Something lingered on her mind. It was curious that Dylan hadn’t backed off after all this time. He continued to pursue her with reckless abandon. Haven’s suspicious mind, when it came to him, was taking over. In the big scheme of things, a few months really wasn’t that long of a separation considering they’d been together for four years.
After trying to make sense out of her personal life, Haven wasn’t sure if she was the biggest fool for accepting his invite or the biggest hypocrite. Probably a little of both, but, at the end of the day, this was her life and right or wrong, she had to live it. She didn’t ever want to look back and have regrets. She needed to give Dylan one last chance if for no other reason than their shared history and the amount of time they had devoted to each other. If and when she moved on, Haven wanted to do it with a clear conscious.
Staring at her reflection in the mirror, she tried to dial back the sexy in her outfit but still hoped to achieve flirty. Haven thought the simple black dress and leather boots that came up just under her knees were perfect. Granted, the dress did hug every curve, and the boots added an extra few inches to her five-foot-seven-inch frame, adding the smoky-eye makeup and plum lipstick finished off her look and gave her a more vixen than vampy look. She chastened herself. “I’m not a tramp, but I’m not vanilla either.” A small smile started to form at the corners of her lips because maybe there was a little piece of her that did want to prove Dylan wrong.
Her doorbell rang. Haven, took one final look in the mirror before running her fingers through her big bouncy curls and high-tailed it to the door.
She stopped just before turning the knob and took a deep breath to calm her nerves. After a second or two, Haven opened the door. Dylan stood on the other side looking sexier than she’d ever seen him . . . but there weren’t any butterflies in her stomach. He wore a wine-colored blazer that was tapered to fit him perfectly with a white button up shirt. He’d left the top two buttons undone, some things never changed. He also had on a pair of fitted jeans that in the past made Haven want to drool.
As sexy as he was, he still paled in comparison to Ellis. Nope, not today Satan! Haven chastised herself. No thoughts of that man.
Dylan leaned over and touched his lips softly to hers. This time, Haven didn’t pull back and prayed she felt something. Nothing.
His gaze was heated as it traveled the length of her, but it wasn’t reflected in the kiss. It was more of a light peck and completely undemanding—a first for him. As he stepped back, she got a whiff of his musky cologne. It was her favorite. His cocky smile immediately showed that he thought he was having an effect on her that he wasn’t. However, Haven wouldn’t correct him.
He asked. “You ready to go?”
Haven answered and nodded at the same time. “Yes. I’m ready.”
*****
Dylan wasn’t about to take any chances with Haven, so he took her to The Monaco restaurant for dinner. It had taken him weeks to get the reservation. He was sure that, in the end, all of his efforts would pay off.
She couldn’t believe her bad luck. Was God serious? Did Dylan really just bring her to the same restaurant Ellis had brought her to a couple of weeks ago?
After that night in the parking lot with Haven, Dylan researched Ellis James McKenna on the internet. The man had money to burn and didn’t seem like the settling-down kind. Dylan had that going in his favor. But, what dude allowed a beautiful woman to borrow a car like Haven’s? More than likely, someone who’s intentions weren't good. Fortunately, for Dylan, Ellis’ grandmother’s nurse went to his gym. Meeting her changed everything. Vanessa helped him put things into perspective.
Money wasn’t an object for Ellis. He could lease dozens of cars for plenty of women, but something told Dylan that wasn’t the case with Haven.
Still, he had an ace in the hole. Haven still cared for him. He knew her body language like the back of his hand. Even if she wasn’t head over heels, it was still clear as day, at the very least, she wasn’t over him. Dylan knew that Haven wanted and needed to be wooed. If that’s what she wanted, he would give it to her.
The lighting at the restaurant was dim. The flames from the candles flickered across her face. It was a place for lovers.
“What do you think about this spot?”
“It’s really nice.” She almost said I’ve been here before and you really didn’t have to do all of this for me but then thought better of it. He did and he should. Dylan owed her that and more.
“I’ve told you that I’m a changed man. I’ll do anything for you, and you certainly deserve the best.”
A flash of skepticism appeared on her face.
“What? You don’t believe me?”
“Dylan, what I know, is a few months is not a lot of time to change.”
The waitress interrupted their conversation when she came to take their drink order. After she’d gone, Dylan responded.
“I would say under normal circumstances yes,
