Espionage

Isaac-Chapter 12

Isaac glanced over the menu but didn't look very long before he decided what he wanted. Sausages with eggs, toast, and orange juice. He didn't really care what he ate. Food was food.

"Ooh," Grace said as she smiled. "They have my favorite breakfast item here."

"Which is...?" Isaac asked with interest as he leaned across the table to try and get a better look at what she was talking about.

"Belgian Waffles with strawberries. I've gotta try it."

"And a cup or two of coffee," Isaac reminded.

Grace snorted with laughter, looking more and more awake as the seconds ticked by. "Right. How are you so awake right now? And don't tell me you're gonna eat a whole horse again like you did the other night. I don't think I've ever seen someone down as many burgers as you did in half an hour."

"To answer your first question, I'm used to having to wake up early all the time, so I guess I make it a conscious choice to feel awake. And second, I'm definitely not as hungry as before, but just a warning, I love sharing. You better not turn your back when you're eating something with me."

She smiled. "I'll keep that in mind."

After a few minutes, the waitress brought them their food and Grace started happily sipping on her coffee. She looked so adorable. This date was already so fun.

"This is so good!" Grace moaned as she took a bite of her Belgian Waffle. "Here, since you love sharing so much, have a bite."

Isaac grinned as he reached out with his fork, only for Grace to pull her plate back at the last second with her own grin on her face.

"Ha! I just pranked the prank king."

He rolled his eyes and burst into laughter. "Okay, you got me there. You don't have to share with me, but do you want one of my sausages? They're super delicious."

Her expression almost filled with guilt but she still smiled as she slowly stuck her fork out, eyeing him warily as if he was just about to pull his plate back. But he just watched her calmly with a blank expression. He wanted to lure her into a false sense of safety and then strike.

She stabbed the piece of sausage, almost looking surprised that he let her. As she started to bring her fork to her mouth, Isaac grabbed her hand and shoved her fork into his own mouth instead, moaning in pleasure just for the sake of gloating.

"Gosh, Cooper!" she giggled. "I guess I deserved that. But now you need to go find me a new fork."

"What, you scared of a little Cooper germs?" he teased, his grin becoming even wider. This was fun. This was a lot of fun. Grace was a lot of fun to flirt with.

She sighed, rolling her eyes at him once again. "I guess I have to prove you wrong now." She took a bite of her waffle using that same fork he had just stuck in his own mouth, almost as if she made it her own mission to prove him wrong. "See? Not scared of any Cooper germs."

Isaac laughed and shook his head. Grace was definitely something else.

"Okay," Grace started after she took another swig of coffee. "Are you ever going to tell me what this reconnaissance mission is all about?"

Isaac grimaced, pushing his food around on his plate with his fork as he searched for what to say. "There actually wasn't any reconnaissance mission. That was just a ruse to lure you here so I could take you out."

Silence stretched between them, a little too long, actually, so he looked up and saw something flicker across Grace's eyes before it disappeared completely.

Finally, she said, "So all this was just so you could take me out on a date to breakfast?"

"Yep, sounds about right."

Grace rolled her eyes but she still smiled which he took as a good sign. Maybe she wouldn't storm out after all. "Why can't you just ask me out on a date like a normal person?"

"I thought you would've said no for sure!"

A soft smile pulled up on her lips as she stirred the strawberries around on her plate. "I'm not so sure that I would have said no," she said quietly, glancing up briefly to meet his gaze. His heart sped up uncontrollably, his hopes soaring high that he was actually making progress with her.

"Does that mean you want to continue this date after breakfast?" he asked, trying not to get his hopes up too much. It had already been a stretch trying to get her here in the first place.

"Do we have to do anything for the mission?"

Of course she would ask that first. With everything he's learned about her, he knew that she definitely seemed like a stickler for the rules type of girl.

"Nope, nothing for the mission. We're waiting, remember?"

Grace grinned across the table at him as she took another bite of her waffle. "Sure, I think that sounds like a lot of fun."