Your POV
Grayson pulled the Bronco into a parking lot off the highway.
A dark red banner said Hoss's just above the front door. The large restaurant was lit up by small Christmas lights and the reflection shimmered off the small waves of the lake nearby. It was gorgeous.
"Oh wow" you say in disbelief. "Are you sure we didn't have to dress fancy?"
Grayson puts the car in park and turns it off, his cute laugh filled your ears with the harmonic sound. "I'm sure. It's not a high-end place, Y/n."
You smile to yourself and get out of his car, closing the door behind you. He does the same and you two meet at the hood of it, smiling contently at one another. "Ready" he asks you.
"Of course" you reply with a nod. His large warm hand cradles your back softly, almost like he was afraid to break you - like a thin china doll.
You make it to the sidewalk of the restaurant and he pulls open the door for you. "Thanks."
Inside, there was a woman at a dark wooden podium. Her straight auburn hair was in a low bun, a few strands framed her tanned face. "Hi, welcome to Hoss's, how many?"
Grayson stepped forward, "two."
She grabbed two menus and waved her hand for you to follow. Grayson smiled down at you and you fell into step behind the waitress named 'Sara'. Her name tag was written in bolded black letters on a shiny gold tag.
"Here we are" she states, stepping aside from a booth that held silverware and the menus she grabbed. "What can i get you guys to drink" she asks, pulling a small notebook from her apron. She retrieved a pen as well.
You happily slid into the booth, "water with lemon."
"Iced tea, please" Grayson requests. Her smile shows her bright white teeth as she assures your drinks will be around shortly.
Her footsteps become softer in sound and Grayson smiles at you, as if he were seeing you for the first time today. "You like it" he asks.
"I do, actually" you giggle a little, glancing around the dining area. There were three different parts that you could see as she walked you two to the back corner. The walls were a dark green, holding old pictures and articles from newspapers.
The inside was a saloon decôr, while the outside was beautifully quaint.
"It's mine and E's favorite place to go" he admits, eyeing the menu.
No matter what, you couldn't stop yourself from asking, "why isn't he home tonight?"
His eyes raise from the menu and he clears his throat a little, confusion etched on his features. "I don't know" he plays it off like he didn't care. Maybe he really didn't.
What if it had to do with Cara's note?
He's probably with her now...
Sara comes by and places your drinks in front of you, asking if you were ready to order. "Uh, can we have more time, please?" You ask her, gripping the menu.
"Of course" she smiles, leaving again.
Grayson's face holds an amused look as he looks at you. His eyes held intent while his lips held a smirk. "What" you ask, blushing from the embarrassment of what he may be looking at.
"You're just-" he stops himself and pokes out his tongue to lick his lips subtly, remindig you of exactly what Ethan does. "You're beautiful" he tells you.
Your heart stammers in your chest as you fumble to find words. "Thank you" you appreciate his kind words as you read over the menu, seeing a Grilled Chicken Fettucini that looked amazing.
"Okay, i'm ready" you place the menu at the edge of the table and pull your straw from the other one, opening it slowly. Grayson's eyes watch your fingers almost as if he were in a trance. You slide the paper off of it and poke it down into your ice water, swirling around the lemon flavor.
He clears his throat and does the same thing as you - just not as delicately.
Throughout the dinner, Grayson cracked jokes; some dirty, some actually really funny. It was an overall good time for you.
"I have to use the restroom" you inform Grayson as he waits for the check. He nods and smiles, so you stand to your feet and head in the direction of the bathrooms.
They were separated by a saloon swinging door, which was pretty cool.
You got in and went to a stall, doing your business. Mid-way through your pee, your phone started to vibrate. You didn't see who it was because you answered so quickly. "Hello?"
"Hey Y/n?" A man's voice comes through, Ethan's voice.
"What's up" you ask, imagining what the hell he was up to as he spoke to someone else who was with him.
"Where are you right now" he asks.
You felt your heart jump. Do you lie? Do you tell the truth?
"I went home for the weekend" you say. Nice.
"Oh" he says. His voice faltered in disappoinment. "I was thinking we could go talk somewhere. Like, my house maybe" he asks a little.
Faintly, a girl's voice asks him if he's okay. He whispered back to her, "yeah i'm cool. I'll be out soon."
"Who's that" you ask, letting it slip from your lips.
He sighs, "you already know."
"Cara" you ask.
Another sigh comes through your speaker, invading your ears. "Yes, i'm hiding in the kitchen. Told her i had to make a phone call to Grayson" he laughs.
It wasn't funny to you.
"He's probably with some girl right now. Told me he wanted me out tonight so he could have sex with her" he laughs a little more and becomes serious again. "But, seriously if you want to tonight... please come by. I really want to talk to you."
Your mind raced with endless ways it could go wrong, so you improvised. "Maybe we could go to my house?"
It wasn't too far from campus. Maybe five or ten miles.
"Okay" he agrees. You knew damn well there was a smug smirk attached to his agreement.
"I'll send you the address and you can swing by around midnight" you tell him.
"Got a deal, babe."
"Kay" you blush, ending the call. You had no clue what to do.
You finished your business in the bathroom and headed out to the table, finding a bored Grayson. "Hey" you say. His bright eyes focus on you and he stands happily, his keys in-hand.
"Ready?"
You decided to answer the same way as before you came in, "of course."
Ethan's POV
Mr. Hilton wasn't surprised at all to see me. He meant business as soon as i walked through the door.
"Mr. Dolan, are you alright" he asks me as soon as i resume my seat at the table.
"Of course, Mr. Hilton" i assure him, taking a sip of the white whine he supplied at the table for dinner. I personally don't think white wine goes with steak.
"Please, call me Eli" he states. His full name was Elijah. "I actually called you here to propose a deal, Mr. Dolan."
My eyes squint slightly and i look at him, "what would that be?"
He places a cigar in his mouth, clipping the end. "Cara, please grab my lighter, would you?"
This man was like the damn Mafia. The Italian, specifically. Cara stood in her expensive black dress and grabbed the zippo lighter from the carrier - that held more wine and food - handing it to her father.
"I see that you are a very respectable, single, man" he starts. I sit back in my chair, leaning my chin on my hand. I was in a white button-down now, having taken off my jacket earlier.
My most expensive watch was clasped around my wrist, my hair was slicked back. I looked like a rich asshole.
"What would you say to escorting my Cara to a few events within the next couple of months?"
My glance from him to her, feeling the urge to scream at the top of my lungs, "what kind of events?"
"Galas, Balls, maybe a few Charity events. She has been invited and it is required for a male escort. She had mentioned you, and i saw you suitable" he elaborates.
I felt the room spinning, and it wasn't the wine. I couldn't say no. "Of course" i tell him, mentally cursing myself for metaphorically signing this death wish. A death to my sanity.
Word Count: 1433