Leaving Normal by Stef Holm (best ereader for graphic novels TXT) 📕

doing something with pasta. If she was nervous, she didn't show it. She moved with efficiency, much as she probably did at work.

He was glad she'd invited him over for dinner. And he knew full well she would be offering herself for dessert.

While he wasn't planning on turning her down, on a core level, he wanted to be in love with someone, and that sort of surprised him. He would have figured after the divorce he'd be turned off love and not wanting to fall into it again.

But, in rethinking his marriage, he realized that he'd been trapped in the emotional aspect of Parker needing a dad, and unconditional love for Kim had been part of the equation.

His gaze followed Natalie as she moved a pan from the stove to the sink and drained the water. The house smelled like garlic and onions, some kind of sauce— tomatoes in it maybe. She threw some spinach in another pan and put a lid on it. She had pine nuts on the counter. He was hungry.

He liked everything he saw, and the smells had his stomach growling.

"Can I pour you more wine?" she asked, taking a sip of hers. She'd been drinking at the counter, pausing every now and then to pick up her wineglass.

"I'm good."

"Dinner should be done in a minute."

"No rush."

And he meant it. He had all the time in the world tonight. He knew she had to work tomorrow, but he didn't. Having forty-eight hours off was one of the perks about his job that he enjoyed. He could take two days off at a time and do things he wouldn't normally get accomplished if he was a nine-to-fiver.

"Do you usually work six days a week?" he asked.

"It depends on the time of year. Around holidays, yes. I'm crazy this week with Easter so I've gotta be at the store by eight. Sometimes earlier."

She stood at the sink, her hip resting against the counter. She wore a pair of black slacks and a black-and-pink top. It clung to her skin, the sleeves long, the neckline a deep vee that cut to the middle of her cleavage. She looked great. Her hair was down, in a long and layered cut. He liked it. A lot of women in their thirties cut their hair. Even though Natalie was in her forties he liked that she chose to wear it longer.

"Everything's ready." Her voice drifted into his thoughts. "I'll serve you, if that's okay."

It was more than okay.

She picked up the plates, put food on them and returned the plates to the table.

"I'm impressed," he said, looking at what she'd served him. It was angel-hair pasta with shrimp, tomatoes, pine nuts and spinach with a rose-colored sauce. "It smells really great."

"Thanks. I hope you like it."

Now, as she sat down close to him, he could see that nerves were setting in. He reached out, touched her hand. "Relax."

She took a sip of wine, gazed at him over the rim, smiled while she drank, then set her glass down. "Of course. Yes. I will try."

She tried to make light of her sudden bout of anxiety, but she wasn't very good at it. Why he could still make her nervous after they'd been together in so many different situations, he wasn't sure. He just knew he wanted her to be herself, to enjoy the evening.

They ate and talked about her daughter not coming home for Easter.

"I have a feeling this boy is bad news for her," Natalie said, taking a thoughtful sip of wine, "but sometimes there's no talking to a teenager."

Genuinely interested, he asked, "Was she a good kid in high school?"

"An 'A' student. Honors classes. Very bright. She's at Columbia College Chicago on a scholarship. She's studying graphic arts. She likes drawing, advertising, that kind of thing."

"That's great."

"This boyfriend of hers… I just can't picture her with him. I don't know him well enough to make a final judgment. Just call it mother's intuition. Wait until you have kids of your own. You'll know what I'm talking about."

The comment was made casually, but it lingered in the room and Natalie looked down at her plate.

Without changing the inflection in his tone, Tony said, "I'm sure I will."

To that, Natalie gazed at him. "Cassie seems happy with Austin, but the last couple of times I've had her on the phone she's anxious to get rid of me. She's distracted, like he's in the room with her and she can't talk freely or something."

"He wouldn't be abusing her or anything?"

Natalie took a bite of shrimp, then lowered her fork. "I don't think so." Then with conviction. "No. He might be flaky, but I can't see him as the type, and Cassie would tell me if she was in trouble."

"Kids do things you don't expect. I went on a call where a teen girl delivered a baby in the bathroom— her parents never even knew she was pregnant."

Natalie's face blanched. Tony reached over and touched her hand. "I'm not saying that's your daughter."

Somewhat reassured, Natalie resumed her breathing. "I don't think she'd ever do something like that, but I do know that college has brought a lot of new pressure to her. And I just hate to see her do something stupid. On one hand, I need to let her go and test her wings. Find out about life. I'm so ready to be done and free of the worries. On the other hand, I know I'll always worry about her even when she's married and a mother herself. It's just a parenting thing."

He let her talk, smiled while she spoke. She suddenly let up, looked at him. "I'm sorry. I put my foot in my mouth again. I didn't mean to sound like you have no experience with parenting. I know how involved you are with Parker."

"I didn't take it the wrong way." Then, to alleviate her concern, he nodded in appreciation over the taste of the food. "This is really good."

"Thanks."

"Don't take this