She returned his smile. “Pretty well. Can’t complain,” she said vaguely, noticing the way he studied her with certain interest. “And yours?”
“To tell you the truth, I was kind of thinking of you. Enough so that I thought if you weren’t doing anything, maybe you’d like to catch dinner with me tonight. There’s a new sushi restaurant I heard about that I thought we might check out.”
A date?
Benny clenched her fists at her side to stop the near overpowering impulse to fist bump the air or wave them around in victory.
Wait. Sushi? An i
mage of cold, raw, gelatinous fish passing her mouth brought a wave of nausea. Sure, there were an infinite variety of choices of sushi and sashimi that were available and she’d tried many of them, but it seemed pointless to go somewhere where the only way she could consume such concoctions was by slathering them in soy sauce and wasabi until her nasal passages burned so she couldn’t taste it in the first place.
Fortunately, she was supposed to play coy here, if Henry were to be believed. And he’d been right so far…
She looked down at her chart, pretending to consider it before answering apologetically. “I’m afraid I can’t tonight.”
“Okay. What about Wednesday? And before you decline, I know for a fact that Wednesdays you usually pick up a pizza from around the corner and head home.”
“Really? Are you stalking me, Dr. Seeley?”
“Just paying attention.”
And he was right. Wednesdays the restaurant offered free cheesy bread with any size pizza and Benny always grabbed a pepperoni-and-olive pizza and sat in for a night alone of television and gluttony. Kind of like every night, actually. Although of late, she’d been less alone than usual, thanks to the company of her neighbor, whose witty banter and observations were remarkably…enjoyable.
She pretended to consider it again before slowly nodding. “Okay. I think I’m open.”
His smile widened, and he backed away. “Good. I’m going to hold you to it, and in the meantime, I’ll get out of your way before you remember you have other plans.”
He turned and headed down the hall, and for a minute, Benny fought the outrageous giggle that wanted to burst out.
She’d done it.
No tee time on the greens with Luke and his golf buddies. No, she had a real, honest-to-goodness date with Luke Seeley.
Dinner. Dim light, raw fish—no, she pushed that image away, and instead imagined the two of them laughing and talking in hushed whispers, of him taking her hand in his or maybe even dropping his hand to her knee as a shiver of excitement ran through her. Of Luke leaning forward until she could feel his breath on her face, the touch of his lips—
“Dr. Sorensen?” Roz’s gravelly voice pulled her out of her daydream. “Ear infection exam room four?” she reminded her.
“Right, Roz. Thanks.” Biting her lip to stop the ridiculous smile that wanted to burst out, she hurried to the exam room, determined to push away thoughts of kisses and hand-holding—at least until she was in the privacy of her office.
Henry was not going to believe it.
…
“You know, you’ve been in there for ten minutes already. If you want my opinion, you’re going to have to come out at some point.” It was after eight on Tuesday night, the night before the big date, and at Benny’s request, Henry had stopped by to help her decide what to wear.
“I know, I know. I’ll be out in a minute. Just remember, we’re only going to dinner, so I don’t want to look like I’m trying too hard, but at the same time, I want to look…unforgettable.”
“Understood,” he said patiently. When Benny had texted him yesterday afternoon with the news that she’d scored an actual dinner date with Luke, he couldn’t say he’d necessarily been surprised. Not after he’d seen her in action himself at the country club on Sunday. And from what Benny had reported, the good doctor had been showing definite interest in her, bringing her coffee and seeking her out for conversation, so it was only a matter of time.
Yet despite not being surprised by the invitation, Henry was feeling a bit out of sorts the past couple of days, and he couldn’t exactly place why. This was the goal, the reason he was helping his pesky neighbor. To get her out and dating Luke Seeley so she’d get off his back and drop her complaint with the HOA. And it looked like not only were they accomplishing that goal, but in a surprising turn of events, he’d also made a new friend.
So why did the fact that things were coming together make him so damn…annoyed?
He returned his attention to the television where Benny had put on some legal show that starred that woman from ER. The episode was actually more interesting than he’d like to admit and he turned it up as he waited for Benny to get the guts to come out of her bedroom.
“So?” she asked finally, just as the jury was coming back with their verdict.
He paused the show, ready to give her his complete attention, determined to say whatever was necessary to give her the confidence she’d need to make the night a success.