Chapter 8

CHAPTER EIGHT

Liza

Eli shows up at my house at four thirty, which makes me laugh.

When I open the door, I tease, "We'd better go get the early bird special before it's too late."

He steps up to me, wrapping one arm around me and bringing me in for a quick hello kiss. "I know it's early for dinner, but I'm starving, and I wanted to see you. This will just give us more time to hang out."

I grip his hand. "Here, my aunt wants to meet you."

I walk us back to the kitchen, where she's just starting to cook dinner.

"Aunt Heidi, this is Eli."

Eli lets go of my hand and holds it out to her. "Nice to meet you, ma'am."

They shake.

"Eli! It's so good to meet you. Where are you two off to?"

I look at Eli because I honestly have no clue what the name of the restaurant is.

Thankfully, he responds, "I thought we'd go to Sauce It Up, get some lasagna and garlic bread."

Aunt Heidi opens her arms wide, motioning to the ingredients she just pulled out of the fridge to get the sauce going. "Funny, that's what I'm making for dinner. Mine won't be ready for hours though. That's why I'm starting now."

I laugh out loud. "I was teasing him about going to dinner so early."

Eli places his hand on his stomach. "I had practice all day, so I'm starving."

"I heard you're a baseball player. Who do you play for?"

"Right now, I'm on the national team out of Billings. We travel all over during the summer months to play," Eli responds.

"Bummer. No local games for us to watch?"

"Nope. Not this summer. When the school year starts again, there will be local games. There's not much competition around here at the higher division. That's why we have to travel so far."

She nods her head. "Yeah, that makes sense. Well, you two have fun. Eli, it was great to meet you."

"You too." Eli smiles as we turn and head out of the kitchen toward the front door.

I grab my purse that's sitting on the entryway table and love it when he opens the door for me, then stands back for me to walk through.

I know it's silly, but I don't think I'll ever get used to that small-town charm he has. In Stockton, it was very rare for guys to be chivalrous. They just hadn't been taught that way. It's obvious Eli was raised so differently from the guys I've dated all my life.

When we get to his truck, he does the same thing, opening the door and waiting for me to walk by, so I give him a quick kiss as I do.

"Thank you," I say as I climb in.

He shuts the door and heads to the driver's side to hop in himself. "Have you been to this place yet?" he asks.

I shake my head. "Nope."

"You're in for a treat." He grins as he cranks the engine, puts the truck in drive, and drives away.

Once on the road, Eli leans back in his seat, then reaches for my hand. I grin his way and am met with the same expression as we drive to Sauce It Up without saying a word. Something about being here right now feels so comfortable. I don't feel awkward, sitting in silence or like I have to fill the air with words.

It's peaceful, just holding his hand as the radio plays and he drives around town.

He finds a parking spot with ease, which still makes me laugh. I'm so used to living in a town with over three hundred thousand people, so sometimes, finding parking wasn't as easy as just pulling up and having multiple spots to choose from right in front of your destination.

We exit the truck and head toward the restaurant, him opening the door for me as I walk through. We're sat at a table, and as I look over the menu, Eli orders some garlic bread before even ordering our drinks.

I have to tease him. "Are you that hungry?"

He opens his arms out wide. "Have you seen me? It takes a lot to fuel this body."

"When was the last time you ate?"

He leans in to whisper, "I already ate leftovers at my house from last night as soon as I got home from practice."

I laugh out loud. "How can you still be that hungry?"

He opens his arms wide in the same fashion, raising his eyebrows, as if to repeat, Look at me , and I laugh again, shaking my head.

"It must be so different, raising you, compared to your little sister."

"My mom always says the same thing. I eat anything and everything while she eats like a little bird." He leans back in his seat, kicking his legs out in front of him with a sigh. "It's okay though. I get all of her leftovers. What did you do today?" he asks.

I shrug as I look over the menu more. "Not much. Just helped around the house and hung out."

Our waitress comes and takes our orders. He orders the lasagna while I order the ravioli.

"And what can I get you to drink?" the waitress asks.

I raise my eyebrows at Eli. "You up for a drink?"

"Just water for me, but please, order what you want," he responds.

I turn to the waitress. "I'll take a glass of red wine. Whatever you think is best."

I reach for my ID before she even asks. She checks it, then nods her approval.

"I'll be right back with your drinks."

Before she leaves, another employee delivers our garlic bread. Eli is quick to dive in, but to my surprise, he hands me one first by placing it on the little plate they provided.

"You have to try it. They have the best garlic bread here. It's so soft and not all hard, ripping up your mouth," he says.

I pick it up and take a bite. He's right; it's nice, being on the softer side.

He takes a bite himself, nodding his head slowly as he chews.

The waitress delivers my wine.

"Thank you," I say, then give my attention back to Eli. "Are you a wine drinker?"

He lets out a chuckle, shaking his head. "No."

I shrug. "I blame it on growing up in Northern California. Living so close to Napa, we'd sneak away there whenever we could. Do you want to try it?"

He shakes his head again, picking up his water. "I'll stick to my water. Thanks though."

He reaches for his second piece of the garlic bread.

"Does your whole life revolve around food?" I chuckle.

He's not ashamed when he replies, "Pretty much. I love to cook too. I'll even cook for my teammates when we're on the road."

"Seriously?"

Again, he opens his arms wide, showing me his size with that knowing smirk, making me giggle.

"My friend Dalton got me into it. His parents are on the shitty side, and he got sick of eating out all the time or relying on what their maid would make."

I open my eyes wide in question. "Maid?"

He lets out a small sigh with a nod and sits up, clasping his hands in front of him. "TimeLand, remember? Dalton's dad is the CEO."

"Oh shit. So, you know the people who own it? That must be crazy."

He looks down and nods again, giving me the sense that he's uncomfortable with something. "I've never had to tell anyone this. Most just already know …" He leaves his sentence just hanging there.

I look around in question like I'm missing something. "Know what?"

"Know about TimeLand and my dad's involvement."

"Oh, does he work there too?"

"He's one of the creators."

I nod my head with a duh huff. "Right, your parents met at Stanford. I should have put that together."

We sit in silence for a brief moment, and I can tell he's feeling different about what he just told me.

I lean in. "Why were you afraid to tell me that?"

He shrugs. "Money changes people. It was kind of nice, getting to know you without you knowing where I come from. My parents have tried their hardest to keep my sister and me out of the spotlight when it came to things related to TimeLand, but honestly, they can only do so much. Unlike Dalton, who's been put on display as his dad's little trophy kid."

I reach over and place my hand on his, hoping he truly believes me when I say, "It changes nothing. Do you feel people treat you differently?"

He exhales slowly. "Sometimes. The company was started by Dalton's dad, Mike, and his three friends, one being my dad. Mike is the head guy, and our dads are listed as creators. They all have kids my age, so we just grew up together."

"You're all pretty close then?" I sit back, moving my hands from his, and take another bite of my garlic bread.

He nods. "Yeah. There's Dalton, Ben, and Maya."

"Only one girl? How does she put up with you boys all the time?"

He lets out a sharp laugh. "Wait until you meet her. She's a trip. The tiniest thing you'll ever meet, but also the sweetest. She and Ben are inseparable."

"They're a couple?"

He shakes his head. "Should they be? Yes. Are they? No. You'll think for sure they're a couple, even with how they act, but they've never crossed that line. We all hang out at Ben's place a lot, but she practically lives there."

"And their parents don't care?"

"I'm telling you, they've never crossed that line." He smirks. "They will one day. It's just not their time yet. Their moms grew up here and were best friends, so they were literally made for each other."

I love hearing him talk about a relationship like this. Most guys couldn't care less about their friends or their relationships, but it's obvious he cares about these people.

"And what about you? Have you brought a girl into your little group before?"

He shakes his head slowly, looking right into my eyes. "Not yet."

"And why is that?"

He shrugs. "I don't like people knowing my business. Our lives have been so public, especially in that small of a town."

"Even from your friends?" I laugh in shock.

"One, there's never been anyone special I cared to bring around them. But now …" He doesn't finish that sentence.

"Now what?"

"Now, I want to keep you all for myself."

His words make me blush, and I'm thankful when our food arrives so I can recover from the butterflies he causes within me.

We spend way too much time at the restaurant, talking well after our food is gone and dessert is eaten. Feeling bad we are holding up a table, I keep an eye on the entryway to make sure there isn't a wait for one, but there never is.

I guess that's the difference with a small town. This place is decent in size, and many people have come and gone, never having to wait for a table. Back home, if you wanted to get a table at your favorite restaurant on a Saturday night, it wouldn't be uncommon to have to wait twenty or thirty minutes, sometimes over an hour, for a table.

"Can I get you two anything else?" the waitress asks.

I glance at my watch and suddenly feel very guilty, realizing just how late it is. "I'm sorry we've been here for so long."

The waitress seems to be in her early forties with very tiny specks of gray hair just starting to arrive and smile lines barely showing on her face.

She places her hand on my shoulder in a caring way. "Sweetheart, you are totally fine. You two have made our night, just watching you. We have a bet going on in the back, if it's your first date or not."

Eli lets out a sharp laugh as I cover my mouth in a fit of giggles.

"It's our second," Eli responds. He reaches in his back pocket for his wallet. "And here. You can run this, and then we'll let you guys close up for the night."

The waitress smiles in my direction. "You got yourself a good one here. Glad to see it's going so well."

"Me too." I grin at Eli.

After he pays the bill, we exit the restaurant and head to his truck, hand in hand. To my surprise, as we approach the passenger door, he raises his arm, motioning to twirl me around. Laughing at the thought of dancing right here in the parking lot, I do as he asked, and he swings me around, then brings me into his arms and kisses my forehead, making me an absolute puddle of goo in his arms.

He pulls back just enough to look in my eyes, but keeps me wrapped in a bear hug. "I don't want to cut our night short, but I'm exhausted since I only got four hours of sleep last night, then trained all day."

I grin up at him. "You're totally fine."

He leans down to kiss my lips softly. "What are you doing tomorrow?"

"I don't know. What are we doing tomorrow?" My response is met by a gorgeous smile from him.

"Let's go to the lake and just hang out all day."

"Sounds like the perfect day."

He kisses me again. "Yeah, it does," he responds with a cocky tone, making me laugh again.