She doesn’t know me well enough to feel comfortable giving out her address. I’m going to show her she can trust me to always keep her safe.
We agreed to meet at Mario’s at seven o’clock and I’m standing out in front when her cab arrives. Walking over, I open her door and lend a hand while she gets out. She protests when I pass money to the driver and as soon as I close the door he takes off. Taking her arm, I usher her further onto the sidewalk, away from the busy street, before I pause to look her over.
“Hi,” I smile. I seem to smile a lot in her presence which is quite an accomplishment. “You look amazing.” I tell her, meaning it.
My eyes travel the length of her body taking in the tight fitting black pants that mold her legs so well. I can clearly see the shape of her calves and thighs. She’s not wearing heels, she has on black, leather flats. I love how tiny she is. She’s going to feel perfect in my arms tonight when I kiss her for the first time.
“Hi. How are you?” She seems happy to see me.
“I’m great, now that you’re here. I’ve been looking forward to this since the moment you walked away from me outside the coffee shop,” I admit.
A smile quickly spreads across her face as if she was thinking the same thing. She’s so unbelievably beautiful it’s intimidating to me. I’m not a bad looking guy, but I know I’m no prize. I have a lot of baggage and I don’t know if someone sweet like Janny is equipped to deal with it all. I should walk away now while I still can, but I’m a selfish bastard and I can’t bear the thought of not being with her. If I was really a nice guy, I’d put an end to this, before we get to know each other better. I’d put an end to this, before we could kiss. I know once I taste her sweet lips, there’ll be no turning back.
My hand seeks hers out, guiding her toward the main entrance of the restaurant. Opening the door, I gesture for her to proceed in front of me. The hostess seats us and it’s only minutes before the waitress is taking our order. Janny has no problem deciding what she wants and I stick with the lasagna, my usual, when I eat here.
Derek and I use this restaurant for business dinners, but I’ve never brought a woman to dine here. Christ, I can’t remember the last date I’ve been on and the last time I got laid - it’s been a pathetically long time. Maybe, close to two years. It’s not like I couldn’t if I wanted to, but at this point in my life it’s easier to spare myself the awkwardness of one-night stands and take care of things myself.
We make small talk over dinner, both of us feeling the other out, like dipping your toe in the pool to test the water before diving in head first.
“What’s your all-time favorite movie?” I can tell a lot about a person by how they answer this question.
“The Dark Knight,” she answers without hesitation. “Because anyone with real taste knows it’s the best Batman movie of them all. Besides Christian Bale is the greatest Batman ever.”
I think I’m in love.
“What’s your favorite hobby?”
She looks around the room mischievously like she’s embarrassed to answer and gestures for me to lean forward. “I love reading erotic romance novels. I can’t get enough of them.” Her cheeks flush a becoming shade of pink while she chews on her lower lip.
Now I’m really in love.
I wish I’d never seen her at the Moore’s house before the night I bumped into her at Quake. I didn’t orchestrate either one of our first two meetings, and the more time I spend with Janny the more I realize it really is fate’s way of pushing us together. Although, I’m keeping the details of how long I’ve known about her a secret for now, I do plan on coming clean at some point.
When we leave the restaurant, I suggest taking a walk and grabbing dessert right down the street from where we are.
The North End in Boston is full of authentic Italian eateries like Mario’s and I point out some of the better ones; our hands entwined while we walk along the cracked and pitted sidewalk. I’m surprised by how natural it seems