impossible for me to tell if you werekeen.”
“What doyoumean?”
“You sent me all those gifts—I was sure you were, and then we have dinner and you get a call from that partner and totally revert to work mode and leave immediately.”
“I so regretted that,” she wailed. “I’m such adork.”
“You’re definitely not a dork,” he said with a warm glance. “But I was worried you were a workaholic—like my father—and so I was determined not to be interested, especially since it seemed like work could trample any interest you had in me.”
“You doubted I likedyou?”
“I knew you liked me as a friend. I thought you liked me more than that, but still, you are a lawyer trying to make partner,”Jakesaid.
“What changed yourmind?”
“It seemed like you could leave your work phone at home. You didn’t take it out when we were biking—unless…did you check it in thebathroom?”
“I’ve been known to check it in the bathroom, but I left it at home that day because I didn’t want to be interrupted.”
“So that seemed like a good sign,” he said. “And I wasgun-shy. Veronika was such a total disaster. And I couldn’t seem to get out of it—as you know.” He glanced sideways at her. “But responding to her call Saturday was a mistake. And I was so frustrated and mad that she finally got the message. Then she told me she’d met someone new, and I told her that I was thrilled for her and she should be calling him, not me. I think she thought that would make me want her back.” He ruffled his hair. “ButI don’t.”
The waitress set down two plates of fish tacos and two beers. Jake started eating.
“Was there something also with Penny?” Audrey asked.
