Lionel looked impressed as he glanced about and clutched Brad’s hand a little tighter when they stopped at the specific table Brad had requested. Candles in the glasses sitting in the middle of the table flickered in the soft evening breeze coming through the open windows.
The last of the evening sunset reflected over the water garden, and Brad high-fived himself for choosing this place. It spoke of what Brad wanted to achieve for them on their first official date. Romance. He hoped there would be many more like this in their future—in fact, he’d make sure of it. His mate deserved to know he was special.
“Beautiful,” Lionel murmured as the server pulled out Brad’s chair first before seating Lionel.
“I love it here. I’ve been several times.”
A sense of unease came, and Brad glanced at Lionel; only his mate’s expression revealed none of his thoughts. “My parents love this place, and they introduced me to the great food. Then, when I finish a work project that might have been particularly hard, I’d treat myself to dinner here and bring a book and enjoy the moment.”
Lionel held his stare as the server placed the menus in front of them. “You didn’t come here…”with a date?
The question went unfinished, but Brad caught the thought and shook his head, aware that the server was holding the wine menu and was most likely trying to figure out when best to start the spiel about which wines were best with what. “Do you want wine with the meal? I can recommend the Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc. It will go with pretty much anything you order.” So far, Lionel had only ever drunk wine when they were together, and Brad wanted Lionel to know he was paying attention to the details.
A beaming smile was aimed in his direction before Lionel looked to the server. “Could we have a bottle of that?”
The server gave a polite nod and left holding the menu.
“So what food would you recommend?”
Brad laughed buoyantly. “Everything. I’ve never had a bad meal here. Although I love their pad thai with shrimp, which is what I’ve already decided to have.”
Lionel shut his menu. “I think I’ll have that too.”
After the server returned with their wine and had taken their order, Brad linked one of his hands with Lionel’s as they sat opposite each other. In a room full of attractive people, all Brad could see was his mate and how happy he felt to be with him. “How was the pie you had at lunchtime? All I got was a measly sandwich, by the time I got down to the café, the good stuff was sold out!” he exclaimed dramatically for effect.
The grin Lionel gave him was all teeth and charm. “Amazing, she could make a fortune selling that pork pie.”
Brad’s stomach let out a protesting gurgle making Lionel chuckle as he reached for his glass with his free hand. He took a sip and made an appreciative noise in the back of his throat, pleasing Brad. He’d once or twice fantasized about bringing someone special to this place, and now he could say with authority it was so much more romantic than he’d envisioned.
“Although saying that, she’s a wonderful employee, and I would hate to lose her. She managed to complete all the paperwork Pennington generated—”
Brad narrowed his gaze, his hackles rising. “What did he do?” he asked before Lionel could say any more. “He’s already on my shit list.”
Lionel squeezed his fingers, lifted their joined hands, and kissed the back of Brad’s hand. His eyes gleamed like polished glass and held Brad hypnotized. “I was ensuring there were no issues for my clients and made some changes that generated a little more paperwork than usual. I’m happy to report that everyone else I spoke with has no such issue with my mating and isn’t concerned about Pennington kicking me out of the pride.”
“I should hope not, or my shit list will grow, and I’ll have to flex my muscles again.”
The scent of Lionel’s arousal tickled Brad’s nose as he shifted on the seat, his cheeks flushed with color.
Brad’s smile widened. “You like that idea?” he asked, already knowing the answer.
“I shouldn’t, but I do.” Lionel took another sip of wine, only this was more of a gulp and didn’t do any harm to Brad’s ego.
“Dad agreed to cut ties with Pennington after the stunt he pulled. So with the emails he’d have gotten today with our withdrawal from the two projects we signed up to, I hope that gave him something to think about.”
Lionel’s brows rose up his forehead. “Don’t you have contracts?”
“We did, but one had no clause because Pennington didn’t want to be hit with delay fees should the mall not stay within the timeframe allocated.” Brad shrugged off the concern. “And the other we’ll take on the chin.”
The wine Lionel had taken a sip of sprayed the table and their joined hands. His eyes wide with alarm, as the glass hit the table and splashed the tablecloth, not that Lionel noticed. “Your dad is happy about this?” he choked out, grabbing his napkin to dab at their hands and then his chin, while not looking at those who had turned to look in their direction.
“Yes, in fact he was insistent on being the one to tell Pennington to take a hike.” Brad squeezed Lionel’s fingers, offering a winning smile. “You’re my mate, and as far as my family is concerned, along with me, no one is going to mess with you.” Brad caught the scent of his dinner and glanced at the server, who was approaching. “Great service as always. I’m starving,” he announced, sitting back and letting go of Lionel’s hand. “Let’s see what you think of your meal.”
Brad kept the conversation light, sensing Lionel’s lingering disbelief that someone he hadn’t met would be so supportive of him. They talked about their friends and Ian’s sister Maisie, who had the baby.
Lionel gave Brad some insight into Hector and how he was before he met Morty.
“For someone who can create magic in the kitchen, it amazes me what absolute disaster he can rain down on those around him.”
