Page 31 of Christian Clause

“And I bet you were all calm about it. You simply asked your driver to take you home, right?”

He grins. “I never get drunk in public.”

“Lucky you.” Then eyeing him with a twinkle in my eyes, I say, “You trashed your house, didn’t you?”

He chuckles. “No, that would be juvenile. I usually hit the gym, run on the treadmill, or jog outdoors whenever the weather permits. Exercise is not just a means for me to stay healthy, but it also lets me blow off steam,” he replies.

“I agree, sometimes, that’s the best way to let out pent up frustration. It’s like that whenever I do yoga.”

Christian nods, and gives me an enigmatic grin.

Our orders are brought and we eat in relative silence for a while. The food is so delicious, I savor the taste.

“I know this might sound cliché for a first date, but please tell me about yourself.”

I fork salad into my mouth and chew delicately before answering. “What do you want to know?”

He shrugs. “Everything. Your childhood, your past relationships, your life in general.”

“And you’ll return the favor?” I ask. No way will I pour my life out for him and he’ll keep mute about his.

Grinning, he replies, “Sure.”

I tell him about growing up in Cedar Crest. I talk about my late parents and being a close-knit family before their demise. I also mention falling in love with Georgia and the joy I felt at making it my second home. Lastly, I mention Terrance and how we broke up. Telling him about hitting rock bottom before moving back here is emotional for me, but I pull through.

He smiles and throws my question back at me. “What do you want to know?”

"Everything," I answer.

“I’ll try,” he replies and dabs at his lips with the white cloth napkin. “I grew up in Denver. I lost my parents to a fire when I was ten years old.”

My mouth drops open like a fish out of water. “Oh, I’m sorry to hear that.”

He shrugs. “It happened a long time ago. They took me into foster care, but it didn’t quite suit me. They’d returned me to the orphanage several times before I had had it with the system. I ran away one day and never looked back. I crawled the streets of Denver until an old couple visiting friends in Denver found me and brought me here. By then, I was fifteen and had lost several school years. Undeterred by the number of years wasted and fueled by the love the Gibsons showed me, I went back to school. When I graduated from high school, I lost my foster dad to colon cancer and they diagnosed my foster mother with Alzheimer’s disease. I had to take care of her and fend for myself. I did odd jobs to see myself through college. My foster mom died after I got a degree in business administration.”

I blink away the tears from my eyes, grateful Christian doesn’t notice them as he’s staring down at his empty plate. I understand the sorrow of losing one’s parents, but losing multiple loved ones?

“It was hard starting my business as I had no capital. I didn’t let that stop me, though. I carried on with doing odd jobs until I had enough money to rent a place and, as they say, the rest is history.”

I look away as I blink rapidly. What an inspiring story.

“Please don’t wet those lovely brown eyes of yours for me, beautiful. I might have started in the pits, but I’m no longer there.”

His words bring a smile to my lips and push back the tears. I’m a little embarrassed at being teary-eyed on a date with this handsome hunk.

“I’m sorry.” I offer him a tentative smile.

He returns the smile. “It’s fine. It shows me a side of you I didn’t know.”

I get flushed and he laughs. After that, as the evening wears on, I enjoy a delightful time with Christian. He talks about himself, mostly his work, and I’m enthralled by his business acumen. I listen in rapt attention as he mentions some places he visited for business deals. He gets me to talk about growing up in a loving family and the escapades I had with Debra.

By the time we have dessert and coffee, I know the beautiful date will soon be over. I want it to last forever, but Christian doesn’t give any hint of whether he wants us to continue it somewhere or have another.

As he escorts me out of the restaurant with his hand on the small of my back and almost all the eyes in the place on us, I’m a little disappointed. He helps me into the Ferrari before strolling to the other side. My thoughts are all over the place as I wonder if this is it. I console myself with the memory of him saying he wants us to take things slowly.

Christian pulls up in front of my family house and helps me again with the car door. What a gentleman he is. He walks me to the front door and I hope Debra isn’t listening at the other side. I wouldn’t put it past her.

"Thanks for a wonderful evening," I say immediately as we reach the sturdy wooden door.

---