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I loved Duke’s, the company, not so much.
I still felt out of place here.
A fraud.
Two years ago, Duke’s was the kind of place I could only dream of dining at. And the first time Blake brought me here, I was so nervous I couldn’t eat my meal.
“Damn you, Blake,” I murmured under my breath as I stumbled out onto the sidewalk.
I had my hand poised over my purse buckle, ready to retrieve my cell phone and give him a piece of my mind when something caught my eye, making me look twice. “Blake?” I moved toward him at the same time he pushed off the lamppost, a single red rose in his hand.
“Fuck, you look beautiful.” He leaned into me, brushing his lips over my cheek. “Hi.”
“Hi,” I replied, pulling back, I accepted the rose from him and gave him a small smile. “Thank you.”
“Happy Valentine’s Day, Penny.”
My eyes crinkled. “Funny thing happened just now, Duke’s had no reservation for us.”
“They didn’t?” He smirked. “Weird, huh?”
“Blake.” I curled my hands into his sweater and gazed up at him. “What did you do?”
“Me?” He stole a chaste kiss. “Nothing. Come on.”
“Blake,” I warned. “I thought we agreed no theatrics.”
He chuckled, taking my hand in his. “Theatrics? Do you see any theatrics? I thought we could go somewhere a little quieter.”
I glanced back at Duke’s and Blake saw his opportunity.
His breath danced across my skin as he whispered, “Look how busy it is. Do you really want to sit there, waiters rushing around us, the low rumble of conversation drowning out our own? I thought something quieter, something more private would be nicer. I don’t want to share you Penny, not with a room full of conceited strangers. Not tonight.”
A shiver worked its way down my spine and a soft sigh escaped my lips. “Okay.”
“Okay?” He pulled back, his eyes meeting mine and I nodded a playful smile tugging at my lips. “Your carriage awaits, milady.” He swept a dramatic arm toward his car.
“Why, thank you, sir.”
We crossed the street and Blake opened the passenger door for me.
“So where are we going?” I asked as the car purred to life and he pulled into the steady stream of downtown traffic.
“It’s a surprise.” His hand grazed my knee. “We just have to make a quick stop first.”
“Let me guess, you’re not going to tell me that either?”
“You’re a quick learner, Penny Wilson.”
I wanted to argue, to insist that all of this was unnecessary, but he seemed so excited it stirred something inside of me and I found myself smiling along with him.
We rode in comfortable silence, Blake focused on the road ahead while I watched him.
Over the last eighteen months, I’d memorized every line of his face, the way his eyes softened around the edges when he was deep in thought. The way his body felt pressed against mine.
Blake was just twelve the first time I’d laid eyes on him. The messy-haired boy wearing ripped jeans and unlaced Chucks that had taken me under his wing and protected me against the evil that existed in the world.
He was different now.
