Page 33 of Holiday Home 3
“That’s true, I suppose,” Anna said, and some of the tension in her shoulders departed. “I’m sorry for being so stiff about all this. Half the time, I think I’m being ridiculous, and the other half, I worry if I’m asking for too much.”
“Neither of those things are true, especially the second one. Really, I’d be the ridiculous one in any situation where I acted like dating you was too much to ask of me. That’s pretty much the opposite of something to complain about.”
Her response surprised him. The crimson marching on her face didn’t, but her response left him perplexed.
Hiding most of her face behind her menu, she peered at him over its rim with her lovely green eyes. “You’re certain about that?”
Perhaps he still stumbled over his tongue semi-commonly; he had a few minutes ago. But he’d at least gotten a little better at flirting over the break. Since he’d already fulfilled his stumbling quota for the hour, he sought to even the scales.
“Not a shadow of doubt in my mind,” he said. “You’re considerate, beautiful, wonderful to be around—and you keep showing off new hidden talents every other time we get together. Ice skating, igloo building, and I’ll bet you’ve got some other winter skills you haven’t shown off yet. So, whether it’s a real relationship or not, I’m glad to be out here with you.”
“Okay,” she replied, face still veiled by Zeke’s alcoholic beverage section. “Thank you for your kind words.”
“I’m just speaking the truth,” he assured her, uncertain what to make of her reply.
His eyes shifted over her shoulder as he spotted their server returning to see if they were ready to order. Because of his focus shift, he nearly missed Anna’s reply.
“I’m glad to be spending time with you, too.”
Chapter Twelve
Her Second
Fairly hungry because of some of his activities from this morning, he went with grilled salmon, steamed broccoli, and a baked potato. On the other hand, Anna solely went with a chicken Caesar pasta salad. However, before they could put in their orders, a look of concern crossed their server’s expression.
“Was there something wrong with the bites?”
It took Liam a moment to realize what she’d meant. He followed her gaze to the almost entirely untouched pile of pretzel bites, sitting exactly where she’d put them down ten minutes ago.
“Oh, no, there wasn’t anything wrong with them,” he said. “We just ended up forgetting about them while we talked.”
Anna offered an agreeing statement, which soothed their waiter enough for her to take their orders and get them to the kitchen. As she collected their menus, they both collected one of the tiny balls of dough and salt, dipped them into the warm—it’d been hot when it arrived—queso beside them, and dined on them for her benefit.
“Oops,” he said once she was out of earshot.
Anna smiled and plucked another bite from its siblings. “These are nice, but I think they would have been better if we’d tried them while they were fresher.”
“Guess we got distracted,” he said.
They reduced their appetizer’s dozen bites to just three by the next time their server swung by, getting another of her tables. And finally, while waiting for their main courses, they broached the most critical topic of the day.
“My father is pushing for a… chance to meet you,” Anna explained after he’d asked how things had gone since her phone call with her mother. “Are you still all right with that happening at some point?”
“If you think it’s for the best, then yeah, one hundred percent.”
“I don’t think that,” the gorgeous woman said, sighing and popping the final pretzel bite either of them would eat into her mouth. As always, she chewed politely and waited until she’d swallowed before speaking. “It’s a foregone conclusion that he isn’t going to like you, Liam.”
“Yeah, I figured that. I’m kind of in the way of what he wants for you.”
For him,Liam self-corrected, though he didn’t say it aloud.
Dolefully, Anna nodded. “But… I am hoping that my mother will like you. I think she will, and it will help with my father some if she does. A little, at least.”
“If she’s anything like you, I think I’ll be happy to meet her. And I’ll make sure I’m on my best behavior when I do.”
“Thank you,” Anna said, looking far more tired now than five minutes ago. The fatigue that clung to her wasn’t new, even if the problem he’d caused by running his mouth in front of Trent was. A lifetime of her father’s demands and overbearing nature pressed down on her narrow shoulders. He could see it in how the energy in her body seemed to drain away every time he was mentioned.
“I’m sure it’ll go alright,” he said, wishing to ease her of some of her burden.