The House of Carrington

~Chapter Six~

                                                                 *****

It was a warm spring night in Dallas and particularly humid. It felt like a sauna. Shayne put the air conditioner on in the car, when he saw me fanning myself. There was a car accident, that caused a traffic jam. We were stuck in traffic at 7 p.m. when the movie was starting.

My cellphone buzzed.

Skyler ~ Where are you? Astrid and I are here, and the movie is about to start.

Sabine ~ We are stuck in traffic. There was a car accident ahead of us. Go ahead and watch the movie. I don't know what time we'll get there. Can you forward me the movie barcode for them to scan when we get there?

Skyler ~ OK, I just emailed it to u. I hope u aren't too late. . .

Sabine ~ I hope not either. Thanks for the email.

"That was Sky, texting to see where we were. I told him we were stuck in traffic and for him and Astrid to go ahead and watch the movie." I informed Shayne.

"Oh, he's Sky, now? Good, that you told them to start watching the movie. Who knows how long we'll be in this debacle." He blew out a breath and stretched for a second, letting go of the steering wheel.

"Yes, Sky, is what I call him sometimes. Do you have a problem with that? I knew peace with you would only last for so long." I spoke with irritation.

"You don't have to be so touchy. I really don't care what you call him. He's your boyfriend." He sounded annoyed.

"Thank you for recognizing that fact. I'm not touchy, I'm just upset that we are missing my date, that you invited yourself on." I let out a loud huff.

With his jaw clinched, Shayne gave me a stare that was intense. "If you didn't want Astrid and I to come on your date—you should have told me, before now. Then you and I wouldn't be stuck in this car in this traffic, together."

I realized, I should have said something this morning and not now. I think that I actually hurt Mr. Arrogant's feelings. I noticed that there is a certain vulnerability about him, that I haven't seen before.

"Shayne, I'm sorry. It's fine that we were going on a double date. It's not every day, that a girl gets to go on a date with her new boyfriend and her boss." I leaned toward him and turned his face to look at me, as I peered into his grey eyes. My breath hitched, from the spark of touching his face, and the way he regarded me with his eyes.

I tried to act as unaffected, as possible at that moment. Talk about awkward.

Shayne cleared his throat and turned on the radio for a distraction. "We should get to the movie theater soon. I'm sure Skyler is missing you, and Astrid is excited about our first date." As enthusiastic as he sounded, his smile never reached his eyes.

I got the impression that he was trying to convince us both.

*****

Finally, we reached the movie theater, ran inside, and had the barcode scanned. We made it inside to our seats for the last hour of the movie.

I ended up sitting next to Shayne, since Astrid was sitting next to Skyler. The server handed us menus. I wasn't hungry and Shayne ordered a beer.

I think he and I had not planned on this night going in this direction. I certainly had no clue, that I would be thrilled to be sitting next to him. I had better pull myself together—this is Shayne Carrington of all people. This is a dream and I'm going to wake up. It will all be a funny story. . .I hope.

The movie ended and I went over to Skyler, as Shayne walked toward Astrid. "Glad you two made it for part of the evening." Skyler gave me a hug.

"I owe you another first date, Astrid. I'm so sorry." Shayne was very apologetic.

Astrid waved away his apology. "It wasn't your fault, you can't control traffic. Mr. Pennington was great company and I enjoyed talking to him."

Astrid actually looked over at Skyler and blushed. "Thank you for picking me up. I had a nice evening."

Well, wonders never cease. . . she didn't seem like the shy girl, that I remembered from Bianca's wedding. I think she has a crush on Sky. This has really been some kind of day!

I noted the taken aback expression on Shayne's face. "Yes, thank you Skyler for saving the day. This is Astrid's first time in the U.S. and she is looking forward to seeing the sights."

Skyler's eyes lit up. "I know lots of places that you would love to see. I'm not trying to take over, but anytime you're available I'd be happy to show you around Dallas. We could always double date again."

Did I just hear my boyfriend offer to show Astrid around Dallas? What just happened, did he mention double dating with Shayne and Astrid, again?

I know this is some kind of dream sequence. I'm going back to sleep and waiting for my alarm clock to go off.

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