Save My Soul (11 page)

The forth call surprised me. It was
from Adam. The microwave dinged and I ignored it. I walked closer
to the answering machine so I wouldn't miss anything he had to say.
"Kendra, this is Adam. Look, I'm sorry I was such a jerk to you
earlier. I shouldn't have taken you to the cemetery. I already have
plans for tonight, but I would really like to make it up to you.
Say, tomorrow for lunch at Cavernous. It's at the corner of Wilkes
and Vine. It wouldn't be a date. I only want to make up for being
such an asshole. You don't have to call me back. I'll reserve a
table for two for noon. If you accept my apology, then you can show
up. Again…I'm sorry, and that isn't something I say
often."

I stared at the machine for a long
time. I played his message back four times. There was sincerity in
his voice, and I could only hope that meant I was making progress.
He said it wasn't a date, but when one person calls another and
asks them to lunch, it's a date. I had dates with my daddy all the
time. Oh well, he could look at it however he wanted. Either way,
it meant that I would have a chance to work on him a little more. I
was running short on time and hadn't made much progress. I smiled.
I was actually looking forward to seeing him tomorrow.

I ate, cleaned the house up a little,
finished the laundry and got ready for my date with Mason. I was
applying lip gloss when I heard his truck door shut outside. I
hurried through the house and opened the door before he had a
chance to knock. He had his raised hand in a fist and was about to
put knuckles to wood. He smiled and his eyes made their way slowly
down and back up my body again. I was wearing one of my favorite
dresses. It was red and cut above the knee, and I knew I looked hot
in it.

He let out a low whistle, the very
same one that I had let out when I'd seen Adam's car. Mason got a
more appreciative reaction than what Adam gave me. I couldn't worry
about Adam tonight. I was going to have one night of fun with
Mason, then stick to my rule of not seeing him again until all of
this blew over. I hoped it would go that smoothly.

He held out a single, perfect red
rose. I smiled as I took it and opened the door further, inviting
him inside.

Hercules ran up to him and stood on
his hind legs until Mason picked the little dog up in his arms. I
stared at them. "It still amazes me how you can do that." He only
smiled and watched as I found a vase and added a little water. I
put the rose in and grabbed my purse. "Are you ready?"

"Yeah, we'll be a little early. I was
counting on having to wait another thirty minutes for you to get
ready."

I smiled. "I'm punctual."

He smiled back. "I
noticed."

He set Hercules down then walked out
the door. I locked up and he walked me to his truck. He even opened
my door for me. Not that I needed him to. I think that traditional
stuff is way overrated.

Seether was playing when he started
the truck, and he lowered it to a level that we could talk over if
we wanted to. It appeared he had good taste in music and he was
very considerate. Why couldn't he be my soulmate? Maybe Rhyan was
wrong.

"I'm not wrong,
Kendra."
Rhyan's voice said in my
head.

I rolled my eyes and he
laughed. I spoke back to him only in my mind. I didn't want Mason
to think I was crazy.
"May I have this one
night, Rhyan? I'll jump back on the soul saving train tomorrow
morning, I promise."

I waited a few seconds for
a response, and I finally got one.
"Very
well, I will not interrupt your evening again. Have a good
night."

I smiled to myself.
"Thank you."

"Uh-huh, anytime."
I knew he was still watching and listening, but I
was confident that he wouldn't barge in on my thoughts again unless
I needed him.

"Where are you taking me?" I said as I
looked over at Mason.

He smiled. "The Framont."

My eyes widened with eagerness. "Did
you already have reservations that you placed, like, a month
ago?"

He laughed and shook his head. "No,
the manager is one of my friends. He pulled some strings for
me."

The Framont was a very classy
restaurant that I had only been to once before. That occasion had
also been a first date. The restaurant was very elegant and nice,
but my date had not been. Maybe I could enjoy it this time. It was
a good thing that I dressed for the occasion. I looked over at
Mason. He too was dressed to eat at The Framont. He looked nice in
his black slacks and bright blue button up, complete with a red
tie. He had a back blazer lying in the seat between us. It wasn't a
"casual clothing" type of establishment.

"I'm impressed."

He moved his hand to mine, and we
laced our fingers together. His smile broadened. "That's what I was
hoping for."

When we got to the restaurant, the
parking lot was full. Mason drove around back and pulled his big
truck up beside a black Tahoe that was just as chromed out and
jacked up as Mason's was.

"Are we eating in the kitchen,
too?"

He laughed. "No, but parking out here
is better than driving around waiting for someone to leave or
walking a half mile." He pointed to the Tahoe. "That's Nathan's
vehicle. He would expect me to park back here."

Good, so there was no chance of
Mason's Truck getting towed for parking where he
shouldn't.

He came around to my side and opened
the door for me. He held out his hand to help me down. I wasn't
going to refuse it. A truck this tall and high heels was not a good
combination. I stumbled when my feet hit the ground and fell into
him. He caught and steadied me, then breathed in the smell of my
hair and perfume along my neckline.

I was getting distracted again, but I
didn't care. I had this night, this one night when I didn't have to
care.

He found my hand with his and tugged.
"C'mon, if we don't go in, I'm afraid I'll have to kiss
you."

The idea didn't sound so bad to me,
but whatever. He led me to the front of the building, then to the
back of the line. It wasn't a long line and the weather was nice,
so I was fine.

"I may be able to swing a table for
two, but going straight to the front of the line well," he squinted
his eyes and sucked air in through his teeth. "Nathan isn't that
good of a friend. I would have to be tall, tan, blonde and have
different plumbing equipment in order to get right in."

I laughed. "I didn't expect another
miracle this week. This is fine, Mason. I'm still
impressed."

He bent and kissed me on the cheek,
then whispered in my ear. "Good, when I start disappointing you,
let me know."

I smiled. "Believe me, you will
know."

The line started moving and he pulled
away from me. The way he affected me made me feel light headed, and
I was beginning to enjoy the feeling. I only had to stay alive
until Saturday, and then I could be with him again.

"Mason Carter, party of two." Mason
told the host.

"Right this way, Sir." he said, and we
followed him to our table.

I was following Mason while looking
around the beautiful restaurant when he suddenly stopped in front
of me. I heard him talking before I came up beside him to see who
he had stopped to talk to.

"Sherri, you are a vision as always."
I saw Mason kiss the hand of the nurse I had met at the hospital,
then my eyes moved to her date. I felt my face flush all of a
sudden, and had to look away quickly.

"Adam." Mason said as he shook hands
with my doctor and the guy I had a date with tomorrow. Adam may
have been shaking hands with Mason, but his eyes were looking at
me. I didn't want to be rude so I looked back at him. For some
reason, his eyes looked more brown than black. It may have been the
lighting, but they were beautiful.

I forced myself to look away from him
to his date. I smiled and extended my hand to her.

"Kendra, I can't believe it was only
yesterday that we were bringing you back to life. You look stunning
in that dress."

"Thank you, Sherri…" I started to
compliment her on her earrings, but Adam interrupted, and I turned
back to him.

"Mason was telling me earlier this
evening about what a talented photographer you are. I'd like to see
some of your work sometime. The hospital could use some new
landscape portraits. I thought maybe black and white photos would
look good on some of the walls."

"I'd be glad to show you what I have
whenever you get spare time, Dr. Chamberlain." Better to keep it
formal. "I know you're very busy. I have some photos featured on my
website. You are free to look at it anytime."

I thought Adam was about to speak
again, but Mason beat him to it. "We should let the two of you get
back to your meal." He looked at me. "We're holding up the host,
Kendra." I nodded, and then we said our goodbyes.

The host was waiting for us four
tables away. He was standing behind the chair I would be sitting
in. It would put Adam directly in my line of sight, and I would be
directly in his. Great. I thought about asking Mason to switch with
me, but I was a big girl; I could handle it.

I sat down and placed the napkin in my
lap. Mason thanked the host and then sat down across from
me.

"So, it looks as though Dr.
Chamberlain has done a one-eighty. Now I'm the one who is
impressed. I didn't think he would hurt you today, but I had no
idea how good of a job you would do on him." He was smiling but his
voice wasn't. There was something there in his tone that let me
know that he wasn't very happy about the job I had done on
Adam.

"Actually, he was a jerk today, but he
called and left an apology on my machine. I'm meeting him tomorrow
for lunch to accept his apology."

Mason stiffened. "You have a date with
Adam tomorrow?"

"I'm meeting him for lunch." Just
then, the waiter walked up with a bottle of wine, so I didn't have
to go into further detail. Not that there was any more to tell, but
Mason was looking at me like I'd done something wrong. "Yes
please," I said to the waiter who was holding a bottle of
Chardonnay, and I held my glass out to him.

Mason looked up at him. "Leave the
bottle and give us a minute," he said, shortly.

Had I done something wrong? The waiter
left, and Mason cleared his throat. I looked up at him and gave him
the straightest face I could manage.

"Kendra, I like you. I like you a
lot."

"I like you, too," I said, and left it
at that. At that moment, I wasn't sure I liked him "a lot." I
didn't handle jealousy well.

He cleared his throat again. "Do you
think it's a good idea to date my best friend while you're dating
me?"

Okay, so he was upset. A new problem
to add to my list. Just perfect. "First of all, Mason, it isn't a
date, it's only lunch. Second, I think I'm a big girl, and I can
choose to date whomever I like. I have less than six days to make
Adam a better person, and I can't do that if I'm not around him,
now can I? To answer your question, yes, I think it is a very good
idea to date your best friend, given my current situation. If you
want to take yourself out of the equation, that's completely up to
you."

He filled my glass, then his own. He
didn't say anything right away, so I picked up my menu. I glanced
around the side of it and looked four tables over. Adam was looking
right at me, so I quickly looked back at the menu. "What's good
here?" I asked, but my mind wasn't on food. I was wondering if Adam
had just witnessed Mason and I having an argument about
him.

"I've only tried the salmon and the
grilled shrimp. They were both excellent."

The waiter came back to our table and
recited a list of specials that weren't on the menu. I told him I'd
like a salad with house dressing, and the six-ounce filet cooked
medium rare with steamed veggies as my entrée. Mason placed his
order and we were again alone, and I no longer had a menu to hide
behind.

He cleared his throat again. Was he
coming down with something, or was it just a nasty habit? "You're
right, Kendra. I've just never been as interested in someone as I
am in you, and the thought of sharing you with anyone else…it just
caught me off guard, that's all. I wasn't prepared to hear that,
and I'm sorry." he smiled, causing me to smile back. Smiles are
contagious.

Our salads showed up, and I felt
someone staring at me. You ever get that feeling? I knew who it was
before I even looked up. I didn't for a minute; I waited until
Mason was distracted with his own food before glancing up. As soon
as I got the chance, I took it. He was looking at me again, and
this time I didn't look away. He was alone at his table, but I saw
Sherri coming back from the ladies' room. He saw her too, but kept
his eyes locked with mine.

Mason was staring at me when I looked
back, so I tried to play it off. I was supposed to be focusing on
Adam this week anyway, and Mason knew that. He had even offered to
help me come up with solutions for my problem with Adam. "I think
he's trying to figure out if I'm crazy or not. He keeps staring at
me."