Four Week Fiance 2(26)

Chapter Six

Mila


I walked down the street with a wide smile on my face. I wasn’t sure why I was so happy. Maybe it was something about the day. The sky was a deep azure blue, with nary a cloud to be seen, the sun was out and shining warmly, the trees were tall and proud and the fall colors of the leaves were beautiful: warm reds, deep browns, dancing yellows and secretive greens beckoned to me. I smiled again as I saw two birds flying from one tree to another, seeming to take the same path down the street as I was. My heart felt full and I was happy.

I knew that most of my happiness stemmed from the fact that I was on the way to meet TJ for dinner. It was scary how excited and happy he made me. And I didn’t even have to be with him. Just the knowledge that I’d see him soon was enough for me. I just liked being around him. That was all I needed to feel warm and content. I didn’t even have to talk to him or touch him. Just knowing that he was there was enough for me. He filled my heart and spirit in a way that I didn’t understand.

It scared me, in a way, knowing how much power he had over me. I didn’t want to think about what would happen when I no longer got to spend so much time with him. I didn’t want to think about not being with him.

Even though our relationship—well, engagement—was fake, it didn’t matter to me. It didn’t matter because I was still getting to know him better. I was still getting to see parts of him I’d never seen before. His vulnerabilities, the things that made him hurt, pause, think. There was a side to TJ that I’d never known existed. I’d always thought he was this tough, handsome guy. Full of life and vitality. A guy who took everything in stride. Nothing ever got him down. That’s what I used to think. I mean, I knew that his dad wasn’t the most paternalistic figure in his life. I knew that had to have affected him in some way. And the fact that his mother had died when he was so young. I’d thought about it, but had never really placed any real emotion or depth into those thoughts. Now, I wondered just how much his childhood had affected him. Who was TJ Walker behind the fa?ade? I was still trying to figure that out.

He was darker inside than I’d thought. There was a barrier there, some layer of hurt, some deep emotion hidden inside of him. And it fascinated me. I wanted to know his full story. And I wanted to fix him. I wanted my love to fix him.

I shook my head at myself as I continued walking, nearing the restaurant. I knew I was living in the clouds. Life wasn’t like the movies. I wasn’t going to be able to fix him and make him fall in love with me. Stuff like that just didn’t happen. Least of all to people like me. But that didn’t stop me from hoping. That didn’t stop me from wishing that I could somehow figure out what made him tick and in doing so make him fall head over heels in love with me. That would be amazing. Not realistic, but definitely amazing.

I giggled as I walked into the restaurant, feeling light-hearted and giddy as I felt my heart racing. I was about to see TJ and that always made me feel awesome. I used to live for seeing him every few months; now I got to see him every day.

The host greeted me with a big smile. “Good evening, ma’am. Do you have a reservation?”

“Yes—well, not me.” I laughed. “I’m meeting someone here. I think he has the reservation.”

“What’s his name?” He smiled at me warmly. “Let’s see if he’s here yet.”

“TJ Walker,” I said, grinning.

“I see his reservation, but he hasn’t checked in as yet. We can definitely seat you while you wait, though. Would you like that, madam?”

“Mila.” I smiled at him sweetly. “And yes, please, that would be amazing. Thank you.”

“Oh, you’re very welcome.” He nodded and looked back down at his podium. “One moment, please.”

“Oh, of course.” I smoothed my skirt down and pulled out my lipstick so that I could reapply it. I wasn’t sure why I felt so nervous, but I wanted to look pretty for TJ. Like, really pretty. I wanted him to walk in and look at me and think to himself, Wow, Mila is just gorgeous. How did I get so lucky to be having dinner with her? I mean, it was a pipedream—he’d never really given me a look like that before—but that didn’t stop me from hoping.

“This way, ma’am.” He came towards me. “Just follow me.”

“Sure.” I smiled and followed behind him. We approached a table and as the ma?tre d’ was about to pull my chair out, a handsome man jumped up from the table next to mine and pulled it out for me.

“Good evening.” He gave me a wide smile and a wink as he stood behind me.

“Evening.” I smiled at him, feeling a bit shy as he pushed my chair in. “You didn’t have to do that.”

“I see a beautiful woman and I can’t stop myself,” he said. “I’m Will, by the way.”

“Mila.” I held my hand out to him.

“A beautiful name for a beautiful girl.”

“Oh.” I blushed, not knowing what to say.

“I’ll just leave the wine menu with you,” the ma?tre d’ said and beamed at us both as he backed away.

“Dining alone?” Will asked me hopefully, his eyes a piercing navy blue in his handsome face.

I shook my head. “No, I’m waiting on someone.”