“Why would you go to that extreme to bring me here?” It seems like a lot of work.
“Because you love it here,” he says softly, finally looking up at me, and I’m lost in the intensity in his eyes. “And, sadly, at the moment, we have to resort to making plans to ensure you are kept out of the tabloids.”
Before I can say how sad that is, and what kind of life is that for Darius to live, the waitress returns with two glasses of water and asks, “Would you like to order now? Or do you need a few minutes?”
Darius smiles. “I suspect we can order.”
Of course we could. I always order the same thing. “I’ll take a fifties burger and fries, please, plus a strawberry milkshake.”
She nods at me then asks Darius, “And for you?”
“I’ll have the same,” he states.
“Great.” She gathers the menus and gives a big grin. “If you need anything, my name is Debbie; just holler for me.”
“Thanks, Debbie.” I smile back.
She hurries away to fetch our orders, and not a second later, I hear the sounds of the milkshake blenders whipping me up something delicious. “It’s crazy,” I say, looking at the old vintage posters on the wall across from me, “who in the hell would put this much money into this place?” Everything is new and some of the antiques I see around me had to cost a pretty penny.
“Clearly someone who wanted the restaurant to stay around,” Darius comments, drawing my attention to his face.
He’s watching me in that serious way he does, like he’s trying to read my mind. “Well, I’m glad that someone did.” I never expected this place to be around, but as I see Debbie returning with our milkshakes in tall glasses, I’m only too happy they are still in business.
It’s kinda easy finding your way back to yourself when everything that once made you you is all still around. And, as I see Darius continuing to examine me intently, I’m beginning to wonder if that’s why he asked me here tonight. This isn’t about a date, but it’s about doing something I once loved and being somewhere that once made me happy.
I know my reality with Darius. I know what he can give me and what he can’t. And right now, what he’s giving me is enough. Doing this, with him, reminds me of a very happy time, probably the happiest time in my life.
“Thank you,” he says to Debbie as she sets his milkshake in front of him.
I stay silent, removing the paper wrapping from my straw then taking a sip and having to suck hard. But as the strawberry coldness spreads across my tongue, I moan, shutting my eyes. “God, that’s so good.”
Darius chuckles, clearly findin
g this amusing. He always did like my appetite, and not only my appetite for food. Usually when I liked something, sex included, I always wanted as much as I could have until my fix had been properly met.
“I’m glad you approve,” he says before taking a sip of his milkshake. “I like seeing you this way.”
My heart warms just that easily. Darius is always thinking of me. For five years I felt really, really alone. And this sense of comfort makes my soul feel a little more stitched together. Because of that, I’m beginning to feel like all of this is very one-sided. Determined to correct that error, I ask, “All we’ve been doing is talking about me lately. But what about you? Tell me about the women you’ve dated.”
His brows shoot up. “How do you know I’ve even dated women since you?”
“Well, I did see the tabloids and stuff.” I pause, not wanting to know about what relationships he’s been in, but kinda wanting to know, too. I never said that I made sense.
He smirks, clearly enjoying this. “You’ve been following me through the tabloids, have you?”
I roll my eyes and throw the paper wrapping from my straw at him. “Moving on, please.”
He chuckles, picking the wrapper off his shirt and placing it on the table.
“There will be no distracting me,” I tell him sternly. “So, did you fall in love with any of them?”
“No.”
“Never. Not ever?”
He shakes his head. “No. Not ever.”
“Why?”