Chapter Ten #2
It’s cozy, and I am able to inch closer to Chase.
It’s more than perfect.
The only problem is that we have to wear earbuds for the movie, so I won’t be able to talk to him properly. But until it starts, I’ll keep them out. “What movie are we seeing?” I ask.
He winces. “The only thing they’re playing tonight is Beetlejuice. The first one, so…”
I laugh. “I loved that movie as a kid.”
Chase visibly relaxes while I cuddle into his side a little more. The stars begin to twinkle, and the city lights shine brightly under the velvet sky.
The movie’s about to start, so I place my earbuds into my ears.
The volume of the movie isn’t as loud as I thought it was going to be, so I can still kind of hear what’s going on around the outdoor cinema.
There are people coughing, chairs scraping, but the atmosphere is electric.
I sit cuddled up to Chase, watching Winona Ryder looking so incredibly young, and I feel like I’m buzzing on the inside.
The movie seems more far-fetched than I remember. I’m finding the whole thing a little silly, but still thoroughly entertaining. I am having fun in the arms of Chase. What’s not to enjoy?
“Are you having a good time?” a faint voice sounds beside me.
I turn to see Chase looking right at me, so I pull an earbud from my ear, and he does the same. “I am,” I whisper. “I loved this movie as a kid, but now I can kind of see how crazy the whole concept is.”
Chase glances around at everyone with their headphones in. He pulls his other one out, placing it on his lap. “Do you think they can hear us?”
I pull my other one out, glancing around, and not one single person bats an eyelid. “Nope.”
He wraps his arm around me, pulling me to him further. “So then, Starlight, tell me about your day,” he says.
I giggle. “You mean to tell me we’ve come to an outdoor cinema, and we’re gonna spend the movie chatting?”
He shrugs. “If you want to?”
I lean into him. “Sounds fine to me. So, this morning I tried to get Polly to eat an apple again… epic fail. Then at work, Rory spent the day online researching.”
His eyes widen. “Oh yeah? A new flower or something?”
“She was supposed to be finding a supplier for nutrient packets. Instead, she was googling all the hot Chris’s in the acting and music world, you know, like Hemsworth, Pratt, Pine, Martin, all the good ones.”
He lets out a rather loud chuckle, making the people in front of us turn around and glare. We both duck down in an apology as he tries to control himself. “And I suppose you didn’t benefit from this ‘hot Chris’ research at all?”
“No! Some of us have to actually work.”
He fake winces. “Shame. That Thor guy is a real looker.”
I jab him in the ribs. “Tell me about your day, Hallmark.”
He exhales. “Same old, same old. It was busy. I signed on some new clients, though.”
“Well, that’s good. Bet your father’s happy?”
“My father is always happy to have new clients. He worries about the bottom line far too much.”
I can still vaguely hear the movie from the earbuds sitting on my lap. It’s getting to the part where she’s going to say Beetlejuice for the third time in a row. I glance at the scene as the guy in front of us throws his popcorn at the screen.
“Don’t do it!” he yells, making everyone in the outdoor cinema start laughing.
Chase rolls his eyes and exhales. “You wanna get outta here?”
I giggle. “Yeah.”
We throw the blanket off our legs and grab our popcorn and earbuds. Lucky we’re in the back row, so we’re not disturbing anyone else as we make our way to the desk. We hand in the blanket and the earbuds, chuckling all the way back down to the valet.
“Sorry, but I think my big date idea was a dud.”
I dismiss him. “It’s all good. We can make a plan from this. If we’re ever in a situation we wanna get out of in a hurry, we can just tell the other ‘Beetlejuice,’ and we know we gotta leave.”
He dips his head and laughs. “Okay, sounds like a plan to me.”
“Wanna go back to mine and watch Netflix?”
He grins wide. “I like your date idea waaay better than mine.”
Chase hands the valet the ticket, and we wait as the car rolls around.
“We should order takeout, too,” I add, already dreaming about naan and something spicy.
He groans in delight. “Geez, woman, you’re way better at planning dates than me.”
I shrug. “I don’t need all the fancy stuff, Chase. Don’t get me wrong, you pulling out all the stops tonight is really sweet. But honestly? I’m a simple girl. Couch, cuddles, and binge-watching The Last of Us sounds like my kind of perfect.”
He grimaces. “Oof. Can we compromise and watch The Night Agent instead?”
I burst out laughing. “Are you seriously scared of infected mushroom people?”
He groans, curling up his lip. “It’s not fear, it’s taste. I just prefer my life-or-death scenarios with more suits and fewer spores.”
“Fine,” I say, smirking. “The Night Agent it is. But I’m absolutely judging your snack choices.”
His eyes sparkle as he tilts his head at me knowingly. “You just want to ogle Peter Sutherland.”
I shrug nonchalantly. “Guilty. But you’re the one who suggested it, Hallmark. No backsies.”
He wraps his arm around me, leaning in and planting a tender kiss on my temple. It sends a shudder down straight between my legs as I try to keep my raging hormones under control.
The car pulls up in the nick of time. I need to pull away from Chase before I turn and jump all over him here in front of the LEVEL staff. Chase and I walk to the passenger side, and I take a deep breath as he reaches for my door.
I let him.
I don’t make a game out of it this time.
I don’t try to beat him to it.
I simply let him be a gentleman.
The look on his face tells me it means everything to him, so I smile up at him as he ushers me inside the car.
With the biggest smile on his face, he then moves around and jumps into the driver’s side.
He looks at me like he knows that was a moment for us.
Then, with a soft exhale, he takes off back to my place, where I suddenly realize we’ll be alone.
All alone.
In a house.
With a bed.
Holy shit!