Playing It Safe(59)

Barton G.

Oh. My. God.

For those of you who do not live in Miami, this restaurant is as upscale as they come. There are only two of them, the other being in Los Angeles. It’s known for its eclectic presentation of dishes and romantic ambiance. And I guess for being super pricey. I’ve only been here one time before, and that was for a private party hosted by a longtime client of mine. Ever since then, I’ve been dying to come back and have a sit-down dinner. But given the long list of losers I’ve had the pleasure of dealing with, a romantic dinner here was never in the cards for me.

Dear Lord, I was not prepared for this. I was thinking something along the lines of a swanky place on Washington Avenue or something like that. Never did I imagine he would opt for cozy and intimate. This puts the “not just f*ck buddies” comment he made in perspective for me. And I know we have crazy chemistry; that’s not it. My problem is I’ve had such bad luck with men that it’s hard for me to discern at which point I can let go and be on the receiving end of real affection and love—the whole package. On top of all that, men have a hard time in general dealing with my … ahem, rough edges. But I make no apologies for who I am. You either like it or you don’t.

“Stay right there,” Alex instructs as he gets out of the car to hand the valet his keys.

He opens the door for me, and I swing my legs out to carefully balance my feet on the concrete. He holds his hand out and helps me up, but not before I notice how he looks at my legs in appreciation for a second.

The valet whisks Alex’s car away, and we walk up, hands entwined, to the front door. I lean in to say something to him privately. “You know, you didn’t have to go all out.”

“I know I didn’t,” he answers, then quickly adds, “I wanted to.”

We reach the door, and he goes to open it for me, but I can’t let what he said go unnoticed. So I reach up on my toes and softly press my lips to his. “Thank you,” I whisper, then duck into the restaurant ahead of him.

The hostess spots us coming toward her, and she focuses all of her attention on Alex, eyeing him up and down as if I’m not even here. Can’t say that I blame her—I mean look at him, for chrissakes! But at least try and be a little discreet about it.

“Hello there!” the hostess says, addressing only Alex as if I don’t exist. She leans forward and purposely displays her cleavage for him.

Bitch, please. Find your own man.

That’s right, I’m officially staking my claim on his ass.

Alex puts his arm around my waist and pulls me to him, ignoring the hostess’s feeble attempt at distracting him, and gives her his name to look up the reservation.

She shoots me a look of surprise. “Aren’t you the lucky one?” she says under her breath, but not enough that I don’t hear her perfectly clear.

Normally I would say something just as biting back to her, but you know what? She isn’t even worth it because nobody is going to ruin this evening for me. Not Aiden and certainly not this woman.

She darts out from behind her stand and leads us toward a small flight of stairs. When we get to the top, she walks us through a maze of tables that are partially filled with people enjoying their meals. We keep following her to a set of French doors covered with sheer curtains on the far side of the room. She opens the door to unveil a solitary table illuminated by outdoor lights, hidden from everyone else in the restaurant.

Holy shit!

Mind officially blown.

“Do you like it?” Alex asks in my ear, placing his hand on the small of my back and gently nudging me forward.

I more than like it because it confirms that he really put some thought into this. And that alone is what makes it even more special. I can’t remember the last time a man has gone so far out of his way to impress me. It’s been so long that I’m temporarily at a loss for words until Alex asks me again if I like it.

“I love it,” I finally say when I find my voice.

He smiles while leading me to my seat and pulls it out for me. I sit down, and he immediately bends down to kiss my neck, sending shivers up my spine. My God, I’m like a puddle of goo over here with all this attention from him, and I love it. The hostess looks on with her mouth agape.

Alex lifts his head and looks at the hostess. “Thank you, and for the record, I’m the lucky one.”

I think I’m in love.

No, no, no, I’m not in love. But damn, if he keeps this up, I won’t be far from it.

The hostess leaves after bumbling through letting us know that our server will be with us shortly, and Alex goes to sit across from me. Once she’s gone, we’re alone and hidden away from prying eyes. But not for long. Our server arrives with a bottle of champagne, proceeds to open it, pours us each a glass, and then leaves us alone again.

Alex picks up his glass and with a dashing smile says, “To new beginnings.”

I take a small sip after we clink our glasses together, and then I say the first thing that comes to mind. “You are soooo getting laid tonight.”

He chokes on his champagne before laughing out loud. He really does have the sexiest laugh; it lights up his whole face and makes him look so relaxed. I meant what I said though, even if it sounded crass. But it’s the truth. He’s getting laid for pulling out all the stops. Probably a blow job too; that’s how impressed I am right now.