Chapter 23 #2
And he seemed interested too. At the end of the evening, as he walked her to the Uber that she’d ordered, he somewhat nervously suggested that they go out again, and she didn’t have the heart to say no.
“Thank you for a lovely night and for dinner. It was wonderful. I’d love to do it again.”
He looked relieved. “Great. Let me know when you’re in town again, and we’ll make a plan.”
“Will do.”
She settled into the Uber and gazed out the window as they pulled into traffic. Her cell phone buzzed, and she smiled when she saw a text message from Billy.
Hope you’re behaving yourself. I’ll be by to get you at six tomorrow. Sleep well.
Jill put her phone back in her purse. She’d text Billy back in the morning.
Jill stood in front of her closet the next day, staring at her clothes and feeling like she had nothing to wear.
She finally settled on black dress pants and a shimmery pewter top that was whisper soft with a flattering neckline.
Unlike her date with Mac the night before, Jill was feeling a little nervous about her nondate with Billy, which was ridiculous.
She’d accepted that nothing was going to happen between them, but some part of her obviously still held out hope.
When Billy called to say he was downstairs, the butterflies in her stomach danced again, and she tried to ignore them.
She made her way downstairs, and he was waiting in the lobby wearing a blazer and tie—which meant the restaurant was expensive.
Billy looked sharp. His tie was a deep purple, which looked great against his dark hair.
“You look handsome,” she said when she reached him.
He grinned. “Thanks. You clean up pretty good yourself.”
She followed him outside to where his black BMW was waiting.
Most people in the city didn’t drive. It was expensive to keep a car there, but Billy loved his BMW and didn’t mind paying to garage it.
The restaurant wasn’t far, but traffic was heavy, so it took them almost a half hour to get there.
Billy turned his keys over to the valet out front, and they went inside.
Jill loved the feel of the restaurant when they walked in.
It was intimate and quiet with rich fabrics and plush carpet.
Billy gave his name to the hostess, and she looked up their reservation, then led them to a cozy table in the back.
It was a semicircle shape, and they sat side by side, looking out on the dining room.
The leather seats were soft and comfortable, and the service was excellent.
Within moments of sitting, they were greeted by their server and told the specials.
One of the drink specials was a hot and dirty martini, vodka with blue cheese–stuffed olives and red pepper juice. Billy looked her way when their server finished, and Jill nodded.
“I’ll have that, please.”
“Jack and Coke for me, thanks.”
The menu was over-the-top decadence. Everything was rich and seemed to have truffles or cream sauces.
It was hard to decide. Billy wanted to share a foie gras appetizer, which Jill loved, but it was very rich, so she decided on a piece of fish for her entrée—salmon with a honey mustard sauce.
Billy went with steak, which was his usual choice.
The foie gras was silky and sumptuous, and Jill enjoyed every bite.
She couldn’t finish her entrée but agreed to help Billy with the dessert he wanted.
She was curious to try it too, never having had a Baked Alaska.
It was an impressive-looking dish, ice cream on cake, smothered in meringue that was baked in the oven.
She had two bites and thought it was just okay, but Billy loved it and ate every bite.
Neither one of them was ready to go home after dinner, so they found a place nearby that had live music.
Billy dragged her up on the dance floor, and she was surprised when she sensed that same vibe again that she’d felt briefly on Nantucket.
It was like something had shifted between them.
But she still worried it wasn’t real and was just her imagination playing tricks on her.
They left at the end of the set, and when they walked outside, Jill decided she’d lost her mind as everything seemed as normal as ever with Billy. Until he pulled her aside, leaned over, and kissed her. It took her totally by surprise.
“What was that?” she asked when the kiss ended.
“Just something I’ve been wanting to do for a while. I hope you don’t mind?”
Jill was speechless and finally said, “I don’t understand.”
Billy ran a hand through his hair and looked frustrated.
“I’m not sure I do either. This might be a really bad idea.
But I’ve just really missed you. I didn’t realize how much until you weren’t here.
Nothing has felt right with you gone. And I have to admit, I felt jealous as hell that you were going out with that other guy last night. ”
“Mac.”
“Yeah, Mac. I’ve just been thinking a lot. And when you were here last, I thought I sensed something from you too, at Rosa Mexicano. Am I losing my mind?”
Jill shook her head. “No, you’re not. I feel it too. I’ve just been torn between wondering if it’s a good idea or a bad one. I don’t want to ruin our friendship, and we are business partners.”
But it looked like all Billy heard was that she felt it too. “I think it’s a good idea.”
And then he kissed her again, and she had to agree. His lips felt good and right against hers. And unlike with Mac, she really wanted to kiss Billy.
“I don’t suppose you want to come back to my place for a while?” he asked.
But she shook her head. “I do. But I don’t. This is huge, Billy. We need to be really sure. I think we should take things slow.”
He grinned. “I’m sure you’re right. But I had to ask. So we’ll take it slow then. You’ll come back in two weeks, and we’ll go on an official date.”
“Okay.”
Billy drove her home and kissed her good night again before she got out of the car.
He waited until she was inside the building before he drove away, which she appreciated.
She went up to her apartment, quickly changed into her softest pajamas, and slid into bed.
Before drifting off to sleep, her mind kept replaying their first kiss.
It was every bit as perfect as she’d imagined it would be.