Blind Date Disasters & Eat Your Heart Out

“Which explains, of course, why you look like hell.”

“I don’t-” Tanner sighed and cleared his face of its scowl, then ate a tamale and chased it down with some beer. “I love her,” he said finally.

His father’s eyes misted. “I know.”

“She isn’t ready.”

“Well, then. You have something in common, because up until very recently, you weren’t ready, either.”

“Yeah.”

His father smiled at Tanner’s glum expression. “Don’t worry. She won’t be able to resist the James charm for long. No woman can,” he boasted with a wink. “Not even your mom.”

“Mom loved you from the start.”

His father laughed. “Try again.”

“She didn’t?”

“Well, maybe she did. I am, after all, utterly irresistible. But she had to come to the idea slowly. Had to decide to take on a fixer-upper like me rather than a brand-new model, so to speak.”

“She fixed you up?” Tanner asked, confused.

“She thought she did.” He grinned. “And the arrangement worked perfectly.”

Tanner shook his head. “I want Cami to love me. Just the way I am.”

“She already does.”

“How do you know?”

“Because you’re my son. Who wouldn’t love you?”

TANNER WANTED to believe his dad, but when he went to work Monday morning, he didn’t have much confidence in the matter.

The radio-his radio-was on low, playing his rock station.

Odd. Cami hated his station.

She was on the floor in the living room. She had the phone to her ear and was telling someone, “No, that won’t work for me, not today. I have the most important meeting of my life, so it’s got to be Tuesday or you’re going to have to find another designer.”

What little was left of Tanner’s confidence faded. She’d found her mind, all right. She’d learned how to speak it. And she was on a roll.

After hanging up the phone, she picked it right back up again before Tanner could warn her of his presence.

“Mom?” she said into the receiver with unusual force. “Yes, it’s early. I got your message. I’m sorry you’re mad at me because I didn’t give you the spectacle you wanted the other day, but my life is my own. And from now on, the only thing I want to be set up with is food. Preferably junk food. No more men, do you understand?” She cocked her head, listening. “That’s right, no more blind dates ever… No, Mom, I’m not changing sides, and I’m not suddenly gay, a miracle really, given how I was raised. Now be a good mother and go bother my sister. I’ve got to go. Today is the first day of the rest of my life.”

She clicked off and then back on again, dialing quickly. “Dimi, I just told Mom and now I’m telling you, too, no more blind dates. No. No. No. Got it? Oh, and by the way, I sicced her on you, so there. Now I’ve got to run, I’ve got something very special planned in about ten minutes, if all goes well. Yes! I know it’s early! I’ve discovered mornings. Sue me.” With a smile, she disconnected and tossed the phone aside. “There,” she said to herself. “That felt good.”

Tanner had to agree. She felt good, she looked good, and dammit, she seemed so strong and happy and fulfilled in her new ability to say no.

No more doormat on this woman.

But with this new No kick Cami was on, it didn’t take a genius to know what else she was going to say no to.

Him.

Deciding he definitely wasn’t in the mood to hear it, he backed toward the door, but as luck would have it, he stepped on Annabel’s tail.

She screeched.

He yelled.

And Cami nearly fell over. Hand to her chest, she whirled and stared at him.

“Hi,” he said inanely.

“You’re early.”

“Not really.”

“Ten minutes,” she said, sounding shaken. “How long have you been standing there?”

Long enough to know he was in for a serious heartbreak. “Well I heard the new No kick.”

“Oh.” She let out a nervous smile, though he had no idea what she had to be nervous about. He was the one getting dumped. “I thought maybe you’d like it.”

“I like you,” he said simply.

HER SMILE wobbled a bit. “Good. Like. You like me. Well-” Shaken, she grabbed her leather portfolio, slipped into her sandals and headed for the door. She had no idea where she was going. She couldn’t think, because the most amazing man she’d ever let into her life had apparently decided he only liked her.

“Where are you going?” he asked.

“To meet a client.” And to put the pieces of her heart back together. But she made the mistake of looking at him, looking into the face she’d come to rely on as she’d never allowed herself to do before.

Know your mind. Go after what you want.

“Oh, hell.” She dropped her portfolio. Kicked off her sandals.

And went after what she wanted. After what she’d spent all weekend planning. “Did you mean what you said?” she asked, holding her breath for his answer.

He appeared to carefully weigh the question. “I said a lot of things.”

“You said sex wasn’t everything.”

“Yes.”

“You said you wanted more.”

“Yes.”

“You said…you loved me.”

“I remember,” he said. “I thought you had a meeting.”

“You’re my meeting.” Drawing in an unsteady breath, she turned up the radio just as a Van Halen classic ended.

“What are you doing?”

“Shh,” she said as the DJ started talking. She bit her lip, staring at him, heart thundering.

The DJ’s voice boomed. “And out in Truckee today, we have one of our most loyal listeners. Tanner James.”

Surprise widened Tanner’s eyes.

Cami’s heart nearly galloped right out of her chest.

“He’s going to want to sit down now. Tanner, are you sitting?”

Tanner sank to the couch, staring at Cami, who bit her lower lip to stop herself from giggling hysterically.

“Tanner, today is a rare day indeed. The woman in your life wants to say…are you ready for this? She says she was wrong. Yes, men everywhere, take note. You heard it here first. A woman has admitted she was wrong. She let him put his feelings out on the line and she ignored them. Ouch! That’s got to hurt, huh? She’s sorry for that, Tan Man.”

Tanner pointed to Cami with a lifted brow, and Cami nodded. “Me,” she said softly.

“Tanner,” the DJ continued. “She let you be the brave one. She let you tell her you love her and she didn’t say it back. Well, she wants to say it now.”

“I love you,” Cami whispered.