Coda Books 04 - Strawberries for Dessert (MM) Read Free

darling?”
    I swallowed the urge to tell him my name again and said, “I was thinking the lamb chops.”
    He smiled. “Excellent.” Then to the waiter, “I’ll have the same.
    And a bottle of the Tempranillo Reserva, please.”
    “Of course.”
    A Spanish red—Zach’s favorite. What were the chances Cole would pick that? Not many restaurants even carried Spanish wines.
    Zach was always bemoaning the fact when we ate out.
    “Did I say something wrong?” Cole asked suddenly, interrupting my thoughts. I realized I had been staring absently at the tablecloth, and shook myself out of it.
    “No. Just the wine you chose—it reminded me of Zach.”
    “Then you shouldn’t have ordered the lamb, darling.”
    I had no idea how to respond to that.
    The waiter brought the wine. As he was pouring it, my phone rang. It seemed impossibly loud in the hushed dining room, and everybody around us turned to look at me. I felt myself blush. I pulled my phone out and hit the button to turn off the audible ring. I looked over at Cole and found him looking slightly amused.
    “I’m sorry,” I said, pointing to it. “I really have to—”
    “Be my guest,” he said, and I answered.
    “This is Jonathan.”
    “Jonathan, it’s Sarah!”
    “Sarah, can I call you back?”
    “Jon, we put in all of the charges for the spa products we sell, but when we try to enter the state tax—”
    “You don’t do that until checkout.” I was certain I had already told her that, but it was a common mistake.

    She sighed in frustration. “I’ll never figure this out!”
    “Sarah, you’ll be fine. It’s Friday night. Go home and get some rest. You’ll do better if you wait until morning and look at it with fresh eyes.”
    “Maybe you’re right,” she said, but I knew she wouldn’t take my advice.
    “I’m a little busy right now, Sarah. Can I call you first thing in the morning?”
    She sighed again. “Sure. All right. Good night.”
    I hung up and said to Cole, “I’m really sorry about that.”
    He smiled. “Duty calls?”
    “Always. I’m sure you know how it is.”
    His smile got bigger. “Not really.”
    “What do you do?”
    His haircut was perfect. If he cocked his head to the right, his bangs fell to the side, allowing him to make eye contact. But if he looked down, or cocked his head the other way, as he did now, his hair fell in front of his eyes, making it harder to read his expression. “Such a predictable question, darling. What do you do?”
    “I’m the Senior Liaison Account Director for GuestLine Software, Incorporated.”
    His mouth twitched into a smile. “That’s quite the title. What exactly is GuestLine Software, Incorporated?”
    “We write software for large hotels and resorts. Reservations, spa services and room charges, payroll and staffing. We put it all in one place so that—”
    “I don’t own a hotel, darling. You don’t have to sell it to me. Is that why you were in Vegas when you ran into Jared?”
    “Yes. We have three new clients there.”
    “And what exactly does a Senior Liaison Account Director do?”
    There was a mocking tone to his voice, and I tried not to be annoyed. It had taken a great deal of time and hard work to achieve that position in such a short time. “I help our new clients transfer the bookkeeping portion of their records into the GuestLine software.”
    “I see,” he said. “How long have you worked for them?”
    “Eight years.”
    “Eight years. Tell me, darling”—and now he tipped his head again so I could see his eyes— “are you happy being the Senior Liaison Account Director?”
    “Well, ultimately I would like to travel less. Another year or two, and I should be able to move up and start doing more of the in-house accounting. Another few years after that, and—”
    “Is there a position you’re aiming for, or do you just climb and climb until you can’t climb anymore?”
    The question seemed odd to me. Of course promotion was always the goal.