Love Me Sweet (Love Me book 1)

Chapter 7

Lia and Faye had decided to go out for dinner that evening after their shift had ended. They both had the following day off, and with no need to get up early the next day they could unwind a little. The restaurant was a popular one downtown and was off one of the squares, halfway between their homes.

Lia went home before meeting Faye and took Huck for a quick walk, hoping to get a glance of Ben while secretly dreading that she might. Before heading to the restaurant she took the time to change into a pretty skirt and blouse. It was rare for her to go out anymore, so she felt her appearance warranted a little more effort for the cause.

The restaurant where they were dining was located in the partial basement of a house and because it was a below grade the view from the window was only of people's feet and legs. The space was so small that they had covered one of the walls with mirrors to make it seem larger, and the mirrors reflected the candles on the tables, giving the restaurant a warm, romantic vibe. Lia couldn't help but think that it was a shame that neither she nor Faye had anyone other than each other to with whom to share it.

Faye was already at a table by the window when Lia walked in and joined her, ordering a glass of white wine as she accepted a menu.

"I just had the thought that it's a shame that neither one of us had any romantic suitors to bring us to a place like this," Lia said, looking around at the couples scattered around the place.

"But at least we have each other," Faye said, raising her glass.

Lia smiled toasting her. "Here's to good friends," she agreed.

"Besides, it's unlikely my relationship status will ever change," Faye said, "I'm too old and set in my ways."

"Now that you've said that, wait and see if it doesn't happen," 'Lia teased.

They both knew that if Faye ever found someone to love that he would be a very special man indeed to take on her massive house and her thankless brother and sister.

"Hayes told me that he and Alyssa have been discussing the house, and when she turns twenty-one they want to sell it." Faye reached for some bread and a pat of butter.

"That's a good thing, right?"

Faye only shrugged as she buttered her bread.

Lia watched her friend, noting how all her movements were slow and specific. Faye wasn't one to rush through anything, and it was her unshakeable calm that had helped them get through many hard shifts at the hospital. She looked lovely, she had pulled her hair back and had put on a little makeup, and her pink sundress made her skin glow. Lia was an average size and height, but Faye was small and rounded with a Marylin Monroe type figure. Both she and Chloe knew that Faye thought she was fat, and they did all they could to tell her that she had the perfect figure, a figure any girl would envy, but it was almost as if someone was continually telling her she was fat.

"You look pretty tonight," Lia said, reaching for a piece of bread.

"So do you," Faye said with a grin around a bite of bread. "Did your new boyfriend see you looking this beautiful, if he had, I bet he would let you do whatever you wanted to his house."

"Haha," Lia said dryly. "No, thank goodness, I didn't see him, and Huck was on his best behavior."

"Is Huck ever not on his best behavior?" Faye asked, confused.

"Not when the nasty neighbor is around. It's as if he draws the worst out of that dog," Lia said, launching into the story about Huck's great escape and making it into Ben's house. She was in the middle of telling her about her head almost getting stuck in the door, realizing how silly she must have looked, when she saw Chloe walk in with an amazingly handsome man.