Chapter 23
Hannah
“S o what do you think of the food?” Tanner asked as the waiter walked away for moment.
We were on our millionth course, or at least it felt like it.
“It’s exquisite,” I replied honestly. “But the service is a little over the top. It’s almost uncomfortable. I’m not quite sure it’s my thing.”
He cocked a brow. “What do you mean?”
God, I probably shouldn’t have said that, but Tanner and I were making it a point to be honest with each other.
Most women would kill to be in my place right now.
It was one of the most elegant and expensive restaurants in New York, but I hadn’t loosened up since we’d sat down.
And Tanner and I hadn’t been able to speak in private until this moment.
I wasn’t used to people catering to my every need and hovering over me to anticipate those needs. And the protocol for a fancy dinner like this was out of my wheelhouse.
Luckily, Tanner had handled the wine pairings. I really liked wine, but I wasn’t versed in expensive vintages and years.
I felt awkward.
I probably should have looked up the etiquette for fine dining.
The silverware was a total mystery to me.
I’d already used the wrong utensil for one of my courses, and our waiter had looked slightly horrified before he’d recovered quickly like the professional he was.
I’d also offered to use the same fork for the next course, and the same waiter had quickly picked up that fork, placed it on my plate, and hastily taken it to the kitchen like it was a faux pas to use the same fork twice.
Finally, I’d just decided to watch what Tanner did so I didn’t make any further mistakes.
I’d heard about this restaurant of course, but I’d never known it was this complicated to eat a meal here.
This was also the longest meal I’d ever eaten. The small bites were delicious, but I wondered if it wouldn’t be wiser to bring them all so we could consume them faster.
“Don’t get me wrong,” I reassured him. “The food is probably the best I’ve ever eaten, but I’m not sure when these courses will end, and I don’t know the etiquette of fine dining like this. The silverware thing is confusing. And it’s a little weird to have someone hovering over me all the time. And each course is just a bite or two. Do you do this often?”
Tanner smiled like he was highly amused. “Not often,” he shared. “But I got used to it since I dine so much with wealthy business owners. I’m a guy who would rather dig into my meal because I’m usually starving. Relax. Enjoy the food. You’re the customer, and the customer is always right. Eat with whatever silverware you want. The waiter can bring you more silverware.”
Easy for him to say.
The waiter wasn’t looking at him like he was an alien from another planet who ate like a barbarian.
Truthfully, people treated Tanner like he was a god.
Other than the few weird looks I’d gotten, the waiter had treated me like a princess, too, because I was obviously close to one of the richest men in the world.
I took a deep breath and tried to relax.
Tanner was right.
He was paying a lot of money for this meal.
I needed to just ignore the reactions to my ineptitude.
“Does it ever make you uncomfortable that people treat you like a god?” I queried.
He shrugged. “It was definitely something I had to get used to in the beginning. I guess I don’t think about it much anymore. The people who care about me treat me the same way they always did.”
Of course. I supposed it was something one got used to after years of being treated this way.
Just the fact that Tanner had been able to simply stop and pick up my necklace and earrings without a hitch told me he could arrange almost anything with a snap of his fingers.
He was a very powerful man now, and I doubted that many people told him there was something they couldn’t do for him.
Really, it amazed me that Tanner was still…Tanner.
He’d obviously never let that power or the money get into his head.
Yes, he’d changed, but he’d changed for the better.
When he’d leveled with me in the suite about who he was and how he viewed life and his wealth, his explanation had just made me admire him more than I already did.
Did I object to his slightly old-fashioned attitude about providing for me and wanting to take care of me?
No, I really didn’t.
In fact, it felt incredible to have a man who cared about me that much.
I hadn’t quite gotten over wearing a jewelry set that I’d always admired but never dreamed of owning myself. But I was starting to get used to the fact that Tanner didn’t see gifts like that as expensive. He bought and gave things to people to try to please them.
He wasn’t a guy who ever had to worry about the cost.
I’d never had time to adjust to that fact in our earlier relationship. KTD had just been starting its meteoric rise when we’d separated. Yes, we’d been building an amazing home, but that home had been his first major purchase. He’d been too busy to think about the money in New York. He’d been too busy chasing the success of KTD when we’d lived here to spend any of that money he was accumulating.
Maybe I didn’t need his money, and maybe I could take care of myself. However, his honesty and clear acceptance of who he was now had touched my heart.
I could accept his protectiveness and his desire to make me happy and keep me safe because I realized that taking care of people had become an integral part of his nature.
It was a quality that I adored about him now.
“If you don’t like this place, we can blow it off and go get something else,” he said seriously.
I shot him an astonished glance.
“We can’t leave in the middle of a dinner like this,” I said, appalled at the thought.
“Of course we can,” he said nonchalantly. “As long as the dinner is paid for, we can do any damn thing we want.”
“I think our waiter would have heart failure,” I advised him.
“He won’t as long as he gets a good tip,” Tanner said with a grin. “Do you really think that rich people care what their waiter thinks? They don’t. Not when they’re paying for the services. It’s just a restaurant, Hannah. If we want to leave, we leave. If you want to try that dessert they’re preparing right now, we stay. Your choice.”
Dessert? Okay, that made me relax. We were about to get the best part of this delicious meal.
I shook my head. “There’s no way I’m missing dessert,” I told him adamantly.
It might only be a bite or two, but it would probably be the best bite I’d ever had.
There was a mischievous look on Tanner’s face as he replied, “If it’s good, lick the spoon. If you really like it, ask for another one. This is your dinner, Hannah. Eat it however you want with whatever utensil you want. You don’t have to get hung up on etiquette. It’s not necessary.”
“You do all the right things,” I reminded him.
“Only because I had to learn,” he answered. “I do business dinners, and it’s probably become habit for me. I don’t do these restaurants for pleasure most of the time because it’s not really my thing, either. I like being fed great food in large portions. I’ll probably grab a hot dog on the way to the theater tonight. I usually have to get something more substantial after a dinner like this.”
A startled giggle left my lips before I slapped a hand over my mouth to stop it.
I was full, but I could see why Tanner might not be.
The man had a huge appetite.
“Did you really do that?” I asked.
“Every single time,” he said.
“Then why are we here?” I questioned curiously.
“It’s an experience you deserve,” he replied seriously. “Only the best for my woman.”
My heart squeezed inside my chest, and I wanted to fly over the table and kiss him.
This obviously wasn’t exactly his scene, either, yet he’d wanted me to experience the best that New York could offer.
“Thank you,” I said in a heartfelt tone. “The food has been a gastronomical delight. It’s my first time dining like this. I guess I was just a little nervous about making mistakes.”
My entire body relaxed as I realized my fear was all about embarrassing him.
This was Tanner’s world now, and I’d wanted to fit in.
I wasn’t a sophisticated woman.
Most men with his wealth probably didn’t date beauticians whose idea of elegant was eating at a nice Italian restaurant with a huge plate of pasta.
“If I’d known it was going to make you nervous, I would have taken you to a different restaurant,” he grumbled. “One that serves gigantic portions of good food without the pretentiousness.”
“No,” I said immediately. “This was an experience, Tanner. Something I’ve never done before. It means a lot to me that you wanted me to experience this, and the food is something I’ll never forget.”
“Even if you barely got to taste it,” he teased.
“Absolutely,” I answered, completely relaxed.
I viewed this dinner much differently now.
Tanner had wanted this to be a food experience for me.
He didn’t give a damn if I ate like a woman who wasn’t used to being treated like royalty.
All he cared about was making this evening special.
I suddenly realized that Tanner would give me the world on a platinum platter if I wanted it simply to make me happy.
My nervousness I’d experienced was completely my issue.
This world wasn’t the way he lived his life, but he’d learned to adapt because of his enormous wealth and his business.
I didn’t have to fit into this world because the real Tanner was the same small town guy I saw every single day.
Maybe he did wear that custom suit like he was born to it, but he was still the thoughtful man I’d come to adore.
Our dessert was presented with aplomb.
I picked up whatever spoon I wanted and savored those two bites.
It was so decadent that I did lick the spoon.
Several times.
“Hannah,” Tanner said in a warning growl.
“What?” I said innocently. “You told me to lick the spoon if it was good. It was heavenly.”
“I changed my mind,” he said. “You’re driving me crazy.”
I smiled as I realized that he was imagining something a little more carnal than chocolate ganache.
He was looking at me like he wanted to devour me in place of dessert.
A thrill of anticipation shot through my body. It had been so damn long since I’d seen that particular look.
My body ached with longing, and knowing that Tanner wanted me with the same desperation made me completely insane.
My hand shook just a little as I put the spoon on my empty plate. “Then I guess I won’t have another one,” I said teasingly to try to dispel the sexual tension between the two of us.
“Do it,” he grunted. “I’ll probably enjoy watching, but I might lose it.”
Tanner and I had always been flirty, especially in the beginning of our relationship.
But we’d lost some of that in the last two years of our relationship when he’d started to get preoccupied with KTD’s success, and it had never felt like this.
I was definitely falling in love with the new Tanner all over again, and it almost felt like a brand new relationship that was so much deeper than it had ever been before.
Maybe I’d been too mentally unhealthy to completely let him in before, but I was wide open and vulnerable now.
It was both scary and exhilarating at the same time.
However, I wasn’t going to put up a wall to block those emotions.
I wanted to feel Tanner.
I wanted to experience that kind of intensity in our relationship.
“I’ll spare you,” I said in a sensual voice I didn’t recognize. “This time.”
He sent me a heated look of warning that told me that I’d pay if I kept pushing him.
Scorching heat flooded between my thighs as I held his gaze, telling him silently that I’d welcome that kind of punishment.
I wasn’t a woman who was going to back down from this kind of heady sexual banter anymore.
It was way too intoxicating for a woman who hadn’t been attracted to another man since I’d separated from Tanner.
That intimate moment was broken when the waiter came to ask if our dessert was acceptable.
When Tanner told the man it was the best he’d ever had and then winked at me, I had to stifle a laugh.
It was probably shockingly inappropriate in our current setting, but I loved the fact that Tanner didn’t seem to give a damn.
I didn’t openly laugh until later, when Tanner did, in fact, grab two hot dogs on the way to the theater.
When I refused to eat one, he devoured both of them like a man who hadn’t just eaten a gazillion course meal at one of the most exclusive restaurants in the city.
The rest of the night was magical, filled with laughter and romance.
It was the most incredible date I’d ever had.