“I won’t.”
It was impossible. She was hearing things. Charlene snatched up the phone off the counter and looked at the caller ID. Seth. This really wasn’t her day.
“I…I thought you were…”
“Sofia?” he said.
“Yes. So, do you remember my saying I can fix anything with ketchup?”
“I hope a cardboard pizza box wasn’t on the menu,” he teased.
“Not what you’re used to?” she joked back.
“I’m trying to cut back,” he laughed. “Should I just bring a bag of the truffles and we can have that for dinner, or would you prefer I pick something up?”
“No way. I promised you I’d cook and I’m going to,” she said firmly. “Trust me. It gets better than the pizza box.”
“I’m not sure it could get worse. Before you say anything Charlene, that wasn’t a challenge.”
“Thank goodness. Because I’m sure I could win without even trying.” It dawned on her that she had no idea why Seth was calling in the first place. “You weren’t calling to cancel were you?”
“No. I wanted to let you know the issue with the refrigerator has been resolved. It was simple.”
“Really? What was it?” she asked.
“They had blown a breaker and needed it to be reset. There actually wasn’t anything wrong. If they’d have looked, they’d have noticed other things were out as well.”
Charlene laughed. “I even know that. He must’ve felt ridiculous for making such a fuss.”
“Actually he cussed out the repair guy for taking so long to fix it. You will learn Charlene, that even when you give them what they want, you still can’t make everyone happy. Some people just enjoy being miserable and taking others with them.”
“Isn’t that the truth? I believe in surrounding yourself with positive, happy people because that is infectious. Even when you’re feeling down, one call from those friends and you’re back to being joyful.” She and Sofia had been that for each other since they were kids.
“You definitely have that effect on me,” Seth stated.
All that had gone wrong today, Seth’s sweet words just made it all better. But did he really mean it? This was a phone conversation. That’s only one step up from a text message and a lot can be misread.
“If that’s the case, then maybe I’ll allow you to bring truffles for dessert,” she said, trying not to let him hear how it had affected her.
“Deal. I’ll see you at eight,” Seth said before ending the call.
Charlene held the phone for a moment longer, as though trying to contain the feelings. He made her laugh and also frustrated the hell out of her. Seth was like being on a rollercoaster. Normally she enjoyed the ride. This time, not so much. Something inside her warned that one wrong move and this warm fuzzy feeling was going to vanish.
She put the phone back on the counter and went back to cleaning. If she spent any more time worrying about tonight, then nothing would get done. Obviously, Seth was no longer expecting anything fabulous for dinner, but she wanted to at least give him something edible.
God I hope he brings those truffles. He’s going to need something with taste after my cooking.
Showing up with truffles was the easy part. But somehow he found himself carrying up a winter bouquet of flowers. This was going to send the wrong message. He knew it. But there he was knocking on her door, holding them anyway. What was it about her? The logical thing would not to be here at all. And then again, he couldn’t stop thinking about it since she’d invited him.
When she opened the door, she wasn’t dressed as he’d expected. Most women would put on some fancy dress, and have their hair and makeup all done. Charlene was in a pair of jeans, that hugged those slender hips of hers, and an oversized t-shirt tied at her waist.
“Just in time. The timer is buzzing on the oven,” she said.
“Then I suggest taking it out,” he teased in reference to her earlier mishap.
“Ha. Ha. Very funny. I only burn one thing a day.” Charlene stood at the door and asked, “Do you plan on standing there all night or are you going to give them to me?”
Seth grinned and handed them to her. “I’m assuming you’re talking about the flowers, but then again, you might mean these.” He held up the bag of truffles.