Page 80 of Reel Love

“I thought you might.”

We finish dinner, and Stevens insists we share a tiramisu. I generally don’t eat dessert, but I can’t break that fact to him whenhe looks at me instead of the waiter and says, “She needs to try your tiramisu.”

When the waiter asks, “Two servings?” Stevens holds my gaze and says, “We’ll share one.”

The waiter leaves and arrives with the dessert. We stare at one another and smile the goofiest grins.

“So?” he asks cryptically before taking a bite of tiramisu and placing it in his mouth.

“So, what?”

“What’s the verdict?”

I’m so satisfied between the effects of the delicious pasta and the decadent dessert, my half-glass of wine, and the way Stevens keeps looking at me, I don’t even know if I can process his question.

“The verdict?”

He sits up and crosses his arms across his chest. “Was this a date? Or was it two friends finally connecting after months of cultivating an online relationship?”

I don’t hesitate. I’m not coy. I’ve waited too long for him already. “This was definitely a date.”

“Good to know.” His smile is soft and promising.

Stevens pays the bill and we walk out, side by side, into the cool evening air. His hand brushes my lower back. The sun has set and the sound of the waves hitting the shore provides the perfect soundtrack.

“How did you get here tonight?” he asks.

“I had one of my drivers bring me.”

“Ah, yes. Your drivers.”

“Are you mocking me?”

His face grows serious. “Not at all. You’ve earned all the drivers and cooks and cleaners and brick walls who protect you from rabid fans.”

“That’s what Brigitte says.”

“She’s right.”

“She’s also the one who told me to say yes to a date with you.”

“She’s very right.”

The confidence oozing off him right now feels like a drug. He may think he’s awkward. And I have experienced that side of him, but he’s also incredibly strong and self-assured at times. Never cocky or arrogant. It’s a rarity. Usually when I meet men like him, they’re so full of themselves there isn’t room for another person in their self-focused universe. Not that I’ve ever met a man like Stevens. I’m quite sure I haven’t.

“What else did Brigitte tell you to do?” he asks.

“Hmmm? Oh. Nothing, besides to get my sleep when I had a big day ahead.”

He chuckles. “So, no advice on the goodnight kiss?”

“None. But I think we both knew I could make that call on my own.”

He reaches out and brushes my curls away from my face. They spring back when his fingers move away.

“Let’s grab a cart from the resort,” he suggests. “I’ll drive you home.”

My brow lifts.

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