Page 14 of Sunshine & Sinful

The sassy girl rolls those gray eyes so far into the back of her skull I’m afraid they’ll get stuck. “I live two houses down.” She smirks.

Mimicking her attitude, I roll my eyes, too. “I know. But I care.”

Lily doesn’t respond in words but wraps her small arms around my waist in a brief but tight hug.

I return her embrace with a one-armed squeeze of my own. “Love you, kiddo. I’ll see ya tomorrow.”

“Love you, too. Have fun.” Releasing me, Lily turns and skips to the front door, opening it for us like a butler. Bending at the waist, her hand sweeps toward the exit. “For the lady and her gentleman.”

With my jacket draped over my forearm and Todd’s hand folded in mine, we chuckle at Lily’s adorableness. “Hold on. I gotta get my purse first.” Tugging Todd along, I grab my bag from the entrance table next to the raven and Sunshine’s abandoned key. I haven’t had the heart to move it. The silver sits there, a constant reminder of what happened.

None of that matters now.

I can dwell on that later. Which I will. Because that’s what I do.

Out the front door, we pass by Lily, and Todd helps me down the steps so I don’t embarrass myself by falling in these heels I haven’t worn in years. His Toyota is parked in front of the house. As always, he opens his passenger-side door and waits for me to slide in before he shuts me inside and rounds the hood. I tuck my purse on the floor beside my feet and set my jacket on top. My dress rides up, as I suspected it would, and nearly exposes the black strip of fabric covering my lady parts. As Todd turns over the engine, I click my seatbelt into place and tug the hem of my dress down. It’s not like he hasn’t seen it before, but that’s not the point. We’re on a date. The point isn’t to give him a show before it even starts.

Soft country music flares to life as we navigate through my neighborhood and into the busier parts of town.

Todd reaches his hand across the console to rest on my bare thigh. “You look stunning.” He peeks at me out of the corner of his eye, a small, shy smile kicking up at the edge of his lips.

Warmth skitters through me at his compliment as I toy with the hem of my dress. “Thanks.” I pause to take in his profile. Todd’s not a bad-looking guy. He’s quite handsome in an average, midwestern guy way. His long-sleeved, navy-blue button-up compliments his blue eyes and dirty blond hair. Just enough white-gray peppers his temples, making him appear more distinguished. A fancy silver watch adorns the wrist he uses to steer. His business casual attire suits him well—black trousers, black shoes, styled hair, and a cleanly shaven face. He isn’t so tall that he’s imposing, but he’s not too short either. I also find his little belly cute. It adds to his charm.

As I watch the world fly by out of the passenger-side window, Todd regales me with stories from work. In case you forgot, he’s a dentist.

“I had one kid with such bad overcrowding I had to remove four teeth. He’ll be back next month to remove another two.”

I hum in response, not knowing how to reply. But I listen. About the elderly lady getting dentures and the little boy coming for his first visit. Todd chats animatedly. His hand on my thigh twitches the more excited he becomes.

When we park out front of a glass-paned restaurant, an elderly couple dressed in their Sunday best exit the front doors wearing the biggest smiles. On the sidewalk, the man takes his wife’s oversized purse as she shrugs on her lightweight jacket. Love as clear as day shines in theman’s eyes as he waits patiently for his partner. When she gets her arm stuck, he tosses his head back and laughs before he intervenes so she doesn’t hurt herself. I sigh inwardly at the private moment. It’s the little things that matter most. Sure, the wife probably thinks nothing of it. After forty years of her husband holding her purse or helping her with her jacket, it’s normal for them. But from the outside looking in, it’s much more.

The car door opens, drawing me from my revere.

Todd extends his hand. “Are you ready to give everybody whiplash?” His cheeks pinken, and he looks away, embarrassed by what he said. “Sorry.” He clears his throat, and I smirk as I slide my palm into his and swing my legs from the car. Doing my best to keep my dress from showing too much, I stand with as much grace as I can muster, with my purse slung over my shoulder, and my jacket draped over my forearm.

I pat Todd’s arm as I slip mine through his. “Let’s eat. I’m starving.”

SIX

Seated at a table for two in the middle of the restaurant, I place a white linen napkin on my lap as our waiter fills two wine glasses with a red Todd ordered ahead of time.

“You thought of everything,” I praise, genuinely impressed with his thoughtfulness.

“I know how much you love a sweet red.” Todd lifts his glass and gestures for me to do the same. “To living.”

“And good company,” I add before we clink and sip our wine. Humming in satisfaction, my eyes slide closed in pleasure as I savor the bold flavor of berries, spice, and a hint of vanilla.

“Good, huh?” Todd croaks, and I reopen my eyes to find the man blushing and tugging at the collar of his shirt. He unfastens the top two buttons and audibly breathes.

“You okay?” I ask.

He nods. “Oh, yeah. Never… uh… um… better.” Todd taps two fingers on the edge of the table and inhales deeply, expanding his chest.

Before I get a chance to dig further, our waiter returns. He sets a breadbasket between us and hands us each a menu. They’re heavy and single-sided, with beautiful typeface and gilded accents. From the golden name scrawled across the restaurant's front window to the elegant mood lighting, the rich, earthy colors, and the white tablecloths, this is the finest dining experience I’ve ever had.

The menu has four options for each course and no prices.

I open my mouth to tell Todd we can go somewhere else because this is too much, too soon for our relationship, but his firm gaze cuts me off. It’s like he knows what I’m thinking when he says, “Order whatever you want, beautiful.Anything,” he emphasizes, inclining his head toward my menu as his lip ticks up in the corner.

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