She lets out a sound that verges on a snort, then claps her hand over her mouth. “Wow, Roman.  I’m flattered that you think....” A pleasant pink comes to her cheeks. “I didn’t hire a makeup artist, no. I did it myself.”

In the interest of not shoving my foot further into my mouth, I swallow the next question on my mind. “You look—” I already said beautiful. “—stunning. Are you hungry?”

“Starving.” Jenny slips into the front seat. I know it’s been a long time since high school, but I never once saw her wearing even a foreshadowing of her outfit and look tonight. Curiosity threatens to run free. I rein it in.

“I thought we’d go to Bellissima,” I tell her as I drive into town. “Is that all right? We can go somewhere else if Italian isn’t your thing.”

“Oh, no,” Jenny says quickly. “I love Italian food.”

It’s only a ten-minute drive from the outskirts of Ruby Bay to downtown, but Jenny gets quieter with every minute that passes. She’s almost completely silent as we slip into a table for two by one of the front windows, and she only speaks to thank the waitress for the complimentary bread and olive oil and give her drink order—a glass of red wine.

As soon as the waitress steps away from the table, Jenny picks up her menu and becomes deeply interested in what’s on it. It’s one of Ruby Bay’s nicer restaurants, but it’s not the type of place that does creative fusion. Is this her first time here? No, it can’t be. She had to have come here at least once.

I leave my menu on the table. I’ve lived here long enough to know what I want without reading it. “What is it about dates that makes you less invincible?”

She flicks her eyes toward mine, peering at me over the top of the menu. “What makes you think I was invincible in the first place?”

I lean in and lower my voice. “I seem to recall a bold move in a red bikini not too long ago.”

Jenny shakes her head behind the menu. “That was different. That was...refusing to be contained by a dicey first impression in the workplace.”

“I’m the same person as I was in the office earlier. So what’s making you hide behind the menu now?”

She slaps the menu down onto the surface of the table, the sound muffled by the tablecloth. Jenny’s cheeks are nearly as red as her dress. “Having a dream come true can have a certain effect on a person.”