That’s completely unexpected, but it beats talking about my reddened cheeks, so I’m all in. “I was in eighth grade, I think. We went out for burgers. My oldest brother chaperoned.”
“How were the burgers?”
I laugh. “Fine. Why?”
“You can tell a lot about a man from his restaurant choices.” He glances around us. “I would have brought you to a place like this for dinner when you were in eighth grade.”
Shaking my head, I smile. “You would have been too old for me then.”
“I’m twenty-nine, Calliope.”
“I’m twenty-five,” I point out. “When I was in eighth grade, you were…”
“Too old for you.” His brow perks. “Let’s talk about first kisses.”
Our waiter interrupts us. He arrives with a tablet in hand and what seems to be a rehearsed speech about the specials for the night.
I order salmon. Sean chooses a steak, rare and a bottle of wine that will compliment both of our meals.
Once the waiter has wandered off, I take control of the conversation. “Do you remember your first kiss?”
Sean tugs on the lapels of his dark blue suit jacket.
He looks incredible tonight. The white button-down shirt he’s wearing is a perfect canvas for his violet striped tie.
I opted for a dress in almost the same hue.
We shared a laugh on our way here about how color coordinated we are.
“I remember it not-so-fondly,” he admits. “Promise me you’re not going to laugh.”
“I can’t promise that,” I say honestly.
“Promise you won’t laugh too loud,” he counters.
“Promise.”
“I was a late comer to the first kiss party.” He chuckles. “I was thirteen and thought I had the perfect candidate in mind.”
“Who?” I blurt out.
“Savannah Atteridge,” he says softly. “My best friend.”
A smile blooms on my lips. “How did your first kiss with Savannah Atteridge go?”
“Horribly.”
I hold in a laugh. “Why?”
“My grandparents had a swimming pool on the roof of their building,” he begins before taking a sip from the water glass in front of him. “I invited Savi to swim because she was a champion. She had literally won medals for swimming, and I thought she’d appreciate the extra pool time.”
“That was nice of you,” I say.
“I jumped into the deep end.” He shakes his head. “Didn’t realize it was the deep end, mind you, and I had no fucking idea how to swim.”
My hand jumps to my mouth. “Oh no.”
“Oh no is right.” He smirks. “Savi dove in to save me. Somehow she dragged me to the edge, and I saw it as an opportunity to get her lips on mine, so I played the semi-drowning victim and kept my eyes closed.”