I begin to put the tissue paper back inside the box when I notice there is something else in there, a pair of matching heels in my size, they fit like a glove. I'm not used to walking in heels, but I manage to make my way back into the bathroom and turn to face the mirror.
The girl staring back at me is unfamiliar, new. She’s brave, confident, and beautiful.
My heart begins to beat a mile a minute, knowing I have to go out there and face Kyle.
What if he doesn’t like it?
My nerves begin to work overtime, and my stomach begins to churn.
I take a deep breath and walk back into the bedroom and out the door, my hand hesitating on the handle before turning it and stepping out.
Kyle is standing with his back to me gazing out of the window overlooking the city while adjusting his cufflinks. He has his suit jacket on now.
He must see my reflection in the window standing behind him as he turns and takes me in. His eyes rake over me, beginning at my feet and working their way up, his mouth hanging open slightly.
“Fuck,” he breathes as he looks over me in awe, a hint of a smile touching his lips.
“Do I look okay?” I ask shyly.
He makes his way across the room and stops a couple of feet away from me.
“You look incredible.”
“It’s beautiful. Thank you. Thank you so much.” I reach up on my tip toes and wrap my arms around his neck, resting my head on his shoulder.
He puts his arms around my waist and squeezes me tightly, bringing me closer to his body. He reaches up to brush his thumb over my cheek before holding his arm out to me. I loop my arm through his and he leads me out of the room.
∞∞∞
“Good evening, Mr King,” A waiter greets us as we enter the restaurant.
“Evening, is our table ready?”
“Right this way, Sir.” He leads us to our table, a private table in the corner of the room, away from the other guests. I take a seat opposite Kyle.
“What will you have to drink?” asks the waiter.
Kyle looks to me, “Champagne?”
“Yes, champagne’s fine, thank you.”
“You’re best bottle,” he tells the waiter.
“Yes Sir, I’ll be right back.”
“Thank you,” Kyle says.
The waiter leaves and Kyle passes me a menu.
“This place is gorgeous,” I say. The decor is much like the rest of the hotel, classic but modern. Beautiful chandeliers hang from the ceiling, illuminating the deep red walls, creating a cosy atmosphere.
“It’s just been refurbished actually, a few months back, had it stripped out and refurbished.
“It’s lovely.”
The waiter arrives with the bottle of champagne, along with an ice bucket and two glasses. He pops the cork and pours out drinks.
“Have you decided on what you would like to eat?” the waiter asks.
Kyle motions to me to order first.
“I’ll have the butternut squash soup to start, and the lamb for the main, please.”
“And for you, Mr King?”
“I’ll have the same, thank you.”
“Shouldn’t be too long, Sir.” The waiter takes our menus and walks away.
“So, did you go to college?” Kyle asks.
“I planned to. I wanted to do something to help people, like counseling or something… and then my mom died, so most of the money that I had saved for college went towards paying off her medical bills, it wasn’t nearly enough but it helped,” I explain. “What about you?”
“I studied business management. I interned at my dad’s company for a few years during college, learned from the best.”
“Did you always want to own a company?”
“I grew up with it, had it drilled into me since I could walk, I don’t know anything different.”
While we wait for our food, Kyle tells me more about his family, his business, and his childhood. I tell him about Gwen and Aaron.
The waiter arrives with our food a short while later. “Here you are,” he sets the plates down in front of us, “if there’s anything else you need, let me know.”
“Thank You,” I say.
“Thanks,” Kyle replies before the waiter turn and walks away.
“I have a confession. This is the first time I’ve been on a date.”
Kyle smiles. “Me too.”
“Really?”
“Yep.”
“But surely you’ve had girlfriends?”
“I had girls, none of them were what I would call girlfriends. They never really meant much. That was about the time when I found out about everything, the last thing I wanted was a girlfriend. What about you?”
“No one,” I say, shyly, almost shamefully. “Obviously, there were boys I liked, but I kind of fell under the radar at school, the guys I liked were into the blonde-haired, blue-eyed cheerleaders that hung off their every word.”
“Well they were obviously all blind or completely fucking stupid to not notice you,” he says. “I would have noticed you.”
I blush, my cheeks burning hot.
We finish off our starters just in time for our mains to arrive. Kyle was right, the food is to-die-for here, it is easily the best meal I’ve ever had. We exchange small talk while we eat, and it isn’t long before we’ve cleared our plates.
“What’s your favourite colour?” I quiz.
“Black. You?”
“Grey.”
“All fifty shades?” He laughs.
I cock my head, unamused. “Wow... that’s so not funny, or original.”
Kyle continues to laugh at his own joke, my face betrays me as a smile begins to tug at the corners of my mouth, shaking my head.
“Favourite movie?”
“Um… that’s hard, there’s so many. If I had to pick one it would have to be 10 Things I hate About You,” I reply. “What about you?”
“The Shawshank Redemption.”
“I’ve never seen it,” I confess.
“Well we’ll have to rectify that right away,” he declares.
“What’s your favourite place you’ve been to?” I ask.
“Austria. I went skiing with my family a few years back and we spent the last few days of our trip in Vienna, it’s so beautiful...”
“I’ve never really been anywhere. I’ve never even left the state. There’s so many places
