Kate Hoffmann - The Drifter

“Well, plans change,” he said, his tone sharp with anger. Frustration welled up inside of him. This was crazy. He was in love with Eve Keller and she refused to believe him. Maybe this was just all poetic justice. He’d seduced so many women that he’d lost all credibility.

“Please, don’t do this,” Eve said.

“How do you feel?” Charlie asked, grabbing her arms and turning her to face him. He touched her head. “Not in here, but in here.” He pressed his palm to her chest. “I know how I feel, Eve. I’m falling in love with you. Hell, I might as well admit it. I am in love with you. And I understand why you might not believe me, but you’re going to have to trust me on this.”

“Why? So you can reassure yourself you’re just a normal guy with normal needs? What’s to stop you from changing your mind? Millions of guys do it. Just because you love me now doesn’t mean you’ll love me in a year or two.”

“You’re right,” he said. “But sometimes you just have to go on faith. You have to take a chance and see the possibilities.” He leaned close and touched his lips to hers. “You can’t deny there’s something incredible between us.”

“Sex isn’t love,” she said. “And desire isn’t fidelity. I’m not stupid enough to believe that.”

“So, I’m paying for the mistakes you made with your ex?”

“Mistakes I made? He was the one who cheated.”

“You were the one who married him.”

She cursed softly, slamming the spoon down on the counter. “Don’t you dare blame all of that on me. You share just as much of the blame.”

“All right,” Charlie said. “Now we’re getting somewhere. Yes, I will take part of the blame. I was an idiot to leave you. I should never have walked out. I made the biggest mistake of my life and now, I’m paying for it.”

She opened her mouth as if to snap back at him, but then her expression softened. “Only some mistakes can’t be fixed. No matter how hard you want to try,” she said in a defeated tone. Eve took a ragged breath. “I should go. I have to work. I’ve stayed away from the restaurant for far too long.”

“No, we’re going to settle this. Right here and right now,” Charlie said. “I want to know where I stand.”

She closed her eyes and shook her head. “I can’t make any promises,” Eve murmured. “I won’t. Not now.”

“So you want me to leave?”

“Of course not,” she said.

“You want me to stay?”

“You have to work. And you have a chance to do that in Nepal. I’m not going to keep you from leaving. And I’m not going to ask you to stay. Make up your own mind.”

With that, she turned and strode out of the kitchen. Charlie heard the front door slam and he cursed out loud. What had ever made him believe this would be easy? He’d always thought if he found the right woman, everything would work out like it was supposed to. But now, he felt as if he was in the middle of a battle of wills-and he was losing.

What more was he supposed to do to prove his feelings to her? He limped over to the kitchen table and sat down. Eve had made cornbread and the loaf was cooling in front of him. He took a knife and cut off a huge slice, then slowly bit into it.

“Oh, God,” he murmured. Charlie reached for the butter and slathered a good measure on the warm bread. There were so many things he loved about Eve. The way her naked body felt against his, the taste of her mouth when he kissed her, the scent of her damp hair after a shower. Now he could add her cornbread and five-bean chili to his list.

“THEY WANT US TO FLY TO Seattle this weekend. All the investors are going to be in town and they’d like you to cook for them on Sunday night.”

“This weekend?” Eve sighed. After two days off, she’d put in a long night in the kitchen, a night filled with confusion over Charlie. The last thing she wanted to talk about was business. “I’m not ready. I need time to plan a menu.”

“Cook what you cook at the restaurant every day,” Lily said. “That’s what they’re looking for. They’ve got a restaurant booked and you can use their kitchen. You’re supposed to call with a list of supplies you’ll need. And we’ll shop when we get out there.” She paused. “And they want you to do at least a few seafood dishes.”

“Why? They know I’m a vegetarian chef.”

“They think the restaurant would be more popular if you at least had three or four fish and seafood dishes on the menu. It works for us here. And Seattle is a fish town.”

Eve shook her head. “If they really want me, then they’ll take me the way I am.” Though Eve wanted to sound as if she were standing on principle, she knew that her argument had nothing to do with her beliefs as a cook. She wanted to spend every last day she could with Charlie.

“Eve, you can convince them of that after you cook for them,” Lily said. “Just give them a chance to get to know you.”

“The Garden Gate is about vegetarian cuisine. Our decision to serve fish and seafood was out of financial necessity. We always said we’d go back to strict vegetarian as soon as business was good. It’s been good for a couple years now and I say it’s time to change back.”

“What is wrong with you? I thought this was what you wanted,” Lily said. “These investors are interested in you. They believe in you.”

Eve sat down on a kitchen stool and buried her face in her hands. “I’m sorry,” she mumbled. “I’m just really tired. I haven’t been sleeping much.”

“Maybe if you came home and slept in your own bed, you wouldn’t be so tired.”

“It’s not because I’ve been having nonstop sex,” Eve explained. “Well, I actually have, but that’s not why I’m tired.”

“Would you care to share? Or am I supposed to guess?” Lily said after a long silence.

“Charlie is talking about staying in Boulder. Indefinitely. In fact, he made a business proposal to me earlier today. And it’s actually something pretty intriguing.” She shook her head. “I don’t know why I’m even considering these feelings I have.”

“Maybe because you’d like to believe there is a man out there who is absolutely perfect for you? And that man is Charlie?”

“How am I supposed to know?”

“Well, maybe you can’t,” Lily said. “Not after just a week or two. You need more time.”

“He seems to know exactly how he feels.”

Lily held up her hand. “Wait a second. This sounds like a discussion that would be best paired with a nice pinot noir.”

“Make it a cabernet,” Eve said. “The good stuff. That Whitehill reserve. And bring the whole bottle.”

Lily disappeared into the dining room and a few seconds later returned empty-handed.

“What? We can’t be out of Whitehill,” Eve said. “We had a whole case last week.”

“You have a visitor,” Lily said.

“Charlie?”

Lily shook her head. “Matt. He said it’s important. He said he’ll only take a few minutes of your time.”

“I don’t want to talk to him,” Eve said. “Tell him he can call my lawyer if he has anything to say.”

“I don’t think he’ll leave unless you talk to him,” Lily said.

Eve stood up, shoving the stool back across the tile floor. She stalked out of the kitchen, the door swinging closed behind her. Glancing back, she saw Lily peering out of the small window and she waved her off. When Eve reached the bar area, she found Matt sitting alone, nursing a beer.

Eve met Kenny’s gaze and smiled at the bartender. “Can you give us a few minutes?” she asked. “Maybe you could start going through the wine order and get that ready for tomorrow?”

“Sure, boss,” Kenny said. He wiped his wet hands on a towel, then walked back to the kitchen.