A Million Little Things (Mischief Bay, #3)

Pam couldn’t remember the last time she’d been to The Farm Table. The upscale restaurant prided itself on all things local and organic. They even kept a couple of pigs to eat the table scraps. Jen would be impressed, she thought with a smile as she handed the valet her car keys.

Pam and John had come here occasionally, but it hadn’t been one of their regular places. They preferred to dine more casually. Still, it wasn’t the kind of restaurant she would go to with girlfriends, so she would enjoy the experience.

Before she could give her name to the hostess, she spotted Miguel.

The man had style, she thought, taking in the dark shirt and darker blazer over black jeans. His hair and beard were neatly trimmed, his skin tanned. He looked elegant. She had no idea what he wanted to talk about but that didn’t matter. She was going to have a nice dinner with an interesting man. She would have fun and then return to her regularly scheduled life.

“Pamela.” He crossed to her and took her hand in his. “You look lovely.”

“As do you.”

She’d decided on a dress and heels. Things she rarely wore. She’d taken extra time with her makeup and in the process had realized she needed yet another session with her BOTOX person. The frown lines were back. Pam didn’t consider herself particularly vain, but fighting time was definitely an ongoing battle. BOTOX and lots of antiaging skin care products were her personal army.

“Our table is ready,” Miguel told her. He held out his arm. “Shall we?”

Pam rested her hand in the crook of his elbow and together they followed the hostess to their corner table.

Despite the fact that it was midweek and off-season, the restaurant was relatively crowded. Pam knew from a few previous experiences that the menu was set for each night and the kitchen frowned on substitutions—all fine with her. She was up for a culinary adventure.

They had barely taken their seats when their server—a young man in his twenties—appeared with two glasses of champagne. A couple of cranberries and a sprig of rosemary floated in each.

“To prepare your palate for tonight’s meal,” he told them. “Welcome.”

“This is going to be fun,” Pam said as she held up her glass.

“I’m glad you think so.”

They touched glasses, then drank. The herb added a nice earthiness to the sweet bubbles.

“Zoe tells me you have a small dog, as well,” he said.

“I do. Lulu’s a Chinese crested. Do you know what those are?”

He thought for a second. “The hairless, rock star dogs?”

Pam laughed. “That’s her. She has to wear clothes to protect her from the cold and the sun, but I’ll admit, I do take things to the next level. She has an entire wardrobe. With all my children grown, it’s fun to be shopping for someone small.”

“You have a grandson. Isn’t he small?”

“Yes, but it’s not the same. I hate to say it but boy clothes just aren’t that interesting. Lulu lets me indulge my inner Disney princess.” She sipped her champagne. “What about you? Mariposa is lovely, but not exactly what I would have expected from a man like you.”

He laughed. The sound was low and appealing. She found herself wanting to laugh with him.

“A few years ago, when I started to travel less for work, I decided to get a dog. I wanted a midsized dog. I went to see a breeder about a boxer puppy she had. She also bred papillons. It was summer and I was sitting on the grass. The boxer puppy couldn’t have been less interested, but Mariposa came right over and climbed on my lap. She was so tiny, but very determined.” He raised one shoulder. “It was love at first sight. I took her home that day.”

“She’s adorable.”

“We’ll have to get our girls together.”

“I’m sure Lulu would like that.” She smiled. “Have you always lived in Mischief Bay?”

“I did when Constance and I were first married. Her family had been here for years.”

“Constance?”

“Zoe’s mother. My ex-wife.”

Pam knew that Zoe’s mother had passed away not long after John had died. But being married was different from being divorced, so saying “I’m sorry” seemed odd.

“How old was Zoe when you and Constance split up?” she asked instead.

“Eleven. I’m sure divorce is always hard on the children but we tried to make it as easy for Zoe as possible. We stayed friends.” He picked up his glass. “Constance was a lovely, kind person. We simply had nothing in common. I wanted to travel the world and have exotic adventures. She wanted to live where she had always lived, seeing the same people, doing the same things.”

“Plus there were all those young women in bikinis,” she said before she could stop herself. Not that the Saldivar tequila ads were a secret.

One corner of his mouth lifted. “They were a temptation, I’ll admit. But I was never unfaithful to her, if that’s what you’re asking. Of course, once I had my freedom, I took advantage of the landscape.”

Pam wondered what that would be like. To have sex with dozens of different men she barely knew. She honestly couldn’t see the point. She wondered how much of that was because she was a woman, how much was about her age and how much was because she’d only ever been with one man. John had been her one true love. Being with him, sexually, socially or any other way, had been wonderful. She was grateful for the time they had together. A string of meaningless encounters sounded awful by comparison.

“I’m not going to ask what you talked about,” she said with a laugh. “I’m sure none of it was about conversation.”

“It wasn’t.” He studied her. “You’re not going to scold me?”

“Why would I? It’s none of my business. There is something about your gender, though. My son-in-law is a detective with the Los Angeles Police Department. His partner is a man who’s fifty. According to Jen, he hasn’t dated a woman over the age of twenty-five. It’s definitely a man thing. Women want more than a pretty face and a firm body.”

“You wouldn’t date a twenty-five-year-old?”

She grimaced. “Hardly. I have children older than that. I couldn’t be less interested.”