Out of Warranty by Haywood Smith
Author:Haywood Smith
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: St. Martin's Publishing Group
Nineteen
Cassie
Bill and Cindy sent us a look like doting parents, then turned to leave.
I shot daggers at their retreat till Wadeâs sigh brought my attention back to him.
His expression was guarded.
âI promise,â I blurted out, âI had absolutely nothing to do with that.â
He looked down, swirling what was left of his scotch, which wasnât much. âI have a confession to make,â he said with an apologetic smile. âI did.â
I stared at him in surprise.
His smile leveled out. âIt was Billâs idea. If I gave him the signal that I was interested, he said theyâd get out of the way so the two of us could go out alone.â
I didnât like subterfuge. Major deduction for the subterfuge. âThatâs sneaky. I do not like sneaky. I like honesty.â
He cocked a wry expression. âWell, I am a lawyer.â
Unsure which way he meant that, I was appalled at the chuckle that escaped me. âCad.â
âOh, Iâm not a cad,â he hastened to say. âIâm an old-fashioned gentleman, not a cad. And I promise, you are safe with me, dear lady.â
That remained to be seen.
The waiter came back, glancing around when he didnât see the others. âIs everything all right?â
âOur friends were called away,â Wade explained, âbut weâre ready to order. The lady will have the grilled cod, hold the pepper on everything, and Iâll have the rib eye, medium rare, baked potato all the way, and the chefâs salad.â He looked at me. âWould you like a salad? Theyâre all very good.â
âNo, thank you.â
âSome wine?â he asked.
I started to say I didnât drink, but curbed myself to, âNo, thank you. Just water.â
âBring our food all at once, please,â Wade instructed, âand bring us a bottle of that nice robust white I had last week. And two glasses.â He winked at me. âJust in case you change your mind.â He handed the menus back to the waiter with a smug smile.
A bottle of wine! After a double scotch? Major deduction.
And another one for in case you change your mind.
If there was one thing I couldnât stand, it was people who wouldnât accept that I didnât drink.
Of course, I hadnât told him I didnât drink, but still â¦
I busied myself with my napkin to keep him from seeing my reaction.
Heâs nervous, Mamaâs voice said. Cut him some slack. Men drink when theyâre nervous. He hasnât been out since 1977, either.
Yeah, I countered, but heâs driving.
He hasnât drunk the whole bottle yet, she retorted. See how it goes. Relax.
âI promise,â he repeated, âIâm not the big, bad wolf.â He finished his drink, then motioned for another.
So much for seeing how it went.
I struggled to keep the fixed smile on my face.
Cabs took forever in Atlanta. Maybe I could walk home from the club. It wasnât far, and it was still light.
But it was also ninety-five degrees.
Wadeâs second double arrived in no time. Forearms on the white tablecloth, he gripped it tightly, but didnât dive in right away. âItâs been really hard since Maryanne died,â he volunteered. âWe were best friends.
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