Page 15 of Under The Greek's Protection

Chapter 5

Alistair

By the time we leftthe jewelry store, it was starting to get dark. I decided to drive down Lake Shore Drive so Hailey and Devyn could see how beautiful downtown looked when the skyscrapers were illuminated by their lights.

Hailey seemed more at ease. She even let me hold her hand while I drove. I couldn’t help stealing glances at the ring. To me, it’s priceless, and mine is a perfect match. These two rings symbolize our commitment to each other. Nothing and no one will come between what we have. Hailey may not love me now, but I’m going to do everything in my power to earn her love. I used to laugh when I heard people talk about the whole love at first sight shit, but now I’m a firm believer. Maybe it’s the crazy part of my brain that has me reacting this way, and if it is, then so be it. That side of me always knew what was best anyway.

Fifteen minutes later, I was exiting Lake Shore drive, steering us towards our destination. The city was full of life as the cars sped down the avenues, and the pedestrians filled the sidewalks. I made a left turn onto the next block, then pulled into a parking lot.

“Giordano’s” Hailey whispers.

When we were at Navy Pier, she told me how her friends used to tell her how good the deep dish pizza was. They were right, Giordano’s did have the best pizza in the city. Pulling into a space close to the door, I put the car in park, and shut off the engine.

“You said you wanted to try it, so what better place to have dinner,” I tell her, squeezing her hand, before letting it go. I take off my seat belt, and get out, going to the other side to open her and Devyn’s door.

“Alistair, can I have my own pizza? Hailey likes to eat mushrooms on hers and I think they’re disgusting,” Devyn says, turning up her nose.

I snicker at her expression. “Yes, you can. They have personal pan pizzas and you can put anything you want on it.”

“Great,” she sighs with relief as she walks ahead of us. Hailey walks beside me with my hand on the small of her back.

Once inside, we’re swiftly taken to a booth. Devyn slides into one side, while Hailey sits on the other, and I sit next to her, with us facing the door. The place isn’t crowded, but there’s enough people here for me to scan their faces. Before Zar, Xander, and I moved to Dallas, we had enemies here too, so you can never be too careful.

“Welcome to Giordano’s. I’m Fiona, can I start you guys off with something to drink,” our waitress, Fiona, offers.

“Devyn, what do you want to drink,” I ask, picking up the menu.

“I’ll have a root beer,” she replies.

“I got you,” Fiona says, writing on her pad. “And for you ma’am?”

“I’ll just have a glass of water with lemon,” Hailey states.

“Okay, would you like some extra lemon on the side?”

“Yes, please”

“Great, and you sir,” Fiona lastly asks.

“I’ll have a bottle of Dos Equis, please,” I tell her.

Fiona nods as she writes our drink orders. “I’ll be right back with those and to take your food orders as well.”

“Thank you” I oblige before she walks away.

“This place is amazing. The food smells delicious and I haven’t even tried it yet,” Hailey says, glancing over the menu. “Devyn, do you know what you want?”

“Yes, I want a personal deep dish pizza with pepperoni.”

Hailey turns to me and inquires, “We can share a pizza if you want, that is unless you like to eat anchovies or pineapples on yours, then I will get a personal one too. Those are a no-no for me.”

I chuckle, wrapping my arm around her shoulders. Hailey stiffens, but relaxes. “Those are a no-no for me as well. Other than those two, I pretty much like everything else. So, you go ahead and order for us.”

“Okay, cool. We can get pepperoni, Italian sausage, and mushrooms. How’s that sound?”

I caress her shoulder as I lean over and reply, “Sounds good to me.”

After Fiona brought out drinks back, she took our food orders. None of us wanted appetizers or salads to go with our meals. Hailey and Devyn said they didn’t want to get semi full off the extra food and wanted to wait to taste the pizza.

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