“Oh, I forgot to tell you. This is our first official date.”
“Perfect, we won’t have to tell your grandparents that our first date was you carrying me home drunk after a date with another man.”
“No, we won’t. Because that wasn’t a date.”
“Huh, then what was it?”
“I think in romance books they call it a meet-cute.”
She snorted. “There was nothing cute about that night. And I didn’t deserve the headache I ended up with the following morning.”
I thought back to her confession that night and silentlyagreed with her. Kendra deserved the world to fall at her feet. She deserved a man who not only understood how fortunate they were that she shared her attention with them but also spoiled the shit out of her.
I planned to do that. Maybe it wouldn’t be something that worked in the long-term, but it would at least be enough to show her that she needed to expect more.
Ushering her onto the elevator, I pressed the button for the ground floor.
“Mr. Crosby, your car is here.”
“Thanks, Larry. Oh, this is Ms. Colette. Please add her to the guest list for the penthouse. She’s welcome to go up at any time.”
“Great. If you can have her send us a photo of her license, we’ll make her a badge to access the apartment.”
Kendra gave me a curious look.
“You’re ready for me to be able to access your apartment?”
“Trust me, it’s next to impossible to get up there without a badge. Are you planning to throw parties while I’m out?”
She shook her head. “That still doesn’t mean?—”
“Ken,” I said, taking her face in my hand and turning her head to make eye contact. “It’s an elevator pass. It won’t get you into my apartment unless I open the door for you.”
“Okay.”
“Come on, the car is out front.”
Once we got into the car, she brushed the snowflakes off her coat and pants. One had dropped on her nose, and I was tempted to brush it off. It melted before I had the chance.
“Where are we going?”
“It’s one of my favorite brunch places in the city. What’s your preference? Sweet or savory?”
“Savory. I’m a classic Eggs Benedict girl. Though the cocktails are usually my favorite part of the meal.”
“I could go for some day drinking. How about brunch and then a brewery crawl?”
She nodded. “Sounds good to me.”
“Oh, I need to pick up a tuxedo. It’s ordered; just got to pop in and get it.”
Could I have the tuxedo delivered? Sure. But since I planned to ask Kendra to go to the event, I hoped to have her try on a cocktail dress or two.
“What’s the tuxedo for?”
“Charity event. Want to come?” I searched her face for a reaction. She gave nothing away.
“That depends?—”
