Page 23 of His Secret Gift

“Oh, my god!” I hear her say for the second time as we pass the giant jellyfish tank. “Are those real?”

“They are,” the host says.

“Wow.” She stops and stares, with her fingers on her mouth. “I’ve never seen so many of them altogether like that.”

She has an innocence that I find adorable.

I let her continue to linger, but I note where the menus were put down for us, and I mouth “Thank you.”

“Well, anyway.” Her head shakes. “Sorry, that was just tantalizing.”

“No worries.”

We then go over to our table, and I pull out her green chair for her.

“Oh, thank you.”

“You’re very welcome.” I then slide into the chair on the other side of the table.

When the new server comes over, I order another martini while she gets the souffle.

Then, when my drink arrives, she giggles.

“What’s the matter?” I ask after taking a sip from the side.

“No, nothing. I just—I was expecting an appetizer or something. You went right in with gin.”

There’s that innocence again.It’s charming.

“Do you want to try it?” I move my glass towards her.

She bites down on her lip again. “I’ve never had gin.”

“Really? Oh, it’s delicious. Well, at least I think so.”

I slide it over to her, and she slurps up a little before coughing.

Wincing, she says, “That’s awful! It tastes like Christmas trees!”

I just laugh before bringing it back over to me. “It grows on you, I guess.”

She pats her tongue with a napkin while squealing.

“Okay, now you’re just being dramatic,” I joke.

Her eyes are squinted into crescent moons. “No, I’m not.”

I drink some more and swallow it with ease. “So, you’re not a big liquor fan, I take it.”

“What gave that away?” she quips.

I chuckle. “I guess I can just read your mind.”

After taking her hundredth drink of water, she seems to calm down a bit.

“Are you just not a big drinker at all then?” I’m not judging at all. I’m just curious.

One of the corners of her mouth turns down. “I mean, I like wine. That’s what I was drinking tonight.”

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