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I grab my spoon and smile. “That sounds like a challenge to me.”
We dig and commence to destroying the sundae, but after about half an hour, I realize the dessert is winning. I slouch in defeat and put my spoon on the table.
“Give up?” asks Asher, spooning another large bite into his mouth.
I nod my head and sigh. “I’ve wanted that thing for so long and I think my eyes were bigger than my stomach.”
Asher drops his spoon on the table and reaches for my hand. “Babe, your eyes were bigger than both our stomachs. I think that dessert is meant for at least four people, but since you’re waving the white flag, let’s move on to the second part of our date.”
We walk out of the shop hand in hand. I’m looking forward to whatever Asher has up his sleeve, but if the date ended right now, I wouldn’t be disappointed at all.
I’m falling for this man.
I love how I feel when I’m with Asher. I’m both calm and giddy at the same time, but is it too soon? I constantly find myself second guessing the pace of our relationship and how I feel about it.
We get into the Rolls-Royce and I settle in next to him.
“Even though there’s so much more to look forward to, I want you to know the date you planned was perfect. You make an old man feel young again,” he says.
I intertwine my fingers with his and stroke the back of his hand with my free one. “There’s nothing old about you, but I’m glad you know how to have fun.”
He looks down at me with a mischievous smile. “Baby, the fun is just getting started.”
Chapter 16
ASHER
I take Jade’s hand and slowly guide her out of the elevator. She tried to protest against the blindfold, but somehow I managed to get my way. I want to be able to be in the right position so I can see her face when everything is revealed.
“Just a few more steps,” I say.
Even though I’m holding her hand and leading the way, she still uses her free hand to flail around.
“You don’t trust me to get you inside in one piece?”
She smiles and continues to blindly reach out in front of her. “I trust you completely, but I just want to be sure.”
After opening the door, I help her inside before getting in position to see her reaction.
“All right,” I say. “You can take off your blindfold now.”
She takes off the mask and covers her open mouth with both hands. Walking forward cautiously, she looks down, dropping her hands as she smiles at the rose petals coating the floor.
“Asher, this is beautiful,” she whispers.
“Let’s go, these petals lead to the next surprise.”
We follow the trail to the kitchen and I watch as her face comes to life all over again. There’s ingredients spread out over the counter and the private chef I hired stands in front of the stove smiling.
“Welcome, I’m Chef Bradley, and I’m going to prepare dinner for you tonight. I have a bottle of red wine resting for the two of you, and if you’ll have a seat, I’ll pour a couple of glasses and get started on the meal.”
Jade turns around and wraps her arms around me. “Nothing can top this surprise.”
“Nothing at all?” I ask.
“You have no idea what this means to me. I love cooking more than anything,” she gasps, her eyes glistening brighter than ever.
The chef steps forward and hands us each a piece of thick cardstock detailing our meal for the evening.
“Well, madam, you are in luck. I have several delicious courses planned for tonight,” says Chef Bradley.
Jade looks down at the paper and smiles. The excitement is all over her face, and I love knowing I’m the reason for her joy.
“Can I help?” she asks. “I know you’re the chef for tonight, but I’d really love to help if I may.”
Chef Bradley smiles and shrugs his shoulders. “I don’t see why not. In fact, both of you can help and we can make this a couples cooking class. I teach couples all the time. All we need to do is divide the work and get started.”
I nervously take the apron handed to me and slip it over my head to protect my clothes. Cooking isn’t my thing at all. The closest I get to the stove is walking by to put my dirty dishes in the sink, and even that’s a rarity, being that my maid usually handles that as well. But for Jade, I’ll do anything. Listening intently, I follow both Chef Bradley’s orders as they call out to me, often in unison.
“Jade, how long have you been interested in cooking?” I ask.
She hands me several vegetables to cut into tiny pieces, seemingly the only task they find me qualified to complete, and even then, I see both of them re-chopping my work into finer chunks once I finish.
