“No, I’m the lucky one. Now, go get your girls. I won’t accept anything but total triumph. Got it?”
“Yes ma’am,” he said, smiling.
“You can do this, Nolan. Trust in yourself,” Penny said.
Trust. Commitment. Responsibility — the trifecta of terror. He wished he had Penny’s faith. “Thank you, Penny.”
“You bet. Take care, Nolan.”
Nolan murmured his goodbye and clicked off. Woo Shannon? He knew how to get a woman into his bed but he had no idea how to build a solid foundation for a relationship. In the past he’d never cared to learn but now, he needed a crash course if he were going to make this work with Shannon.
Sweat broke out along his hairline. The stakes were high and as Penny said, winning was the only option.
So where to start?
Suddenly, an idea came to him and a slow grin spread across his lips.
Penny said to make a grand gesture — and he knew just the way to do it.
-7-
It’d been a long time since he’d tried his hand at cooking a decent meal but he was going to give it a try and hope his efforts didn’t end up a smoking mess. But more importantly, as he stood at Shannon’s doorstep, holding two grocery bags filled with cooking supplies, he hoped she didn’t slam the door in his face or worse, push him down the stairs. He knew either reaction would be warranted given how badly he’d botched their picnic. This time, he was determined to keep things light and friendly, without broaching a single topic that revolved around touchy subjects.
Shannon opened the door and immediately groaned when she saw him. “What now?” she complained, then eyed his grocery bags with open suspicion. “What’s that?”
“These,” he hefted the bags higher “are filled with organic vegetables and pasture-fed beef and some other assorted goodies that I’m going to — hopefully — transform into something edible with your help.”
“Is that so?” She crossed her arms. “And what makes you think I want you in my neighborhood, much less my kitchen?”
“I screwed up,” he admitted, going straight to the point. “I don’t know what I’m doing and it’s difficult for me to handle not being in control. This is my attempt at an apology — again. Only this time, I promise to do it right,” he added sheepishly. “I promise no talk of anything remotely touchy for either of us.”
“What will we talk about?”
“For starters, I hope it’s how to cook without burning because I’m starving.”
She sighed, shaking her head as if she knew she shouldn’t let him in but did anyway. “Fine. I can’t believe I’m going to say this but, c’mon on in.” Shannon moved aside and he walked past her into the tiny apartment. He tried not to notice how cramped everything was and how her furniture was worn and secondhand. He found the kitchen easily and started unpacking the bags. Shannon followed, scooping Aubrey up from the floor where she was playing, watching him with a perplexed expression. “I have to say I’m a little confused by all of this,” she said.
He turned to her, his gaze taking in the mental picture of Shannon and Aubrey. Shannon wore motherhood well. It was a wonder no man hadn’t staked his claim on her yet. He cleared his throat, determined to keep his thoughts pure and his motives innocent. “We don’t have to be enemies but I realized we aren’t even friends, yet. I want to change that. You’re the mother of my child and I want to get to know you.”
A smile played on her lips, plainly warmed by his honest answer and he returned the smile. “Do you think we could do that?” he asked.
She considered his request and then nodded. “Yeah, I think we can. Or at the very least, we can try. I’d like to get to know you, too.”
“Good.” He breathed a sigh of relief. “How about you start with the salad and I will try and figure out how to grill this steak in an oven.”
“Or,” Shannon said, grinning. “You could make the salad and I could fire up the barbecue I have on my patio. I’m a grilling queen.”
He couldn’t have been more relieved and he wasn’t afraid to show it. “Far be it from me to keep a woman from showing off her natural talents. Please, by all means, take over the meat detail. I will not consider it a slight to my manhood in the slightest to chop lettuce.”
She laughed and placed Aubrey in the living room with some toys. “Okay, keep on eye on Aubrey while I heat the grill.”
Nolan began the process of washing the produce, all the while watching Aubrey as she played quietly with her favorite toys, and he was struck by how calm he felt in such foreign surroundings. By all rights he ought to feel as if he were ready to jump from his skin but in fact, the opposite was happening. Don’t analyze it, a voice warned. Just enjoy it. Shannon returned and went to her cupboard to pull a dusty bottle of wine. She looked at him in question, almost nervously, as she said, “Drinking alone seems so pathetic. I’ve had this bottle of wine for quite a while now but since I never have anyone to drink it with, I’ve kept it in the cupboard.” She bit her lip, unsure and Nolan gently took the bottle from her hand. Her shoulders slumped ever so slightly as she said, “Never mind—“ but Nolan was already expertly popping the cork. “Oh!” Her cheeks colored as she emitted a small laugh. “I’ll get the glasses,” she said and he grinned at how cute she appeared when she was flustered.
She poured the wine, saying, “I don’t know if it’s good wine or not. I won it in a raffle.”
Nolan took an exploratory sip, swished it in his mouth for her benefit and finally swallowed in approval. “Tastes good to me,” he announced. “I’ve never been a wine snob. If it tastes good, I drink it. I don’t care about the vintage or the price tag.”
Shannon smiled and her face lit up with such beauty that Nolan had to wonder why he hadn’t chased her down that morning, begging her to come back to the bed. How could he have let her walk away without so much as a phone number? Damn, he’d been an idiot. “Tell me about Shannon Garrity,” he said as he chopped tomatoes. “Tell me something I don’t know…something shocking.”
She glanced at him from beneath her wine glass, her blush deepening. “How shocking?” she asked and the breath left his lungs. Oh God, he wanted to know every deep, dark secret she’d ever held to her breast. He forced a negligent shrug that belied the intense longing he was suffering and she released a shaky sigh, saying, “Well, I’m allergic to strawberries. I puff up like a blowfish and I itch like crazy until I can get some allergy medication.”