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Then two.
She’s going to make me drag her out of there, isn’t she? She’s waiting on purpose.
The front door opens just as I put my hand on the car door handle. I settle back into my seat and wait expectantly. Warm yellow light surrounds her, and the charming dress that she’s chosen for the evening clings to her body. It’s a pale pink number in a floral print that hugs her tighter as she moves. The bodice seems to be wrapped around her, leaving a deep v in the center where the swell of her cleavage is readily visible. The long skirt peplums out just below her knee, and she turns to pull the door closed. She’s wearing nude, strappy heels. She looks demure and soft. A section of her short blond bob is pinned back and away from her face while the rest is curled into soft ringlets to bring further attention to the minimal makeup on her face.
She’s the picture of small-town innocence. Exactly the look that I know she’s going for. She’s a great actress. She’s really put a lot of effort into studying her part. But I’m better. I have to focus on the plan and our ultimate goal.
I see her pause just outside of the door, expecting me to come around and open it for her, but as she was late, I will do no such thing.
Her floral perfume wafts into the car as she opens it, smelling like summer flowers mixed with something nutty. Like a freshly rained-on meadow. I could take her right now. It's going to be nearly impossible to wait throughdinner before touching her. She has not even apologized for keeping me waiting.
“I thought I told you seven?” I ask curiously, waiting for her answer before starting the car.
She looks at me with a soft, overly innocent smile. “Good things come to those who wait, you know.”
“Is that what you are? A good thing?” I tease.
Her smile falters, wondering if I mean anything more than surface-level, flirty banter. I turn the car on and leave her to wonder. How simple it would be to end this now... I have her in my possession, and it would take me less than five minutes to end her. My contract with Nikolai would be finished, and I would be able to take Henry and return to my life as early as tomorrow morning.
I drive us to the restaurant. I’m going to take the chance and make her trust me more first. At least then when she dies, I will know that the further betrayal will break her even more. Besides, this way I get to see whether she’s under the employ of somebody new. If another organization helped her transition here, I’ll need to compensate them for her loss once she’s gone.
That will be the easy part.
There’s only one place in this small town that is suitable for a date, and it’s so far removed from anything that I would have considered suitable back home. I doubt there will be much for us to choose from on the menu, but at least they had the decency to require reservations.
There is a small valet station, manned by one high-school-aged boy waiting at a small podium up front. He practically creams himself over the opportunity to drive my car. I can’t help but smile as I hand him the keys. I place my hand on the small of Helena’s back possessively and usher her inside.
“I think that you just made that whole kid’s life,” Helena laughs.
“I think you’re right.” I grin and motion to the hostess that we have a table for two. I would introduce myself, but she seems to recognize right away that we are the two newest additions to the town. We’re likely the only people that she hasn’t grown up knowing her whole life. She happily gathers menus in her hands and gestures widely to follow her.
“Right this way!” She seems nice enough.
The restaurant is far nicer than I expected. I was thinking the interior would be something akin to a chain dining restaurant, but now I see the appeal. While most of the decor is a few years outdated, the place is well designed. The plates of food on the tables that we pass look far more elegant than I would have otherwise assumed. Serves me right for making snap judgements.
Every pair of eyes we pass turns to stare at us. We're a novelty here, something to add to tomorrow's coffee talk. Helena stiffens as she appears to realize the same thing. She steps into my touch for comfort, and I'm not sure she realized she was doing it.
As we approach the table, I pull a chair out for her with one hand. I don't think it's a coincidence that we're in the middle of the dining room.
“Something the matter? You seem uncomfortable. Would you prefer somewhere else?” I ask when she hesitates to sit.
“I’m afraid that people are going to talk… seeing their newest teacher out with a parent.”
I nod and summon the hostess back. I lean to whisper subtly to her. “Is there somewhere more private we could sit?”
The hostess glances from me to Helena to the gawking patrons and blushes furiously. “Y-yes, of course. I’m so sorry, sir,” she stammers, and I push Helena’s empty chair back in. She quickly guides us to a private room that I’m sure is only used once or twice a year for bigger parties, but the dimmer lighting is better anyway.
The tension melts from Helena’s shoulders. “Thank you for doing that,” she says honestly before taking her seat across from me.
“Of course, I want you to be comfortable, Ms. Petrov.” I use her full name on purpose, teasing her to lighten the mood because of the way that Henry says her name.
“Sofia! Please, call me Sofia,” she answers with a tinkling laugh.
The name rolls off of her tongue so easily. How many names has she used in her lifetime, I wonder? Does she ever lose track or forget which one she’s supposed to be calling herself?
“We’ll have two of whatever your bartender recommends. And keep them coming,” I say to the hostess, who nods. I called ahead to arrange a sampling of their dishes to be brought to us. It took a little convincing, given the scale of things they normally do, but after I told them how much I was willing to pay for it, they quickly came around to the idea.
A few moments later, a waiter enters with a bottle of red wine and a bucket of ice. Probably so that we can have our privacy uninterrupted, which I appreciate.
