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He laughs and proceeds to tell me about how his wife is pregnant. They’ve been trying for years, so I’m glad it’s finally happening for them. They’ll be great parents. We talk for a bit more before hanging up for the night. It’s been a long twenty-four hours and after letting Lily out, I decide that going to bed early is the best idea I’ve had all day.
Brittany: Need to cancel. Don’t feeling like going anywhere.
Me: Be ready when I get there.
She’s not canceling on me. She refuses to push herself to get out of the apartment, so I’ll do it for her. Honestly, I was worried that she would tell me that she wasn’t going on our date when I initially texted her the details yesterday. I let her have Wednesday and Thursday without me. She’s going out tonight.
My goal is to hear her laugh. We’re going to dinner and then to see this famous ventriloquist. These tickets were not easy to get and I probably paid too much for them, but if I can hear my girl laugh, it’ll all be worth it. Brittany surprises me when she answers the door, all dressed and ready to go. I’ll ignore her frown for now.
“How long are we going to be out?” she asks as we walk to my car. She has her arms folded over her chest so I can’t hold her hand.
“For a bit.” Once we’re in my car, I ask, “Did you have a good day at work?”
“Always do.”
“Really?”
She shoots a glare my way. “Don’t sound so surprised that something in this world gives me a little happiness. Where are we going?”
“You’ll see.”
“I don’t like surprises, Trace.”
“And I don’t like a bitchy date; we’ll both get over it.” That pisses her off, which doesn’t surprise me. She stares out the window for the rest of the drive. I guess silence is better than hearing her be snarky. I park and walk around to open the door for her. She’s not at the top of her game because I’m able to take hold of her hand. She glances down at them, but doesn’t pull away. “You look great, by the way,” I tell her.
Brittany looks down at herself as if she doesn’t remember that she dressed herself in a denim skirt and red shirt that shows off her cleavage and figure. “Thanks,” she mutters.
We head into the restaurant and are seated, our drink orders taken quickly. She surprises me when she engages in conversation first. I wasn’t sure what kind of date she’d be since she didn’t want to come.
“Was Lily okay after you were gone Tuesday night?”
“Yeah. She was needy once I got home for work, but she did fine.”
“That’s good to hear.”
I nod. “Whatcha thinking of ordering?”
“I don’t know,” she shrugs. “It all looks the same. You order for me.”
We’re quiet as I mull over the menu, trying to figure out what to order for both of us. Once we’ve placed our orders, I ask about her job. Brittany perks up a little and ends up talking for most of our meal about it. I can tell she truly enjoys it and I’m so happy for that. She needs something that can help push her to keep going and something that makes her happy.
“You’re not taking me home?” Brittany asks as we head downtown.
“No. Our date wasn’t dinner.”
“Oh, okay.”
“Think you can handle a few more hours with me?” While I don’t want to take her home, I definitely don’t want to push her too much either.
She quirks a half smile and rolls her eyes. “Yeah, Trace, I can handle that.”
I can’t help but grin. I love the little moments when she’s the Brittany I knew, when she’s a bit fiery instead of bitchy, when she’s let her guard down. Those are going to be the moments that keep me going when she’s dead-set against me, being stubborn, and pissed off.
She doesn’t ask any questions as we park and then walk toward and into the building. I show an attendant our tickets and Brittany moves closer to me as the crowd converges to squeeze through a set of double doors to go to our seats. Just like at the concert last year, I move her in front of me, resting my hands on her hips to guide her.
“Right here,” I tell her. “Seats eighteen and nineteen.”
We awkwardly squeeze through the row and pass the people already in their seats until we’re in our own.
