Total pages in book: 102
Estimated words: 95393 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 477(@200wpm)___ 382(@250wpm)___ 318(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 95393 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 477(@200wpm)___ 382(@250wpm)___ 318(@300wpm)
“Um,” he stammers, and I stand here as he holds out a huge bouquet of roses for me, wrapped in white paper. “I got you these,” he says of the flowers, “and I got these for the girls.” He holds up his other hand that holds two smaller bouquets. “They told me they like flowers in their room.”
Now it’s my turn to stare at him with my mouth open. “Um, thank you. The girls are staying at my parents’ place until Sunday.” I reach for them with both my hands. “I’ll get them in water, and then we can go.”
“They have the little water things at the bottom,” he mentions, “so they are good until tomorrow.”
“Great.” I walk away from him to the kitchen and place them on the counter. He doesn’t follow me in, and when I walk back, I see that he’s staring at me with his hands in his pockets. He’s wearing dark navy-blue pants that I know have to be custom made because they fit him perfectly, showing off his huge thighs. A baby-blue button-down shirt that has three buttons at the top open, showing you his neck, and a navy cashmere coat.
“You look,” he says when I get close enough, “really fucking good.” I stand in front of him.
“Thank you.” I look down when he steps into my space.
He puts his hand around my waist, pulling me to him. “Thank you for giving me a chance,” he states softly, bending his head and kissing my cheek. He lets his hand fall from around my waist, opening the door for me to step out, and then closing it after him. He slides his hand in mine before walking down the steps toward his car. He opens the door for me, and I have to push down the disappointment that he didn’t try to kiss me. I watch him walk around to the driver’s side and get into the car. I look over at him, and I admit I’ve fallen for him. I just don’t know what to do about it.
“Where are we going?” I ask when he pulls out of the driveway.
“Just a little place I like. It’s good food and private enough that we won’t be bothered.”
I nod, looking out the window, trying not to look as nervous as I feel. We get to the restaurant, and he stops in front of the valet sign. The door is opened by a man as I step out and see Christopher walking around the back of the car. “The keys are in the car,” he tells the valet, grabbing my hand and pulling me away from the guy who nods at him. “Asshole.”
“What?” I ask, laughing.
“He was literally drooling over you,” he snaps, pulling open the door for me to walk through it, the heat hitting me right away. “I wish I could have walked in front and behind you because I’m pretty sure he was checking out your ass.”
“Christopher,” I say his name, laughing, “he was not.”
“Yeah, right,” he counters, walking in, “you didn’t see his eyes go right down your shirt.”
I gasp, putting my hand on said shirt. “We have a reservation for two,” he says to the hostess, who is wearing a black dress. I look around the dimly lit restaurant that has maybe ten to fifteen tables. All tables are round with four chairs with hanging chandeliers over each one, which have three crystal vases with water and floating candles, making the mood even more romantic.
The hostess pauses at a table in the corner, and Christopher stops to pull out my chair for me. “Thank you,” I say, sitting in the chair and then watching him shrug off his jacket and put it in the chair beside me, before pulling the chair from my other side out.
“Don’t you dare take off that jacket,” he mumbles when I watch him sit down. I’ve never felt more confident or sexier than I do at this very minute.
“Excuse me,” I say, pushing my chair away from the table, “I’m going to the restroom.” I turn, walking away from him, ignoring the stinging in my eyes. I spot the bathroom in the corner of the room, and when I push the door open, I’m glad no one is in there. I exhale and then inhale. I use the back of my thumb to wipe away the tear. Dr. Mendes’s words play over in my head. “He’s not here anymore, so you aren’t doing anything to him.”
I look at myself in the mirror before walking back out, finding Christopher’s eyes on the bathroom door. I walk to him and pull out my chair. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah.” I nod. “It’s just I’ve not been on a date in a long, long time.” I pull my chair in.
“We can get out of here and go get pizza if you want.” He puts his hands down on the table, ready to get up and just walk out.