Connie could see all sorts of things potentially disastrous about that plan, but she couldn’t seem to tell him to forget it. Coffee with Thomas sounded a whole lot better, frankly, than lunch with a total stranger.
“That would be great,” she said.
They walked to the restaurant her date had suggested, chose a table overlooking the nearby Severn River and ordered coffee. Connie was so engrossed in what Thomas had to say, she barely noticed when another man approached the table and stood looking down at them with an irritated expression on his face.
“You’re Connie Collins?” he asked.
She jumped guiltily. “I am. Steve Lorton?”
He nodded, then scowled at Thomas. “Am I interrupting?”
“Of course not,” Connie said before Thomas could reply. He had an oddly territorial look on his face that she didn’t quite trust. She introduced the two men. “Thomas and I were just discussing the latest progress in his foundation’s efforts to protect the bay. I’ve been doing some volunteer work for him.”
Steve looked somewhat mollified by the explanation, but when Thomas made no move to leave, he was forced to drag a chair over from a nearby table. He sat down next to Connie, as if to claim her for his own. Connie couldn’t recall the last time she’d been caught in a turf war between two men, if ever, but she discovered she didn’t like it nearly as much as she’d always imagined she might.
“Thomas was just leaving,” she announced pointedly, though, to her dismay, he didn’t seem to be budging.
“I’m sure Steve won’t mind if I stick around a little longer,” Thomas said.
His jaw was set in a way Connie recognized. She’d seen it on other O’Brien men often enough.
She was about to push him to leave, anyway, when he added, “There are several more things we need to discuss, Connie.”
Connie stared at him in confusion. “What things?”
“Our plans for next weekend, in fact.”
Now she really was confused. “We have plans?”
“We do,” he said emphatically, staring down Steve as he said it.
Steve stood up so suddenly his chair fell over. “Look, I had no idea you were already involved with someone,” he said to Connie, his gaze accusing. “You should have told me.”
Before she could defend herself, he turned and left without another word.
She stared after him, then whirled on Thomas. “Why would you do that? Why would you deliberately chase him off?”
“I didn’t like him,” he said, without even a hint of remorse.
She stared at him incredulously. “I think the point of going on this date was to find out if I’d like him.”
“You wouldn’t have,” Thomas predicted. “He’s too self-absorbed.”
“You could tell that from the two minutes he was sitting here?”
“I could tell that when there wasn’t the slightest spark of interest in his eyes when you mentioned protecting the bay.”
She couldn’t deny that. Still, she felt compelled to say, “I think you might be a bit biased when it comes to the bay. Not everyone is as passionate about what you do as you are.”
He held her gaze. “You are,” he said quietly. “Can you honestly tell me you’d be seriously interested in a man who doesn’t care about his surroundings?”
“Probably not, but you don’t get to decide that,” she replied.
“I did you a favor,” he said stubbornly.
She sighed. She could tell she wasn’t going to win this argument. To be honest, she wasn’t all that unhappy about what he’d done, not if it gave the two of them more time together. She wasn’t sure she liked what that said about her state of mind, but there it was, the honest-to-God truth.
“Let’s say I accept that you thought you were doing me a favor,” she said. “I drove all this way to have lunch. Does that mean you’re treating me now?”
His expression brightened and his booming laugh drew smiles from those at nearby tables. “I think it’s the least I can do,” he agreed readily.
“And what about those plans we supposedly have for next weekend?” she asked, suddenly feeling daring in a way she hadn’t in a very long time.
“Dinner at Brady’s on Saturday night?” he suggested.
Despite the little zing of anticipation that rushed through her at the suggestion, Connie hesitated. “Brady’s? Are you sure about that?”
“O’Brien turf?” he asked, proving he understood exactly what her concerns were.
“Pretty much.”
“Well, I can’t very well ask you to drive back to Annapolis, can I? We’ll just have to find someplace down there that my family hasn’t discovered. Chesapeake Shores isn’t the only town with restaurants. Leave it to me.”
“Okay,” she said, her hands suddenly shaking so badly she had to set her menu back on the table. Just to be sure she wasn’t misinterpreting what was going on here, she forced herself to meet his gaze.
“Is this a date, Thomas? Or a business meeting? I want to be clear.”
He didn’t answer immediately. In fact, it looked as if he was struggling to decide. “The smart answer would be to call it a business meeting, wouldn’t it?” he said, regret in his voice.
“It would probably be wise,” she agreed, not even trying to disguise her own disappointment. Then she reminded herself that she was over forty, not some shy little teenage wallflower. Thomas O’Brien was the first man in years who’d captured her attention. Why shouldn’t she throw caution to the wind? She looked him directly in the eyes then, and added, “But I’d really hoped it was a date.”
His expression immediately lit up in a thoroughly gratifying way. “Then a date it is!” He hesitated, then said, “But—”
“You don’t have to say it, Thomas. The family doesn’t need to know about any of this.”
“Not that I think there’s anything wrong with the two of us going on a date,” he was quick to say.
Connie laughed. “Believe me,
