Page 15 of Midnight Roots

I turn to her. "Tonight's on me. Don't worry about the expense."

"Just because you're being a gentleman doesn't mean I won't worry about the expense," she says coyly.

The waitress soon comes back with two beers on a tray. She puts one in front of each of us and hands us each a menu. "I'll be back to take your order."

"What do you recommend?" Dillon asks me.

"Their steak," I say confidently. "With potato wedges and a side salad."

"I'll have that then," she says, setting her menu down. "This place is lovely."

"It's where we all go when we want something nice, not that there's anything wrong with the Catch + Candle." I set my menu downand flag the waitress. "We'll have two steak specials."

"How would you like your steak?"

Dillon smiles. "Medium."

"Same," I say as I pick up my beer to sip it.

She sips her beer and looks around. "It's cozy. So what do you do all day when you're not hanging out with us at the diner?"

I'm surprised by her question, but I take it in my stride. "I manage a ranch about an hour outside of town."

"That sounds nice," she says, with a big smile on her face. "You must be really busy. Herding animals all day. Do you ride horses?"

I smile back. "Yes, I do. I herd the animals while riding a horse. It's tough work, but someone's gotta do it."

"What kind of animals?"

"Mostly cattle, a few pigs, and chickens," I say. "Manage it by myself, like to keep it small."

"Small is good, small is homely," she comments.

I'm glad she feels that way because I'm hoping to have her come to the ranch one day. Maybe she can come and stay over and quiet the night terrors that plague me. Maybe if someone were close by, they wouldn't be so bad.

Maybe that's all I need to get better.

Dillon seems like the kind of person that could make life better for me. She's beautiful and smart and funny. She's everything I dream of. There's nothing more I can ask for. The way she looks at me with those doe-like eyes makes me want to protect her from every evil in the world. From every nightmare, every demon.

We receive our food, and I watch her as she eats. It's like every move is thought out before she does it. Her movement is fluid and perfect. Her skin glistens in the heat of the night, and I know that I want to make love to her tonight. Maybe I can convince her to go to a lover's lane with me on the way back.

We eat quietly, and I'm happy and content in her presence. She doesn't insist on talking like most girls do, and she doesn't speak just for the sake of hearing her own voice, not like Tessa. Tessa didn't stop talking the whole way home. Not until I smacked her through the mouth with my closed fist. That had knocked her off her feet, and in her dazed state, I had stripped her and chained her up. At first, she still talked. She had begged me to reconsider, to let her down, to take her home. She had begged me for her mama's sake.

Ha.

Mothers should teach their daughters better than to go home with dangerous strangers. The warning signs are all there. I'm like a brightly colored snake. My looks should warn you enough.

Stay away.

Dillon doesn't see that, or she sees through it. Maybe I just hide it better from her because I actually like her. There's something about her from the moment I met her; I just knew she was the one. She is perfect. I was attracted to her the moment I laid eyes on her.

She is everything I could ask for.

I finish my steak and salad, but I don't finish the potato wedges because I notice she's hungry. She cleans her plate. I wonder when last she had a decent meal. Maybe she just has a healthy appetite.

I realize I'm staring at her, and I clear my throat and look away. "You can finish these wedges if you want."

"I'm okay, thanks. I'm pretty full now."