Chapter 16
COURTNEY
Checking myself in the mirror, I smooth my dress. Kaede told me to dress nice for our date tonight, saying that while we’ve spent a lot of time together recently, he wanted this date to be ‘real’.
I get it. And it will be our first appearance in public as a couple.
Before, it felt like two friends hanging out. Until things got carried away. Real carried away. That can’t happen again. I don’t know if my clit or my shower head can handle another night of trying to find gratification when only Kaede will satisfy the hunger inside me.
So I’m dressing carefully. Sexy, but not too sexy. Hence, the blue dress I have on. The neckline dips low, but respectably low, hugging the curve of my chest without showing cleavage, and the bottom of the dress flares out flirtily, hitting mid-thigh.
I walk over to my shoe rack, selecting a pair of four-inch stilettos to complete the look. They’re sexy, but again, not so sexy as to be uncomfortable. I can dance in these if I have to, because I have no idea what we’re doing tonight.
Kaede told me to dress nicely and that it would be a surprise.
That’s it. Normally, that’d freak me out .
. . a lot. I hate surprises and once almost punched Abi in the face when we were kids and she decided to surprise me from behind my bedroom door.
But I’m excited to be surprised by him, something that never happens, mostly because I tell everyone that I hate surprises.
Honestly, that’s not true. Other than Abi scaring the crap out of me that one time, it’s not the surprise I hate.
It’s that I don’t get the chance to plan for it.
What if something else would’ve been better, or let people have more fun, or a list of other potential concerns?
My worries leave me feeling like the awkward person at the party, the girl who’ll end up talking to a potted plant because she doesn’t know what to say or how to react.
I’m always worried that any minute, someone’s going to pull out the baby oil and the Twister set or something .
. . which actually did happen once to Abi.
My sister had a unique college experience.
And no one wants to talk to the Ice Queen unless they want something from my dad or an introduction to Ross, though that has tapered off now that he’s married.
But for some reason, I trust Kaede with this.
I feel warm and safe and respected when I’m with him.
It’s like he looks at me and really sees all of me.
Not just the daughter who wants to earn her father’s respect.
Not just the younger sister who puts up with mildly frustrating siblings.
Not just the woman who’s still trying to figure out her place in this world.
He sees me, all of me, puts it all together, and says ‘I like who I see.’
It means a lot.
There’s a buzz from my door, and I let Kaede up, waiting a little nervously for him to knock. When he does, I open up to find him dressed handsomely in a fine suit, conservative but not overly so. Nobody can be too conservative when he’s wearing a green tie.
“You look . . . gorgeous,” he breathes, stepping inside to take my hand.
He pulls me forward, twirling me around like a dance partner, and I can feel my skirt flare up slightly on my thighs before settling down.
It makes me feel girly and feminine, which I should absolutely hate considering how much I fight against that every day.
But when he pulls me to a stop, the look in Kaede’s eyes says that I don’t need to hate it. That there’s a time to be feminine and to take joy in who I am physically. And it’s now, with that hungry look eagerly taking me in, inch by inch.
I remind myself that it’s not that he doesn’t want me. It’s that he doesn’t think he should. I still haven’t castrated Ross over that, but perhaps after tonight, I won’t need to. Maybe tonight is my chance to make him forget about Ross completely.
After all, if we’re playing this out for Jeffrey, we might as well get the benefits of it. I’d love to say that I can’t go six months without sex, and I would never cheat on Kaede, even if it’s fake. But the truth is, I’ve gone that long before. But if I don’t have to, why would I?
You’re playing with fire. You literally chose this dress because you wanted to back off and play it safe. And now one little twirl, and you’re thinking sex, sex, sex again? Not today, Satan. Think about something else, anything else. Save the showerhead!
Do you see him in that suit? Save the showerhead? Fine by me because I want orgasms from Kaede, not Kohler.
And yes, the devil and angel in my head are arguing with each other. It’s fine. It’s like book characters. Or at least, that’s what I tell myself.
“Are you ready?”
“That depends. Where are we going?” I’m pushing, testing to see if he’ll spill the beans and spoil the surprise, but I should know better.
He looks at me carefully, and his lips twitch into a cocky smirk that I can’t help but swoon over. “You’ll find out when we get there. Let’s go.” And with that, he takes my elbow and guides me downstairs and out to his car.
Shit. Bossy looks good on Kaede, and even the angel in my head has hopped on Team Sex Me Up and is fanning herself with her halo.
He starts the car, and I can’t help but smile when it’s not Kaede’s mix but Bruce Springsteen singing Because the Night that greets me. “Boss okay?”
“Perfect,” I assure him, even if I personally prefer Natalie Merchant’s Unplugged version better. But Springsteen? There’s a reason he’s called The Boss. “So, no hints?”
“Let’s just say that I have a wide variety of friends in an even wider variety of industries. We’re going to a buddy’s place tonight, and I think you’ll like it.”
So mysterious, which is fun, but my mind is ticking away on a list of possibilities.
“That’s all you’ll tell me?” I ask. “Is your friend a chef? A restauranteur? Taco truck owner? Musician? Bartender? Meth dealer?”
Kaede throws me a look of ‘seriously?’ and I shrug.
But I shut my mouth and enjoy the anticipation.
Me, Courtney Andrews, relinquishing control and heading out for a night on the town with zero idea of what’s going to happen.
It’s . . . rare. It’s magic. I feel like that rainbow-maned unicorn Abi loved so much, free and wild and reckless.
I take a deep breath, trusting Kaede and letting him drive. For the next half hour, we chat easily about everything and nothing. We’re like a couple, really. One that’s been together for awhile and knows each other so well that it’s like hand and glove. It’s comfortable and natural.
We turn off the street and down a well-maintained dirt road, the darkness stopping me from seeing much of the surrounding area, and I wonder if Kaede’s ‘fancy date’ is a romantic dinner picnic under the stars.
Before I open my mouth to ask him to confirm or reject my latest theory, I see lights up ahead, and after a sharp turn, we’re at a well-lit wrought iron gate.
Kaede pulls through, a knowing little smile of amusement on his lips.
He’s driving me crazy, and he knows it. He likes it.
And though I won’t admit it, I like it too.
“Welcome to Villa del Bosque.”
We pull up to a rustic, beautiful Spanish style house made of stone, stucco, and wood. It’s large and warm, with gas lanterns casting twin circles of light by wide double doors, raw wood beams and posts, and a brick paver drive.
Kaede stops the car and gets out, coming around to help me too. “Thank you,” I tell him, though I’m still looking around for clues.
“Kaede, my man!” a huge, hulking guy in a sport coat greets us as we walk in. “Thanks for finally coming out to see me!” Every word he says is loud, echoing, and enthusiastic.
“Wish I hadn’t waited so long. It’s good to see you.” Kaede offers a hand, but as they shake, it becomes a bro-hug with hard back pounds. I cough lightly because the power in those pats makes me lose my breath vicariously.
“Oh, let me do the honors. Courtney, this is Jim Spiewal. Jim, Courtney Andrews.”
“Miss Andrews,” Jim says, bowing elegantly. “May I assume you’re of the same family that somehow gave this functional idiot a job?”
I laugh lightly, taking Kaede’s hand. My thumb runs circles over the warm skin unconsciously, soothing the bone-cracking handshake away. “He’s hardly an idiot. Functional . . . very.” I lift my brows, making the double-entendre joke hit with precise aim.
Jim grins and claps Kaede on the shoulder one last time. “Ooh, I like her. She’s got fire.”
Kaede pulls me closer. “You have no idea.”
“Ready?” Jim asks, leading us through the wooden doors. Inside, there are a dozen other people, all dressed for an evening out. Jim walks to the front of the room, a path opening for him easily as people move out of his way. Clearing his throat, he raises his hands to silence the quiet chatter.
“Welcome, it’s nice to have everyone here for our monthly tour and tasting.
Here at Bosque Winery, we want to bring you the best wines we possibly can, ones that exhibit the special flavors that are possible with our local climate.
After a tour of our facility, we’d like to open a few bottles, let you try some of our finest. Please, follow me. ”
A winery tour? Kaede brought me on a winery tour! So romantic and unexpected and . . . sweet.
Finally in on the surprise, I turn to Kaede with a big smile already plastered on my face to discover that he’s been watching me, waiting for my reaction.
“Surprise,” he whispers, moving closer. His eyes are dark and hungry, like he’s been desperate to see what I would think of this.
“Thank you. I love it,” I say earnestly, planting a kiss on his cheek. The moment stretches, our eyes locked on one another, and it feels different. It feels . . . deeper.