“Three years.”
“Is that long enough for you to be able to show me some cool places? Places I wouldn’t discover unless I had also lived here for three years?”
She had tried to make her question airy—and tried for a light smile to match—but she could see in the cock of his head that he was trying to understand if she was truly asking or being flirty. Hell, she didn’t know if she was looking for suggestions from someone who’d lived in the city longer than she had or if she was hunting around for the likelihood of a date. She’d promised herself that from now on she’d get to know someone casually before getting serious. No more rushing into relationships or hopes or dreams. Rushing led to hurts, and she was trying to cut down on hurts.
But emotional caution just wasn’t and never had been a strength of hers.
“I know some places,” he said finally, each word carefully measured out as if he was also trying to figure out what she was asking and what he was offering. “And I know locals who know more places.”
“I’ve not met many locals. The university seems to be full of transplants like me, at least among the professors.” Different universities had different cultures and different feels, but the hodgepodge of people from around the globe remained the same. The academic job market was tough, especially for someone who studied a language, and everyone took what they could get.
“But before I ask you for more favors,” she said, giving them both an out, “I should probably get you that beer I promised. I’ll make you dinner, too, if you’re interested. You helped me out a lot today, and feeding you is the least I can do.”
Again he looked at her, obviously evaluating her words with a slow blink.
“It’s just dinner, I promise,” she said with a low laugh to cover the awkwardness. “I’m not trying to put a down payment on future yard work.”
He snorted. “I don’t believe that, but I also don’t care. Give me a chance to shower first, and then dinner sounds great.”
“A shower is a good idea.” Maybe cleaning the dirt off her body would clear the confused dust out of her mind. And, if she decided she really was trying to explore the potential for a date, at least she wouldn’t be worried about armpit smell.
“Give me at least a half an hour to get myself cleaned up, and you can come over anytime after that. I’ll leave the door unlocked, but give a knock so I don’t jump when you walk in the door.”
“Deal,” he said. Then he smiled, and his face and shoulders relaxed. Hers did, too.
* * *
FRESHLY SHOWERED AND in clean clothes, Levi stood in his kitchen watching the clock. It had been twenty minutes since he’d left Mina’s front yard, and he figured he had ten minutes to kill before he could walk through her front door without risking her still being in the shower. He emptied his dishwasher, then turned his attention to the paper still lying open to the astrology section.
He was supposed to try to embrace a new future today. If Kimmie were alive, she was supposed to go outside and garden. Not that he believed in the nonsense of the stars covering his fate, but today’s horoscope seemed uncomfortably close to the truth. Kimmie couldn’t go outside and garden, but Levi was alive, and getting outside seemed good advice for all the living.
And then there was that new future...
Levi glanced up at the window to where Mina was out of the shower and closing her curtains. She didn’t look embarrassed at all as she caught him looking while she was wearing only her towel. Instead, she smiled and waved. He waved back, then reached up and closed his own blinds.
Dennis was right that maybe he should get out and explore the world of women. Brook was right that he should do so with more seriousness. He’d never imagined that he’d be in his midthirties and single. He’d been excited to marry Kimmie and talk about having kids. He’d wanted to settle down. He still wanted to. But it wouldn’t happen if he avoided women who seemed more interested in relationships than in just sex.
Mina didn’t have to be the one or even the maybe, and dinner tonight didn’t have to lead to anything more than friendly greetings between neighbors, but he’d never know unless he tried. Mina was the first woman he’d felt more than a sexual interest in since Kimmie, and she was at least a good place to start, even if she seemed impossibly young.