Chapter 15
Chapter Fifteen
CHARLOTTE
Iwas a mess of nerves as I waited for Dalton to pick me up for dinner with his parents and sister.
Hayden and Ivy had gone with me yesterday before my shift at Whiskey Dolls to find the perfect dress.
Hayden had sworn up and down that the one I’d ended up buying was going to knock Dalton on his ass—changing the word ass to something more PG since Ivy was with us—and Ivy had insisted I looked like a princess.
With their encouragement, I’d left the mall feeling confident and sure of myself, but now that there were barely five minutes on the clock until he was set to knock on my door, I was doubting absolutely everything.
The dress I’d ended up with wasn’t black or ‘little’ if you were being technical, but it was tight, and it definitely showed skin.
I’d been drawn to the olive green color of it first, thinking it would complement my hair and eye color, and I’d been right about that.
The sleeveless midi-dress fell just a few inches above my ankles, and that was where the modesty of it started and ended.
The sweetheart neckline plunged all the way to the bottom of my sternum, and the slit at the thigh came up, up, up, nearly all the way to my hip.
A bra and panties both were out of the question, and as I stared in the mirror, I suddenly felt more exposed than when I flaunted around on stage in racy lingerie or barely-there boy shorts.
I’d done my makeup in shimmery golds and bronzes and wore a killer pair of strappy gold stiletto sandals that I was absolutely in love with. My hair was loose and parted down the middle, my normally wild waves only slightly tamed.
Maybe I should have gone for something more demure?
I was actually contemplating stepping across the hall to ask Ms. Weatherby her opinion when a knock interrupted my internal freakout.
Oh well, I thought to myself. Nothing I can do about it now.
With a large, bracing inhale, I moved through the apartment, grabbing my tiny gold purse off the kitchen counter on my way to the door, and as soon as I opened it, I nearly choked on my tongue.
I’d never seen Dalton in anything other than jeans and well-worn cowboy boots.
Occasionally he’d pair them with a button-down, untucked with the sleeves rolled up, but he usually favored tees that had been washed within an inch of their lives.
However, tonight he’d pulled out all the stops. And dayum, he’d done it well!
His navy suit fit like it had been custom tailored for his large, strong frame.
He’d foregone a tie, wearing the collar of his crisp pale blue button-down open.
The color of the suit made his gray eyes look like the darkest denim, and the rich, dark brown of his leather belt matched his dress shoes perfectly.
His hair was still overly long, flipping around his collar, and that short beard still coated his jawline, and I loved how the hair gave his otherwise clean-cut look a hint of wild and unruly. Just like him.
“Well damn, cowboy. Don’t you clean up nice?”
He didn’t respond to my comment; instead silently dragged his face from the tips of my pale pink toes all the way up. “Jesus fuckin’ Christ,” he grunted, his eyes taking on that melted steel quality I was quickly coming to love.
I did a whole body shiver and had to brace against the open door to remain standing.
“It’s not too much, is it? I was excited about the dress at the store, but when I put it on a few minutes ago, I worried it might be a little too provocative for a family dinner. Should I change?”
Those quicksilver eyes came to me, pinning me in place. “Don’t you dare.” My lungs seized in my chest. “Goddamn, baby. You look incredible.”
With my knees feeling a bit more stable, I let go of the door and stepped into him, tipping my head back so he’d get the message to lean in and give me a kiss.
It was short and sweet but still packed a hell of a punch, and when he pulled back, I felt light as a feather, all my previous anxiety having melted away. “Well, all right then. I’m ready if you are.”
He looked down at my little purse. “Just missin’ one last thing.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah. Overnight bag, Thumbelina. You’re stayin’ at my place tonight.”
I grinned wickedly. “I am, huh?”
“Absolutely. Don’t bother with sleep clothes, but you might want somethin’ else to wear when I take you to breakfast in the mornin’, not that I’d mind you in that dress again.”
Okay, I really freaking liked the sound of that. Jogging on my heels back into the apartment, I snatched up one of my workout bags, dumping out the dirty rehearsal clothes I hadn’t gotten around to washing, and waded through my piles for the perfect Post Sleepover Breakfast outfit.
With that task complete, I moved back out. He took the bag from me and held it while I pulled the door closed and slipped the key in the lock just as Ms. Weatherby’s opened across from us.
“Well, don’t you young people look all kinds of fancy this evenin’?”
I turned fully to face my neighbor, a big, cheesy smile on my face. “Hey, Ms. W, you having a good night?”
She looked to me from where she’d been ogling Dalton. “Woke up alive, so I got no right to complain about the fact my arthritic knee’s actin’ up, I’m pretty sure I spotted some creepy man casin’ the buildin’, and I been backed up for three days now.”
I swallowed down a snort and gave Dalton a small, subtle shake of my head when he looked at me quizzically.
“But enough about me. What’re you kids up to?”
“Dinner at The Groves,” I answered excitedly.
Her eyes went huge behind those glasses before shifting back to Dalton, approval shining bright behind them. “Smart man. Glad you didn’t fart around in makin’ that happen. She’s worth dinner at a place like The Groves.”
He chuckled rich and deep. “Preaching to the choir, ma’am.”
“Good, good. Well, I’ll let you two get to it. Enjoy you’re evenin’ and don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”
We waved and started down the hall to the elevator as she closed the door behind us.
“Someone casing the building?” he asked, repeating her earlier words.
I let out a sigh and shook my head. “She’s a bit of a drama queen who watches way too many crime shows.
Always thinks there are delinquents skulking around the halls or weird cars are parked out in the lot.
She’s convinced someone’s just biding their time, waiting to break in and steal all her figurines. ”
His lips trembled with a suppressed grin.
“She might be a little nutty, but she’s got a good heart,” I found myself defending. “She doesn’t get many visitors and only gets out once a week to play Bunco at the rec center. She’s lonely is all.”
“She’s good people,” he agreed, and I felt a bit of warmth in my chest at the realization he thought that.
Most of the people in the building thought Ms. Weatherby was a lunatic.
It was nice to have someone else who saw her like I did.
“Although, I could’ve lived the rest of my life never knowing she’s backed up. ”
I let my head fall back on a loud laugh, so lost in the moment I didn’t even notice the tender, adoring way he watched me like I was the most beautiful thing he’d ever laid eyes on, as I laughed with complete abandon in front of him for the very first time.
The drive to the restaurant had been full of light conversation and laughs. I was feeling really good about this dinner, that was, until Dalton pulled his truck up to the valet stand in front of the restaurant.
The warm glow from inside spilled through the wavy diamond-paned windows, and gas lamps lined the walkways all along the outside of the huge, rustic log cabin, giving an almost serene feel to the whole place.
However, the second the truck was put in park and Dalton threw his door open, my stomach flipped, and anxiety folded and twisted my intestines into knots.
“You okay, Thumbelina?” he asked as he pulled the passenger door open, waving off the valet.
“I—I’m nervous,” I confessed in a barely-there voice. “I’ve never done anything like this before.”
“You’ve never had dinner?”
At his teasing, I threw him a hard look. “Not at a place like this,” I indicated, throwing my arm out. “But that’s not what I meant. I’ve never done the whole . . . parent/family thing.”
“If you think about it, you technically already did the whole parent/family thing yesterday morning at Muffin Top. You pulled that off spectacularly, by the way. My mom went on for hours about how sweet and pretty you are.”
“Yeah, but that was unexpected. I didn’t walk in there thinking I’d meet your family like I am now.”
“True, but you still did it, and you did it all by yourself. At least this time you’ll have me as a buffer, right?”
Well, when he put it like that, it sounded like I was being kind of ridiculous.
Letting out a heavy sigh, I took his hand and let him help me out of the truck.
I looked down to check that everything was still covered and in place before giving my hair a little fluff and taking his offered hand.
Then we started into the fancy restaurant.
The atmosphere was nice and peaceful, the ambiance almost romantic as we wound our way through the tables in the large dining room.
More than a few women stopped to appreciate Dalton as we passed, and I couldn’t really blame them.
He really rocked the hell out of his suit.
I’d scoped his ass a couple times already just because I could.
The big windows at the back of the restaurant gave views of the foothills during the day, and once the sun went down as it was now, the trees outside near the outdoor dining patio were covered in twinkle lights and paper lanterns.
The large round table the Prescott’s were currently sitting at had that beautiful view.
Jolie spotted us first and was already on her feet by the time Dalton and I hit the table.
“Hey guys!” She gave her brother a hug and rose up on her toes to press her lips to his scruffy cheek before disengaging and moving to me.
“Oh my God, Charlotte, that dress is stunning,” she enthused before pulling me into a familiar hug just like the one she’d given Dalton, like she’d known me forever.
“I wish I was going to be in town long enough to borrow it. I’ve seen some men around here that I think I could really have fun with. ”
She shot me a wink, and I giggled while Dalton made a retching noise. “For the love of God. Protect the men of this town from the clutches of my sister,” he said toward the ceiling.
We both pretended we didn’t hear him as I told Jolie, “You look beautiful too,” and she really did.
Her plum-colored mini-dress highlighted all her best features.
“There does seem to be something in the water here, doesn’t there?
Maybe you should think about moving here and finding yourself a mountain man. ”
She laughed and gave her head a shake. “Plenty of mountains and fine men back in Pembrooke, trust me.”
“Can we be done with this topic of conversation?” Dalton groused. “Christ, I need a drink. Where’s the waiter?”
Lorene came around the table, giving her son a smack as she scooted toward me, offering the same warm greeting her daughter had just given me. “You really do look beautiful, dear. We’re so glad you could join us.”
Walt was next, giving his son a back-slapping hug and me a kiss on the cheek. “Thank you guys for inviting me. I’ve actually never eaten here before. I’ve heard the steaks are good enough to have sonnets written about them.”
We moved around the table to our chairs, and Dalton waited behind mine as I sat so he could push it in for me like a gentleman. I offered a quick smile and wink over my shoulder as he took the chair beside mine and scooted it a couple inches closer to me.
“Come to Hope Valley for a couple weeks once a year,” Walt stated. “And we never leave without eatin’ here at least once. Love Wyoming, and you’ll never get me to leave, but that doesn’t mean I don’t dream about these steaks every night the days leadin’ up to our trip.”
The more he talked, the hungrier I got, and I couldn’t wait to scan the menu.
I hadn’t had a steak in longer than I could remember, and the nerves that had been eating at me just minutes ago disappeared as excitement for the meal to come took over.