Barely Breathing (The Breathing #2)(27)

"Sorry," I grimaced. "That sounded really bad. I'm just... nervous."

"Because of me?" He sounded legitimately surprised.

I shrugged, reluctantly looking over at him. His brows creased apologetically. I wanted to slink under the table.

"I'm not very good at this," I confessed in a rush. "I guess you could say I'm not the most social person, so even if you looked like that guy," I nodded toward the overweight, balding man at the next table, "I would still be a fumbling idiot."

His cheeks creased around his broad white smile as he examined me curiously. I closed my eyes and cringed, realizing I'd just inadvertently told him he was hot. This was going great.

"You're just like her," he mused, studying me. "I mean, you don't look like her at all, and she talks a lot more when she's nervous, but you're just like her. She spilled coffee on me the first time we met." 

"And probably apologized a hundred times while trying to clean you off," I grinned, thankful he skipped right over my comment.

"I don't think I've heard someone talk so fast before," he laughed. "At first, I thought she was speaking a different language."

I laughed, easily picturing it. "So you met in a coffee shop?"

"No," he corrected. "We met at work. I work for an architectural firm who collaborates on projects with her engineering firm. We met about six months ago, but we didn't go out until just recently. She refused to go out with me for the longest time."

"Really?" The shock in my tone was heavier than I intended.

"The age thing," he explained with a shrug. "She kept saying I was too young."

"Right," I nodded, remembering her dilemma when she first spoke of him.

"But it's not a big deal, right?'

"Nope." I shook my head. "Age shouldn't matter."

He looked right into me and grinned. I could feel my cheeks changing color again, and I wanted to dump the water over my head to cool them off. I felt like an idiot. I still couldn't hold his eye for more than a second when he spoke to me. I'd never had anyone focus on me so intently before, but I wasn't sure he intended to do it. My mother had said he made her feel like she was the only one in the room when he looked at her―and I guess I didn't want to feel that way.

"Have you decided what you'd like to have this evening?" the server asked, setting Jonathan's drink down. She glanced at both of us, but her bright smile reemerged when Jonathan looked up at her.

While he was deciding, I glanced around the room and realized she wasn't the only one who couldn't stop staring. I was slightly amused by the women adjusting their chair positions ever so slightly to get a better look.

"And you?" she asked, barely making eye contact with me. Every other glance flipped back to Jonathan to see if he was looking at her, but he was obliviously watching me, waiting for me to decide.

"I'll have the rib eye, medium-rare," I ordered, closing my menu and handing it to her.

"Are you sure you're okay?" he asked, reading me so easily.

"You attract a lot of attention, huh?" I stated honestly.

Jonathan grinned abashedly.

"Sorry," I floundered. "That was internal dialogue that should have stayed inside of my head."

"You're funny." He chuckled.

"Unfortunately," I groaned.

"They recognize me from the ads," he admitted averting his gaze. He was visibly uncomfortable as he took a sip from his glass.

"Ads?"

"I did a shoot for jeans when I was in college, to earn some money for school."

"Oh," I reacted. "You think the reason just about every girl in this restaurant is staring at you is because they saw you in a magazine ad, like what, five or six years ago?"

Jonathan looked up at me with an embarrassed grin.

"Wow, I did it again, didn't I? I can't seem to keep from saying the most―"

"Honest," he interrupted. "You're being honest. It's pretty funny, really."

"I'm an idiot," I admitted, sinking in my chair. "How's that for honesty?"

Jonathan laughed again. I was definitely giving him plenty to laugh at.

"Okay," he said, trying to sound serious. "We're supposed to be getting to know each other. Tell me something about you."



       
         
       
        

I stared at him blankly, like he'd just asked me to recite the capitals of every country in the world.

"Okay," he soothed. "Play any sports?"

My shoulders eased up and I nodded. "Yeah, I'm playing basketball right now."