“ Sorry to interrupt your dinner,” she said.
“ That’s alright ,” I sai d. “It’s getting a little late anyway. I should probably go.”
“ You d on’t have to, ” Nicholas said.
“It’s okay. I’m glad we had a chance to talk, b ut I know you’re busy .”
I sto od up, and Nicholas walked with me to the foyer. He held my coat for me , and I was surprise d when he wrapped his arms around me and gave me a hug. “Thank you for telling me everything you did.” His hug felt familiar – warm and reassuring – almost l ike it had in the dream.
Hugging him back, I said, “Thanks for dinner. I had a nice time.” I opened the door and stepped outside into the cold night air. It felt like a short drive home. For whatever it was worth, I’d shared my experiences of Nicholas with him. I had no idea what they meant beyond what I had told him , and, p erhaps , I would never know.
Chapter 1 3
The week flew by, and I didn’t think much more about my time with Nicholas . I didn’t know what to make of it all so I let it slip from my mind.
When JT called me on Friday to confirm our Saturday “date,” I found that I was looking forward to it. I hadn’t been on a date in such a long time that I felt a little nervous . The last time I’d dressed up for anything social had been our cocktail party in Las Vegas.
I wasn’t disappointed. JT showed up at the door holding a beautiful bouquet of thirteen white roses. I’d assumed that there were a dozen, but he pointed out that there was one more, which indicate s a secret admirer. Of course, the white rose can symbolize humility and worthiness so I wondered if my admirer was trying to communicate that he was up to the task of courtship. K nowing JT as I did, I knew that c hoosing thirteen white roses would have been a deliberate act.
“You look handsome,” I told him, admiring his charcoal grey tuxedo as he handed me the flowers.
“Thank you,” he said, kissing my cheek.
He looked me up and down, ey e ing my long-sleeved, ankle length dark red velvet and chiffon dress, which had a fitted bodice and a deep ly rounded back with fabric that draped below it. I wore one- carat earrings made of conflict-free diamonds set in recycled rhodium with a matching ring and pendant .
“You look stunning, ” JT said.
I smiled. “ Thank you .”
H e lifted my right hand and admired my ring . “You wear diamonds well . ”
“ You’re sweet ,” I laugh ed as I carried the roses into the kitchen and trim med the stems before putting them into a large crystal vase. “Really, JT, you didn’t have to bring flowers. T hey ’re very beautiful,” I said , glanc ing back to look at him .
He walked up behind me and put his hands gently on my arms . “Not nearly as beautiful as you are .”
Feeling him so close, I was qui e t for a moment. I remembered how guarded he’d been in California and how little he’d shared of himself . This certainly wasn’t the man that I remembered.
I turned to face him, and we stood quite close. He smiled before glancing at his watch. “We ha ve dinner reservations at six-thirty .”
“ Yes. ” I took a deep breath and reminded myself to be careful .
Sensing my caution , he gracefully took a step back. “Ready?”
I nodded. “Ready.”
W ith that, we walked out into the cold and into the comfort of his sister’s Mercedes ML320 Bluetec .
JT and I had a lovely evening. I learned that we had both changed since we’d last seen one another . After I left San Diego, h e told me that he realized it had been a mistake to let me go. He'd always hoped that someone like me would enter his life, but he hadn’t been ready for me at the time . I told him that it had been too soon after I’d broken up with David to have gotten involved in another relationship. Besides, he had been my boss in San Diego, and we both knew that we never could have dated for that reason alone .
As it turned out, JT had tried meeting a
“ That’s alright ,” I sai d. “It’s getting a little late anyway. I should probably go.”
“ You d on’t have to, ” Nicholas said.
“It’s okay. I’m glad we had a chance to talk, b ut I know you’re busy .”
I sto od up, and Nicholas walked with me to the foyer. He held my coat for me , and I was surprise d when he wrapped his arms around me and gave me a hug. “Thank you for telling me everything you did.” His hug felt familiar – warm and reassuring – almost l ike it had in the dream.
Hugging him back, I said, “Thanks for dinner. I had a nice time.” I opened the door and stepped outside into the cold night air. It felt like a short drive home. For whatever it was worth, I’d shared my experiences of Nicholas with him. I had no idea what they meant beyond what I had told him , and, p erhaps , I would never know.
Chapter 1 3
The week flew by, and I didn’t think much more about my time with Nicholas . I didn’t know what to make of it all so I let it slip from my mind.
When JT called me on Friday to confirm our Saturday “date,” I found that I was looking forward to it. I hadn’t been on a date in such a long time that I felt a little nervous . The last time I’d dressed up for anything social had been our cocktail party in Las Vegas.
I wasn’t disappointed. JT showed up at the door holding a beautiful bouquet of thirteen white roses. I’d assumed that there were a dozen, but he pointed out that there was one more, which indicate s a secret admirer. Of course, the white rose can symbolize humility and worthiness so I wondered if my admirer was trying to communicate that he was up to the task of courtship. K nowing JT as I did, I knew that c hoosing thirteen white roses would have been a deliberate act.
“You look handsome,” I told him, admiring his charcoal grey tuxedo as he handed me the flowers.
“Thank you,” he said, kissing my cheek.
He looked me up and down, ey e ing my long-sleeved, ankle length dark red velvet and chiffon dress, which had a fitted bodice and a deep ly rounded back with fabric that draped below it. I wore one- carat earrings made of conflict-free diamonds set in recycled rhodium with a matching ring and pendant .
“You look stunning, ” JT said.
I smiled. “ Thank you .”
H e lifted my right hand and admired my ring . “You wear diamonds well . ”
“ You’re sweet ,” I laugh ed as I carried the roses into the kitchen and trim med the stems before putting them into a large crystal vase. “Really, JT, you didn’t have to bring flowers. T hey ’re very beautiful,” I said , glanc ing back to look at him .
He walked up behind me and put his hands gently on my arms . “Not nearly as beautiful as you are .”
Feeling him so close, I was qui e t for a moment. I remembered how guarded he’d been in California and how little he’d shared of himself . This certainly wasn’t the man that I remembered.
I turned to face him, and we stood quite close. He smiled before glancing at his watch. “We ha ve dinner reservations at six-thirty .”
“ Yes. ” I took a deep breath and reminded myself to be careful .
Sensing my caution , he gracefully took a step back. “Ready?”
I nodded. “Ready.”
W ith that, we walked out into the cold and into the comfort of his sister’s Mercedes ML320 Bluetec .
JT and I had a lovely evening. I learned that we had both changed since we’d last seen one another . After I left San Diego, h e told me that he realized it had been a mistake to let me go. He'd always hoped that someone like me would enter his life, but he hadn’t been ready for me at the time . I told him that it had been too soon after I’d broken up with David to have gotten involved in another relationship. Besides, he had been my boss in San Diego, and we both knew that we never could have dated for that reason alone .
As it turned out, JT had tried meeting a
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