Is bound in shallows and in miseries.
On such a full sea are we now afloat,
And we must take the current when it serves,
Or lose our ventures.
Richard decided then and there not to let the grass grow under his feet where Holly was concerned. It was clear he probably wasn’t going to find a wife from Wives Wanted. Which meant he had to find one the old-fashioned way.
“You’re right,” he said. “There’s nothing to be gained by shouting your mouth off. Far better to outwit your enemies. I do that at the bank all the time. So tell me, dear Holly, are you doing anything tonight? If you’re not, how about letting me take you somewhere nice for dinner?”
CHAPTER FIVE
HOLLY just stared at Richard.
“I’ve shocked you,” he said.
What an understatement!
She continued to stare at him, her head spinning.
“Is there any reason why you can’t come to dinner with me?” he went on. “Have you found a new boyfriend since Dave?”
“Heavens, no!”
“Then what’s the problem? You don’t like my company, is that it?”
“No, no, that’s not it at all!” she blurted out before gaining control of her tongue. “I um…I’m just surprised, that’s all.”
Floored was a better word. Why on earth would a man like Richard Crawford want to take a girl like her out to dinner? She wasn’t a total dimwit where men were concerned, even if Katie said she was.
It came to her then that maybe Mrs Crawford might have been wrong about her son not looking at another woman since his wife died. It had been eighteen months, after all. Eighteen months was a long time for a man of Richard’s age—of any age, for that matter—to go without a woman.
Could sex be the answer to the puzzle of his asking her out?
Holly knew she was a pretty enough girl, with nice eyes and the kind of figure men had always been attracted to. She had never had any trouble getting boyfriends. The trouble had always been keeping them.
Not that Richard Crawford would want to be her boyfriend. The idea was ludicrous! He might, however, be on the lookout for a one-night stand. A lot of men expected an after-dinner thank-you of sex these days.
Not that he would pressure her for it. Holly knew he wasn’t that kind of man. But he was still a man, a man in his physical prime, a man with cold, sexy eyes and a great body and probably more sexual know-how than any man Holly had ever been with.
So why wasn’t she jumping at the chance? Hadn’t she fantasised about just this kind of scenario?
Actually, no, she hadn’t. Her fantasies had been of his falling in love with her at first sight and wanting her till death did them part. Holly always gave her fantasies a happily-ever-after ending, not a “thank you for the sex but I don’t want to see you any more” ending.
“What’s worrying you?” Richard asked. “We’re just talking dinner here.”
“Are we?” she snapped before she could snatch the words back.
His eyes rounded slightly. Then he nodded. “Yes,” he said. “We are.”
Holly sighed. But was it with relief, or disappointment?
Still, she hesitated. Why, she wasn’t sure. Maybe because she feared having a taste of something that she’d always secretly craved, but which had previously been well beyond her reach, even for a few short hours. How would she feel when the evening was over and she never saw or heard from Richard again?
At the same time, how would she feel if she said no and was left wondering what even having dinner with a man like Richard Crawford was like? He was sure to take her to a top restaurant in town, somewhere elegant and expensive.
Dave had been the king of the take-away meal. Even then, she’d paid for most of them. Holly knew she wouldn’t have to pay for a single thing tonight. Except perhaps emotionally.
But the temptation was too great. “All right,” she said, a zing of adrenaline sending her heart into a gallop with her surrender.
“Wonderful,” he said, and glanced at the gold watch on his wrist. “It’s half-past five. Shall I pick you up at, say…seven-thirty?”
“Seven-thirty will be fine,” she said, doing her best to sound all cool and sophisticated, now that she’d accepted his invitation.
“How are you getting home?” he asked. “I didn’t see a car outside when I opened the door.”
She didn’t have a car. She had a van, which belonged to the business. “It’s just a short walk.”
“I’ll walk you home,” he offered.
“That’s not necessary.” She wanted to run home. She’d need every second of the time left to be ready. She’d have to wash her hair and blow-dry it, and do her nails and Lord knew what else.