to be going fine. I mean, I knew I was coming on a little strong for her, but I had her back and I didn’t want to lose her.
I wanted Anna to be mine. I wanted to spoil her and show her how good our life together could be. I wanted her to have all the things I had promised her, and so much more. Every damn time I saw that trailer, I saw all of my failures flashing before my eyes. I had done that to her. I had walked away when she needed me, and she suffered for it.
Deep down, I knew that I deserved everything I had. I worked my ass off to get where I was, but that didn’t stop me from feeling like I had stepped on her to get here.
I helped her get her wrap on and then led her to the door where our car was waiting. Hopefully the dancing would go better for us. I laced her fingers with mine as we made the short drive to The Drake Hotel. When we walked inside, the music was already swinging and the dance floor was full. I glanced over at Anna, hoping I had gotten something right. A huge smile was on her face, one that brightened the room immensely.
“Are you ready?”
“Yeah, this looks like fun.”
I took her up the stairs to the ballroom and got a table for us. After ordering drinks, we sat and listened to the music. When she finished her first drink, I took her out to the dance floor.
“Who are they?” she asked over the loud trumpet.
“The Flat Cats. They always play here.” I swung her out of the way as a pair of professional-looking dancers flew past us, swinging each other around. Anna laughed as we watched them, and then I started pulling out some moves of my own. I wasn’t great by any means, but the way she laughed made it all worth it.
She wrapped her arms around my neck as a slow song came on, her hips swaying seductively to the music. I never saw this side of Anna before, and perhaps she wasn’t normally like this, but I was going to enjoy it for tonight. My hand held her steady as I swung her to the beat of Sixteen Tons. I may have stepped on her toes once or twice. And I know for certain that she was stepping on my feet too, but it was the most fun I had ever had. Just her and me, and the music. Everything else was just background noise as I stared into those beautiful blue eyes.
By the time the music switched to a faster tempo, we were both sweating and ready for another drink. “Why don’t you get a seat and I’ll go to the bar and get us some drinks.”
“Sure,” she smiled.
I grabbed our drinks and was back by her side just a few minutes later. “Thanks. This is a lot of fun.”
“Better than the beef tongue?” I asked with a grimace.
She laughed, staring down at her drink. “I’m sorry for the way I reacted. This is all a little much.”
“What is?”
“Everything. The apartment, the fancy dinner, the wardrobe waiting outside the bathroom door…It’s just not who I am.”
I nodded, knowing she was right. “I just wanted a fun night. And as for the wardrobe, only wear what you like, but I want to be able to buy things for you. As your boyfriend, I should be allowed that privilege.”
“Boyfriend, huh?”
“Well, I haven’t had a girlfriend since I was in high school, and she was pretty great, so I figured I should give it another try.”
“What if I’m not cut out for all this?”
I glanced around the room and then back to her. “For what? A fun night out?”
“You know what I mean, Robert.”
“Actually, I don’t. It’s not like this is something that would happen every night. Neither of us has the time for that. But I wanted tonight to be special. I guess I failed on that account.”
“Robert-“
But I’d heard enough. I stood and buttoned my suit jacket, holding out my hand for her. If she didn’t want to be here, we wouldn’t stay. What I thought would be a lot of fun just turned out to be a bust. Just a half hour ago, she was laughing as I twirled her on the dance floor, but now she was questioning everything about our evening.
She placed her hand in mine and we silently headed