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“It taught me a lesson. Lying always comes with a price. For me, it was my dream of being a dancer. If I had just told my mother I wanted to take the day off, she might have agreed. If I told her where I was going, she would have insisted I dress appropriately. But the lie seemed so much easier. It was what the others were doing. I never felt as though I really fit in, and wanted to fit so badly that I caved in.” I sighed. “Ah, to be young and dumb. I am glad I’m neither any longer.”
He chuckled. “You’re twenty-five. The best years of your life are in front of you.”
“Does that wisdom come with being thirty-five?” I teased.
He shook his head. “No. It is from being young and dumb myself a long time ago. Didn't break my leg, but I totaled my favorite car and lost my license for a year. In my senior year of school, some of the kids challenged me to a race to see whose car was the fastest. I had no doubt it was mine. I had a GTO that practically growled when you put it in gear. I was in the lead and even crossed the finish line. But foolishly, I decided to keep showing off and go one more lap. I clipped the wall and flipped my car. I was lucky to walk away from the accident with only cuts and bruises. The police reminded me of that in the courtroom. But it also taught me a lesson.”
“Not to speed?” I asked.
“No. I still have a heavy foot. But not to set out to prove anything to anyone. Whatever I do now has a purpose behind it,” he said.
I couldn’t help myself, and asked, “I see. So what is thepurposeof this date?” It was a question asked out of fear, even though it sounded rude.
He reached out to me, touched my cheek, and said, “To spend a lovely evening getting to know this beautiful woman in front of me.”
I thought he’d kiss me, and I held my breath in anticipation, but he didn’t. When he dropped his hand, he said, “I guess we should get going. Our reservation is for seven.”
“What restaurant are we going to?” I asked.
“You’ll see when we get there.”
He didn’t listen when I told him I didn’t like surprises, but at least he was trying to do something nice for me. All I could do was wait and see. I grabbed my purse, slipped my cell phone inside, and followed him out the door. As usual, he opened the car door and waited for me to be seated. I wasn’t sure what the rest of the night was going to be like, but Damien knew how to make a woman feel special. Feel beautiful. Feel noticed.
When we arrived at the dock, I figured we were eating at one of the fine seafood restaurants there. But he drove past them all and turned down the street to where the slips were. He parked the car and came around to get me.
I got out and looked around. “I’m not aware of any restaurants here.” Not that I knew them all, but I’d been down to the dock enough to have noticed a new one being put up.
He pointed to a cabin cruiser and said, “I thought we could eat out on the ocean. That is if you don’t get seasick.”
It was a private yacht and I couldn’t believe my eyes. “We’re...having dinner on that?” I asked.
“Yes. Just the two of us. I have a friend who was kind enough to lend it to me for the night. So, are you interested in having dinner with me?”
What woman would turn down an offer like this?I’m young, but not dumb.
Even if the date ended right now, Damien had done good. Maybe not all surprises are bad. I took his hand and we headed onto the yacht. We were greeted by the captain and the crew, then escorted to the deck where a table was set for two with a single red rose in the center. I expected to have a nice time, but this romance wasn’t something I’d seen coming.
“Dinner will be served once we are away from the dock and drop anchor,” the captain said. “In the meantime, enjoy the champagne.”
Damien popped the cork and poured each of us a glass. I didn’t normally drink, but I was willing to make an exception.
“What should we toast to?” he asked.
I raised my glass and said, “Here’s to being older and wiser.”
He grinned and nodded. “To wisdom.”
We tapped our glasses together and sipped the champagne. The bubbles tickled my nose.
As we continued to drink, we stood by the rail and watched the city fade into the background as we made our way out to sea. “How far are we going out?” I asked.
“Not much further. Just enough so the lights don’t drown out the view,” he replied.
A few minutes later I saw what he meant. It was dusk, and the colors in the sky were changing to a majestic red and orange. The sun was getting ready to set, and we had the perfect view.
Damien slipped an arm around my waist and held me close while we quietly watched as the ball of fire met the horizon and disappeared.
Only then did I look up at him. “I don’t think I've seen a more beautiful sunset before.”
