The closer it get's to 7:30 the more excited I become. I have a strong feeling that the evening would be a fun one and I just couldn't wait.
"I think you missed a spot Mitchell." I stop wiping down the booth and turn to see Charlie wearing his usual charming smile.
I give him a quick hug, and silently admire how good he smells."I wasn't done smart ass."
"Ugh, whatevs. I was just making sure you like, did your job right." He says in a weirdly high pitched Valley girl accent.
I shake my head and lightly smack his arm. "I'll be done in a few. I just have to clear off a few tables and clock out."
"Alright."
"Is there, umm. Anything I can get you?" I ask. He sits down in the booth and leans back against the plush cream colored cushions.
"Uh yeah, can you get me a glass of water and a blueberry scone."
I roll my eyes. "Of course your bougie ass would want a scone." I tease.
"Is that anyway to talk to a loyal and valued customer? Do I need to speak to your manager young lady?"
I stick my tongue out and walk away to put his order in. When I look towards the cash register I see that Grant is still taking orders.
"Hey, wasn't Ricky supposed to be here by now?"
"Uh yeah, he was supposed to be here an hour ago." He said as he handed a woman her change and receipt.
"An hour? Have you called him?"
"No, I've been kinda busy. You think you could take over here for a few minutes while I do?"
I look back over to Charlie, who's in the corner booth tapping his phone screen. "Uh yeah sure."
"Thanks." He says, before taking off.
I put in Charlie's order and pay for it with some of my own cash. It's the least I could do considering that he was about to take me out to a restaurant and insist on footing the bill. And while Grant was out calling in Ricky the Greasy Slacker, I took orders at the register.
When he came back he looks more annoyed than when he left. I handed a young girl her change and receipt before handing over a coffee cup to Ingrid the pretty redheaded barrista.
"What happened?" I ask as the customer in front of me decided what she wanted.
"He's not going to be here for another twenty minutes."
"So basically he's only taking on an extra hour before his shift?"
Grant nods with his lips pressed together. "Pretty much."
"I'm sorry Grant." I step aside and let him take over the register again.
"It's not your fault. Thanks for taking over."
"No problem." I squeeze his shoulder a bit before going to clear my last table.
When I walk past him on the way to the employee lounge to clock out I start to feel bad. Grant wanted to spend the evening hanging out with his friends before he was forced to tackle his math homework, something he always dreaded.
I want to help, but I didn't want to keep Charlie waiting any longer. Besides, I was hungry. So I clocked out, and settled for knowing that Grant could always hang out with Lenny and Adam tomorrow. And next time, he'll think twice about split-covering a shift with Ricky.
I quickly change out of my work uniform and into a salmon colored cropped sweater and ripped jeans. After I'm done pulling on my boots I walk to Oliver's office to say goodbye and then back towards the front counter where Grant was still taking orders.
When I catch his eye I wave, and a small smile forms on his face before he waves back. I turn and Charlie is already walking towards me.
"You look really nice by the way. I like what you've done with your hair."
My brows lift, betraying my shock. I mean I hadn't done anything to it. "Thanks."
I was about to compliment him back when his hand reaches over and touches the bare skin of my lower back. My skin prickles a bit, and I'm glad the tingly sensation that traveled up my spine didn't make me shiver.
He applies a slight pressure to it as he leads me out of the palace and into the chilly night. His hand slides across my back as he switches sides so that he's standing on the side closer to the street.
"So, I went to admissions today and asked about the extension."
That catches my interest, but not enough to distract me from his warm hand. "Oh? And what happened?"
"After pulling some strings, they agreed to give you a week to turn in your application since they're still in the review process."
I smile and clasp my hands together. "That's great. I think I can get it in by the end of the week."
"I'm sure you could get it in any day of the week." He says with a sly smile and when I realized what he was saying I pushed him away.
"Oh my god. Don't start! You know what I meant."
He chuckles as we reach the red Porsche and pulls up the butterfly door. "Yeah, yeah I know."
I climb in and Charlie closes the door behind me before walking around and taking his spot in the driver's seat.
"So what are you in the mood for?" he asks.
I shrug. "I don't know. Italian maybe?"
"Okay, I know a place." He reaches over and puts on his seat belt and when I'm strapped in too, he revs up the engine and zooms out of the lot.
"You had practice today right?" I ask.
"Yeah."
"How was it?" I ask, which prompts him to talk about all the drills he did and how much the coach was riding him and some of his other teammates.
"We have a big game this Friday. It's gonna determine whether we go to championships or not. You should come."
"Is it a home game?"
He nods as he pulls into the parking lot of Sapori Veri, an Italian restaurant on the far side of the city.
"I'll ask some friends if they'll come. I wouldn't want to be there by myself."
"Of course, I understand."
I reach for the door and Charlie gives me a look that clearly meant that he would have preferred for me to wait so that he can be a gentleman. While I wait for him to walk around the car and open the door I grab my small hand bag. When he opens the door, he offers me his hand and helps me out of the car.
"You get on my nerves."
His jaw dropped in mock shock. "What did I do?"
"You don't always have to open doors for me. I am perfectly capable of doing it myself from time to time."
At this Charlie rolls his eyes. " I'm perfectly aware that you can open your own doors. I'm also perfectly happy to open doors for you, pull out chairs for you, and pay for our meal. Now if you don't mind, I'd actually like to eat sometime soon. So if you're ready..." he gestures towards the restaurant.
We walk towards the building that looked like it could be a comfy mom and pop restaurant but as soon as we passed the doors we could see that it was actually pretty fancy. I suddenly felt underdressed when I saw a waitress pass by in a little black strapless dress and an iced out necklace.
I rub my arm and look up at the ginormous chandelier above us. "This place looks nice. The menu is in English right? I don't speak Italian." I say.
"Yes the menu is in English." He says, almost as if it was a dumb question.
"Well, I'm just checking. Sometimes these fancy looking restaurants have menus in Italian or French. Am I right?"
"Yes."
"Speaking of, how many languages do you speak? Like three? Four?"
He snorts. "Oh God no. I speak English and terrible Espanol."
"Really, don't you rich people learn like French and Chinese by the time your ten?"
He raises his brows at me as we approach the podium.. "Where do you get this stuff from?"
"Come on, don't act like you don't know a ton of people at your school that speak like three or four languages."
"Yes, but you make it seem like it's some kind of upper class standard."
"I'm surprised it's not."
We reach the hostess and Charlie taps on the podium. "Table for two please."
"Do you have a reservation?" the hostess asks. She tucks a strand of her long brown hair behind her ear as she looks between me and Charlie.
"No, but I'm sure one of the private premium tables are open."
Premium tables?
"It'll be $180 for a premium table." She says.
"Oh no, that's okay. Charlie, we can go somewhere else." I touch his arm, and he reaches for his wallet. And it doesn't surprise me that he pulls out a black Amex card.
The lady raises her eyebrows, before she grabs two menus. "Follow me sir."
As I follow Charlie and the hostess to the elevator near the back of the restaurant, I try to come up with a way to convince Charlie that we should go somewhere else. But when the elevator opens and reveals the small garden and lounge, the last thing on my mind is escaping.
A/N:
Hey you all!!!
I know its been a while since the last update. Its been a rough couple of months for me. But I am still determined to finish this story so thanks for all of you that patiently waited for this.
I'm going to try my best to update again soon but I cant promise. As always I'm interested in hearing what you guys have to say about the chapter so dont be afraid to comment.
Thanks again for the support.
Sincerely,
Nani 💙