Chapter 6

Taking his coffee back to his office he tried to concentrate on the work he was supposed to be getting done. Since it was Friday he wouldn't see Samantha until Monday morning to see if he could find out how the date went.

Sam wasn't sure why she accepted the date with Commander Rabb. All she knew was that AJ was standing just a few feet away and by agreeing to go out with someone else it would hide the fact that she had feelings for him.

As she was leaving for the evening she passed AJ in the hall near the elevator. Her heart tugged a bit as she wished she was going home to prepare for a date with him instead of Harm.

On her way home she once again felt like there was just something 'off'. She'd had that feeling a few times during the day, but hadn't really thought much of it until it came back even stronger tonight as she was on the way home. Shaking it off, she removed her uniform and had taken her hair out of the bun she always wore at work. Her golden blonde hair fell in heavy waves to the middle of her back. Sam decided to just let it be free. She put on an emerald green dress that highlighted her beautiful green eyes. Black heels and a matching clutch purse completed the outfit and she was ready and waiting when 1830 came…and went. She was still waiting when 1845 rolled around. At 1850 there was finally a knock on her door.

"Hello," she said throwing a look at the clock visible in the living room.

Harm didn't say a word about being late, rather the way he said what he did, almost made it sound like he had been waiting on her. "So are you ready to go now Sammy?"

A little irritated that he didn't give her a reason for being late or at least an 'I'm sorry' she found it hard to take. "Yes, I'm ready," she told him with a bit of a bite in her voice.

Without asking her where she wanted to go, they pulled up at a small restaurant called Mike's Place. She had never heard of it and she'd lived in the area all her life. Once inside, she was surprised at the menu. The first two pages were vegetarian, the second two pages were vegan and the last page was for carnivores.

Harm ordered something called lasagna rolls and he just smiled indulgently when she ordered a top sirloin from the back page. "Mac orders from that page too," he told her.

"Have you and Mac dated long?"

"Nah we don't date, Mac and I are just friends."

"Oh, is there anyone else that you are seeing on a regular basis?"

"Are you trying to find out if there if there is any competition for you?" he asked with a teasing voice.

"No not at all," she stated emphatically.

"Oh why is that?"

"Because although I think you are a nice guy, I don't think you're my type of guy. I'm sorry Harm," she told him as gently as she could.

"We have only been on this date less than an hour how can you possibly know that I am not your type?"

"Harm do you want me tell you the truth or would you rather I was just polite?"

He looked startled at her response he honestly thought he could charm her into changing her mind. "Sure, give me the truth, I can take it."

"Alright then, I want someone considerate enough to call me when they are going to be late picking me up for a date or at least offer an explanation when they arrived…"

He was about to start defending himself when she held up her hand and said, "I am not through yet. I would also like someone who would ask where I would like to go to eat or at least find out if I was a vegetarian or not before bringing me to a vegetarian restaurant. Now I am finished if you would like to say something."

"Wow! You don't pull any punches do you?"

"You said you wanted the truth. I'm sorry if I offended you."

"I'm not offended," he replied.

To be continued…