Chapter 20 Lily
LILY
I took a final look in the mirror, turning my head to the side to see what my half up, half down hairstyle looked like and if I needed to fix anything.
What my hair looked like from the back usually wasn’t any of my business, but we were going to my favorite restaurant, so I wanted to look good. That was the only reason.
I smoothed my hair, happy with the outcome. I slipped on my pair of dark boots that paired nicely with my soft brown sweater and flared medium-wash jeans. I finished the outfit with my coat, opting to skip my scarf, hat, and gloves today, since the walk to the restaurant was short.
Pasta Fresca had delicious, mouth-watering pasta, pizza, and other Italian delights. I typically ordered takeout from there, and it’d been months since I’d gone for a sit-down dinner. Even longer since I’d been there for a date—not that this was a date.
I slipped my phone into my small black shoulder bag and pulled open the door. Right as Gabe raised his fist to knock.
“Oh, hi!” I blinked, not expecting him. “I thought we were going to meet at the restaurant?”
Gabe’s gaze slowly took me in, and under his careful watch, it took me twice as long to button my coat with my fumbling fingers.
“Did you really think I would let you walk to dinner alone?” His voice was low, sending vibrations throughout my body. “I agreed earlier only because I knew arguing about it would get us nowhere, but I always planned on picking you up from your apartment.”
That was…considerate of him. Although him picking me up from my apartment made this feel slightly more like a date, even if we both knew it wasn’t.
“Maybe you just couldn’t wait to see me tonight,” I teased.
Gabe tipped his head back, looking at the ceiling, likely begging for patience. I used the moment to take him in. He had on a black knit winter hat, dark jeans, and a dark-gray coat. If I had to guess, he likely had one of his signature dress shirts underneath.
He exhaled and met my gaze. “Exactly, I just couldn’t wait to see you.”
The way his words came out caught me off guard, because while his tone was teasing, it also sounded…genuine? But there was no way.
I stepped out of my apartment and locked the door, clearing my throat. “Are you okay with walking there? It’s not too far. Only a few blocks.”
“Fine by me.”
We walked down the stairs of my apartment building, and once we reached the bottom, Gabe pushed the door open and stepped out, holding it open for me.
The gust of wind hit my face immediately, the evening chill making my eyes water. We still didn’t have any snow in Golden Falls, but the temperatures continued to drop.
I regretted not bringing my hat and gloves as soon as we stepped outside.
“Which way?” Gabe asked once I stepped outside, and I tipped my chin to the left. I was about to start walking but was stopped when Gabe’s hand gently wrapped around my wrist. “You’re shivering.” He frowned, dropping my wrist and reaching into his pocket. “Here.” He passed me a pair of gloves.
“Oh, no, Gabe, I’m fine, really,” I assured. “Let’s start walking. The faster we go, the sooner we’ll be there.”
A low growl escaped his throat. “Take the gloves, and then we can take our time getting there. You can show me your favorite decorations on the way.”
Tempting. Very tempting.
“Okay.” I nodded, taking the gloves from him. As I was putting them on, I felt his hands on the side of my head slipping on a hat. When I looked up at him, I realized he was no longer wearing his winter hat. “Gabe—” I started in protest.
“Much better. Now I don’t have to worry about you getting hypothermia before dinner. I’d be an immediate suspect.”
The corner of my mouth twitched in a smile, and I thanked him, immediately feeling more comfortable for our walk.
Although I wasn’t sure what made me more comfortable—my new hat and gloves or the feeling of Gabe’s hand on my lower back as we started our walk.
Even through my various layers, his touch caused a flutter in my stomach I couldn’t ignore.
We took the long way to the restaurant, and as promised, I pointed out my favorite decorations and the light displays I helped set up.
And Gabe was taking it in and listening the whole time.
“Okay, this isn’t quite going how I anticipated,” I whispered to Gabe.
“You think?” He let out a gentle chuckle before reassuring me. “We’ll get a new table, and it’ll be fine. I’m sure people will forget all about it.”
We followed Teresa, co-manager of Pasta Fresca.
She owned the place with her sister Maria.
The two women were in their early sixties and moved to Golden Falls with their husbands about a decade ago as they were both getting close to retiring.
Turned out, retiring from their corporate jobs meant opening a small town restaurant that pulled in their Italian roots.
Their goal had been to create authentic Italian food in a romantic atmosphere with dim-lighting, candles, and intimate seating.
The tables were spread out to give each couple or group their own space and privacy.
Pasta Fresca was a hidden gem in the Midwest, but more people were finding out about it as they traveled to Golden Falls for vacation.
“I hope this table will be better for you two,” Teresa said, gesturing to a small table. She’d taken us to the back of the restaurant. “Try not to burn the place down…again.” She gave me a pointed look before her expression softened and she squeezed my arm.
I draped my coat across the back of my chair and sat across from Gabe with a heavy sigh.
To say the start of our dinner was a disaster would be an understatement. Our walk to the restaurant was fine, but things started to go wrong as soon as we got to our table. Or rather, as soon as I got to our table.
I wasn’t sure what had come over me, but I suddenly and inexplicably felt anxious.
Gabe and I had spent a lot of time together over the last couple of weeks, so it wasn’t that I felt uncomfortable around him, because I didn’t.
But this did feel more…intimate. And it also reminded me—not that I needed the reminder—that I hadn’t been on a date with someone in such a long time.
I could get over knocking over my glass and spilling water on the floor, mainly because I caught the glass in time before it shattered.
What I didn’t think I’d be able to live down was knocking over the two tealight candles and catching the tablecloth on fire.
Maria ran over with the fire extinguisher, swearing under her breath as she put out the fire.
It was a very small fire, in my defense, but a fire, nonetheless.
“Lily, hey.” Gabe’s voice pulled me out of my thoughts. He reached across the table, taking my hand in his—and not knocking anything over in the process. “It’s okay. It’s not like you literally burned the place down.”
“I just…I hate doing things wrong.”
“Well, luckily, I don’t think there’s a manual on how to have dinner with your friendly rival. That’s what you called me, right?”
My shoulders relaxed, and I let out a breathy laugh.
“Yeah, I guess you’re right.” I looked down at his hand over mine, soaking in the gentle feeling of his thumb running over my knuckles.
“I know this isn’t a date, but I got nervous because it’s been so long since I’ve been on an actual date,” I admitted, rolling my lips.
“You likely go on dates all the time.” He had to, right?
I mean, look at him. Not only was Gabe handsome, but as I peeled his layers back, I was finding out he was considerate, a good listener, and thoughtful.
He let out an amused snort, and I raised my brows.
“Oh,” he said with a chuckle, “you’re serious.” He shook his head. “I haven’t been on a date in a long time. My priority over the last few years has been my career, which leaves little time for dating. I tend to keep things casual because of that.”
I nodded in response, not wanting to think too deeply about the twinge of disappointment when I heard he preferred casual. There was nothing wrong with that, but I knew myself enough to know that I couldn’t do casual. I got attached too easily.
“Anyways,” Gabe continued. “What’d you have in mind for next steps with your wish list?” He gave my hand a squeeze before pulling away, and I immediately felt the loss of warmth.
I reached for the menu to keep me from reaching for him.
“So, there’s a Christmas festival downtown on Christmas Eve.
” Christmas Eve was only five days away, and I couldn’t believe how quickly the holidays were sneaking up.
“That will give us a good opportunity to knock out sledding and building a gingerbread house. It’s overall a really fun evening, and everyone in town shows up. ”
Gabe’s face pinched whenever Christmas was mentioned, and right now was no different. But, ultimately, he relaxed and said, “That sounds fine. We’ll do that next.”
I shifted my attention back to the menu. “Do you want to get an appetizer to start?” I asked. “The burrata is really good here and so are the meatballs. Oh, and the focaccia is to die for.” My stomach growled on cue as I listed off food—and thought about the pizza and pasta options.
“Are you two ready to put an order in?” Teresa asked. “I’ll take care of you two lovebirds tonight, since you scared my other servers away.”
“Oh, no, we’re not—” I said at the same time Gabe said, “This isn’t—” We looked at each other and both let out a laugh.
Teresa, who looked between us, had a grin that was far too amused. “First date?” she asked.
I shook my head, my cheeks getting hot. “It’s dinner with a…friend,” I said, looking from Teresa to Gabe and giving him a hesitant smile. “Does one of those I mentioned sound good to you?”
Gabe looked up from the menu, first at me and then at Teresa. “Yeah, why don’t we start with an order of the burrata, meatballs, and the focaccia. And a bottle of your nicest red, please.”
Teresa’s brows raised. “You got it,” she said while writing down on her notepad. “I’ll get that right out to you.”
“Gabe,” I whispered once Teresa was gone. “What are you doing?”
“I ordered us appetizers,” he said simply, casually. Like we did this regularly.
“But the wine—” I started.
“I saw you looking at the list when we were at our other table. Plus, isn’t this dinner on your list to treat yourself? We might as well go all out. You deserve it.”
He remembered that? My expression softened, and a grateful smile crossed my lips. “I appreciate that. Thank you. I’m glad we’re able to do this together,” I admitted.
Gabe looked at me, adding, “And if we’re celebrating on our first date, I want to make sure my girl gets what she wants.”
Heat unexpectedly flared in my stomach. My girl. Those two words shouldn’t have had the impact on me they did. I wasn’t his girl—not even close—and he was just playing off of Teresa’s joke, but then why did those words coming out of his mouth sound so good?