Our eyes met across the restaurant. What was Bobby doing here? I excused myself and crossed the room.
"Hey, what's up? I asked as I slid into the empty chair at his table. "You waiting for your date?" It was unlikely, since he looked so relieved to see me.
"No, I'm, uh..." He ducked his head. "Frank was supposed to meet me."
Frank didn't deserve a brother like Bobby. I wondered how long Bobby had been waiting.
He pointed at my table. "You have a date; you should get back to him."
"Nooo, not a date," I said. "It's Joe's brother, Michael. We meet for coffee when he visits from Dallas once a year or so. We were just saying goodbye."
Bobby brightened at that news – his reaction encouraged me to say, "After Mike leaves, maybe we could...?"
"Why don't you stay?" he said, touching my arm. "Frank's not going to show."