Dark Secrets

Chapter 10

Chapter 10

The next two days went by quickly and, to my relief, with no incidences that involved late night house calls. Nathan and I texted on and off casually, and now that Saturday was finally here, I wondered what he had planned for us.

I felt almost restless as the time closed in until Saturday and the moment when he'd be at my door to pick me up. My nerves were definitely making this morning a lot longer than it would have been otherwise.

The texts we'd exchanged yesterday and earlier in the morning were short and casual but made me feel like he was thinking as much about Saturday as I was. I still didn't know if this was just a hangout or a date. I still wasn't sure if I was ready to date yet, to be honest. I guess I was about to find out.

When I asked Nathan about the dress code, he simply responded with casual cute. Oh boy. What was I supposed to be looking for if he wanted "casual cute" and I wasn't really sure how to translate that into my wardrobe? I started looking through some of the options I had in my closet, and after trying on a slew of things, and making myself feel too over-prepared, I finally settled on something simple. There was a cute floral dress that I thought would be just right for the occasion and not too revealing or formal. I stood there in the mirror looking at the dress and trying to get as much reassurance as I could from the dress before looking at my watch for what felt like the hundredth time.

The seconds were slowly ticking by and the idea that he might be here any moment suddenly made me feel nervous and perhaps a little bit excited too. I did manage to try to calm down so I wouldn't be standing at the door breathing too heavily when I saw him, but it was hard to not feel like my heart was going to jump out of my chest.

And then came the moment that I couldn't help but feel completely overwhelmed when I heard the bell ring. I quickly looked at myself just one more time in the mirror and then walked out into my living room to greet him. When I saw him standing at the door and how handsome he looked, all I could do was feel my heart flutter most intensely. I was feeling so many things right now as I took him in, but one feeling still dominated them all.

He was looking at me with a subtle smile like he was trying to contain his joy at seeing me again. "Cassie...You look... beautiful." He finally said and I couldn't help but blush as I looked at him with a smile.

"Thank you. And you look... handsome." I said, observing his outfit. He had traded in the brown leather jacket for a black one, which I found equally attractive. White shirt underneath, navy blue jeans, and black dress shoes.

"Are you ready to go?" He asked, keeping that same subtle smile on his face as he looked at me.

It was strange how easy it was to speak with him. I could feel my body calming as though it were finally settling in. "I'm ready whenever you are," I replied with that same subtle smile. My heartbeat was beginning to slow as we left the house and walked over to his car. "So... where are we going?"

"Some place you'll like. But first... how about some lunch?" He said to me as he opened the car door for me and I climbed in. The way he was acting was making me feel excited for what was coming, but the mystery of the place was making me feel a bit nervous too. I watched as he got into the car and began driving, and after just a few moments I felt myself starting to wonder if this was all going to be too good to be true.

It had been a long time since I was out with another guy before and in some ways, it did feel like the first time for me. I'd been so focused on being independent and not allowing myself to truly let anyone else in that I'd completely shut down in that sense. For now, though, I just wanted to get to know him and have a good time. And so I sat there... just happy to sit next to him and enjoy the ride. It also gave me time to wonder about all the possible places he might have been taking me to.