Taking a deep breath, she turned the knob and opened the front door.

Molly hadn’t been lying. This man was fine-looking.

“Chelsea? I’m Dell West.”

She held out her hand and he shook it. She took in his nice dark suit. He’d even worn a tie. And a white shirt. And they all fit him perfectly. He was tall, with broad shoulders, dark hair, and the most striking blue eyes she’d ever seen.

“Come in, Dell, please.”

“Thanks. You look beautiful, by the way. I’m glad I decided on the suit. Otherwise, we’d have had to make a pit stop back at my place so I could change clothes. I’d hate to lose my gorgeous date before we even make it to dinner.”

“Thank you.” He knew how to compliment a woman without it sounding cheesy or rehearsed, as well.

She led him into her apartment, feeling it necessary to give him a tour. “It’s not much, but it’s close to school, and that’s convenient.”

“It’s a really nice place, Chelsea. Molly said you were a teacher. What an admirable job. And high school—you must love what you do. I was a terror in high school. How do you handle it?”

She laughed and grabbed her purse and sweater. “With a very firm voice and a lot of help from administration at times. But I do love it.”

They walked outside to the parking lot. He also had a really nice car. A sleek black Lexus, which meant she didn’t have to hike up her dress to climb into a truck.

How very convenient.

Dell had chosen a nice restaurant downtown, so he got points for that as well. He even knew how to read the wine list, and they talked about various wines before settling on a very nice bottle of pinot noir, which they enjoyed together.

As they ate, the conversation continued smoothly, a lot of it back and forth with no awkward silences. Dell didn’t monopolize the conversation talking about himself. He asked a lot of questions about her job and her life in Hope, but still filled in the blanks about himself as well.

“How’s the new job going with Carter’s place?”

“It’s good. I’m glad he made the offer. I was ready to make a move from the place I’d been working, and Carter and Molly have made great strides in modernizing their business. Molly has updated all of their computer systems and has a knack for marketing as well. She and I are working closely on some new sales tactics, so business is picking up at my store.”

“I’m glad to hear that.”

He obviously took his work seriously. She liked that about him.

“It can’t be all about work, though, so what are some of your favorite vacation spots?”

He smiled, leaning back in the booth. “I took a great vacation to the Caribbean a few years back. I had several weeks off, so I hit a few islands.”

“Mmm. That sounds delightful. I do like the beach.”

“Do you? What are your favorites?”

“I have this dream about the Seychelles. I’ve never been, but I’d love to go.”

“I’ve never been either. I’ve heard the islands are amazing.”

She tried not to think about her list, but it was hard when he was ticking off a lot of the items on it.

He was a nice guy. He was extraordinarily good-looking. He wore a suit. He had a great job, owned a house, and could carry on a conversation through the car ride, dinner, and dessert. And they’d spent at least an hour after dinner just sitting in the restaurant talking about all kinds of topics.

She liked this guy—a lot.

When he brought her home and walked her to her door, he maintained a respectable distance, so it was clear he had no expectation of being invited in. She liked that, too.

She unlocked her door, then turned to face him. “I had a really nice time tonight, Dell.”

He smiled at her. “I did, too.”

Obviously, if she was going to get a kiss tonight, she was going to have to be the one to initiate it. She stepped in closer to him. “Thank you for dinner.”

He was clearly good at reading signals as well. “Thanks for coming with me. I hope we get to do this again.”

She laid her palm on his chest. “I hope so, too.”

He leaned in and brushed his lips against hers—easy at first, but when she didn’t back away, he wrapped his arms around her and really laid a good kiss on her.

And that’s when disappointment set in. It was a hot, passionate kiss, and after the perfection of tonight’s date, it should have made her toes curl inside her shoes. But all she could think about was Bash’s mouth, and the way it felt when his body was pressed up against hers. Why in the hell would she think about Bash when a delicious man was kissing her?

Dell pulled away and smiled. “Good night, Chelsea.”

“Good night, Dell.”

She was crushed. She’d had an amazing date, with incredible conversation, and the kiss was … wow. Or it should have been wow.

But she’d felt nothing.

She watched Dell walk away, irritated with Bash for so many reasons.

She wanted good-looking, friendly, desirable Dell in her head. She didn’t want Bash or his smirk or his rock-hard body or the way he kissed on her mind. And especially not when she was kissing the best date she’d had in months.

This was unacceptable.

Chapter 18

It wasn’t Chelsea’s choice to find herself at the No Hope at All bar on Saturday night, but that’s where everyone had agreed to meet up. Luke was getting off work a little later than usual. And with Des out of town, they invited Logan as well. Jane had told her they had a sitter for Tabitha and Ryan, but not until seven, and because the sitter was only thirteen, they’d have to be home by eleven, so they wanted to stay close. Carter and Molly had put in some hours in the auto repair shop during the day, and everyone wanted a fun night out. Chelsea had suggested a bar in Tulsa, but no one liked that idea when Bash’s bar was closer to home.