Page 27 of Cosplay & Consequences

“He always finds out,” Daniel laughed, still shaking his head.

“Then how about for the lady,” the owner said, turning to me.

“Oh, please don’t put yourself through any trouble for me,” I insisted, gripping the menu tightly in my hand. I had expected to eat a couple of egg rolls and some cashew chicken. The idea of “something special” terrified me, especially eating in front of a man I had torn apart for all the internet to see.

“Is this because of all the turkey legs?” Daniel asked, raising an eyebrow.

I narrowed my eyes at him. “My metabolism is fine, thank you. I don’t want to be a bother. I’m really not that adventurous of an eater.”

My idea of a culinary adventure involved trying barbecue sauce or honey mustard on dinosaur-shaped chicken nuggets instead of ketchup.

“You really should let him take care of you,” Daniel insisted, giving me a smile. “The chef here is from a five-star restaurant back in his country. His food is amazing.”

“That’s okay,” I replied, trying to be polite.

Daniel leaned in, a sly smirk on his lips. His voice dropped low, and he surprised me with a quote from The Gathering. “Come Fiona. Break bread with me and know that in my house you are safe.”

He was playing dirty pool, and he knew it. I tried to get angry about it, but that damn voice….

“Are you paying?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

He smirked. “Absolutely.”

“Break his bank,” I joked, handing the owner my menu.

“I’ll have the plain grilled chicken, steamed broccoli and brown rice,” Daniel said with a touch of regret as he slid the menu to the edge of the table.

“That’s it?” I asked, amazed. When he mentioned training, my thoughts had gone back to the other night, and my hands were running over his… Nope. Not going there.

“I’ve been on a training regimen for weeks,” he explained, with an irritated scowl. “Tyrst’an’s physique is very important to the studio.”

With the mention of the studio, any fleeting thought I had of his physique disappeared. For a brief second it had felt like a date instead of a business dinner. My smile faded, and he noticed.

“I’m sorry,” he apologized. “I didn’t mean to-”

“It’s fine,” I said, waving him off. I didn’t want this to become a battle in a public place, but he shook his head, his face sincere.

“No. We need to talk about this,” he said seriously.

I took a deep breath and forced a tight smile. “Okay. Go ahead.”

Daniel leaned forward, and I caught a whiff of his cologne. Bergamot. I almost had to pinch myself to keep my head clear.

“I want to start off with my apology,” he said earnestly.

“It better be good,” I scoffed.

“Hear me out,” he leaned forward, putting his elbows on the table. He rubbed his hand over the bottom of his face. “I want to apologize again for our… initial meeting,” he said, his voice dropping low. “I don’t regret what happened that night, but I recognize that it put you in a horrible position on that stage. I should have been more insistent before we stepped out in front of everyone. I should have made sure you knew what happened. If I had any clue that was you dressed as Fiona, I would have been completely up front with you.”

I bit my lip. He sounded sincere. I reminded myself again that I was the one who initiated the hookup. I believed what he said. Still, the part of me that didn’t want to let him off the hook fought to keep me from falling under his charm.

“Secondly, I learned a valuable lesson today. I didn’t respect the source material for Valley of the Red Tyrant. After ten years of dealing with soap opera plot twists and ridiculous storylines, I forgot how important it is to give the material the attention it deserves. The books don’t deserve that. The fans don’t deserve that. You had every right to call me out. I can’t apologize to the fans, but at the very least I can apologize to you.”

I opened my mouth to say something snarky but closed it again. The expression on his face was earnest and apologetic. Despite my prior experiences with actors, including the one across from me, I believed him.

“You really want to lay into me, don’t you?” He said, reading my expression.

“Oh, I so do,” I blurted out.