Sarah felt Sage's hand on her elbow as he guided her to a table in a romantic, dimly lit corner of the upscale Italian restaurant, Sizzling Sicily. "Sizzling" described exactly how she felt. A smile tilted the corners of her mouth and when Sage pulled out her chair and bent and whispered, "Sarah, you keep smiling like that and we're not going to be here long," she glanced down and tried to keep a straight face. She couldn't.
Sage chuckled and sat across from her. "Bet you didn't think this town had such a fancy restaurant."
"That's true. After experiencing Boot Bustin' Barn, I am a little surprised."
Their waiter handed them menus and took drink orders. Sage said, tongue-in-cheek, "Would you like an imported beer?"
Sarah blushed. "I think I'll keep all my faculties intact tonight."
The special look and quirky smile Sage flashed made her blood rush to her head.
"How about a glass of wine," he suggested.
"Okay."
He asked the waiter for recommendations and then selected a red wine grown in the Temecula Valley in California. The waiter left and they perused their menus. "I've had the Tortellini Ricotta with Spinach and it's very good," he said.
I wonder how many women he's brought here.
He looked at her over the top of the tall menu. "Julie's favorite is Spaghetti Marinara."
So maybe he hasn't brought any dates here—yeah, right.
As an appetizer they decided on Portabella Mushrooms Smothered with Mozzarella. For her main dish, Sarah ordered Julie's favorite and Sage ordered Grilled Shrimp Caprese.
For the next hour, Sage captured her attention with funny stories of situations involving "dudes" and "dudettes." He laughed, "So, here's this greenhorn wanting to show off for his girlfriend and he's only been on a horse twice, and he thinks he's ready to ride Demon."
Sarah laughed. "Demon?"
"Yeah. A horse spawned by the devil himself. His eyes turn red when anyone comes near. We were boarding him for another rancher for a few weeks. Anyway, the dude actually climbs bareback on Demon and the horse doesn't do anything."
"What!"
"The poor man couldn't get the horse to move."
Sarah was hooked. "Why not?"
Sage leaned in. "What the man didn't know was that Demon had just been tranquilized so the vet could get close. Needless to say, the girlfriend wasn't impressed. The man actually asked for a refund."
"No kidding?"
Sage sipped his wine. "No kidding. Hey, I've been talking for an hour about the ranch. I want to talk about you. Tell me about your writing. How did you get started? Have you always wanted to be a writer?"
Sarah sipped her wine, stalling for time. Setting her glass down, she twirled her finger around the lip. She looked up to see Sage watching her finger. His look sent goose flesh up her spine and she lost her train of thought.
Sage spoke over the top of his glass again. "Sarah, I swear everything you do sends me over the edge."
Her eyes rounded. "Um, er, I started writing about fifteen years ago. I'd never thought about it before then."
"What made you think of it then?"
She gave him a sad smile. "The need to do something after divorcing a cheating husband."
"I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to pry. You don't have to talk about it."
"Oh, it's okay. I was over him before our second anniversary. I just kept thinking he'd change if we had children. Stupid thinking on my part. But I was young and wanted a family." She lowered her eyes and stared at a drop of wine on the white tablecloth. Taking a deep breath, she said, "I also had a son. He was born premature and only lived a day. My panic attacks started after he died." She glanced up.
Sage was frowning. He reached across the table and covered her hand with his. "I'm so sorry, honey."
She gave him a sad smile and looked back at the wine spot.
"Sarah..."
She lifted her eyes again and stared into sympathetic blue ones, waiting for him to finish his sentence.
"You fascinate me."
She hadn't expected that and wrinkled her brow. "I'm very ordinary."
"There's nothing ordinary about you. When I first saw you at Imaginings Publishing, I felt a draw. Of course, I figured you were some uppity author and wouldn't waste your time with me."
"You've got to be kidding?"
"I kid you not."
"That's crazy."
"Well, when you got mad and left the coffee shop, that solidified it in my mind."
Sarah grinned and shyly looked away. "If it's any consolation, I find you just as fascinating."
Sage squeezed her hand. "Stay with me tonight."
Sarah blinked rapidly at the sweetness in his voice. She nodded.
The waiter brought dessert menus and interrupted the intense moment. "What are your suggestions for dessert?" she asked. "Or maybe I should ask, what is Julie's favorite dessert?"
"That's easy, anything with chocolate." They both ordered Chocolate Ricotta Pie with Hazelnuts. The waiter served their desserts with cinnamon coffees.
"You've done a wonderful job of raising Julie," Sarah said, while lifting her fork to savor her first bite. She closed her eyes.
Sage said, "Do that again."
She opened her eyes. "What?"
"Enjoy another bite."
Sarah's heart fluttered and she turned crimson.
"I love it when you blush."
She turned even redder.
Sage laughed and leaned back. "Thanks for the compliment about Julie. She got a great start in life from her mother. Marylou doted on her children. She started teaching them to read and write long before they went to kindergarten and the house was always strewn with art projects." He smiled at fond memories and then looked sad.
Sarah changed the subject. "When did you start modeling? Or how did you get into the profession?"
"We were talking about you."
"We can talk about me later."
Sage must have sensed her reticence. He rubbed his jaw. "I actually got approached by an agent on my honeymoon. Marylou and I met in third grade, fell in love in junior high, and she got pregnant the end of our senior year. I had no qualms about marrying her. We'd always planned to marry and the twins just hurried things up a bit. It helped that our parents were supportive. Of course, they'd always lectured us about not having sex before marriage, but secretly, I think they were just as excited as we were. When we found out we were having twins, both sets of grandparents were over the moon. But getting back to your question, we were honeymooning in the Florida Keys and sitting on the beach when this guy, not much older than ourselves, came up and introduced himself. He said he was an agent looking for modeling clients. I gave him the brush off but he handed me his card and Marylou stuck it in her beach bag. After the babies were born, money was tight. My Dad's health had started to decline and he couldn't keep the ranch going without my help. I'd been attending college and working part time with him. Marylou and I decided I needed to work fulltime at the ranch; especially after my mom died suddenly of a heart attack. She had a congenital heart defect that was never diagnosed."
He paused and tapped his fingers on the table. Sarah reached and placed her hand over his. He looked up with such sadness that her heart melted. He continued. "Even though I started working at the ranch fulltime, things were still tough, but none of us wanted to sell off any of our property to make ends meet. Dad died just before the twins turned three. A few months later, Marylou accidently came across the business card in her beach bag. She handed it to me and said, 'I think you should call him and just listen to what he has to say.' So, I called Pinky Marsh, and yes, that's his real name. He remembered me and set up a test shoot. After that, he put a portfolio together, and voila."
"Well, from what I've seen, you're wonderful at modeling."
Sage lifted his wine glass and twirled it. "You think so?"
Sarah's heart stopped. "Yes."
"I'd actually like to quit modeling. I'm getting a bit old for it."
"No way. You're only what, thirty-four?"
"Almost. But modeling is a short-lived career. Besides, I don't really enjoy it. At first, it was exciting when Marylou and the kids traveled with me. I liked that we could sightsee and visit places we'd never have had the opportunity to otherwise. After she and Michael died, I only continued for the money. I love this ranch; modeling and the dude ranch allow me to keep it going in style. I've been saving and investing so I can retire from modeling and still have enough to tide us over during lean years."
Sarah rubbed the back of her neck and looked across the room.
"What's that look, Sarah?"
She bit her bottom lip and looked back at him. "I'm almost forty."
"And…"
"It doesn't bother you that I'm older than you?"
"Do I look like I'm bothered?"
She shook her head.
Sage reached across the table and trailed the tip of his finger down her cheek. "Let's go home, honey."