Page 17 of Becoming His Muse
They were hooked up at the final line, and Elion watched as Olani looked over the edge of the platform.
“Do you want to try this one by yourself?” he asked.
Turning, Olani approached him, wrapping her arms around his waist. Looking up at him, she bit her bottom lip and shook her head. “I’m still nervous,” she said.
He refrained from smirking because he was sure she more so wanted him to go down with her again than she actually was nervous, but he in no way minded.
“Well, we can’t have that,” he replied, wrapping his arm around her waist. When hers came to his neck, he picked her up, and again, they were soaring.
This line was longer than the other two. There was more to see, but he didn’t see any of it. He was too engrossed in watching the interest that overtook Olani’s eyes as they passed one tree oranother. As she saw a cluster of flowers or a group of bushes with colorful buds. When her eyes came back to him, and she caught him watching her, he decided to tease her to lighten whatever tension had just blanketed them.
“You don’t look so nervous to me.”
“Maybe I just wanted you to carry me,” she countered.
“So that means I could let you go,” Elion returned with a smirk.
“No,” she told him, legs tightening around his waist. “That’s not what it means.”
He chuckled as she glared at him playfully for a moment before laughing as well. Her fingers went to the nape of his neck, and he found his eyes dropping to her lips. As he went to lean in, their speed began to decelerate, and he looked over her shoulder to see that they were almost to the other side.
When his feet touched the ground, they were unhooked and driven back to the front. Elion checked his watch and saw that it was a little after seven. He knew he shouldn’t have, knew that the rules of the site were specific, but they weren’t there to catch him.
“I know we aren’t supposed to do this yet, but do you want to have dinner with me?” he inquired.
“I won’t tell if you won’t,” Olani responded as they walked out of the entrance. “You choose, I’ll follow you there.”
Elion walked her to her car, which wasn’t far from his. He’d passed an Italian restaurant on his way to meet her and figured they could go there. He pulled out of the parking lot with Olani behind him.
Olani pulled into the parking lot of the little Italian restaurant behind Elion. She was glad he’d asked her to dinner because she wasn’t ready to leave his company yet, and well, Olani owned the site, not that he knew that, so she could do whatever she pleased as far as bending a rule went. She’d honestly been about to ask him if he wanted to do a few more zip lines just to spend more time with him.
He’d found two empty parking spaces next to each other, and she pulled into one of them as he did the same. She grabbed her purse and opened her door. Elion was coming around to her driver’s side as she got out.
She placed her hand in his when he held it out to her, and she locked her door as they made their way inside the restaurant. They were seated quickly, and she thanked the host as he placed menus in front of them.
After reviewing her menu for a few minutes, Olani decided what she wanted and placed it down. When their server came to the table, they gave their drink and food order before she turned her attention to Elion.
“So, I’m assuming that you’d been zip lining before,” she sparked up the conversation.
“Once for Clara’s birthday. We spent the whole day there doing all fifteen lines they had.”
“That’s a lot. I don’t think I’d be able to do more than six or so.”
“I’m sure you could,” Elion responded. “I’d carry you the entire time if you wanted,” he finished with a smirk.
Olani found herself laughing, but she was sure she’d be able to manage a few more zip lines if they went down them the way they had the first three. When their instructor told her they could go down together, it helped curb some of her nervousness. She hadn’t expected Elion to pick her up and for her to essentially sit on his lap as they went down.
It wasn’t until she asked him not to let go and he assured her he wouldn’t that she was able to relax. Something about the way he said it, the finality in his voice, and the way he’d pulled her closer made her feel as if nothing could go wrong.
Their server returned with their drinks, and she placed her straw in her lemonade before stirring it a bit. She took a drink before leaning back in her chair.
“You will be happy to know that our owl mug is serving its purpose well,” she informed Elion.
She’d allowed it to sit for an entire day and washed it out. Since then, she’d been having her morning tea in it. The little mug was slowly becoming Olani’s favorite. It was the first thing she’d ever made of clay, and she had fun making it. The fact that she felt as if she and Elion connected while creating it was a plus.
Ultimately, he’d been the only person she enjoyed going on a date with. After giving the doctor a second chance and not hearing from him, she decided that it was for the best. She was enjoying getting to know Elion. More surveys continued to come in, and while she looked at them, she marked a few of them in the event she decided to contact them. At the moment, she had no desire to do so, and Olani wasn’t sure if that was a good or bad thing.
“I’m glad you like it,” Elion responded. “We can make another at some point, and you’ll have a pair.”
