Her Chance At Love

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Chapter 8 (#ulink_0618b2df-6b2b-5d70-99a2-f82127753b1d)

“Now you owe me!” The words shot out of Cadence’s mouth like cannonballs. She jammed her seat belt into the slot, sat back and folded her arms.

Alana snickered. Cadence glared at her and Alana fell into a fit of laughter as she maneuvered the car out of the lot. “Stop acting like you don’t want to go to dinner with that man—that fine man!” she sang.

“It’s really not a big deal.”

Alana slammed on the brakes, forcing Cadence’s body to jerk forward. “Girl! It’s me! Don’t sit here and act as if you don’t find him attractive. He was all over you today.” Alana shook her head, looked both ways and continued driving.

“No, he wasn’t.” Cadence rolled her eyes, pressing back her smile.

“Please! Cadence wants pizza, we all have to eat pizza,” Alana said, waving a hand in sweeping gestures. “Wanna come with me to get the pizza, Cadence?” she said, pulling her voice down a couple of octaves to mimic Blake. “He looked at you like you were his lunch. Let’s not even mention the hug before we left. I thought he would never let you go.”

Cadence turned her head to face the passenger window so Alana wouldn’t see her blush. “You’re exaggerating,” she finally said, once the burn in her cheeks subsided.

“I don’t know why you are playing games. You haven’t had a man in over half a year and here comes this tall drink of refreshing spring water, flowing from a crystal glacier. No. Scratch that! A fine specimen, complete with multiple degrees and the body of a god. He’s the perfect catch. I can’t believe you want to just toss him back in the water like he’s some ugly catfish!”

Cadence cut her eyes at Alana’s overzealous description of Blake. “If he’s so great, then why don’t you date him?”

“Blake is off-limits. I used to date his brother,” she said matter-of-factly.

“What? You didn’t tell me that. Which one?” Cadence didn’t hide her surprise. “I thought I knew all of your boyfriends.”

“Drew. It wasn’t serious. We went out a couple of times.”

“Oh.” Cadence held her smile on the inside, happy to hear that her friend wouldn’t possibly be interested in Blake. “I don’t like playboys, and besides, I doubt I’m his type. My boobs aren’t large enough to choke me when I lie down, and I don’t speak bimbo.”

“Ha! Those brothers attract all types. He’s a good catch and he gives back to the community. In fact, they all do. That’s what I like about them.”

“I can see that.”

“Blake is very active in this organization that mentors young boys. He’s always taking them out and doing things with them. It’s really cool. I think it helps to keep him grounded.”

Cadence quietly pondered what Alana had just said. She admired people who gave back.

“Plus, he seems to be genuinely interested in you. Just give it a chance. You never know what can happen.”

“I don’t know. Maybe I’m just not ready to date.” She’d gotten over Kenny, but not those feelings of rejection. The last thing she wanted was to get her hopes up about someone who probably didn’t take a woman’s feelings seriously. He may have been a reasonable humanitarian, but he was still a man who appeared to be a playboy.

“Well, you may not be ready for him, but I know for sure that he’s ready to get to know you a little better.”

“What makes you say that?” Cadence tilted her head, eager to hear Alana’s response.

“Ever since the mixer, he’s been asking about you.”

“You didn’t tell me that.” Cadence rose in her seat and then sat back, hoping she didn’t appear too anxious.

Alana shrugged as if it was no big deal.

“We’re here.” Alana peered over the dash to get a better look at the front of the restaurant. “That’s it right there. I’m sure there’s more parking in the back. I’ll pull around.” Alana whipped the car into the lot and pulled into the first available spot. “This is probably the closest we are going to get. It looks crowded.”

The ladies checked their faces in the visor mirrors and headed inside. Alana stood on her toes, craning her neck over the crowd in search of Blake, while Cadence discreetly scanned the restaurant with her eyes. It didn’t appear that Blake had arrived yet.

“Let me see how long the wait is going to be,” Alana said.

Cadence followed Alana as she snaked through the thick crowd toward the hostess. Their wait would be about forty-five minutes and the women figured that would work since Blake had yet to arrive.

“Can I take your name?” the young hostess asked Alana.

“Ah.” She paused, looking at Cadence for confirmation. Cadence shrugged. “Sure. Alana. Party of three, but our third party is not here yet.”

“Okay. You said Alana, right?” the woman asked, and Alana nodded. “Will you be dining with Mr. Barrington this evening?”

Cadence and Alana exchanged surprised glances. “Yes, we will. How’d you know?”

Offering up a pleasant smile, the hostess said, “Oh, Mr. Barrington called ahead, so we were expecting you. Follow me,” the hostess said with a nod, grabbing several menus and leading them through the loud bustling restaurant to a room set aside for private events. They were seated at a table for at least eight people and the hostess placed a menu at each setting. Turning to them, she smiled and nodded again. “I’ll send your waiter right over. Mr. Barrington and the rest of your party should be with you shortly.”

“Thank you,” Alana said to the woman politely before turning to Cadence. “How the heck did Blake manage this?” she said, referring to the fact that they were seated immediately despite the long wait.

“I don’t know, but I’m glad we don’t have to wait the whole forty-five minutes. I thought about leaving but, realizing that it’s a Saturday evening, every other restaurant will have a similar wait.” Cadence couldn’t help glancing around as she anticipated Blake’s arrival.

“Yeah, but Blake didn’t offer to treat us to those restaurants. Ha!” Alana teased.

“Thanks, Kim,” Blake’s voice sounded off just outside of the room where Alana and Cadence sat.

Cadence turned around so fast she almost gave herself whiplash. She hoped Alana hadn’t noticed her eagerness because she sure wouldn’t let her live it down.