I was a total asshole the other night, and I need to make things right. So that's why I went through painstaking effort to surprise her tonight. I left a note in her room asking her to go on a date with me. I don't know if she'll meet me at seven like the note requested or not, but I'm standing nervously in the foyer of the mansion dressed up in a penguin suit and sweating my balls off from being so freaking nervous.
This is my first official date, like,ever. And even though we can't leave the island, I still did my best to plan something special. But if she refuses to come downstairs, then I really can't show her how sorry I am.
As seven comes and goes, I begin to get discouraged. Maria, always the ultimate optimist, pokes her head around the corner at ten after seven and tells me, "Don't worry. She'll be here. Women always run late. It keeps the men on their toes, you know."
And almost like Maria's optimism summoned her, Katya finally appears at the top of the stairs. She looks like a golden goddess with her blonde hair in waves past her shoulders and wearing a tight, short, gold, sequin dress that emphasizes all of her best assets. She has legs for days, and the weight she's put on the past several days while she's been here looks great on her.
She approaches me with a shy smile on her beautiful face. "You look stunning, Katya," I tell her immediately.
"You clean up pretty well yourself, Jax," she tells me with a wink.
I hold out my arm, and she wraps her slender hand around it. We walk outside to where the gazebo is lit up with thousands of little, twinkling lights. Lucien wined and dined Adeline out here one night, and I know she absolutely loved it. I'm just hoping Katya enjoys it just as much.
When I glance down at my golden goddess, she's looking all around and smiling the biggest smile I've ever seen on her beautiful face before.
Yeah, I totally nailed it,I think to myself confidently.
"One more surprise," I tell her before pulling out a long box from my inner jacket pocket.
Katya narrows her eyes suspiciously at me. She still doesn't trust a single thing I do or say, but I'm working on changing that. In time, she'll trust me. We'll trust each other.
She cautiously opens the lid and gasps when she sees the light glittering off the diamonds inside. "Jax," she gasps and lets her voice trail off. Carefully, she pulls the gold anklet from the box and glances up at me. "This is for me?"
"No, it's for Maria. I just wanted to see if you liked it before I gave it to her," I quip while maintaining a straight face.
And then Katya does something so out of the ordinary forherthat it makes my heart skip a beat inside my chest.
She laughs.
I smile down at her, simply in awe of her natural beauty. She's truly amazing when she's not forcing anything.
Kneeling down on one knee in the grass, I ask, "May I?" with my hand stretched out.
She nods before slipping the anklet into my palm, apparently completely speechless.
Another first for her.
Slowly, I take her slender ankle in my other hand. And fuck, I didn't think it would be this erotic until I realize my growing hard-on is pressing painfully against the zipper of my pants.
My fingers trail against her soft and delicate skin before I fasten the clasp. The diamonds dance in the light around her ankle, and it's like it was made just for her.
"Perfect," I tell her before standing up and staring into her gorgeous blue eyes.
"Thank you for the gift, Jax," she whispers.
I flash her a smile. It's so much more than a gift, but I don't want to spoil the moment. I have an ulterior motive for the anklet, which contains a GPS chip, so that I can track Katya's whereabouts even after she leaves the island.
It was Lucien's idea since he gave something similar to Adeline in the form of a watch. But the anklet isn't as sophisticated as Lucien's handmade creation. I mean, that thing tracks Adeline's blood pressure, precise location and lots of other cool stuff. Mine's nothing near as specialized or high-tech, but it will do until Lucien can craft me something better.
"I'm glad you like it," I tell her before turning and pulling out Katya's chair at the small round table inside the gazebo. She sits down and beams up at me. Then, I retreat to the other side and pour us both a glass of wine before having a seat.
It's an intimate setting, and it's beyond intimidating for someone like me, who has never done anything like this before. Although, I'm not sure exactly how many dates Katya has been on. Maybe this is new for her too. There are so many unanswered questions I have for her, and I intend on finding out some answers very soon.
Our meal is promptly brought out, and it consists of grilled salmon, baby zucchini and rice pilaf. I picked the menu out earlier tonight. I just hope it's up Katya's alley.
But when she starts digging in and moaning with her eyes rolling up to the heavens above, I know I totally nailed it again.
Damn, I'm kinda good at this whole dating thing. I'd always been too scared to try before; but with Katya, things just seem to come naturally. And I find myself wanting to try. For her.
