Chapter 30
CHAPTER THIRTY
Riley
“I think the red lipstick suits you better,” Elena has been helping me get ready for my date with Zeke, carefully vetting my outfit until we settle on a beautiful beige dress.
“So you passed all your exams, got a promotion at the club, and you’re going on a date with the super hot, rich dude from the other night? ”
“I guess that’s a way to put it,” I laugh, the nerves starting to get the best of me. I keep thinking about the date and for some reason I find myself feeling way more nervous than I thought I would.
“I’m so happy for you, girl,” she says, making herself comfortable on the bed. “If anyone deserves to have their life turned upside down in the best way, it’s you.”
“That means a lot, Elena.” Hearing my roommate say those words warms my heart. “Thank you.”
She smiles and then quickly adds. “Now hurry, don’t let the man wait.”
“Oh my, God!” I only then glance at the time and realize I’m almost late. “I’ll be late.”
When I get downstairs, I find Zeke’s driver waiting for me. Elliott opens the door for me and I get inside. It’s crazy how fast I’ve gotten used to his car picking me up, and I have to admit it makes my life a lot less stressful because I don’t have to worry about walking home alone at night.
“Mr. Zeke wants you to open the box next to you,” Elliott is already joining a fast lane on the highway after taking a shortcut.
I only then notice the elegant black box on the backseat next to me. “What’s this?”
“I wouldn’t know, Miss,” Elliott proceeds to explain. “I only know what the boss told me, and he said he’s not working tonight and to tell you that he wants you to put on what’s inside that box.”
“It must be clothes…” I say more to myself than to him.
“Probably, I believe it’s safe to assume so.”
“Do you know where we’re going?” I take a quick look outside and realize we’ve entered the fancy part of town.
“I do.”
“And you’re not going to tell me?”
“Sorry.”
I sigh, giving up on trying to get him to speak.
I return my attention to the box. As I take the lid off, I see a gorgeous designer dress inside. The red fabric is so soft under my fingers, it makes me wonder if I should wash my hands before touching it.
“It’s beautiful…”
Elliott suddenly pulls over at a gas station, taking me by surprise.
“Mr. Zeke was clear about wanting you to wear that dress tonight,” he says, opening the driver’s door. “I’ll be waiting outside until you tell me that you’re done. You can change comfortably inside the car, no one will see you.”
I am just looking at my at my platform sandals, when he says “Look under the seat.” With that, Elliott shuts the door behind him, leaving me alone in the car.
I do as he said and pull out another box from under the car seat. This one is a lot smaller.
“A pair of stilettoes.”
With no excuses left not to, I quickly take my dress off and change into the one Zeke gifted me.
The shoes are more comfortable than I expected them to be when I put them one, and they match perfectly with the red dress.
I make a mental note to thank Elena for insisting I wear red lipstick tonight instead of the pink I almost chose.
“All done!”
We arrive at the destination in less than ten minutes, my heart dropping when I see Zeke leaning on his car with his hands in the pocket, waiting.
He’s wearing an expensive suit, his hair combed back, revealing every sharp line of his hypnotizing features.
Eliott opens the door for me and I mumble a quick “thank you” before walking out, unable to take my eyes off Zeke.
His face softens into a smile when he sees me. He walks up to me and wraps one arm firmly around my waist, as he whispers into my ear. “You look stunning, Riley.”
“Does that mean I’m usually ugly?” I joke, unable to hold back the laughter the moment he opens his mouth to respond. “I’m just kidding. Thank you, you’re quite handsome yourself.”
“Shall we?” He moves to the side to allow me to step inside.
The restaurant is even more luxurious than it looked from the outside in. I have to remind myself to play it cool and ignore how sweaty my palms have suddenly gotten. As if he can sense my nervousness, Zeke takes my hand and squeezes it.
I can barely pay any attention to the hostess taking us to our table. It’s only once Zeke orders for us and we’re left alone, that I feel like I can breathe again. “I’ve never been to a place like this.”
He studies me for a moment before the corners of his lips soften into a smile. “You should be celebrating tonight, not worrying.”
“Easy for you to say,” I look around, noticing how elegant everyone is and doing my best not think how much I would standing out if Zeke hadn’t bought this dress for me.
“No,” he shakes his head. “Tonight is about you, Riley. You passed every exam and that deserves more than takeout and a bottle of cheap wine.”
“It was box wine,” I remember his reaction earlier when I suggested we celebrate me passing my exams by ordering takeout and wine. He looked mortified by the idea but I didn’t realize that his idea of a celebration was going to be this… upscale.
“Even worse.”
“A part of me thought you’d get distracted by work and not have time for celebrating.” Heat creeps into my cheeks.
“You really thought I would leave you hanging?” One of his eyebrows lifts and the knot in my stomach loosens just enough for me to smile.
“I guess not.”
His gaze lingers on me for another second before slowly drifting over my dress. “I knew I made the right choice when I bought this dress for you. But there’s one problem with it.”
“What?” I ask, suddenly a little too self-aware. “Did I put it on wrong? I was getting dressed in the car, I might have messed something up…”
“Relax, Riley,” He laughs, reaching his hand over the table and placing it on mine. “The only problem is that now I can’t wait to fuck you in it.”
“Oh,” I feel my cheeks heat up.
Before I can say anything else, we’re interrupted by a tall, grey-haired man in an expensive suit. Zeke’s turns into the polite, professional, but also intimidating man he is when he’s dealing with someone important.
“Ezekiel Kavanagh,” the man smiles, reaching out his hand for Zeke to take. “It’s been a while.”
For a moment, several conversations around us seem to stop before picking back up again. I can’t tell if it’s because of the man standing beside our table or because of Zeke, but either way, a part of me wants to hide under the table or just go home.
“Stephen Gordon,” Zeke responds in the same tone. “I expected you to return with a tan from the Caribbean.”
“You can’t get a tan when you’re running a night club,” Gordon continues. “Which you would know if you had taken my offer to partner up.”
“Yeah, unfortunately, as much as my brothers and I would have loved to partner up, the timing was just off,” Zeke looks at me briefly, but long enough for Gordon to realize that he’s not interested in talking about business.
“My apologies,” Gordon turns to face me. “I got so carried away that I forgot my manners.” He reaches out his hand and his grip is firm and rough, almost sending shivers down my spine. “I’m Stephen Gordon, the owner of this restaurant and an old friend of the Kavanaghs.”
“Riley Monroe.” My voice is weak as I speak. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“Oh no,” He smiles, shaking his head. “The pleasure is all mine. It’s not every day that I get to witness seeing such a beautiful lady by Ezekiel’s side.”
I’m not sure what to respond. I glance at Ezekiel whose face is entirely blank and a part of me wishes I had that same superpower of not letting any emotion show on my face. I don’t know how he does it.
As if he can read my mind, Zeke squeezes my hand. “There is only one Riley, Gordon.”
“You’re one lucky bastard, Kavanagh,” Gordon laughs, adjusting his tie. “I won’t be bothering you any longer, enjoy your date. And, Ezekiel, if you change your mind, you know where to find me.”
It’s only after he leaves that I can breathe again. Zeke shifts his chair ever so slightly closer to mine until our knees brush beneath the table. The movement is subtle enough that no one else would notice it, but I do.
“That was intense…” I say, more to myself than to Zeke, but the corners of his lips turn into an understanding smile.
“It usually is with Gordon.” He squeezes my hand even harder, a reassuring look on his face. “But don’t worry, he would never hurt you,” He explains. “No one in this room would dare disrespect you while you’re sitting at my table.”
“Oh, that’s not what I meant,” I laugh. “It’s just, everyone and everything in this place is so fancy and then the owner comes to greet us at our table? I never in my life imagined living something like this.”
I can’t help but feel like I don’t belong here. The people who can afford eating in this place have closets big enough for me to live in.
People like Gordon and Zeke belong in places like this. They walk in like they own the room. I walked in hoping nobody notices I’m pretending to belong. I’m just a girl living in a crappy small apartment that can barely afford rent.
“Careful about judging the books by their cover,” he smirks, reaching for the elegant black paper bag on the table. The bag has been sitting there since we arrived but I’ve been too nervous to even notice. “You’re as worthy and as important as any of the people here.”
I sigh. “I don’t mind my life, I guess I just overthink in a place like this because I don’t want to leave a wrong impression.”
And embarrass you.
“Look around,” His thumb slowly brushes over the back of my hand. “Do you know what every person in this room sees when they look at you?”
I shake my head.
“A beautiful woman sitting with me.”
I open my mouth to argue, but he doesn’t let me.
“None of them are wondering whether you belong here,” his gaze stays locked on mine. “You’re the only one asking yourself that question, Riley.”
Something in my chest tightens at his words and I feel like I might melt if he doesn’t look away.
“You really believe that?” My voice is quiet as I speak.
“I don’t waste my time saying things I don’t believe.” There’s no hesitation in his voice. “Now, here’s something that will get your mind off of worrying,” I watch him pull out a square white box from the bag and slide it over the table to me. “Your gift. Open it.”
I hesitate before reaching for the box, my heartbeat slightly accelerating in anticipation. “I thought the dress and the dinner are my gift.”
“You thought wrong,” he winks.
I proceed to open the white box and my breath catches the moment I see the most beautiful watch I have ever laid eyes on. Audemars Piguet Royal Oak. “You remembered?”
“Of course, Riley.” He reaches out across the table and takes the watch out of the box before he puts it on my wrist. “It suits you.”
“Oh my God!” I’m fighting off the tears starting to form at the corners of my eyes. “This is too much. Are you serious?” He nods and I can’t stop my hands from shaking. “Thank you for making this silly dream of the little Riley come true.”
I still find it hard to believe that he remembered such an insignificant detail. When I told him about drawing this same watch and pretending it was real when I was little, it was something I shared with him in the moment without thinking much about it. I never expected him to buy it for me.
Before either of us can say anything else, the sudden buzz of my phone interrupts us. A glance at the screen is enough to know that I don’t want to pick it up.
I silence it, and then my eyes meet Zeke’s. He doesn’t ask anything, but I can see that he is curious. “It’s my mother,” I admit.
“Oh.” The way he says that single word reminds me that he’s the one person that doesn’t judge and I can be honest with him.
“Once I finally moved out of that house,” I continue. “I never saw her or spoke to her again. She calls from time to time, I just… don’t want to relive any of it.”
“I understand that,” he nods and I smile, warmth spreading from my chest through the rest of my body as I watch the only man I ever trusted reach out for my phone and turning it off. He sets it back in front of me with a proud smile on his face. “No one gets to ruin tonight for you.”
The waiters arrive with our food before I can thank him properly, so instead I just mouth the words, my knees brushing against his under the table. I blush as a wildly inappropriate idea of getting under the table and taking him into my mouth crosses my mind.