Chapter Ten

Katherine

The next day went by quickly. I did not see Conner or Brandon, whichever his name was, neither did I see Sydney. I had just met her, but strangely, I missed her bubbly personality.

When I got home from work, I decided to tell Kimberly about my date with Caspian. I was about to call her when she came barging in.

She looked at me with hurt written all over her face. "You haven't talked to me in days," she said looking close to tears. "I missed you."

"You didn't call. I didn't call and I'm pretty sure you have been busy with Callum." I accused.

She let out a laugh at my statement.

"Callum has been really loving this past few days. He has taken me on countless dates," she said.

"Sure." I realized I couldn't lie to her forever, so I told her.

"Are you kidding me?" She asked incredulously. "The guy basically told you he wanted to sleep with you, and here you are going on a date with him without thinking. As much as I think he is a hunk, and dating your boss is kinda kinky, I don't think you should give in this easily." She sounded disappointed and that hurt me.

Actually, what was I thinking? That he'll fall in love with me in the process? Get a grip Katherine.

It had been a long time a guy actually wanted to go out with me, and probably, Caspian asking me out made me think I actually had a chance at love. I couldn't just call him up and cancel since I didn't have his number and a little part of me was still a little excited about it.

Kimberly sensed I was over thinking and said, "If you really want to go out with him, then go. But do not sleep with him." Well she didn't need to tell me that. "And if he tries to force you into anything you don't want to do, don't hesitate to call me. Okay?"

She was the bestest friend I could ever ask for.

I knew I wasn't going to sleep with him, but there was just an inching to . . . know him.

"Thank you, Kim." I was really grateful. She was like my mom.

"No problem. Just don't let it happen again. You can tell Mama bear anything," she said with a reassuring smile.

I was glad that was over. Immediately after she left, I got a text from Aiden. It read;

When can we schedule that meeting? I want to talk to you. It's urgent.

A.C

The message left my heart pounding. I didn't even know how he got my new number!

I decided not to reply and dropped my phone like it was on fire.

***

It was Sunday. The day of the date. I don't know why, but I was nervous. There was something about Caspian. He made me want to . . . know him, and not in that way.

It was finally eight. I slipped on a red dress which had a slit on the side and black heels. I styled my hair into a French twist and applied minimal make-up.

While putting on my shoes I heard a knock on the door. I took a deep breath and opened it. The sight before me made my mouth water.

I inspected Caspian from head to toe, and boy did I feel fuzzy all of a sudden. He was dressed in a grey suit, his hair combed back and a bouquet of roses in hand. Something at the back of my mind told me not to give in, but I couldn't help it.

"Good evening, milady," he said with a fake British accent. I couldn't help but let out a small laugh at how ridiculous he sounded. "These are for you," he said with a smile, extending the bouquet to me. The roses looked and smelled lovely.

"Why, thank you." I decided to play along. I had never had a conversation with any man and felt as relaxed as this since . . . never.

Something at the back of my mind told me to be careful with Caspian, but I pushed it back and decided to enjoy my first normal date in years.

We were silent the whole elevator ride down. I wasn't to sure if it was uncomfortable or not. But stupid me decided to speak.

"I like your suit." I said timidly.

He chuckled softly and looked at me and said, "Thank you. It's Ralph Lauren." He retained the smile on his lips as he looked at me. It made me think back to the first board meeting I had had with him. He always looked so cold and guarded, but now, he seemed so . . . relaxed. The very thought mad me excited he was relaxed around me.

I remembered Kimberly's words and pushed those thoughts to the back of my mind where they belonged. I hadn't realized we had gotten to his car. He opened the door for me and I got in. He jogged over to the other side of the car and we were off.

"So, tell me about yourself," he said.

I let out a shrill sound. I couldn't depict what I could call the sound that I made but I was sure it was a turn off. I looked over to him to see him giving me an amused look. I felt my face heating up.

"What's wrong with me asking?" He said.

"Isn't that supposed to wait until we get to the restaurant?" I responded meekly.

He barked out a laugh at my response before replying. "Well, I didn't know there was a rule book as to when to talk to each other on a date."

He considered it a date.

A date.

With me.

I shouldn't be acting so surprised. It was obviously a date from the beginning . . . Right?

I told him all I could tell him in the short while we were in the car.

We walked into a very posh restaurant. I was used to this. Suddenly, the thought that we were in public eye hit me. I didn't want people from work or people my dad knew to see us together. I was on the verge of panicking when a warm hand enclosed mine. I looked up at him only to see he wasn't looking at me.

A man directed us to our table and said a waiter would be right with us. Caspian pulled my seat and waited for me to sit down before taking his own seat.

"So what you are saying is, you hate red roses," he said with a look of confusion.

"No. Not at all. I like them but I just prefer white roses," I explained.

"Oh. I'll remember that." He sounded confused.

Before I could get another word in the conversation, our waiter appeared.

"What would you like Mr. Pierce?" He sounded Irish.

"I'll have a bottle of your finest red wine." He looked to me for confirmation and I nodded.

When he asked for what we would like to eat, it dawned on me that we had not taken a look at the menu yet. I found out that the restaurant was French. I ordered a medium coked steak and potatoes while Caspian ordered some fancy French food I couldn't pronounce right, and I was rich too!

During the dinner, I found out he had four brothers. Their names were Phillip, Aleksander, Thomas and Ian. They were twenty-one, eighteen, fourteen and ten respectively. I also found out his mom was French, which he jokingly said was the reason for he and Alek's weird names. I wanted to know more about his family but he abruptly changed the topic and asked me about Reginald.

Thinking about my brother brought a smile to my face and I made a mental note to call him later.

I still couldn't believe he knew more rich people food than I did.

Okay, he was probably a whole lot richer than me because, my dad owned an airline while his dad owned one of the leading technology companies in the world. What's more? Their products competed with Apple!

I still wondered why Caspian used an iPhone.

We talked a lot and got to know each other before I realized something. He was charming tonight. More charming than I expected him to be.

After dinner, we got into his car and he took me home. We were right in front of my door when I stopped and looked at him. He laid his hand on my cheek and rubbed his thumb over it. I was anticipating what was coming.

He seemed to hesitate.

"This is the part where you kiss me," I said quietly.

He chuckled lowly and swooped in for the kiss.

Unlike what I expected, the kiss was soft and gentle. It started out gently and slowly, like he wasn't sure. I deepened the kiss and melted into his arms. He slipped his tongue into my mouth.

Searching.

We pulled away, out of breath, with our noses touching.

I couldn't help but say, "I thought you just wanted to sleep with me."

"I only ever sleep with a girl on the first date when I don't want to see her again." He stated, closing his eyes.

My heart jumped out of my chest at his statement. I didn't know what to make of it.

"I mean I want to know you more."

An unconscious smile made its way onto my lips.

Caspian

I wanted to see her again. I knew what I was feeling. I was to scared to admit it. So I said the only thing I knew was safe to say.

"I mean I want to see you again." I knew I was going to . . . feel something for someone at a point. But I didn't expect it to be so soon.

When I took her out to dinner, I got to know her more. Though she only knew a handful about me, I got to know a lot about her. I knew she was a kind and gentle soul and a part of me wanted to taint her.

As crude as that might have sounded, I did. I felt I wanted to protect her, keep her close. I couldn't exactly put a name on what I was feeling tonight, I just wanted to see her.

God, I'm becoming a pansy because if a girl. I didn't expect this to happen.

I wanted to see where this went. I had seen something with my mom and dad, and with Phillip and Gardenia. I wanted it but not this soon. I decided to leave so I could sort myself out.

I laid a gentle kiss on her lips and backed away, leaving her shocked on her doorstep.

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