Page 5

I leaned down to peek in the oven and spotted the sauce bubbling and noticed the rolls were a light golden brown. Removing the tray and switching off the oven, I plated our sandwiches, tearing off fresh basil from my herb garden and adding the leaves on top of the melted cheese.

As I sat down next to him, the silence spiked my anxiety, so I started rambling.

“When I started taking my life back, I structured everything; from bedtime and a wake up time, eating at least twice a day, which meant I learned how to cook to save time, to how many hours a day I recorded or streamed. The act of making a meal relaxed me after sitting for hours on end, so I started doing it every day.”

Graham relaxed his tense shoulders as we both devoured our dinner. For a reason I couldn’t explain, feeding him made me… happy. And to have someone other than my sisters enjoy something I made gave me a sense of satisfaction.

The conversation moved onto lighter topics and before I knew it, a yawn escaped and I pressed my hand to my mouth to cover it.

“I’ll take care of the dishes,” he said.

“Oh, no, no worries. Most of it will go in the dishwasher, anyway.”

While he placed the dishes in the sink, I grabbed a glass jar and packed the fruit away. When I turned, my mouth opened to thank him for the best night I had in a long while and to hand him the leftovers, but I stopped short when my fingers brushed his chest.

“Um, here you go.” I pushed my hands forward, but since there wasn’t room between us, my knuckles dug into his chest.

Graham studied me for a long moment before breaking the silence.

“Thank you for dinner. But I’d like to point out you didn’t get to ask your questions like you’d planned on.”

I smiled, taking the opportunity as presented. “Well, I’m guessing that I’m going to feed you dinner every night until I do.”

“That might take a while. Months. All you know about me is that I’m not here to harm you.”

“And you have an ex-girlfriend who called you, well, I won’t repeat it.”

“Yeah, Hensley’s great and she made a good point. Look at how I reacted when I tried hugging you.”

“It’s a step in the right direction. I see it as a learning experience. Take baby steps and before you know it, you’ll become a big, cuddly, touchy-feely—”

“Okay, let’s not push it.”

A sharp laugh escaped before I covered my mouth with my hand. With a bit of hesitation I asked, “So… dinner, tomorrow night say, seven this time?”

He nodded. “Yeah, but sometime, I’ll need a list so I can go grocery shopping. I don’t want to eat all your food.”

I flapped my hands in warning. “Don’t say shopping. If my mom hears that, and trust me, she has ears like a bat, you’ll disappear with her for half a day and come back with food for a year.”

With a laugh, he turned toward the door. “Thanks again for dinner and I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Yep. Good night, Graham.”

After I shut it behind him, I leaned against it like a love-struck teenager and sighed.

Chapter 2

Graham

My eyes dartedtoward the clock on my laptop as I listened to the ramblings between the two companies close to the end of their negotiations. Lawyers, executives looking to make a name for themselves, and translators found a rhythm that left me sitting back and listening for anything not contract related.

I’d done my job; allowing the company in Japan to keep their brand and their employees, while a branch of the company opened in the United States, and waited for the meeting to end.

“Mr. Norris, are there any other issues we have to discuss?”

“No, Mr. Ito.”

With a nod from both CEO’s and the lawyers giving a date for the completed, filed paperwork, the call ended. I leaned back and sighed. Aware I had an hour and a half before Neko expected me for dinner.