An awkward silence fell over the room. Wesley cleared his throat. “I wanted to see if you were available for dinner tonight.”
Beside me, Mike stiffened only slightly. If the roles were reversed, I wouldn’t want another girl inviting him to dinner without more explanation. I needed an excuse. “Sounds fun, but Mike and I have plans tonight. Maybe a rain check?”
Mike’s face relaxed, and he almost smiled. Until we had time to talk, I wanted him to understand that Wesley was simply a friend. Of course, I would never abandon my friend, but I wanted to explore what I had with Mike.
Wesley pulled out his phone. “What if we went out as a group? It might be nice. How about dinner at A Mano Italian tonight instead of later this week? Does seven work?”
Wesley wasn’t giving up, but that was normal. Once he had his mind set on something, it was rare he changed courses. I glanced at Mike, who nodded. “It does.”
I guessed his plans were changeable. Phew.
Wesley checked the time. “I need to run to a meeting. See you both tonight. I’m going to check if Leslie can make it.”
Leslie? Who’s Leslie? I shrugged, figuring I’d find out soon enough. I waved. “Bye, Wesley.”
“Bye, Sydney.”
Marie stood from where she’d been sitting at her desk. I had forgotten she was in the room. “I have some dusting I need to do in your office.?
?
As she left the room, Mike watched me. I touched his arm. “Wesley is just a friend. I promise.”
He nodded. “Okay. I won’t stop you from seeing your friends, Syd.”
I smiled. “I figured that. But I wanted to make sure you understood Wesley and I are only friends. I hope you’re not missing anything too important tonight. I didn’t mean to put you on the spot.”
With each passing second, Mike grew more comfortable with me again. “I had some stuff to look into for a few cases I have, that’s all. I’d have to stop for dinner at some point.”
“Good. I’m glad it worked out. Do you know Wesley?”
Mike ran a hand down his scruff. “We’ve had a few disagreements with some cases. I’ve only spoken with him a handful of times. I’m sure he’s a great guy.”
Oh yeah, cop meets lawyer. Now I understood why there might be a bit of animosity. Hopefully, outside of work, differences would be put aside. Dinner was going to be interesting.
Sydney
“So, Mike, how do you like Salem?” Wesley asked.
Mike finished his drink before answering. “It’s a great city.” He winked at me. “As of four days ago, Salem became my favorite city.”
I couldn’t help but grin as he stared at me, clearly indicating I was the reason why.
Thank goodness things at dinner between Mike and Wesley were normal. It had been an emotionally exhausting day at work. We’d had to let two families know that test results had determined their pets had terminal cancer. Losing a pet was the worst part of my job. I had known those two dogs since they were puppies.
Since then, my mood had remained sullen.
Mike had offered to pick me up from the clinic, but appointments had run late. So we met at the restaurant instead.