Page 19 of Wreck Me

"It was fine. I have about thirty minutes left before I have class so I wanted to say hi. How’s studying? Any word from the resumes you sent out?”

“Not a peep,” she responded solemnly as she cast gaze downward.

I caught her chin, lifting her face and forcing her to look at me. “Youwillhear back from someone,” I told her with certainty. Itwouldhappen. Someone would take a chance on her and see how amazing she was.

Isla offered me a small smile before turning her face away from my grasp and returning her attention to the textbook in front of her. She felt distant today, a little shut down. I didn’t like it.

“Do you want to get dinner tonight, Starlight? Carbs have been calling my name, and I just got paid. Let me take my girl out.” As if on cue, my stomach rumbled, so I reached down to pat it, tossing a smirk her way as I did.

She laughed and rolled her eyes at me, but couldn’t resist the temptation of carbs and a night out. Her head began nodding, accepting my invitation as my smile widened.

* * *

Dishes clinked togetheras restaurant-goers all around us enjoyed their meals. Fresh baked bread and fragrant scents of garlic and sauces filled the room, and my mouth watered with the promise of delicious Italian food. This place was far out of my budget, but tonight I was feeling spendy. I had yet to treat Isla to a proper date, so this had been several weeks coming. The price tag was worth it, even if I’d have to figure out a way to budget my grocery trips for the rest of the pay period.

“Are you sure this isn’t too much?” she asked as she looked around the restaurant and tucked her napkin onto her lap.

“Not at all. Order anything you want, Starlight. Treat yourself.”

Looking over the menu, lobster ravioli in a garlic butter sauce immediately caught my eye, but as I skimmed over the price, I kept searching the menu. I may be indulging tonight, but thirty-two dollars for my dish alone was a bit much.

“So what looks good?” I asked, deciding I would get the cheese manicotti instead of the stuffed pillows of lobster heaven, even though my eyes had wandered back to it twice now.

The corners of Isla’s mouth curled up into a smile and she triumphantly said, “The lobster ravioli.”

My heart ping-ponged in my chest and my eyes must have widened because she started laughing almost immediately after reaching across the table to grab my hand. “Oh my god, Caleb, I’m just kidding! I got you, though. You should get it. Lobster ravioli sounds delicious.”

My eyes narrowed. She liked to play dirty. “How did you know that’s what I was thinking?”

She shrugged before peering down at her menu again. “Call it intuition. Or call it a lucky guess. I’m getting penne pasta with pesto.”

Waiting for our server seemed to take an excruciatingly long time, my stomach turning into an empty cavern the longer we sat. It took several attempts, but I finally managed to make eye contact with our server and he made his way to us, pulling his server book from his apron as he came up to our table.

“Hi guys, my name’s Tanner. I’ll be your server today.” He offered me a nod before turning to Isla. My blood heated as I watched his eyes flare and he stood up straighter, his eyes volleying all over her body while she looked over the wine list, completely oblivious to the attention she was getting.

My hands curled into fists beside me as a wave of fury washed over me. “Hey, man,” I said a little too loudly and with a little too much spite behind it. I felt Isla’s eyes on me as I continued staring daggers intoTanner, his eyes still glued to her.

I cleared my throat and his eyes pivoted to where I was sitting, doing the best I could to hold the rage inside of me. Narrowing my eyes, I glared at him, watching as he plastered a fake smile to his face as he addressed me.

“Are you two ready to order, or would you like me to get you started on some drinks?”

Isla’s hand found mine across the table again and she laced her fingers through mine, squeezing in reassurance.

“We’re ready,” she stated. Her eyes locked on me as she said what I had been thinking but couldn’t vocalize. “I’ll take the penne with pesto and a house salad on the side, vinaigrette dressing please. I’m fine with water as my drink. And he’ll have…”

“Lobster ravioli,” I gritted out, my eyes never leaving Isla’s even though I was speaking to our server. Fucker deserved to be ignored.

“And to drink, Sir?”

“Water is good for me, too.”

“Excellent,” he stated, clapping his server book shut. “I’ll get your order with the chef and be back with your waters and some fresh bread.”

He scampered off, leaving Isla and I alone in our own little world. Our hands were still locked together, eyes never wavering as the candlelight centerpiece flickered between us.

“Lobster ravioli, huh?” she teased, giving my hand another playful squeeze.

“You made it sound irresistible. Don’t worry, if you’re a good girl, I’ll give you a bite.”

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