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“Shit.” I placed my hand on her lower back and led her down the steps toward my silver Porsche 911. “I completely forgot about them.
“I didn’t.” she replied softly, then glanced over her shoulder, assessing me from head to toe, as I opened the door.
“Like what you see?” I smirked when her gaze met mine.
“More and more every day.”
I’d expected a smart-ass reply from the woman who’d infiltrated my every thought for months. Instead, she took me off guard. Looking into her eyes, I watched as those walls—the ones she hid behind with her snarky attitude—started to crumble, leaving uncertainty in their wake. I could work with that though. She’d learn soon enough there was no need to shield herself from me, or anyone close to us for that matter.
“That’s good, baby, because I feel the same. Now, get in the car before we ditch our dinner reservations and go back to my place.” I winked, then ushered her forward.
Once she was settled, I rounded the trunk, a million thoughts rolling over in my head. If the last five years taught me anything, it was that I’d wasted too much time and energy holding myself back. Since Quin barreled her way into my life, with her sass and that who-gives-a-fuck attitude, she was the woman I saw whenever I thought about the future. Long before we created a life, I knew she was meant to be mine. Now, everything I’d ever wanted was within arm’s reach, I just had to grab hold.
“Where are we going?” Her voice filtered through the soft music playing in the background. As I turned onto the highway, I laid my hand, palm up, on the center console. I didn’t have to wait long before she laced her fingers with mine.
“Shadow’s Edge. There’s a new restaurant which opened a few months ago that I’ve been dying to try.”
The drive to the nearby town wasn’t long, maybe fifteen minutes, but through it all, I kept an eye on the dark-colored SUV a hundred yards behind us. Under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t have thought much about it, however the incident at the doctor’s office that morning was not the first time in the past week I’d felt eyes on me. It was too dark outside for me to see the license plate, but I was almost positive I’d seen it before.
Taking the exit for the restaurant, I watched the SUV do the same, then relaxed slightly when it continued down the road instead of pulling into the parking lot behind us.
“Oh wow. This place is amazing.”
La Cattedrale, or The Cathedral, was an old church turned Italian restaurant. They’d kept the bones of the structure, including the stained-glass windows, but from what I’d heard, the inside had been completely gutted.
After getting the ticket from the valet, we strolled, hand in hand, through an enormous set of doors straight into the lap of luxury. The owners had spared no expense when designing the interior, that much was clear. Black marble tiles flecked with silver lined the floors, while the walls were painted a soft gray. Chrome sconces were hung strategically throughout, creating a warm, intimate atmosphere while also providing enough light for the staff to be able to see. It was the kind of classy elegance you didn’t often associate with mountain dining.
We were led to the back right corner, past a long row of four-top tables, to a curved booth with plush leather seating. The hostess placed the menus on the table while a server poured us each a glass of water.
“Your waiter will be with you in a few minutes. May I get your drink orders started?” the hostess asked.
“I’ll stick with the water for now,” Quin replied.
“Same.”
Once she left, Quin began to fidget in her seat.
“What’s wrong, baby?” I placed my hand on her knee.
“This place is really fancy.”
“I wanted to bring you somewhere nice on our first date. You deserve to be spoiled.”
“You already got in my pants, Hot Shot,” she teased. “Seriously, though, you didn’t need to go all out. I would’ve been happy with fast food.”
“Maybe for our second date.” I picked up my glass and took a drink.
“Well, if your credit card gets declined, you can hand over those gorgeous Armani shoes on your feet. I’m sure they’ll more than cover our bill.”
I choked, nearly spewing the water from my mouth as I tried to hold in my laughter. You never knew what kind of crazy shit would come out of this girl’s mouth. It was one of the things I loved about her.
Whoa. What the fuck was I saying?
Did I have strong feelings for Quin? Yes. Was it love? I didn’t have the first damn clue what it meant to be in love, so I couldn’t say one way or the other. If being in love meant you were totally and irrevocably consumed by thoughts of the other person morning, noon, and night, then it would seem I was a goner.
“You know Armani?”
“I was raised in the mountains, not under a rock.” She shrugged her shoulders.
