Page 9 of Her Cowboy Blind Date

“I love your accent.”

“Thanks.” His compliment heightened the warmth in her cheeks. His accent was lovely, too. Compliment-filled banter and flirting, her usual first date experience with a guy trying to impress her, didn’t seem to be Sam’s style. He was refreshing and intriguing.

He tipped his head to the side. “We should order.”

“Yes. I know what I want.”

“Really?”

She nodded. “Hot chocolate.”

“How about dessert or cake?”

She shook her head. “I had chocolate mousse at the dorm cafeteria.”

“Nice.” He sat back in his seat. “I’ve heard you’re not a fan of the cafeteria.”

“Yeah.” How much information had Cindy shared with Sam? “It depends on the menu. I can cook in the dorm kitchen.”

“You like cooking.”

“I don’t mind it. I prefer eating food I like, which usually means cooking it myself.”

“Okay then, I’ll go order.”

“No.” She’d pay for her own drink. No strings. No commitment.

His eyebrows lifted. “You’ve changed your mind about hot chocolate.”

“No. I’ll get my order. Our order. What would you like? Are you hungry?” She pressed her lips together, halting the flow of disjointed sentences. His engaging smile messed with her ability to think.

He laughed. “I’m good. A friend super-sized my ice cream serving.”

“Oh, wow.” She chuckled. “I like ice cream, but not that much.”

“Yeah. How about we order together?”

“Sure.” The awkward conversation would pass. Was Sam a talker? Would she be doing the heavy lifting in their conversation? Too many questions with no answers.

They headed to the counter, and Bek placed her order with a teen she didn’t recognize. She stood to the side and Sam chose hot black tea. She hadn’t picked him for a tea drinker.

They returned to their table and she placed her phone beside the napkin holder, screen down. She was too aware of Sam for her own good. A good thing it wasn’t a real date. She’d pepper him with questions, wanting to get to know him.

The teen called their names, and Sam collected their beverages.

She stirred pink and white marshmallows into her hot chocolate. Between chocolate mousse and hot chocolate, she’d need to add an extra loop tomorrow morning to her walk around campus. Classes started at ten, which should give her time to stop by Heavenly Brew for coffee during her walk, rather than ordering takeout.

“That looks good,” he said.

“It always is, but I don’t indulge often.”

“Fair enough.” He sipped black tea, with no added sweetener.

“How’s your tea?”

“Good.”

“Do you drink coffee?”