“So, I picked a little of everything. You can wear whatever you want.”
I laughed humorlessly. “Do you happen to have any jeans in there?”
He smiled and kissed me. “I just wanted to spoil you tonight. We’re going to dinner and then The Drake Hotel. They have this amazing band that plays every weekend. You’re going to love it. Our dinner reservations are in an hour, so hurry up.”
He smacked my ass and walked out, but I just stood there. I didn’t know what to say. Was this what he thought women dreamed about? Maybe some women, but certainly not me. It was like he remembered nothing about the person I used to be, and frankly, she hadn’t changed that much. I didn’t take shit from people anymore, but fundamentally, I was still the same girl that snuck out with him at night to stare up at the stars.
I took a deep breath and started digging through the dresses. It was fine. It was one night. Maybe this was just a one time thing. It was very possible that he just wanted a night out and thought this would be fun. Deciding that was probably it, I picked out an A-line dress that was fun and cute, but not really sexy. I looked through all the shoes for a pair of flats, but all he had were high heeled shoes. My feet were going to be killing me. I just needed to put on a good face and enjoy the night. This was meant to be fun after all.
Forty-five minutes later, I was walking down the hall to his kitchen, tottering in my heels and praying that I didn’t break my ankle. He walked around the kitchen island and grinned at me.
“You look beautiful.”
“You’re going to have to hold my arm all night. I think these shoes might take me down.”
He laughed. “You’ll get used to them and walk like a pro in no time. Come on, let’s head out.”
He led me over to the front hall closet where I expected him to pull out my coat, but instead he pulled out some kind of fur wrap. I stared at it for a moment, sure that was meant to be a rug for the floor or something. Did people even wear fur anymore? He wrapped it around my shoulders and handed me a small clutch that I would probably only be able to fit lipstick and my phone in. Not that I was wearing lipstick. It was a vile accessory that had me constantly worrying I had smears on my face or teeth.
He held open the door and waited for me to walk out. Okay, so he was being a gentleman. I couldn’t knock him for that, but this version of him was nothing like the man I used to know. When he hit the button for the ground floor, I looked at him in confusion.
“Aren’t we going to the parking garage?”
“I rented a car for tonight.”
“But you own a car. Why would you rent one?”
“It’s a limo, so we can have fun tonight.”
“Oh.”
We stepped out and walked toward the limo, which was actually more like a town car. At least I wouldn’t feel so damn awkward. But when we pulled up to the restaurant, I started to worry that I really was not prepared for what he had in store for me tonight.
The restaurant was brightly lit, with all the decadence and beauty that belonged to rich people. Was Robert rich? I thought he had money, but maybe this was worse than I thought. A beautiful woman led us to our table, handing us our tiny little menus that probably had ten items on it. I looked at the back side, but there was nothing there.
“Is this the menu?” I whispered.
He chuckled. “That’s the starters.”
“Starters of what?”
“The appetizers,” he clarified. “This is a five course meal.”
Shit, I was going to have to be here for hours on end, waiting for food. I was nervous and my palms were sweating, but Robert looked so at ease.
“Maybe we should just go grab a pizza,” I suggested.
He chuckled and grabbed my hand. “It’s one meal, Anna. I just wanted to take you out for something nice.”
Well, when he put it like that, he made me sound so ungrateful. I smiled as he ordered a bottle of wine, and pretended like I belonged here. It wasn’t that I felt I wasn’t good enough for a place like this. It was