Reborn by Melody Anne

Chapter Five

Courtney didn’t understand why she was so nervous. This wasn’t a real date, she told herself. She rolled her eyes as she gazed at her reflection in the mirror after having reapplied her lipstick for the third time. If it wasn’t a real date, why in the heck did she care how she looked? That was the question of the hour.

She let out a sigh of disgust as she forced herself to turn around, flip off the light, and walk from the bathroom she’d already spent too much time in that evening. The only reason she wanted to hang out for a few hours with Jon Eisenhart, aka Eyes, was because she needed information from him. It had nothing whatsoever to do with the butterflies in her stomach.

Her doorbell rang, making Courtney stub her toe as she flipped around and hit a side table in her living room. She let out a very unladylike curse as she hobbled over to her front door. Before opening it she forced herself to take in a few deep breaths to slow her rapidly beating heart.

Her reaction to Eyes picking her up was absurd. She’d been all around the world in reporter mode and had interviewed everyone from soldiers to terrifying world leaders. She was never nervous — until today apparently.

After another few seconds, Courtney plastered a confident smile on her lips, then swung her door open. She made herself look directly into Eyes’s face, not even blinking as she licked her lips, very aware of the flare in his eyes as he watched the movement.

“You’re late,” she said, adding just the perfect mixture of flirtiness and brattiness that she knew turned men on. She hadn’t gotten as far as she had in her career without knowing how to keep a subject interested.

Eyes smiled at her, not attempting to move forward, looking as if he had all night dedicated to just her. Maybe he did. The thought of this being a real date with the two of them ending up at her place for some stress relief had her stomach tumbling again.

“I’m three minutes early,” Eyes corrected her.

“That, in my book, is late,” she told him while she turned and grabbed her small purse and light jacket. She was getting spoiled with the warm Seattle weather. When winter hit with a vengeance she was going to be very sad.

“I’m surprised to hear a lady say that, since it seems men have been waiting on the opposite sex since the beginning of time.”

“Yes, men should wait on us since we’re well worth it. But a lady should never have to wait for a man,” she told him. She pushed him back as she stepped out her door, pulled it shut behind her, then moved down the stairs. She was acting as if she were in a hurry, but the reality was, she didn’t want to be pressed up against him on her small front porch. Well, if she were being totally honest, she’d admit she did want to be pressed up against him, which was why she wasn’t allowing that to happen.

Courtney stopped at Eyes’s vehicle since it was parked behind hers. She wasn’t going to fight him on whose vehicle they were taking. She smiled when he walked up and unlocked the vehicle after his hand was on the handle. She liked a man who opened the door for her. It was a sign of respect she appreciated.

“Thank you,” Courtney said. She stepped up to the running board, then stumbled into the SUV as she tripped on the edge of the vehicle. She went flying forward, landing with her chest on the middle console and her ass in the air.

She heard a chuckle followed by a cough behind her as she quickly flew back up and planted her butt in the seat. She turned and glared at Eyes whose lips were twitching as he desperately tried not to let out the roar of laughter she knew he was desperately trying to hold in.

He didn’t say a word as he shut her door, but her entire body tensed as she heard his muffled chuckle as he walked behind the SUV, taking his time to join her in the vehicle. She wanted to shoot laser beams at him when he finally climbed in, but she had to admit to herself she’d be laughing at him if their situations were reversed.

“That was quite the entrance,” Eyes said as he started the vehicle.

“Ugh, you could at least pretend to be a gentleman and act as if that didn’t just happen,” she told him.

“What fun would that be?” he asked. He pulled onto the street and began driving. At least he’d stopped laughing.

“Well, it would be a lot more fun for me,” she pointed out.

“You’re telling me you wouldn’t laugh if I’d been the one to splay out all over the car and show you my fine ass?”

Her own lips twitched at his words. “I guess you did get a bit of a show.” She wasn’t embarrassed he’d gotten a view of her red panties. Even though there was no way she’d have sex with him that night she loved wearing sexy underwear. It made her feel feminine and more confident knowing she had sexy lace beneath her conservative clothes. Her dress was knee length, perfectly modest for any place he might take her, but when stumbling around, making the skirt fly up, all modesty went out the window.

“Red’s my favorite color,” he said as he turned to briefly look at her and give her a wink. A blush stole over her cheeks. She wasn’t shy, and she was a master at flirting, but somehow, she felt a little shy around this incredibly sexy man. That was new for her.

They drove through town, making meaningless small talk. She wanted to grill him, but she figured she’d get a few glasses of wine in him first. That might loosen him up and get her the information she desperately wanted.

It didn’t take them long to arrive at an intimate Italian restaurant she’d never been to before. He helped her from the vehicle, and she didn’t say a word as he put his hand on her back while they moved down the walk to the front door.

“Hello, Jon, it’s good to see you again,” the host said as they moved forward. They were quickly seated, and Courtney looked around the small dining room, only holding a dozen tables. The room was dim, the tables lit with flickering candles, and the walls were adorned with sconces that didn’t add much light. The place had been built for romance.

“Could you have found a more intimate place?” Courtney asked with a chuckle. The man was pulling out all the stops.

“I don’t think so,” Eyes said. “The food is phenomenal though. Mama Aida makes homemade pasta, sauces, and unique dishes every morning. When she runs out, the restaurant closes. She refuses to serve anything less than the best, and believe me, it is better than the best. That’s why the menu is limited.”

“Good evening. I’m Giovani. Can I start you off with drinks?” their waiter asked as he approached with a pitcher and a bottle of wine.

“Yes, what’s Mama Aida suggesting tonight?” Eyes smoothly asked.

“Ah, for you, sweet boy, I will make it a surprise,” a large woman said as she moved from behind half doors and approached their table. She moved up to them, then bent down with worn fingers and gripped Eyes’s cheeks before she leaned in and kissed each side. “I heard your voice and had to come out. I see you’ve wised up and have brought me a beautiful woman instead of those obnoxious men you’re normally here with.”

“Yes, she’s much prettier than the boys,” Eyes said as he reached up and gently gripped her fingers. “But you know you’re always the most beautiful woman in the room.”

Mama Aida chuckled as she looked at Courtney with a sparkle in her eyes. “This is a good man here. He’s worth the trouble he’ll surely put you through.”

“Hmm, we’ll have to see about that,” Courtney said with a laugh. She instantly loved the woman.

“Ah, a woman with spirit. You will be good for Jon,” Mama Aida said with a nod. She looked so serious, Courtney found herself squirming. She’d had a friend all through high school who was half Italian and her full Italian mother had seemed to have a sixth sense on matches. If she said a couple was meant to be, every single time they ended up married. Italian mamas seemed to possess magic. Courtney suddenly wanted to run from the restaurant before Mama Aida pronounced Eyes and her as a perfect couple.

“Don’t worry, sweet girl, I won’t make any predictions tonight,” Mama Aida said, as if the woman was a mind reader.

“Thank you,” Courtney said, not even trying to hide her relief.

Mama Aida left and the waiter waited for them to order. “We’ll take whatever Mama sends out,” Jon said. “That is if Courtney doesn’t mind,” he added, keeping him from getting into trouble.

“That sounds good to me,” Courtney said.

“Wine?” Giovani asked.

“We’ll take the pairings with the food,” Jon said. Courtney nodded her agreement. She hadn’t been a wine drinker for years, but now she’d discovered if she listened to the waiters and sommeliers who knew good pairings, she liked a variety of flavors.

Their first course was an antipasto platter with a divine red wine. Everything was going better than the way the evening started off with Courtney stubbing her toe and face planting in Eyes’s vehicle. They chatted and Courtney’s fingers itched to grill the man on the operation she was now involved in. She was a smart woman though, and knew he needed to loosen up a little bit more before she’d get anything.

Their second course of fresh, lightly breaded calamari arrived, and Eyes was two drinks in, so Courtney was about to start asking questions. She reached across the table to dip a piece of calamari into the warm marinara sauce when she felt heat on her arm.

Before she could figure out what was happening, Eyes was on his feet, water glass in hand. What the heck? He suddenly tossed the water at her, soaking her arm and sending droplets of water over the front of her dress and into her face.

She sat in stunned silence as she looked at the man in front of her, too shocked to say a word. The waiter came out of nowhere with a rag, another young man on his heels as they handed her a towel and quickly began cleaning their table.

“I’m so sorry,” Giovani said as he cleared their table in seconds. “I forgot to put the lid on your candle. Are you okay? Do you need a doctor? Should I call 911?”

Courtney was confused as she turned her arm around and saw the scorch marks on her sleeve. “Was I on fire?” she asked.

Eyes looked as if he was in a panic as he gazed at her. “Didn’t you feel the flames? Your arm was on fire,” he gasped.

“I felt heat but just thought I was too close to the candle,” she said. “I didn’t know why you were throwing water at me.”

Eyes gripped her hand and turned it over in his grasp, examining her skin. Somehow it wasn’t scorched at all. The material had caught on fire and he’d doused it before it could do any damage. Giovani was standing there looking a bit pale.

“Wow, I can’t believe you didn’t feel that,” Eyes said. He looked much better now that he knew she wasn’t hurt. Well, that wasn’t entirely true. Her pride had taken another hit.

“I’m fine, Giovani. I appreciate your quick thinking,” she told the waiter. “I don’t need 911. Maybe we can get another plate of that calamari though. It was delicious.”

Giovani looked as if he wanted to argue, but he decided to just nod and rush off to the kitchen. The boy who’d cleared everything off of their table quickly reset it — no candle this time — and then disappeared. Giovani was back very quickly with new calamari.

It didn’t take long for Mama Aida to come out and insist dinner was on her that night. Courtney didn’t want to do that. This was a very small business and the woman worked incredibly hard. To lose a full dinner wouldn’t be good for her bottom line.

“Don’t worry. I’ll leave a very good tip,” Eyes said as if he could read her thoughts. She smiled at him, appreciating that he was thinking of the very kind business owner.

Courtney managed to get a few questions in for Eyes, who seemed very happy to answer them after her small disaster. That made her feel better about the loss of one of her favorite dresses. It was well worth the damage if she could get a good story.

Before she could get too far into her questions, though, a large plate of spaghetti was set in the center of the table, with small plates to the side so they could each take servings for themselves.

“There’s no possible way we can eat all of this,” Courtney said, surprised at the sheer amount of food.

Eyes laughed. “This is a normal serving for me,” he told her. “But I’m willing to share.”

She wondered if he was telling her the truth. Could he eat a serving all by himself that seemed to be made for at least four people? She was tempted not to take any and see how he did. If she wasn’t so hungry, and it didn’t smell so good, she might just do that.

She grabbed the spoon, about to scoop some of the steaming pasta onto her plate when Eyes took her hand, stopping her.

“What?” she asked.

“I’ve always wanted to do something,” he said. “Would you indulge me?”

She looked at him in suspicion. If it meant she wasn’t going to get to eat, then it was a hands-down no. She was getting hungrier by the second, even with the incredible appetizers they’d already shared. She hadn’t had homemade pasta in a very long time.

“Have you watched Lady and the Tramp?” he asked.

It took a few seconds for Courtney to realize what he was talking about. When she did, she burst out in laughter. “Are you kidding me?” she asked.

He shook his head. “Come on. Be adventurous,” he challenged as he held up his fork.

Courtney laughed again. “Are you going to push a meatball over to me with your nose?” she asked.

This time he laughed as he twirled his fork in the pasta and took a bite. It was so cheesy it was making her mouth water.

“That’s just plain unsanitary,” he said. “We only get to kiss if we happen on the same pasta noddle.” With the amount of food on the plate, Courtney didn’t see that happening.

She didn’t argue anymore, just stuck her fork into the noodles and pulled up a perfect mouthful with a piece of tomato, a lot of cheese, and a chunk of ground veal. The flavors burst on her tongue and she was glad she was wearing a dress. If she had tight pants on, she would’ve definitely needed to undo them after the amount of food she was planning to consume.

They ate in silence for a few minutes, and then Eyes was reaching closer and closer to her side of the plate as he twirled pasta noodles on the tines of his fork. She was slowing down, her stomach getting fuller. She wanted to stretch out the meal, enjoying the different flavors with each bite. It was clear Mama Aida used several different ground meats in her sauce, and Courtney wasn’t sure which spices she used, but it was a perfect combination.

Courtney laughed when she felt Eyes’s fork clang against hers. He was trying so hard to get the same noodle. She got the giggles for some reason and right after she took a bite, he made a joke, and that was all it took for her to choke on her own bite, and then, much to her horror, she watched sauce fly from her mouth and land all over the front of Eyes’s shirt.

Her laughter died as his white shirt and the crisp white tablecloth became spotted with fat dollops of red. She covered her mouth when she felt the giggles start up again. What was wrong with her tonight?

“Was that payback for the water?” Eyes finally asked as he wiped off any sauce he was able to. His words made Courtney laugh even more.

“I don’t know what in the heck is wrong with me tonight. I’m not usually this klutzy or this unsophisticated,” she insisted.

“Hmm, so you’re telling me this is all because of me?” he questioned.

“I guess so,” she said between giggles. “I did warn you it wouldn’t be wise for us to go on a date.”

He looked thoughtful for a moment. “Well, there’s one thing for sure, though,” he said.

“What’s that?” she asked.

“This date will not be forgettable.”

She laughed more. “I can guarantee you this date will never be forgotten,” she told him.

They finished their pasta, had tiramisu and spiked coffee for dessert, and then before Courtney was ready, the date was over. It was time to go home. Mama Aida still refused payment for the meal, so Eyes left a monstrous tip instead, knowing Giovani would pass it out amongst the staff, including Mama Aida.

The two of them made it back to his vehicle with no more incidents, and Courtney took her time getting back into it, not willing to show him her panties at the end of their evening after they’d both consumed alcohol and were feeling a lot more relaxed. She was sure that would lead to something she didn’t want it to lead to — well, she did want it to lead to that, but she wasn’t going to allow that to happen. Sex fogged the brain and she needed to be clear thinking around this man.

Courtney attempted to ask a few more questions on the drive, but he was giving her shorter and shorter answers. Dang it. She hadn’t gotten nearly enough answered. Was he doing that on purpose so she’d have to invite him in? If that’s what he was thinking, he’d be sorely out of luck. There was no doubt in her mind that if she invited him in, they’d end up in her bed, and she in no could allow that to happen. She’d have to keep telling herself that over and over again because she hadn’t wanted something that badly in a very long time. She knew, however, that she’d regret it in the morning. She was sure of it. Right now, she didn’t know why she’d regret it, but she was sure she would.

They arrived at her house; he shut off the vehicle and began to get out. She stopped him.

“You don’t need to walk me to the door,” she told him.

He looked at her as if she was crazy, and then he climbed from the car. There was no way a man like Eyes wouldn’t walk a woman to the door. Yes, he’d be hoping for a kiss, but beyond that, he was a gentleman. He might laugh a lot, and he might like hanging with the boys, but he truly was a gentleman. She liked that about him.

Courtney hated the end of dates. She never knew what to say. She’d gone on many first dates in the last ten years, but she rarely went on a second one. The guys never interested her enough on the first to make a second worthy. She’d actually had a lot of fun with Eyes that night and wouldn’t mind a second with him. However, she didn’t want to admit that to him or to herself.

“This was a very unique night,” Eyes said as the two of them stopped by her front door.

“I can certainly say it was unforgettable,” Courtney told him.

“I’ve never had another date quite like it,” Eyes said. He sidled just a bit closer.

“Do we really need to do the first kiss at the end of the date?” Courtney asked, trying to put a lot of sass in her voice, but not quite pulling it off. There was too much huskiness underneath the snarky words.

Eyes laughed. “Of course we do,” he said.

He began leaning in for the kiss, and Courtney decided to take the power into her own hands. If there was going to be a kiss, then she was going to be the one to do it. She wasn’t letting him lead the night.

She moved in quickly just as he was descending . . . and their mouths crashed together — and not in a good way. Courtney let out a yelp as she tasted blood from her tooth digging into her lip. She jumped back and stared at him. He looked horrified as if nothing like that had ever happened to him before.

Just when Courtney was about to apologize, not really sure who’d been at fault for the crash, Eyes leaned back and laughed . . . hard. She wasn’t sure if she should be horrified or join him in laugher. After a few seconds she went with the latter. They both laughed for a solid minute before their sparkling eyes met again.

“I guess every sign in the universe is telling us we shouldn’t date ever again, if for nothing else, then for the safety of anyone who might come into contact with us while we’re on a date,” she said.

Eyes shook his head. “Nope, the universe is demanding a do-over,” he told her. “I’ll have to get a bit more creative in what I plan. Dinner dates are lame anyway. I know better than that.”

“What makes you think I’d accept another date? I said one for an interview which you now owe me since I didn’t get more than four questions answered tonight,” she said.

“I’ll give you a real interview with us behind glass so no one gets hurt, but only if you give me a proper do-over. It is the right thing to do or else my pride will be forever damaged,” he insisted.

Courtney realized she wouldn’t mind that at all. Neither of them had died, and it had been an adventure. Everything that could’ve gone wrong most certainly had, but like he’d said, if they’d had an ordinary date, she’d have forgotten it in a heartbeat.

“Fine. But make it better than this one. I can get dinner on my own every night of the week,” she said with a wink. She had enjoyed the restaurant he’d taken her to, but she did like a more adventurous date if she were being honest.

He looked at her as if he was going to throw out a new challenge and Courtney decided it was time to run. She’d give him time to figure out how to impress her. She quickly went into her house and shut the door without telling him goodnight. He let her go. She heard him whistling as he walked back down her path. She listened as he shut his car door, and then peeked through the window as he pulled away.

It was true that their night had been a disaster. They hadn’t even gotten that kiss. But an hour later, he was all that was on her mind. She’d been turned on by this man for a very long time, years actually, but that was without knowing him. She’d been turned on by the interview she’d had with him and his friend and how confident he was even as his body had been torn up.

With the man back to peak performance she wasn’t sure how she was going to react. Even though their first date had been a disaster, it had also been sort of magical. Who wanted romance and gifts when they could have laughter and adrenaline? She was far more the adrenaline kind of woman. She wondered what that meant for the next time . . .