Page 25 of Beautiful Beginning

I reached my hands out and said, “And a vase.” I laughed. “Thank you.” I placed it on the kitchen counter and smiled.

Nia and Lauren gushed, “See, look at that.” They stared me down without revealing all I put them through before he arrived.

Lauren shouted, “Bring me a snack back,” as the door closed behind us.

“Where are we headed?” Hill Mount had decent options. Many I hadn’t tried myself because my pockets stayed thin. Like I told the community members, best way to save was to eliminate eating out. And that’s what I did.

“You’ll see when we get there.”

I rolled my shoulders. “Oh, a surprise, I like that.”

He pulled me to his side in the middle of the sidewalk and said, “And I like you.” But his eyes didn’t rise with his lips. He looked like he could use a nap.

“I like you too.” Then I rubbed his face. “Are you too tired though? I know this has been a long day.”

He closed his eyes and when he re-opened them he appeared more refreshed. A nice smile on his face. “And this is the best way to end my long day.” But before he could walk away he yawned. “My bad. I need time to adjust to all this.”

I nodded. “I get it. But like you told me when we were at Speak Out, if I need to get you home early, I will.”

He wrapped me in an embrace and said, “I appreciate that.”

Before we were a mile from the apartment, Chaz’s fingers tapped across my thigh. Although his hands were on me, it seemed his thoughts were distant. Far away from the closeness we shared in the car.

“What are you thinking about?” I asked.

“Honestly?”

The thought of anything but honesty made me think back to the last guy I dated. The one who was everything but. He’d lie about the day of the week if there wasn’t visual proof. I wanted nothing less but honesty, ever, even when it hurt. “Please.”

“I was thinking about this new role, and how I can be effective. How thepoliticscould stand in the way of anything progressing.” In the week since campaigning and assuming his role, his face looked to age a year, at least. His eyes were weary, and his smile didn’t hold the promise and vibrancy it did when we met. “And if I can’t make this work, what does that look like for my future. Where I plan to stand on the outside and effect change?”

“All that, huh?” I snickered. “I’m not sure I can offer valid advice since I am far outside anywhere you are on politics. But I can say that this could be an example of what needs to change. Use it to collect data points that will strengthen your stance.”

He had a weak smile on his face. And although it wasn’t the one I saw that day we shared a coffee, it still made my insides shout with joy.

“Optimism is an underrated trait.” His hand smoothed along my leg. “There’s a balance of optimism and pessimism in the world. But if it was off-balance in the favor ofglass half full,we’d all be in a better place.”

It wasn’t something I thought about often. My outlook on life was concrete, and I didn’t consider the fact that I wore rose-colored glasses. I also didn’t dwell on those who wore a lighter shade. Those who didn’t see things as I did.

“I’d imagine there’d be less need to compromise.”

“That part.” His haughty laugh filled the car as he pulled it into a spot.

Not one I’d seen before. But the name emblazoned on the restaurant in front of us was something I was familiar with. Very familiar with. I didn’t mention it as we walked side-by-side. As the hostess opened the door and greeted us with a warm smile.

The dim lighting and candles on the tables made me thankful for the dress I plucked from my closet. “Dinner for two?” the woman asked, and Chaz responded with a head nod. “Right this way,” she said with a wink.

Chaz pulled out my seat, and as I settled the woman placed a menu in front of me. Around us, there weren’t a ton of familiar faces from Hillside. In fact, many of the people seated around us weren’t college-aged at all. They could pass for parents of the students, faculty and staff, or regular working adults in the city.

“In the four years I’ve lived in Hill Mount I have never been to this place.”

A wide grin graced Chaz’s face. “I hope I can continue doing things for you nobody has ever done for you before.”

I found something that sent a warm tingle between my thighs more than a soft kiss to the side of my neck. I didn’t think it was possible for words to turn me on the way they did.But damn.

“You’re saying all the right things.” As my cheeks heatedI tried to focus on the menu instead of the lust I saw staring back at me. I didn’t want to overheat. Pass out in the middle of the restaurant. Imagine my first time being there and I miss the chance to taste the food I heard so much about. Steak, lobster, risotto, then there were the things I couldn’t pronounce and didn’t recognize. Our café could never. The other restaurants in the city, the ones I did visit, could try. But they wouldn’t have the same results. Not the beautifully plated dish that sat at the table beside me. The sauce drizzled ever so carefully along the edge of the dish. The aroma did something to my senses, and before I could close my mouth I felt it water.

I swallowed before asking, “What do you want to do after you leave Hillside?”

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