Twice

XVI

They didn't go out the following evening, because of already made plans on Stevie's part, but they did agree on a date night. In the morning of the said day, Stevie received a bouquet of flowers, with a card, which simply said, 

'Can't wait to see you, 

Lindsey x'

Naturally, she acted very girlish about it. It's one thing getting flowers from the fans or on certain occasions from her friends, but it's a whole different story, when they're from the man she had been in love with for the better part of her life.

If she was honest with herself, Stevie was really nervous. It was just Lindsey, she kept repeating to herself. Even so, it had been quite some time since the last time she went on a real date. She also understood that this was pretty much their last chance and they could not screw it up, because if they did, they would be over for good.

"Karen!" Stevie yelled from her walk-in closet. "Karen, could you please come in here for a moment?"

"What's the emergency?" Karen asked, walking in.

"How do I look?" Stevie turned around, facing her assistant.

"Um... how do I put it. Like always?" Stevie looked at Karen pointedly, who then added. "You always were black."

"Right, but that's not the point. Do I look... I don't know, fat?"

Karen started laughing, as she shook her head. "Stop worrying. It's Lindsey, I'm quite sure he's already impressed. And no, you don't look fat. You look gorgeous."

Looking at herself in the mirror again, Stevie seemed to be analyzing her appearance from every angle. "I mean, if this was good enough for red carpet..."

"Yes, it will be good enough for your boyfriend as well."

"He's not my boyfriend."

"Yet." Karen smirked and then left Stevie alone.

After only another short hour later, Lindsey was pressing the doorbell. Taking in a deep breath, Stevie opened the door and they smiled at each other, as she let him through. 

"You look lovely." He complimented, a hand on her waist, as he leaned in to press a kiss to her cheek.

"Thank you. I'll only take a minute." 

Lindsey nodded and followed her, looking around. "Where is your bodyguard?"

"Karen is not my bodyguard and she left for the night. I figured, I wasn't going to need her assistance."

"Yeah, you're in good hands." He half-smiled, leaning against the doorway, staying out of the bedroom for some reason, watching as Stevie gathered her things and lastly, wrapped a shawl around her shoulders. 

"We're good to go."

Saying goodbye to her beloved pet, Stevie locked the door to her luxurious apartment, then turned to walk down the hallway, her hand accidentally brushing Lindsey's, the two of them glancing at each other briefly, but resisting the urge to clasp their hands.

Once they were in the car, with their seat belts fastened, Stevie asked. "Where are we going to? I hope I'm not overdressed or maybe underdressed."  

"You look beautiful, Steph, you don't have a thing to worry about. And we're going to this oceanside restaurant I've heard about. A friend of mine said it's really nice."

Their journey was relatively short, Stevie expressing her admiration for the place, when they got out of the car and walked towards it, the exterior - beautiful. Entering the restaurant, they were led to a table, which Lindsey had made a reservation for the day before. 

Having ordered drinks first, the two then scanned through the menu, deciding on what they'd want to order and almost as soon as they did, Lindsey's phone started ringing.

"I'm sorry, I forgot to turn it off." He took his phone out of the inside pocket of his jacket. 

"Who is it?" Stevie asked, seeing his expression change.

"Uh, Stella. I'll be right back." He excused himself again and went outside to speak.

Returning a short moment later, he was trying to look as normal as he best could, Stevie having a feeling that something was up.

"What happened?"

"Nothing bad happened, but Stella says she isn't feeling too good."

"Oh, Linds, you have got to go home then." Stevie said, worried. She loved his children.

"No, no, she'll be okay. I asked for Leelee, told her to keep an eye on her sister and that I'll be back a few hours later. I'm not going to ruin our date." He reached for her hand across the table.

"I appreciate you saying that, but it's your baby, Lindsey. I'll be fine, we'll see each other some other night." Seeing how conflicted he was, she added. "If you want, I can go with you. If Stella is really okay, then we can have a glass or two at your place."

"You sure?"

"Yes, now come on. Let's go." 

Thanking her several times, Lindsey payed for the drinks they only got to sip on and then they were out of the restaurant and in his car again, as he sped of back home.

Walking through the front door, they were met by Leelee, who was about to carry a cup of hot tea to her younger sister. "Stevie? Why are you here?"

"I, uh..." At first she took it the wrong way, beginning to search for a good excuse in her head, but then Leelee came up to greet her with a hug. "Your father and I accidentally met each other at this restaurant, I saw him rushing out and asked him if everything was okay, he mentioned Stella, so I wanted to come along and make sure she's fine."

Leelee wasn't buying it. She saw Lindsey getting ready to leave and now, there stood Stevie, obviously having been ready for a night out and they just happened to bump into each other. Despite her suspicions, she let it slide.

"I'll go see how she's doing." Lindsey said, jogging up the stairs. Entering his daughter's room, he saw her clearly sick in bed. "Oh, honey."

"Daddy, you came back."

"Of course I did, sweetheart." He sat down on the edge of the bed, running a hand through Stella's hair. "I think you're running a fever. I'll be right back."

While Lindsey went to get the thermometer, Stevie climbed up the stairs and went to see Stella, who's little face lit up at the sight of her. 

"Hi, Stevie."

"Hey, sweet girl." She smiled, approaching the bed. "Not feeling so good, are you, huh?"

"No." Stella shook her head. "Will you sit with me?"

"Of course." 

"My head hurts." The girl said.

"I'm sure Daddy has some medicine for you." Stevie made herself comfortable and pulled Stella to her chest.

Lindsey then returned, handing Stevie the thermometer, as he too sat down. "Where did you catch a cold? You were just fine in the morning."

"You know how kids are, Linds. Playing outside, maybe she drank something cold and that's that - now we have a sick little girl on our hands." Stevie was hugging Stella close to herself and Lindsey had to remind himself, she wasn't the mother of his child, no matter how well the role suited her.

A few minutes later, their guess was confirmed as Stella definitely had a fever. "Linds, go look through whatever medicine you have, I'm sure there's something for lowering the temperature. I'll go ask Leelee for a towel and fill a bowl with lukewarm water to wash off the sweat. We should also keep her hydrated." 

"Okay." He nodded and got up, Stevie following after him, once she made sure Stella would be alright by herself for some time. 

Once they were out of the room, Lindsey grasped Stevie by the hand and pulled her into a hug. "You're amazing, you know that?"

She smiled, pulling back slightly to give him a brief kiss on the lips.