Robyn opened the door to Lush and walked inside. Traffic had been light and she was ten minutes earlier than she thought she would be. She walked into the dining room and stopped short when she saw Dante at the piano. He had taken off the jacket of his navy and brown plaid suit, set it on the bench next to him and rolled up the sleeves of his white dress shirt. There were those sexy forearms again. He looked right at home at the piano. She stood and watched for a few minutes while he accompanied the trio, she didn't recognize the song they were playing. Well damn, the man had some serious skills. Apparently she wasn't the only one with a hidden musical talent. She noticed Cedric sitting at a booth filling out paperwork and walked over to join him.
"Wow," she quietly voiced as she sat down and took off her jacket.
"Yeah, your man is talented," Cedric agreed. "He just sat down and started playing. I'm pretty sure he's making it up as he goes along. I sure don't know the song. The boys came in to rehearse and I've gotten to experience some great music while I work on next week's orders."
"I had no idea he played," she commented, "and I wouldn't say he's my man." She listened for another moment before turning to Cedric, "I heard you gave him your intention speech. I thought you had retired that thing," she said with a raised eyebrow.
"You know I'll never stop looking out for you," he replied with no remorse. "He didn't seem to mind."
"I'm sure he didn't," she responded.
"Don't worry, I didn't scare him off. You've got a solid one in him. He's a sincere guy," Cedric said.
"He's a good man," she agreed. She turned back to watch Dante. He had joined in again as the group started playing a new song.
"By the way, I'd say he is your man," Cedric said, glancing at her. "Stop fighting it and let yourself be happy. You know you like him."
Robyn smiled. Dante looked peaceful, like playing was second nature to him. She watched his fingers move across the keys. The things he'd be able to do with those nimble fingers. She mentally shook her head to clear her thoughts. When the song ended, she saw him look at his watch then look around the room. When his eyes found hers, he smiled. He stood up, exchanged a few words and nodded to the group. Leaving the stage, he unrolled his sleeves and put his coat back on before he walked toward them.
"Damn boy," Cedric said as Robyn slid over so he could sit down. "What did we just witness?"
"Be still my heart," Robyn added.
Dante smiled, "It's a long forgotten pass time." He turned to Robyn,"You appear to have made good time. Have you been here long?"
"Yeah rewind, we're not going to just brush by the fact we discovered you can play jazz piano," Robyn said in response. "Apparently not just play, but compose too? You've got some real skills from what I just heard. I wouldn't call any of that forgotten."
"Thanks, it's not a big deal. It was just some free styling." He shrugged, "Just like Dolly, that musician has been tucked away for years. I can't remember the last time I played," he said.
"Well, just like with Dolly, you're welcome here anytime," Cedric responded. He looked over to the kitchen when his name was called. "I'm being beckoned," he said as he gathered up his papers. He picked up a leather bag from the floor next to him and left.
Robyn turned back to Dante and said, "I promise I'm going to ask more questions, but first, I owe you a hello." She reached up, grabbed his coat lapels and pulled him into a kiss. He brought his hand up, laced his fingers into her curls and pulled her closer. Their tongues mated as they kissed each other breathless.
Breaking apart, Dante pulled in air. "Well, hello Robbie," he said, as he gently removed his hand from her hair and tucked a wayward curl behind her ear.
"Hey Marcus," she responded with a grin. She placed another short kiss on his lips before releasing him then sitting back and smoothing his lapels. "You look sexy playing a piano," she told him.
"You think so?" he asked.
"Mmm hmm," she responded. "I can't stay too long, but I wanted a chance to see you. I'm really glad I came."
"I have to get back to the station myself, but as always, I am eternally grateful for your presence," he teased. She grinned again. "Do you want to know what else I'm grateful for?" he asked.
"What's that?"
"The last picture that you sent me."
"Oh yeah?" she traced a finger down his tie. "I thought it was a cute hairstyle. Figured you might like it too."
Dante snickered. "Um yeah, hair, that's what I focus on when I look at it. Not the fact it's you in a tub," he caught her hand and brought it up to kiss her palm. "You know me so well."
He thought about her in the tub and smiled at her. He reached over and played with a curl of her hair as he ran his eyes over her. For today's outfit, she was wearing a simple look of black jeans with a long sleeved navy sweater. Her orange bomber jacket hung on the edge of the booth next to them. The sweater hugged the outline of her feminine form and he couldn't help but admire it. Blue and white sneakers encased her feet. She always matched. How many pairs of shoes did she have anyway?
"Any thoughts on when you want to meet up this weekend?"
"I promised to go shopping with Dee and Aunt Vi Saturday morning, but I'm good for evening or Sunday. Do you have the whole weekend off?"
"I'm supposed to, unless I catch a case. Why don't you come over when you're free on Saturday. I'll cook you dinner."
"That sounds great. I'll let you know a timeframe once I know it," she agreed.
"I gotta get back to work and I know you have to go. I'll answer your questions later." He stood up from the booth and held out his hand to help her up. They walked to their cars, then with a final quick kiss, they went their separate ways.
Dante climbed into his car and started back to the station. He really hoped crime took a vacation this weekend, because he'd be damned if he had to miss planned time with Robyn for work. Lady Luck didn't hate him that much.
Saturday morning, Robyn flipped through a rack of shirts with Aunt Vi while they waited for Dee to try on some pants. She added a green shirt to the ones she already had on her arm. To keep the peace, the three of them had decided not to mention their current training/lying fiasco. This was supposed to be a chance for them to just hang out and spend some time together. Across from her, Aunt Vi held up two identical shirts in different kaleidoscope colors.
"Orange or yellow?" Aunt Vi asked.
Robyn compared for a moment before responding, "Definitely orange."
"I agree," she said, putting the yellow shirt back on the rack. "So, you're spending time with the Detective tonight, huh?"
"We're just having dinner," Robyn said with a small smile.
"Of course," Vi agreed as she grinned. "I wouldn't dare imply anything else. I mean, he is cooking it for you. At his house."
"There you go, trying to be messy again," Robyn said, laughing as she shook her head and moved to another rack.
"What?" Vi asked with faux innocence. "So, should we expect you home tonight?" she asked with a grin. Robyn looked at her with a smile and raised an eyebrow. "Seriously though, he's a nice guy Rob. There's nothing wrong with being happy and having some fun. You have way too much seriousness in your life."
Robyn just smiled again instead of responding. "How's Trish?" she inquired.
"She's great," Vi answered with a soft smile. "But no changing the subject, I really think you should give him a chance. Anyone with eyes can see he's crazy about you. I was just talking to Cedric about you two. He's on my side."
"I like these jeans," Delilah said as she walked up.
"Sounds good," Robyn said as she held her hand out to take them from her to add to her stack. "You ladies ready to move on to the next store?"
"Let's go," Delilah agreed. Vi nodded and they walked over to the counter to check out.
As they walked to the next store, Delilah leaned over and bumped her mom with her shoulder. "So Detective Dante, huh?" Robyn glanced down at her without responding. "Aunt Vi has Trish and you have Detective Dante, it's cute." she continued.
Robyn looked over Dee's head at Aunt Vi before responding. "What is it you think you know about me?"
Dee glanced up at her. "What? I heard you and Aunt Vi talking," she explained. "I'm just saying, he's really nice. You know he likes you too. I remember he was really worried when you got taken." She paused, "You must trust him, he knows who you are and what you do. He knew without us having to tell him." She paused again, "You should totally date him."
Robyn laughed, "Oh, I should huh?"
"Yep," Dee confirmed as she led them into the next store. "You'll get no objections from me."
Vi and Robyn dropped back. "She's not wrong you know," Vi said as she walked next to Robyn. "I know how hard it is for you to share info about yourself. He knew your name. I know you well enough to know he didn't accidentally find it out. He didn't even find it out with research. At some point, you shared it with him." Robyn didn't respond. Instead, she took her aunt's arm and led her to the nearest rack of clothes.
During the rest of their shopping trip, Robyn thought about what Aunt Vi and Dee had said. Aunt Vi was right in that there is nothing wrong with being happy. Marcus definitely made her happy. Maybe she didn't need to fight quite so hard. As the end of the trip neared, she took out her phone and texted Dante a time frame for when she'd be at his house. She'd see how she felt about everything later.