Chapter Nine
LYRIC
We’ve been here for hours.
The beginning of the date may have started rocky, but the rest of it has been amazing. Sure, we’re bantering back and forth in our usual way, but there’s a method to it now.
An ease about it.
We have a rhythm.
We seem to fit together.
I love how this night has turned out.
When dinner came out, there was so much food.
I ate all of mine and some of Chase’s. Dessert was a massive piece of Devil’s food cake with ice cream, cotton candy, and all kinds of sugar candy attached.
Of course, I couldn’t eat it all, just as Chase had assumed I wouldn’t be able to, so we shared.
It was actually kind of nice sharing dessert with him.
It was far too sweet for his delicate taste buds, but he ate it anyway.
The night is slipping away, though part of me wants to dig in my heels and freeze it here forever.
The fire pops and crackles, heat spilling across my skin, a steady counterpoint to the flutter in my chest. Fairy lights drape the branches above, winking like they’re in on the secret, casting the whole garden in a glow that feels almost mischievous, almost magical.
The Grove doesn’t just invite you in, it wraps itself around you, whispering for you to stay.
And God, I want to.
Preferably with Chase sitting right across from me.
I swirl the last of my soda and lime before tipping it back, the crisp fizz a sobering end to the sweetness of champagne.
Two glasses were all I let myself have before switching.
Someone has to drive, and responsibility has a way of cutting through romance.
Chase followed suit, his glass now as plain and unassuming as mine is filled with soda water and restraint.
Not exactly the stuff of love songs, but somehow it feels as intimate.
“This has been an experience, Chase. It truly has,” I tell him. “Thank you.”
He stands, walking around to pull my chair back, but I help myself up before he can.
He throws his hands in the air in defeat. “Sorry, habit.”
“You gotta learn, Hallmark. I can manage.” I push my chair back while grabbing my bag.
He purses his lips. “With everything, except oysters.”
I scowl playfully as he places his hand on the small of my back. The gesture sends a shiver straight into my core, and my breath hitches as we walk toward the exit.
We see Sammy, the front-of-house waitress, on our way out. “Put it on my tab, please, Sammy.”
I go to object, but Sammy cuts in before I can, “Sure thing, Chase. Have a good night, you two.”
Chase leads me through the door and out into the chill of the night air. I instantly wrap my arms around myself for warmth. Chase pulls off his jacket and places it around my shoulders.
“Chase, you’ll be cold.”
He waves me off. “But you’ll be warm. It’s fine, Starlight.”
I groan. “And if I argue the point?”
“Like you want to argue about the cost of dinner, too?”
“Exactly. We should split the bill… it’s only fair. I did eat part of your meal, too.”
He leans in, wrapping his arm around me, rubbing up and down my arm as if he’s trying to keep me warm. I think he might be trying to keep himself warm too, but I don’t mind. I’m enjoying him touching me.
Chase’s eyes shift down to me as we enter the parking lot. “I want to take you somewhere. Do you trust me?”
“Ah… not really. I don’t know you, but hey…” I shrug, “… let’s do this.”
He laughs as I reach for the passenger-side door of my truck, but he leans in, opening it for me before I can. I glance at him, his smile beaming wide, while I give him a sharp look. “Mm-hmm… I see what you did there, Hallmark.”
He chuckles, sliding his hand onto my lower back. “I was being a gentleman, Lyri. Now get in the truck.”
“You won’t win this game,” I dare him.
“We’ll see,” he states as he dips his head toward the truck with a dirty big grin.
I groan and slide in, shutting the door behind me. Chase is beaming from ear to ear as he moves around to hop in and drive. I inwardly high-five myself. He may think he’s won that war, but I’m only letting him drive because I want to sit and stare at him.
Yeah, Hallmark, you think you’re the victor.
Ha! You drive—I get the view.
Lyri – 1
Hallmark – 0
Yeah, that’s not creepy at all.
He sinks into the seat like he belongs there and grips the steering wheel as if it’s his beloved new toy. “You’re letting me drive.” At least he hasn’t forgotten what a privilege it is that he’s receiving right now.
“Yes. So, don’t screw this opportunity up, Hallmark.”
“Noted. You’re gonna love it. Buckle up.”
I reach across, doing up my belt as he turns on the truck, then we’re off. It might be night, a complete contrast to how we were last time we were in this truck together, but I can’t help but flashback to taking Doughnut home. I miss him. I hope he’s doing all right, the cute little billy goat.
“He’s fine, I promise. Rip loves that goat more than himself,” he answers my unspoken question.
“You a psychic now, Chase?”
He laughs. “No, I just know that look. Trust me, Doughnut’s fine.”
I nod as he drives up Jefferson Boulevard, then turns down Hetzler Road with signs leading toward the Baldwin Hills Scenic Lookout.
I’m confused.
It usually shuts at five in the afternoon.
So why the fuck is he bringing me here?
He pulls up, turning off the ignition. The gate’s closed, but he still moves to get out. “Feeling rebellious?”
I open my eyes wide. “Ahhh… what? Can we get arrested for trespassing?”
He tilts his head. “Yeah, probably, if we get caught.”
I giggle at his blasé attitude. “Then, hell yes.”
He seems surprised by my immediate acceptance as I jump out of the truck.
We round the front, then head for the gate.
I duck down, keeping my steps lighter than usual, trying not to make a sound.
I move, hiding behind the bushes while Chase walks normally, being completely obvious and not hiding at all.
“Chase. Psst… Chase, you’re being too conspicuous. Get over here,” I whisper in a stern voice.
He strides up to the gate, rattling the lock with careless abandon. I tense as he peeks up and over the fence.
“You don’t expect me to climb over that thing, do you?” I whisper loudly.
His eyes wander me up and down. “Could you?”
I tilt my head while he fiddles with the gate. “I mean… I guess, but my dress is long and my shoes aren’t really appropri—” I stop talking as my eyes widen.
Suddenly, the gate is open.
“How the?”
“Tricks of the trade, m’lady. C’mon.”
He reaches for my hand, and I slip out from behind the bush, nerves sparking with the rush of what we are doing. We’re breaking and entering. And heck, if it doesn’t feel exhilarating.
Chase tugs me forward, and suddenly we’re running, feet pounding against the path, laughter tumbling from us in wild bursts.
The night air whips at my skin, hot with the rush of living on the edge, until we spill out onto a wide concrete platform perched on the edge of the hill.
We skid to a stop, chests heaving, breathless and alive.
Then I look up, look out, and my lungs forget how to work altogether.
The city sprawls below us in a sea of glittering light, the vastness of LA unfurling like a galaxy laid at our feet. I gasp, and Chase’s grip on my hand tightens as if to steady me against the sheer immensity of it all.
It’s stunning.
Utterly stunning.
The lights twinkle against the onyx sky, like a fairyland has cracked open just for us. I’ve stood here before, during the day, when it was just a lookout, nothing more. But at night? At night, it’s transformed into something else entirely, a secret, a spell, a paradise carved out for lovers.
Chase leans into my side, and the air shifts. The pressure thickens, charged, as if the atoms themselves have been rewired to bend toward us. It hums in my veins as if sparklers are going off beneath my skin. I don’t even have to look at him to know his gaze is on me.
I can feel it, hot and unrelenting, searing along my skin like a brand.
My heart thrashes wildly, my breath refusing to steady, no matter how I chase it. I’m speechless, undone, by the view, by the wildness of the moment, by Chase himself.
I take the risk and turn toward him. And instantly, the world sharpens. The hum between us roars alive. His muscari-blue eyes catch mine, and the intensity in them electrifies me so fiercely I tremble where I stand.
Ba-dum.
Ba-dum.
Chase’s breath is fast and shallow. One hand is still holding mine while the other comes up, swiping a piece of my hair that’s blowing in the wind away from my face.
His palm gently caresses my cheek as I nuzzle into him, needing to feel him so badly.
My stomach flutters like never before as I inch closer.
Chase steps nearer too.
The chemistry between us is so palpable, you can almost see it electrifying the air around us.
This man… he does something to me.
He wraps me in his blanket of warmth, making me feel secure, but also letting me know I have my own strength at the same time. There’s something so powerful in that. He’s a giver. He has the strength to know how to take too. There’s a connection here, and it’s leaving me gasping for air.
His fingers gently edge my head toward him. My heart rapidly fires, while my eyes don’t leave his.
I lick my lips.
This is it.
Chase is going to kiss me.
He leans in, his hand moving from my cheek into the back of my hair, his fingers threading through my locks and pulling me ever so gently closer. My heart leaps into my throat, my lips scorching hot, begging to taste him.
We inch closer, closer. His breath wisps against my mouth, then there is a slight pressure against my lips, and they pop and sizzle. His lips brush mine again when a sudden flash of light appears from the direction of the gate.
“Hey!”