“Let’s grab an early dinner.” I was pushing my luck, and I knew it. We’d spent the whole day together, and I only wanted more. More of her smiles, especially the ones where her nose crinkled. More of her laughs that turned husky at the edges. More of her insights into life. More of her.

She pulled out her phone and glanced at the screen. “I can do that. What are you in the mood for?”

“What about that new Italian place?”

“Rocco’s?”

“Yeah.” I’d seen it the first time I’d been brave enough to venture into town. The menu looked promising, and the setting appeared just a step above a pizza joint.

Bell glanced down at herself. “I’m not exactly dressed to impress…and I’m all sweaty.”

“You look gorgeous.” Oh, shit. I hurried on. “It didn’t look fancy when I walked by.”

Bell’s cheeks had an adorable pink tint to them. “Okay. But if they kick us out, I’m blaming you.”

“Fair enough.” I pulled my SUV into a parking spot in the center of town. Hopping out, I went to open Bell’s door, but she was already out of the vehicle. “I would’ve gotten that for you.”

Bell pressed her lips together as if holding in a laugh. “You look like someone ate your last Kit Kat. I’m all grown now, Cupcake. I can open my own doors.”

I scowled in her direction, and the laugh she’d been holding back escaped. “Maybe I wanted to be a gentleman.”

“Forgive me. I promise not to open any doors for the rest of the night. And if I drop anything, I’ll make you pick it up.”

I grinned, pulling open the door to Rocco’s. “You have to let me buy you dinner, too.”

“Go right ahead, Mister Moneybags.”

I groaned. “Are you ever going to stop giving me shit about living in LA and making a decent living?”

Bell drummed her fingers along her lips and squinted her eyes. “Hmm…that would be a no.”

“Never lets me get away with a damn thing,” I grumbled.

“And that’s the way you like it.”

I gave her long ponytail a little tug. “I do like it.”

A man in his fifties appeared from the back of the restaurant. “Bella! You’ve come to see me again. And you brought a handsome date with you this time.”

Bell blushed. “Pietro, this is my friend, Ford. Ford, this is the owner of Rocco’s, Pietro.”

Pietro took my hand in a hearty shake. “Any friend of Bella’s is a friend of mine. Welcome, welcome.” He then took Bell by the arms and gave her a kiss on each cheek. “You’re too skinny. You need to come in more often.”