Don't Look Back: sequel to He Loves Me Not (Lily's Story, Book 2) by Christine Kersey Page B

gentleman, and a gentleman takes a lady to dinner, not the other way around.”
    I returned his smile. “Okay. I guess I can live with that.”
    “Good.”
    He turned the key in the ignition as I put on my seatbelt, then he backed down the gravel drive and pulled onto the road that ran in front of our houses. A short time later we pulled into a parking space at the restaurant.
    When he turned the jeep off, I reached for the door handle.
    “Hang on, Kate.”
    I watched as he jumped out of the jeep and hurried around to my side of the vehicle, opening the door for me. Then he held out his hand to help me from the car.
    I couldn’t help but smirk a little. “Wow. You really are a gentleman, aren’t you?”
    A slow smile spread across his face. “I try to be.”
    Then he held out his arm for me to take, which I did, and we went into the restaurant. We didn’t have to wait long to be seated. The server approached and asked if she could start us off with a drink or an appetizer. I noticed that Marcus just asked for water and I wondered if he drank much. I decided I would try to find out.
    After we gave our orders and the server left, Marcus focused on me. “Tell me about yourself, Kate.”
    “I think you already know the basics.”
    He smiled. “I know that you’re from Vegas and that you moved here on a whim. I know you’re going to have a baby in December and that your husband passed away. I know that you have a dog named Greta and that you just started working at Billi’s and that you’re taking a self-defense class.” He paused, a twinkle in his eyes. “And I know you need more practice with the jigsaw before you take on any large projects.”
    Heat raced up my face as I remembered the feeling of his arms around me when he helped me with Greta’s dog door.
    As he saw my discomfort, his smile grew. “It’s okay. I didn’t mind helping.”
    It felt like my cheeks reddened even more, if that was possible. I looked down at the napkin in my lap as I tried to regain my composure.
    He laughed, clearly amused. “You’re cute when you blush, Kate.”
    I lifted my gaze to meet his and tried to hold back a smile. “I’m glad you find it so amusing.”
    “I’m sorry. I just call it like I see it.” His smile didn’t waver.
    “It sounds like you know everything there is to know about me, so tell me more about you,” I said, trying to turn the focus away from myself.
    The server set our water on the table and we watched her walk away.
    “So?” I prompted.
    “Okay. I told you before that I recently came home from Afghanistan.”
    I nodded.
    “I’ve been in the marines since I was eighteen, but now I’m ready to do some other things.”
    “How long were you in the military?”
    “Six years.”
    He’s twenty-four, I thought. Three years older than me. “What made you decide to leave?”
    “I’d done several tours and felt for me, it was time to move on to other things.”
    “So what are your plans now?”
    “College. I earned some college funds through my military service and now I want to put it to good use.”
    I smiled. “That’s great! Do you know what you want to major in?”
    “Electrical engineering.”
    Just then the server brought our food and our conversation slowed down while we ate.
    Marcus set his fork down. “So, Kate. What’s in the future for you?”
    I swallowed what I’d been chewing and set my fork down as well. “I’m planning on taking some college courses this fall. I’d really like to get my Bachelor’s degree, but with the baby coming, I’m not sure when I’ll be able to get that done.”
    “Wanting to get it done is the first step though.”
    I nodded, glad his attitude toward education was similar to mine.
    “Do you know what you want to major in?” he asked, resuming his eating.
    “I enjoy working with computers, so I was thinking something in IT.”
    His eyebrows went up, like he was impressed, and I felt my confidence grow.
    “That’s awesome,