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Four
Marina sat on the front stairs of her apart for Todd As her watch ticked over to the exact minute he was due, his sleek, silver, expensive convertible rounded the corner and pulled up in front of her building
She stood and sighed "Pretty car," she said when he stepped out and walked toward her "Very pretty car" Of course he looked good, too The man kneear a suit But she didn’t feel the need to share that
He held out the keys "Want to drive?"
She blinked "Excuse me?"
"Drive The Car You’re supposed to be the smart one here It shouldn’t be such a complex concept I’ve seen you drive You kno"
She looked frouy Guys don’t share their cars Certainly not really expensive ones like this"
"It’s just a car, Marina I buy what I like, but it’s not my life" He shook the keys "Noer the question Do you want to drive?"
She snatched the keys froe his mind "Absolutely"
But as she lanced at hi happened to this car, he could easily get another, but it was the principle of the matter This wasn’t normal behavior Was he really so secure with hiht?
She settled into the leather seat and surveyed the interior There were the basics she was used to, along with a GPS display, dual zone air-conditioning and a sound systeh to be on the space shuttle
"It’s nice today," he said "Want to put the top down?"
"Oh, yeah"
She scanned the controls and found the one that took care of the top, then put the key in the ignition and turned to watch the show
It was a ht as the top automatically folded down and a built-in cover slipped over it All without her doing anything
Then she faced front, adjusted the ine and prepared to be io?" she asked
"Howto pay for a ticket?"
"Good point So where to?"
He pulled a piece of paper out of his shirt pocket "Today we’re taking care of table linens, place settings, tables and chairs, party favors and the tuxes" He glanced at his watch "We have an appointave her the address and she pulled out into the street The car responded to her every instruction, the engine purred s just a press of her foot away The day arm, the iped her hair around and she felt pretty darned happy
"I could get used to this," she said as she caht
"So you’re terinned "More than teet, but maybe a used convertible wasn’t out of the question It could still be fun
She drove to the rental place and resisted the urge to take an extra trip around the block, just for the driving pleasure Instead she parked and cli over the keys "That was great"
"Anytime"
"As if you mean that Still, I’m deeply impressed you let me drive it at all You’re very secure"
"I’hed "Not to mention modest You’re extremely modest"
They walked into the rental showroom
"I called ahead," Todd told her "They’ll have tables set up for us We can get soether and how fors to be"
She pulled her camera out of her purse "I’m prepared to take pictures"
They walked into the showroom and saw nearly a dozen tables set for dinner Each table was done in a different color, with coordinating china and a centerpiece
They introduced themselves to the clerk there, who invited theet ideas
Marina immediately moved toward a round table with a pale pink tablecloth and elegant light yellow napkins
The plates were cream, trimmed in silver; the centerpiece was a combination of pink and yelloers that trailed across the center of the table Even seated, the guests would be able to see each other and the colors arm and cheerful
"I like this one," she said, only to realize she was talking to herself Todd was across the room in front of a table done in deep reds and purples
She winced as she got closer The china was black, the napkins dark and the flowers looked like sohtant," he said when she paused next to hi to have , but what if the ones who did colanced over his shoulder at the one she’d liked "What if we didn’t set the table for an Easter brunch? Julie said low-key elegant Bunnies and colored eggs don’t fall into that category"
Marina looked at the table she’d loved "Okay, maybe it’s a little pale, but this is awful I don’t like the really tall centerpiece You can’t see the people across fro if you didn’t like theuarantee that will be the case What about that?"
She pointed to a table done in deep rose, with accents of green The cream china provided a neutral backdrop for patterned salad and dessert plates The centerpiece was h to see over
Todd studied the settings "It’s not fussy That’s good The colors are a little girly, but the green’s okay I like the centerpiece"
"It’s certainly different," Marinapictures "Rose and green would be pretty colors, with crea in"
She snapped pictures of the other tables, but concentrated on the one she and Todd agreed on Then they went to the clerk at the front of the showroom and asked about a price list
Todd held out the sheet so they could both see it The charges were broken down by type of rental, as well as number of units needed The more rented, the less the cost per itelasses," she said
"Honestly, I can’t see Ryan caring If it holds wine and chaue on general principle?"
"Only to keep things interesting"
They were standing close together Close enough for their arms to brush Marina are of how much taller Todd was than her and how the heat from his body made her just a tiny bit squishy inside
She did not want to be attracted to Todd, she reminded herself It was that stupid kiss If that hadn’t happened, she never would have thought of him as more than just Ryan’s friend and someone she had to learn to deal with for the next feeeks He wouldn’t have been…a man
She forced her mind to focus on the project at hand "Look, they can recoood We need oing to need chair covers, though"
He swore softly "They’re four bucks each With two hundred chairs, that’s eight hundred dollars to throw a piece of cloth over the chair? Can’t they be nad?"