3. Lilian
CHAPTER 3
Lilian
As Reid held the door open of The Big Chowder for me, his hand finding the small of my back with practiced ease now I couldn’t help but feel a flutter of nerves in my stomach. This was just part of the dare, I reminded myself. Just another act in our little charade but in reality, this was a known hot spot for people to meet up in Starlight Bay. It may just be one guest or a group but even if they didn’t speak to you the gossip would spread like wildfire.
Reid and I had been dating for a couple days now and already the town was abuzz with gossip about the two of us. Everywhere I went I caught whispers and knowing glances. My chocolate shop had seen a suspicious uptick in customers—mostly women who suddenly had an intense interest in artisanal chocolates and an even more intense interest in my relationship with Starlight Bay’s most eligible bachelor.
“Reservation for Belgrave,” Reid told the hostess, in a confident tone that always seemed to make people melt whenever they cast their eyes upon him. No wonder all the women wanted a piece of him. The hostess, a young woman who I recognized as a regular at my shop, glanced at the two of us barely being able to conceal her curiosity.
“Of course, Mr. Belgrave. We have your table ready.” She declared as she gathered a selection of menus in her hand and led us through the dimly lit restaurant and past the tables of diners who were already enjoying their meals or waiting for them to arrive. “Our best table, with a view of the bay, as requested.” I shot Reid a look and raised my eyebrow at him. Best table? As requested. He merely shrugged as if reading my thoughts as his lip curled up and a rare glimpse of a smile appeared on his lips as he pulled out my chair for me.
“You didn’t have to go all out,” I whispered leaning in as he pushed my seat in before taking his own seat opposite. “It’s just dinner.”
“If we’re going to do this, we might as well be convincing,” he replied, winking at me before he leaned back and began unfolding his napkin with precise movements. “Besides, I can’t resist such a stunning view.”
His gaze cast over me for a second too long, making my breath hitch before the golden glow of the sun setting across the bay in the distance made me still. I had to admit it was mesmerising and a moment in which I’d commit to memory knowing he’d taken the time to share it with me.
“Fine. But I’m paying my half,” I insisted, as I turned my attention back to him, making him chuckle. I couldn’t help but feel a warmth inside knowing I’d caused him to react that especially as he was always so unusually grumpy around everyone normally.
“A gentleman never lets his date pay. You should have expected that.” He countered back to me.
“Good thing you’re not actually a gentleman, then,” I quipped, earning another small laugh from him.
“Touché, Ms. Raeflower. You got me there.” Reid stated holding his chest as if he had been wounded deeply as a huge smile spread across my face. I couldn’t help but love challenging and fighting with the guy—pushing his buttons and seeing who the true Reid Belgrave was behind the mysterious, deep and serious lawyer he had portrayed to everyone around him.
It didn’t take long for our server to appear with our water and wine menus, her eyes darting between us as if she was trying to solve a puzzle. After she left to give us time to decide, I leaned forward slightly.
“Everyone’s staring,” I murmured, acutely aware of the attention we were drawing.
“Let them,” Reid replied, dropping his voice to a low but surprisingly confident tone as he inched toward me, his gaze pinned on mine as if no one else existed but us. Fuck he was good. “That’s the whole point, isn’t it?” To convince them all that we’re madly in love?”
I instantly felt the warmth in my cheeks as he uttered those words. “Madly in love might be overselling it a bit. I’d settle for tolerating each other’s company without homicidal intent.”
“Is that what we’re doing?” He raised an eyebrow at me as his gray eyes caught the light in a way that made them look almost silver in color. “Are we just tolerating each other?”
I paused as I suddenly became unsure on how to answer as the truth was over the past few days and the more, I’ve found myself around him I’ve admittedly not exactly hated being in his company. It’s not to say that Reid Belgrave wasn’t still arrogant and infuriating, but he was also surprisingly thoughtful in ways I hadn’t expected. Like how he’d picked up and remembered that I preferred dark chocolate to milk, or how he’d sent me coffee to my place from Bayfront Beans knowing that I had been up late the night before preparing a special order for a wedding.
“I suppose you’re marginally less annoying than I initially thought you’d be,” I conceded, reaching for my water glass to hide my smile from him as I took a sip.
“That’s high praise indeed. I’ll cherish those words forever.” Reid uttered back.
The conversation between the two of us flowed so easily that when the server returned, she had to cough to grab our attention as she held a bottle of wine—a rich red that I was surprised to find was one of my favorites. When I raised my eyebrows in question, he simply said, “I ordered it earlier and asked them to hold onto it until we were ready for our meals. Paisley mentioned it was a favorite of yours.” I wasn’t expecting him to be so close suddenly with my eccentric best friend and have random conversations with her about my likes and dislikes.
The thing was dinner at Big Chowder was supposed to be just a normal part of the dare. A public appearance to cement our relationship in the eyes of the town but with every passing minute that we spent in each other’s company I couldn’t help but feel a growing tension between us. The restaurant had a romantic ambiance—soft lighting and with the clink of glasses in the background from the other guests along with the subtle shared glances we tried to steal from one another and brisk caress and touch it instantly made the atmosphere feel charged. Reid was charming. Too charming. He was nothing like the grouch I had seen previously—a charade and act I was certain he’d ignited to protect from other women. Instead, I was greeted with a humor that matched my own, a smile that made my stomach flip and I couldn’t forget the way he listened to me—he made me feel like I was the only person in the room. Every touch, every moment between us was starting to blur the lines between reality and the dare.
“So, tell me something real,” he said after our appetizers arrived—a plate of seared scallops that were almost as delicious as they were expensive. “Something not in the script. Something that you want to tell me.”
“Like what?” I asked as I took a sip of the delicious wine, considering his request.
“Like why chocolate?” he asked, his expression genuinely curious. “Of all the things you could have done, why open a chocolate shop?”
It wasn’t a question I was expecting if I was honest and for a moment, I found myself caught off guard. Most people just asked about my recipes or complimented my creations; they rarely asked about why I took the direction I did.
“My grandmother,” I said finally, setting down my glass on the table and dropping my gaze. “She used to make these incredible truffles every Christmas. I’d watch her in the kitchen for hours, mesmerized by how she could transform simple ingredients into something magical.” I smiled at the memory of her. “After she passed away and I was cleaning out the house I found her recipe book. It was like finding a piece of her again and I couldn’t hold back from experimenting with her recipes, then eventually creating my own. It just... felt right, you know? Like I was meant to be working with chocolate.”
“That’s beautiful,” he said simply, causing—a warmth, a sincerity—that made my chest tighten unexpectedly.
“Your turn,” I said, trying to lighten the mood. “Tell me something real. Why law?”
His expression shifted slightly as I lifted my gaze to meet his as a shadow passed over his features before he regained his composure. “Justice,” he said after a pause. “I believe in justice. In things being... fair, but you sort of figured that out when we met. I’m guessing.” I nodded at his admittance knowing there was a story there but it wasn’t for me to press further on. If Reid wanted to talk to me about it then I would be here waiting. The night flew by as we ate and drank talking about the mischief Grant and him got up to and how they worked on cases simultaneously. I even shared stories about some of my more eccentric customers and of course my favorite regulars like Miri and her boss Evander. As we joked and drank more, I couldn’t help but find myself laughing more than usual and allowing my guard to slowly come down.
“I can’t believe we’re doing this,” I said, my voice low with a playful note in it as I reached my hand across the table.
“I think I’m starting to enjoy this dare more than I should,” Reid confessed grinning as his gaze lingered on my lips for just a moment too long. The words hit me in a way I wasn’t expecting, stirring something inside me. The whole point of the dare was to keep things light and to pretend but with each second I spent with Reid it had started to feel more real. I could feel a heat building between us and had no idea how to control it just as my phone buzzed on the table with Paisley’s name flashing on the screen. I hesitated for a second before answering, part of me reluctant to break the moment. The moment was lost and the flames instantly sizzled to nothing…
“Sorry, I should take this,” I said, reaching for the phone. “It might be about the shop.”
Reid nodded, gesturing for me to go ahead.
“Hey, Paisley,” I answered, trying to keep my voice casual and level.
“How’s the date going?” she asked, her excitement coming through loud and clear through the speaker. “Is it convincing? Are people buying it? Or are you going to have to?—”
“Everything’s fine.” I snapped back at her knowing it only took for our server to walk past to overhear her through the speaker. “Actually, our food is just arriving Pais, I’ve got to go. I’ll tell Reid you were asking and can you double check that Cal is alright with that recipe. If he needs me?—”
“He’s fine, Lil. Enjoy yourself, but remember—” She attempted to reinforce her statement as I shook my head before Reid reached for the phone making me squint my eyes at him.
“Bye Paisley.” He uttered down the line before ending the call. “That woman.” He shook his head, “anyway I’m going to pay the bill and then shall we get out of here?”
“Sounds like I plan.” I uttered as I watched him smoothly command the server and take control of the situation.
After dinner, Reid insisted on walking me home, even though my apartment was just a few blocks from the restaurant. The night air was cool but not unpleasant, carrying the salt of the bay as we strolled in comfortable silence.
“You know,” I said eventually, “for a fake date, that wasn’t half bad.”
“High praise from the woman who once called me ‘the rude, grumpy asshole of a lawyer,’” he quipped, though there was no heat in his words.
“Well, you’re still rude and occasionally grumpy,” I replied, nudging him with my shoulder. “But maybe slightly less of an asshole than I originally thought.”
“I’ll take it,” he chuckled as his hand found mine in the darkness. It felt natural now as if I needed this casual touch between us and that our bodies had forgotten that this was all pretend. We reached my building all too soon and I found myself strangely reluctant to say goodnight.
“Thank you for dinner,” I said, suddenly feeling awkward, like a teenager after a first date as the two of us stood at the front door of my apartment as I shifted the weight between my feet unsure what I was meant to do at that moment.
“Thank you for the company,” he replied, back. “Same time tomorrow?”
“Sure. Paisley would kill me if I backed out now.” I meekly replied as the words became stuck in my throat, hyper-aware of his proximity and the warmth of his hand still holding mine.
“Right. Paisley. Wouldn’t want to face that forfeit.” He uttered in the dim light of the entryway.
“Definitely not,” I agreed furrowing my brow as I wondered what had suddenly come over Reid, after all this was the purpose of the two of us being together, wasn’t it? He leaned forward and as my breath caught in my throat he turned and pressed a gentle kiss to my cheek, his lips lingering just a beat longer than necessary. Had I done something wrong?
“Goodnight, Lilian,” Reid murmured, his breath warm against my skin.
“Goodnight, Reid,” I whispered back.
“I’ll see you tomorrow.” He uttered, pulling his hand back from mine before turning on his heel and watching him walk away disappearing into the night. I brought my hand to my cheek where his lips had been and a sea of emotions began swirling inside me of how Reid had played the game differently in front of people and when we were alone. This was supposed to be simple—a dare, a pretence, a means to an end but then at other times it seemed like he was waiting for me to make a move and step forward too.
Once inside I leaned against the door and took in a deep breath and stared at a picture from my grandmother on the wall in front of me as I thought deeply how I couldn’t shake the feeling that what had started as a simple dare was becoming something far more complicated and potentially far more dangerous to my heart.