Kate Sherwood - Dark Horse 2.1 - On Deck Read Free

chivalrous, it's just kinda creepy. And two, you can have as much of my potatoes as you want, if you let me feed you off my own fork."
    Dan laughs. "That's really never gonna happen, Evan." "Well then, I guess the best you're going to get is a trade."
    Dan thinks for a second, and then nods. "Yeah, okay… let's do it." He passes his plate over and Evan neatly transfers the quail, and then scoops up his own potatoes and piles them on Dan's plate. Dan glances up from supervising the operation to see Carlos standing by the table.
"Is there anything I can help with?" he asks solicitously.
    Evan just grins and shakes his head. "No, thanks, I think we got it." He laughs a little. "I'm never going to be allowed to eat in the middle of the room, am I?" Carlos shrugs noncommittally, and Evan charges on. "Remember how you sent Tia the recipe for the salmon glaze last year? Any chance you could tell her what you do with the potatoes?" He grins across the table, and Dan feels Evan's foot rub against his ankle. "They're pretty popular."
    Carlos smiles, although again Dan feels a bit of reservation, as if Carlos is wondering about Jeff. He stays friendly and professional, though. "I'll ask Andre. And, speaking of Andre—he asked me to apologize for not being able come out to visit—he's very busy in there tonight.” "Time well spent," Evan says smoothly. "Please tell him everything

On Deck | Kate Sherwood
was delicious, and I look forward to seeing him on my next visit."
    They wrap up with creme brulee, another thing that Dan has never had before. It's fantastic, and he asks Evan if Tia knows how to make that, too. Evan laughs. "She used to make it a lot, but… you see how it's all crusted on top?" Dan nods, and Evan shakes his head. "You use a tiny little blowtorch to do it. Tia was making some last Christmas, and somehow Tat started helping her, and she wanted to do the blowtorch part… just about burned the place down, gave Tia seven and a half heart attacks. She's pretty much sworn off making them, at least until Tat moves out."
    Dan thinks for a second. "Well, if there's a blowtorch involved… maybe I could learn. Would that be weird, if they only things I can do in the kitchen are microwave pizza and make fancy desserts?"
    Evan nods. "Yup, weird. But, delicious, at least the second part. And Tia loves you—she'd probably lift the embargo if you were involved, especially since you'd be around to keep Tat out of trouble."
Dan takes the last bite of his dessert. "I'm telling you, I'm gonna look into this. I could eat a lot more of that."
     
Evan smiles happily. "So it was okay? Dinner here?"
    "Yeah, it was good. I mean… you know, it's… I don't know how much it cost you, and I doubt I want to know, because, really… most days I'd be just as happy with a burger or something. But, yeah, it was a nice change, and interesting." He debates whether to mention Carlos' apparent concern about Jeff, and decides against it. Evan probably noticed himself, and if he didn't, there's no point in worrying him about it.
    Evan checks his watch, and almost instantly Carlos is there, inquiring whether they'd like anything else, or just the bill. Evan pulls a credit card out of his wallet and hands it to Carlos, cutting out a step, and Dan wonders if they're actually in a hurry or if Evan is just trying to keep Dan from catching a peek at the bill. He excuses himself to go to the

On Deck | Kate Sherwood
    bathroom, and by the time he's back, everything seems to have been taken care of. Again, he's torn between appreciating Evan's chivalry and worrying that it's setting up a weird sort of power dynamic. He figures he can always even that out later, though, so he smiles as Evan stands and nods towards the door.
    Dan isn't all that full, really, but he had quite a bit more of the wine than Evan, since Evan had to drive, and the day on the water had definitely taken its toll. Dan kind of wants to manhandle Evan into his bedroom and start evening