“Bella, would you like to have dinner with me tomorrow?”

My heart stopped for two reasons.
One, a gloriously fantastic, incredible man just asked me to have dinner with him.
Two, I wasn’t sure which one of us was going to be eating.
But would he really ask my permission to consume me? I decided it wouldn’t hurt to ask.

“What are you going to eat?” When he laughed, I figured it was safe to breathe again.

“Let me rephrase the question. Bella, may I cook for you tomorrow evening?” I decided to swallow this time so I wouldn’t speak with my mouthful as I accepted his date proposal. I was excited beyond belief and I couldn’t stop myself from giggling like a little girl.

“Sure.” I tried to sound nonchalant when I answered, but I don’t think it worked. A huge smile spread across his face. It was so terribly difficult for me to acknowledge the fact that he was smiling because he was planning on spending time with me.

“If you’d like, I’ll pick you up tomorrow morning and we can spend the day there.” I couldn’t help thinking that I’d rather spend the night tonight, and I sighed inwardly, happy that he couldn’t read my mind.

“Tomorrow morning it is.” Then it occurred to me that I probably have something I’m missing, like a job or school. After all, tomorrow is Tuesday. “What about school or work?” By the look on his face, I took him by surprise. Good. That just further assured me that there was no mind reading going on in this room.

“You work at Newton’s sporting goods store, but Alice informed them of the situation. You’re off until all of this clears up.”

“Newton, as in Mike Newton that you stole me from when I was sick on the sidewalk from the blood testing?” Not that I had minded, I was sure. He laughed.

“Yes, that Newton. His family owns the store, and he’s your co-worker, much to my irritation.” He was lost in thought for a few seconds. His jealousy made my heart swell and brought color to my cheeks instantly.

“Don’t you work anywhere? Don’t we go to school?”

"School is taken care of as well, but you have limited time to go back and then they're going to send someone here to teach you, similar to the situation of a person on bed rest. We're still trying to sort that out. As for me, I've been through it too many times to count, so it doesn't matter. And no," he added, "I don’t work anywhere." No, I suppose he doesn’t. I could probably hock his shirt and feed a third world country. Suddenly, he smiled and stood up, touching my cheek lightly.