Page 12 of Banter & Blushes #1

LUNA

M y heart beats happily in my chest as Cade and I walk to the pizzeria. Since I’m his matchmaker, I should be more concerned about what happened on his date. But I’m not. In fact, I’m secretly glad he’s here with me and not out with Caroline.

Natasha greets us as we walk into the Pizza Palace. After she married Anders, she cut back on her hours at the Bob and Curl so she can work here. Tantalizing aromas of tomato sauce, garlic, and baked dough greet us, and my stomach rumbles.

“Luna! It’s been a while! Let me give you our best booth,” Natasha says.

She leads us to one of the four identical red leather booths in the back, and I wonder why this particular booth is dubbed the best.

“The menu board has our daily specials, as well as all the toppings you can order, if you need a refresher.” She points to the chalkboard sign above the register. “Decide what you want and you can place your order up front. Can I bring you some beverages?”

“I’ll have a root beer,” I say.

“What kind of beer do you have on tap?” Cade asks. He selects one of the kinds of beer that Natasha mentions, then she waltzes away. “I hope the pizza is as delicious as it smells,” Cade comments, giving me a knee-weakening smile.

“Trust me, it is. What toppings do you like? ”

“Lady’s choice. I eat everything except for anchovies,” Cade says with a chuckle.

“How about pepperoni and jalapeno? That’s my favorite.”

He jumps up, motioning for me to stay put. “I’ll place our order and be right back.”

The man is an impressive male specimen, and several female heads turn to watch him as he makes his way over to the register. What went wrong with his date? Caroline sure blew it if she let a man like Cade get away.

Natasha brings the drinks over while Cade is still placing our order. Looks like Anders is manning the register now, sporting his usual grumpy scowl. “I heard he was good-looking, but that’s an understatement,” she says as she waggles her eyebrows at me. “Don’t let him slip through your fingers.”

Of course the town gossip chain has already filled her in on Cade Bainbridge. By now, everyone knows who he is.

“He’s only here for a couple of weeks.”

She rolls her eyes. “I bet you could convince him to extend his stay.”

Cade returns to the booth, cutting off the conversation. “Just give me a wave when you need refills. The pizza should be ready in about fifteen minutes,” Natasha says, then vanishes.

As soon as Cade’s butt hits the leather seat, I lean forward and say, “Tell me about the date with Caroline.”

He frowns and takes a long sip of his beer. “I think The Golden Anchor is jinxed. This date tied for the worst date of my life, along with the date with Gabrielle Moore.”

“Really?” I squeak. “Did she wear perfume you were allergic to?” Surely Althena made sure we didn’t have a repeat performance from Cade’s allergies.

“Thankfully no.”

“So what happened?”

Cade lets out a long-suffering sigh. “She took several phone calls and then cut the date short due to an emergency with a merger at her company.”

My eyes grow wide. “No kidding?”

“Between her being late and taking phone calls, we only had about five minutes of our date.” He takes another long draw from his beer, then plunks the glass back onto the table with enough force to indicate he’s still frustrated by the experience.

“I’m sorry, Cade.” How did this seemingly perfect match crash and burn? I’m starting to question my matchmaking skills even more.

“Let’s enjoy this pizza and not talk about my dating disasters any further,” Cade says. He stares at me with a teasing glint in his eyes. “Tell me about your day at Plot Twists and Perfect Matches. Surely your day went better than mine.”

Tapping my finger on my chin as if deep in thought, I say, “Well... I signed on a new local soy candle vendor. They create handmade candles customized with beachy sayings.”

“Such as? ”

“The beach is calling . . . Good vibes happen on the tides . . . Salt water heals everything . . . Stuff like that.”

“I think I need one of those,” Cade says with a teasing grin.

I bite back a bark of surprise that he’s able to joke after his second horrible date. “I’ll set one aside for you as soon as they come in.”

He laughs. “Please do that. You’re a very creative and resourceful business owner, aren’t you?”

Arching an eyebrow, I say, “In what way?”

“You’re always looking for ways to expand your business. That’s being smart and savvy.”

Huh? All I ever focus on are my failed ventures, but I guess he’s right. I’ve had some great successes too. My essential oils are my bestsellers. Hopefully these candles will also be one of my smart and savvy moves.

“Thank you,” I murmur as my heart flutters at his compliment.

A grin splits his handsome face. “So what else? Surely soy candles with clever sayings weren’t the highlight of your day?”

“True, but it was mostly the usual things.” He arches an eyebrow, encouraging me to elaborate further.

“A kid knocked over the crystal jewelry display. A lady returned a half-empty vial of an essential oil claiming it didn’t work.

Oh! And I agreed to try one of Zoe’s new recipes.

That was my excitement for the day. Not exactly on the same magnitude as handling a corporate merger. ”

“Hey, don’t underestimate yourself,” Cade says, his expression turning serious. “I bet you handled all of those with grace and a smile. Unlike my date,” he adds with a grimace.

Another warm feeling flows through me at his compliment. “I did have to count to ten after the crystal jewelry flew all over the floor.”

Chuckling, Cade says, “Understandable. But don’t keep me on the edge of my seat. What was Zoe’s new recipe? Sugar-free, I assume?”

I nod sagely. “Sugar-free and gluten-free.”

“A double whammy,” he jokes. “Well?”

“Tahini almond cookies with pomegranate seeds.”

He wrinkles his nose. “Are they any good?”

“They sold out and there were no complaints.”

“You didn’t try one, did you?”

We swap knowing smirks, then a teenager saunters up to our table, delivering the steaming pizza along with plates and forks. “Enjoy!” he says as he drops the tray on the table with a loud thunk!

“Dig in!” I say as I slide a slice onto my plate.

Cade snags his own slice, and we both savor the cheesy tomato goodness, the pepperoni and spicy peppers adding just the right amount of zest.

“I love this combination,” Cade says after a couple bites.

“What did I tell you?”

For the next while, we’re too busy snarfing down the pizza and teasing each other about weird pizza toppings, my quirky customers, and Zoe’s unique baked goods to dwell any further on Cade’s crummy date. Tonight, I’m not his matchmaker, I’m his date.

“Whew! I’m stuffed,” I say, fifteen minutes and four slices of pizza later. In fact, Cade just ate the last slice, polishing off the entire large pie.

“How about we walk down the pier? I hear it’s a great place to watch the sunset,” Cade suggests as we stand to leave.

“I’d love to.”

We stroll down the sidewalk along with a smattering of families and couples.

Cade reaches out and grabs my hand. My heart skips a beat.

This really is a date. It feels natural to hold hands with him, like we’ve been doing it for years.

I love the feeling of my small hand nestling in his much larger one.

“Hugo reminded me that I should take advantage of living on the beach. How would you like to join me on a beach walk tomorrow morning?” Cade asks after we’re settled on a bench at the end of the pier.

The sun is starting to set—orange, yellow, and pink streaks cross the sky like paint left by a brush.

I turn towards him. “I’d love to, but we’ll have to go plenty early so I can open the shop by nine.”

“What’s early?” he asks.

“Just after sunrise. Around six?”

He grunts. “Guess that means no more late nights reviewing land contracts.”

“So that’s a yes?” I tease.

He takes my hand again and tugs me closer. “That’s a yes,” he whispers. Our eyes lock and the rest of the world slides away, as if it’s just the two of us. Putting his hand up to my cheek, he says, “You’re an intriguing woman, Luna. I’d like to get to know you better.”

Before I can debate the conflict of interest created if I kiss my client, I lean forward and touch my lips to his.

What starts out as a gentle touch quickly turns into a passionate embrace as we both adjust our heads to deepen the kiss.

I wind my arms around his neck, fully participating in every spine-tingling, heart-stopping, breathless moment.

My heart thunders and crashes inside my chest, louder and harder than the waves off the coast.

The kiss goes on and on, but eventually reality slams into me and it takes every ounce of willpower I possess to pull away. “This is a bad idea, Cade,” I murmur.

There’s an intensity in his eyes that makes my skin hot and my breath shallow. “I don’t think so,” he says, leaning back towards me, intent on resuming our kiss.

Gently stalling his progress with my hand, I say, “You’re my client. This breaks my matchmaker’s oath in so many ways.”

He pauses, still gazing at me with a passionate glint that makes me want to retract my words and continue kissing him. “Maybe I should fire you.”

“Do you want to do that?”

Blowing out a loud breath, he says, “No, I guess not.”

All the reasons I’m not the woman he’s looking for tumble through my brain. Small-town girl. Marginally successful business owner. Carefree gypsy. I’m certainly not the corporate hotshot he thinks should be the future Mrs. Bainbridge.

“Cade, as tempting as you and your kisses are, I know that I’m not the woman for you.

I have the questionnaire to prove it. I don’t live up to any of the standards you set.

” I stand and furiously blink back tears.

“I’ll find you another match. Maybe the third time will be a charm,” I say in a watery voice.

He nods, avoiding eye contact.

I turn briskly on my heel and walk away, forcing myself not to look back over my shoulder, because I know I’d run back to him if he gave me even an ounce of encouragement.