And five minutes later, she is sliding into the back seat of the car waiting at the service entrance.
She’s quick to put her seatbelt on, but I stop her even though the car begins to move. My hand stays put on her wrist.
“Uh, safety first,” she chastises me.
“You’ll only need to take it off,” I inform her.
That warm smile of hers begins to spread. “We arenothaving sex in the car.” She felt awkward about it the first time, considering my driver is in the front, behind the dark partition.But it was a must-do, a rite of passage, as crazy as that sounds.
“Get your mind out of the gutter, baby. We have places to be.”
“Really?” She’s confused. “I thought we were leaving work to order in and take it easy because you have a call with Hong Kong at nine.”
That’s what my nights have become. Dinners at my place or a hidden corner in a restaurant. Either way, we end up having sex. Getting to know which positions we enjoy has been an excellent use of time.
My fingers crawl up her arm, and I watch their movement. “I changed our plans, and we won’t be staying in because I have a surprise for you.”
Our eyes meet, and she’s curious. “Oh?”
I’m well aware that I’ve hit a snag in our dynamic. This evening’s idea came on a whim—or not a whim. It’s not clear why I’m about to make her smile, only that I want to. Showher that I’ve paid attention to the finer details from the start, and it matters.
“Yeah. I forgot that I had donated once to the ballet here in the city, and they have a special performance with the Paris ballet visiting. You mentioned you used to go with your aunt.”
She titters a laugh. “The ballet? You?”
I go along with her teasing. “Yes, me.”
She almost seems skeptical, yet that smile I love crawls on her face. “We’re going to the ballet?”
“Yes. We even have discreet box seats. Nobody will notice us.”
“Wow, okay.” She gives herself the once-over. “But can we swing by my place? I’m in my work clothes and would rather be in something that doesn’t scream office.”
I boop her nose with my finger. “No time, babe. Now look on the floor.”
Her eyes search the car’s interior, and she spots the white box with a dark green ribbon. “What’s this?”
“A dress.”
She sputters a laugh as she eyes the box. “You bought me a dress?”
I shift in my seat and angle myself toward her because she’s a tad more astonished than I was going for. “It’s not so crazy.”
“Uh,it kind of is. First, I have now seen you as a decent human, but it’s… Well, I don’t think it crossed my mind that you could be a hopeless romantic.”
That word, as a compliment, scares the hell out of me, but hearing it feels like praise, which I’m enjoying.
“Neither did I. Now open the box,” I instruct.
She unties the satin bow. “How did you even get this? I mean, to guess my size and pick something out.” The ribbonfalls onto the seat between us, but I quickly sweep it up because I might need it later.
I look at her like she’s crazy. “Your size? I believe my eyes and tongue have measured every inch of you. And as for the dress? I paid money and had someone from the store choose based on a photo of you.”
“Geez, you really thought it out.” She lifts the lid and pulls away the tissue paper, and I realize my bank account really did pay off because the brightness on her face from a gushing smile is worth it as she lifts the dress out of the box. It’s black, classic, off-the-shoulder, and if my request is fulfilled, it means she’ll be showing a little of her back that my hand will cover. She might be cold, but there is something that kind of inflames inside me when she wears my blazer around her shoulders to stay warm.
“Put it on.”
Savannah moves to the edge of her seat and finds the zipper of her work dress, quickly pulling it down and off.
