“Then, yes, come see my place, and hang out,” Lauren said.

Their bill arrived and Carly snatched it up. “I’d like to pay for this one.” She opened the leather portfolio and deflated. “Already taken care of.”

Lauren quirked an eyebrow. “They comped the check because you’re Carly Daniel? Does that happen a lot?”

Carly looked forlorn. “Yes. But I was hopeful it wouldn’t tonight, outside LA. I really wanted to buy you dinner.” Anguish flashed in her eyes. “That’s part of this.”

“This?” Lauren squinted. “You’ll have to explain.”

“You know.” Carly stared hard, like it was apparent. Finally, she lifted a shoulder. “The wooing.”

“Oh. The wooing.” A pause. Lauren frowned and had to run that by herself again. “You’re wooing me?”

“I was trying. How’s it going? Be honest.”

Just when Lauren thought Carly couldn’t get any cuter, she got an eager look on her face that made Lauren want to kiss all over it. Instead, she maintained her composure. “I suppose, on evaluation, I would say it’s going well. There were flowers, doors opened, and now an attempt at paying the bill. Yes, now I can see the wooing quite clearly.”

Carly leaned in. “Sorry for the epic check failure. Next time, it’s on me. Trust me. I’m good for it.”

Lauren nearly spat out her Baileys. “I’ve heard that somewhere. Oh yes, I think it was Fortune magazine.” Underneath her amusement, Lauren was beginning to understand that Carly had a very specific idea of what would impress her, when really, all she needed was a nice night out with Carly, talking, laughing, stealing glances. The kind of date they were having truly fed her soul. “You know what, though? You don’t have to woo me. I’m happy to just sit with you.”

Carly exhaled. “Good. Wooing is hard. You have to think several steps ahead, which I must admit, has never been my strong suit.” She glanced at the door. “Shall we get out of here?”

Lauren nodded. Once they hit the parking lot, it was clear a cold front had moved in. She scrunched her shoulders to her ears and took Carly’s hand in hers. Whoa. How was it that they fit together so effortlessly, as if those hands had been holding each other for a long time now?

“Hey, Carly D, marry me!” a man yelled from the window of a passing SUV. Carly ignored him, focusing entirely on Lauren, and when Carly focused on someone, it felt like they were the most noteworthy person on the planet. Lauren felt that way now.