* * *
DAVE
Was it dumb that he brought a rose again?
It wouldn’t be a surprise this time around.
Nah.
He’d bring her roses before dates for the rest of their lives.
He knocked on the door and he should have held his breath.
Because when she opened it, she took it away.
Wow.
It was all he could think as he took her in.
She was in a knee length red dress that came in tight at her waist with a red satin ribbon tied in a bow. It flared out at the bottom when she moved. Her shoes were also red and he didn’t know what kind they were but he could see her toes.
Her hair was down and curled, her makeup soft and simple.
Her smile bright and just for him.
“Would you please go on a date with me?” he asked.
She laughed and the sound traveled through him like sunlight.
She took the rose and he took her hand.
If someone were to ask him later what he liked about their first date, he would have said “her.”
Because that’s what made the entire evening.
Just her.
Her eyes, her smile, her stories about teaching, her ability to light up entire city blocks with her joy.
They went out to dinner, where they ate and talked and laughed. They laughed a lot.
And then he took her dancing.
Well, actually he took her to a local show. One of his friends was in town doing a small club tour.
They had to come into the venue through a special entrance but she didn’t seem to mind.
When the song was a slow one, he pulled her to her feet and into his arms.
They danced to three, four, five songs in the shadows. He never wanted it to stop.
She asked him questions about his tattoos as she touched them in the dark.
The sun on his throat, the bird on his face, the words above his eyebrow.
And when the show was over and he walked her to her door, he didn’t want to go home.
Because he’d found his home in her eyes.