“Hey,” I said as I pulled the door open, surprised to see her.
She let go of the curl she’d been spinning around her finger and pulled her brows in tight. “Are you okay?”
“Um . . . yeah? Why?”
“I knocked three times.”
I stretched my arms up high in the air. “Oh, I’m fine. I dozed off.”
“Oh.” Her face relaxed. “Are your kids here?”
“Nope. They’re at their mom’s for a few more hours. Come on in.” I took a step back and motioned for her to come inside.
She had on jean shorts and a Minnesota Vikings T-shirt, with her hair casually tossed in a ponytail, but she looked just as hot as she had Friday night when she was all dressed up to go out. Her hands were in her pockets, and she stared at the ground as she stepped through the door.
I stretched my neck just a bit to the right, trying to see my driveway. “Is that a minivan?”
“Yeah.” She rolled her eyes. “That was the only loaner they had available on such short notice. And I’m not happy about it, so don’t even start.”
“Trust me, nothing about that whole situation is funny.”
“That’s actually why I came by,” she said softly, chewing on the corner of her lip nervously. “I mean, not to talk about the car situation, but the us situation.”
My head jerked back as my eyebrows shot up. “We’re a situation?”
“Well, you know . . . I mean with what happened Friday night and stuff.”
I had the feeling that a weird conversation was about to be had. “You know what? I’m hungry. Are you hungry?”
Her big eyes blinked at me as she rubbed her chin. “Huh?”
“Hungry. Food. You want some?” I turned around and headed toward the kitchen. “Follow me if you do.”
“Um . . . okay.” Her tone was slow and confused, but she followed me to the kitchen anyway. She sat down at the island and watched me shuffle things around in the fridge. “What I was saying. I feel like I owe you some sort of an explanation for the other night.”
“Do you like salsa?” I asked her, peeking my head around the fridge door.
“What?”
“Salsa, the food, not the dancing, do you like it? Gloria made some homemade salsa and guac the other night, and it was amazing.” I took the bowls of salsa and guacamole out and set them on the island in front of her.
“Andy.”
“I’m still listening. Go ahead,” I answered as I walked to the pantry to grab a bag of tortilla chips.
“I know, but it’s hard to talk to you when you’re fluttering around like that.”
With the bag of chips in my hand, I closed the pantry door and gave her a smile. “Sorry. Want a beer? Water? Anything?”
She groaned and dropped her head into the crook of her arm.
“I’ll take that as a no.” I laughed and snatched two bottles of water from the fridge anyway, setting one down in front of her. “There’s a water, just in case. Okay, I’m ready. Go.”
She lifted her head, propping her chin up on her fist as she watched me shovel a bite into my mouth. “I saw you call yesterday, and honestly, I just wasn’t in the mood to talk. Then today I was going to text, then I was going to call, and finally, I decided it was best just to come here and talk to you face-to-face.”
“I’m glad you did,” I mumbled behind my hand with a mouthful of food as I pointed down to the bowl in between us. “You really need to try this guac.”
“Andy, please listen to me. I’m trying to apologize.”
I stilled and stared at her. “For what? You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“After we got to your car and things were . . . heated, then at the garage I totally cut you off and acted like a bitch. I’m sorry about the way I behaved.”
“Dani—” I paused to wipe my mouth on a napkin. “You’d just driven up on your car busted to shit. Your behavior was totally justified. You don’t owe me any apologies.”
“But the way I acted with you after was uncalled for. I was super bitchy, and I feel bad about it.” She finally reached out and grabbed a chip from the bag, dunking it in the guacamole. “I just don’t want there to be any weird tension or awkwardness at work tomorrow.”
“We’re both adults with jobs to do, Dani. No weird tension.”
She stared down at the bowl as she chewed, her mind elsewhere.
“Let me ask you something.” I took a quick drink. “What if your car had been fine?”
Her gaze rose to meet mine. “What do you mean?”
She wasn’t stupid. She knew exactly what I meant, but she was stalling to think about what she wanted to say next. That only spurred me on more. No way was I letting her off the hook now.