Audrey tried to put herself in the shoes of one of the singles who might be coming to this experience. She wondered if it would be more or less nerve-wracking to not be able to see your dates. As she sat waiting in the dark for what felt like a lot longer than it should take to get a glass of wine, especially considering she was the only guest in the popup restaurant, she did notice that her sense of smell seemed to be heightened. There was a faint aroma of something floral in the air. Maybe there were floral arrangements as centerpieces.
Would there be centerpieces in a restaurant that you couldn’t see?
She heard the sound of the curtain that led into the dining room being opened and she sat a little straighter expecting to be receiving her wine.
“Okay, right this way.”
Audrey heard Kenna say, obviously leading someone into the restaurant and what sounded like two pairs of footsteps. It was so strange not being able to see who had entered.
“Here we are. You can sit.”
“Here?”
Before her brain caught up with the information her ears were telling her, her entire body responded to the familiar baritone voice. A tingling sensation spread from the top of her head to the tips of her toes, her heart sped up and she found it difficult to breath. She started to reach up and take off the blindfold but stopped herself as she said, “Josh?”
“Audrey?” Josh sounded just as surprised to hear her voice as she’d been to hear his.
“What are you doing here?” she asked.
“Nonna asked me to come because Viv was in a car.”
“Yeah, she’s stuck in traffic.” As soon as she said it out loud, she realized this was a setup. It had to be.
Kenna went through the same spiel that she had with Audrey and took Josh’s drink order. “I’ll be right back with your drinks.”
Audrey couldn’t believe that her sister had done this. Actually, yes, she could. She absolutely believed that her sister did this.
“I thought you would be at Golden Years tonight.”
Audrey smiled to herself. She knew it was silly, but she loved the fact that Josh knew her schedule. “I was. Viv called and said it was an emergency.”
“Ahh.”
Audrey’s heart was pounding in her chest. She’d eaten with Josh a lot of times before. They had movie nights where they ordered pizza. They’d had lunches at Sue Ann’s. And shared wings at JT’s.
But this felt different.
And not just because she was wearing a blindfold. Although, she had to admit, she did like the element of the blindfold. It definitely heightened things. She wondered if it would do that in the bedroom as well. She remembered seeing a movie, that she was much too young to see, with Kim Basinger called 9½ Weeks where she was blindfolded by Mickey Rourke. And she’d read quite a few romance novels where blindfolds were incorporated in the bedroom. It had always intrigued Audrey and been something that she hoped, if and when she ever had sex, she could try.
“So, this is...different,” Josh voiced exactly what she’d been thinking before her mind trailed off in a more adult-themed direction.
“Yeah, it is.”
“I bet you’ve never been on a date like this before.”
“I’ve never been on any date before,” she chuckled. Audrey wasn’t sure why she’d revealed that to Josh. Maybe it was because he’d referred to what they were doing as a date, and it had made her nervous.
“You’ve never been on a—”
The rustle of the curtain moving, followed by footsteps, cut off Josh’s question.
“Okay, here are your drinks.” Audrey heard the sound of the drinks being set down on the table. “They are on your left and I’ll be back with your salads.”
Audrey carefully lifted her hand and felt along the table for the wine glass, scared that she might bump it and knock it over. When she felt the base, her fingers gingerly moved up the stem and she lifted it to her mouth. She tipped the glass up and allowed herself a generous drink. Now more than ever she needed to take the edge off. As she set it back down, she licked her lips, tasting the sweet tang of the wine.
“So, you said that you’ve never been on a—”
Again, Josh was interrupted by the sound of the curtain being pulled back. Within seconds she heard the clank of a plate being set down. “Okay we have your spinach salads with poppyseed dressing. Would either of you like crushed pepper sprinkled on top?”