Page 55 of A Whirlwind of Color (The Light to My Darkness 2)

I stared at him. Our country club? I knew he was wealthy. But I wasn’t exactly used to the idea that I was wealthy. My parents did well enough to pay my tuition. But this? I looked around the room again. I really owned a part of this?

James walked over to the table and pulled my chair out for me.

"No one's ever pulled out a chair for me before." I sat down and stared at him as he took the seat across from me. I was experiencing a lot of firsts today. And I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t enjoying it. Really I just wanted to hear him say I was beautiful over and over again. A girl could get used to that.

"Then you haven't been dating the right people."

Dating. James and I weren’t technically dating. We were married. But in a lot of ways this felt like a first date. Not that I had ever had a date like this before. More like a first date from my dreams. “And I've never been to a country club before. Do we come here often?"

“Not as often as we used to.”

“Why?”

“Life I guess.” He stared at me intently. “But I’m going to start prioritizing us again. I’m going to put you first. Always.”

He was right before. I had no idea what it was like to be wooed. Because this felt amazing. I truly felt like I was the center of his attention. It was easy to feel that way when his eyes never left mine.

Just at that moment the waiter walked in and hurried over to the table. "Good evening. It is my pleasure to be serving you tonight, Mr. and Mrs. Hunter. It’s so good to see you both again."

I glanced at his name tag. Jerrod. I was about to tell Jerrod that we weren't married and then I realized it wasn’t true. I was James’ wife. He was my hus

band. We were so much more than a first date.

Jerrod started telling us about their daily specials but I couldn't stop staring into James’ eyes. It was impossible to look away. There was so much love there. And I didn’t care if I didn’t deserve it. I wanted it. Desperately. Jerrod uncorked a bottle of wine and poured us each a glass while he was talking.

After Jerrod was done his spiel, James said we would need a minute to look at the menu. I skimmed through mine, trying to find the cheapest thing as Jerrod left the room. Most of the meals were as much as the used textbooks I always bought for classes. I didn't feel comfortable letting James pay for this. Or…I guess we were paying for it? I shook my head. Even though we were married, it was pretty clear that it was all his money. I couldn’t make him pay for this when I was planning on leaving him at the end of the night. Am I still planning on that?

"Penny?" He reached over and grabbed my hand.

"James, I've never had food that costs this much.” I picked up my glass with my free hand and took a sip of the wine.

“Actually, you have.”

An exasperated laugh escaped my lips. “But I don’t remember. You told me how we met. You told me that you fell in love with me. But you never explained why, James. Why me? I’m incredibly…uninteresting.”

“That’s entirely untrue. I find you fascinating.”

The way he said it made me blush. I was suddenly very aware of the fact that he had already seen me naked. He had already had me in the most intimate way. I didn’t remember, but he did. He knew me. He knew my body. He knew everything about me. I took another sip of wine. I felt so nervous under his gaze.

"So why is it that you don't feel like you're interesting?" he asked.

I gulped and looked up at him. It was because of Austin and all the times that he made me feel insignificant. "Honestly, you're the first person that's ever made me feel like I'm the only girl in the room. I'm not used to feeling like I matter."

Jerrod came in to take our order. I looked back down at the menu. I scanned the options for something that wouldn't get stuck in my teeth. James reached his hand out and grabbed mine again.

"Penny, the crab cakes are wonderful here."

I breathed a sigh of relief. He truly did know me. I loved crab cakes. I smiled, relieved that I didn't have to choose. "That sounds perfect."

James ordered for us. When Jerrod left the room, James put his elbows on the table and leaned in slightly. "When we're together, I can assure you that I don't see anyone else in the room. You always have my undivided attention."

"That must have made grading other student's speeches quite difficult." I wasn’t sure what made me say it. But it seemed like it would be true. I still didn’t understand how I could have possibly dated a professor. It seemed outlandish.

James laughed. "It did. It was almost impossible."

His words should have comforted me, but all I seemed to be able to focus on was when he had said, "when we're together." I was reminded of his ex-wife. His pumpkin. He was clearly talking to her this morning. He still loved her. I could feel it. I didn’t have his undivided attention. And I didn’t understand why he was lying. I was giving him an out. Why was he fighting for us if I wasn’t even the one that he wanted?

James reached in his pocket, pulled out a penny, and slid it across the table. "A penny for your thoughts?"

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