Chapter 11: Date with Alex

Alex had left a message on Laura’s phone while she was getting even more beautiful. “I know it’s short notice,” he said, “but would you be available tonight for a special date?”

Laura responded by text as soon as she got home, “Sounds good. What time?”

Alex was being as spontaneous as he knew how to be and sent, “How soon could you be ready? I’m at the neighborhood cafe. I can pick you up.”

Laura was excited, “15 minutes.” She slipped on the carnation pink dress and decided to forgo the white sweater. She freshened up her make-up. Then she did a quick tidy of her loft. She heard the buzzer. “It must be Alex.”

“Alex?” she asked via the speaker.

“It’s me.”

“Come on up to the third floor,” she said and buzzed him in.

She had butterflies as she heard the doorbell ring. “Here he is. Here he is.” She checked herself out at the full length mirror near the door.

“Alex. Welcome. Please come in.”

“Laura, you are a vision,” he was quite taken with her dressed in something other than black and white. He kissed her on each cheek. “You take my breath away. I’m so glad that you could be a little spontaneous tonight. I think you’ll find it worthwhile.”

“It’s an opportunity to spend time with you, so I already know it will be worth it. I’m ready if you are,” she flirted.

“Good. My car is downstairs.” His car was a black Mercedes Benz with a tan interior and a sun roof.

Whatever he did for a living that afforded him a car like that must pay well, she thought. She grabbed keys and her purse and he took her hand in his. “This is Alex on a date,” she said to herself. “He’s already a Prince Charming.”

He unlocked the doors and helped her into the passenger’s front seat. “Comfortable?” he asked once he was inside. “I want this to be a total surprise so I’m giving you this blindfold until we get to our date destination.”

“Oh my goodness. Ok. I’m game,” Laura said then put the mask on. It did its job blinding her to her surroundings.

Within about ten minutes the car stopped. “We’re here,” Alex announced. He came around and helped her out of the car then led her up some steps. They entered a building. He removed her mask. “Surprise,” he said.

She looked around. They were in the city’s art museum and planetarium complex. “I’m on the Board of Directors for both the museum and the planetarium. I told them I wanted to impress a special lady. This is our date spot tonight, Laura. Pleased?”

“Oh Alex, no one has ever done anything like this for me before. I’m amazed.”

“Well, great. Shall we take a tour together?”

“Yes, thanks,” Laura replied, impressed as she thought about how Alex was able to manage something like this.

They held hands and moved from room to room in the museum. It was quiet except for Alex’s comments about the art they saw. “This month’s exhibit is Women’s Beauty Through the Ages. None of these images compare with you,” at which point he lifted her hand and kissed it.

“Oh, Alex,” Laura responded.

He knew everything about every featured piece. He was also making steady progress to winning Laura’s heart. After touring several rooms and seeing many representations of the female form, they came to the planetarium. Tonight, however, the dome ceiling revealed the stars and there was a table for two on the main stage level. “Are you hungry?” Alex asked.

She was famished. With all of the shopping and time at the spa and salon, then doing a quick change for this date, she had missed breakfast and lunch. “I am,” Laura confessed. She hoped she would not have to be a dainty lady and eat a salad.

“I hope surf and turf is okay: filet mignon and grilled salmon?”

“Perfect,” she beamed. “Alex, this is all so wonderful. If I forget, I’d like to thank you now for this excellent and special date.”

“All for you, Laura. All for you including my heart.”

Who was this man? If her friend Caitlin had been coaching her, she would have practiced how to ask him personal questions. But that would have to wait until she felt comfortable coming from romance to reality.

The end of the meal seemed to provide this opportunity. “Alex, rest assured that you have swept me off of my feet with this date and dinner. Do you mind if I ask some questions to get to know you better?”

“Fire away.”

“What do you do for a living?”

“I’m a popular contemporary romance writer and several of my books have been made into movies using my screenplays,” he said.

“Ever been married?”

“No.”

“Kids?”

“Uh, no.” With this last response, she decided to silence the questions for the time being, trusting that the more time she spent with him, these and other questions would be answered.

They finished their meal talking about art, the stars, and writing about romance. “How do you come up with all of those appealing romantic ideas?” she wondered

“It has not been from my own life, that’s for sure,” he explained, doing his best to hide a nervous laugh. “I guess I am just creative that way. I envision what I would like to experience in a romance and I just write about that. There’s a lot of me in both the protagonist and the object of desire of each story I create. I am very transparent in my writing. It also makes me a bit vulnerable. You must understand that as a fellow artist, Laura.”

Laura had taken off for cloud nine after her last question to Alex. She was certain that this date, which pleased her thoroughly, was exactly the type of thing she would see in a romance novel. She was not sure how she felt about that. Was she a test subject or a potential love interest?

“Laura?”

Laura came back to reality. “Could you repeat that?”

“Don’t you put your personality and experiences in your music?”

“Of course. Creation is therapeutic for me. I totally understand.”

After her last response he fed her a bite of raspberry-topped chocolate soufflé.

He was a professional romantic, quiet thinker or not. Coming up with a date like this was probably easy for him. But, she had to confess, professional or not, he was good at it and the entire private museum and planetarium gourmet dinner was working its charms on her. She alternated between being swept away by it all and wondering if this scene might make it into his latest novel. In the end, she decided it did not matter and she would just focus on his delightful company.

Once they finished sharing dessert, she excused herself so that she could freshen up. She was not used to wearing make-up, so she was sure that by now her nose was shiny and her lipstick eaten off. When she returned, she said, “This has been fun, Alex, but I have a long day tomorrow full of orchestra rehearsal and teaching demands.”

“Understood, Laura.”

It was only a first date, after all. And he was not her only choice to consider dating. If they were alright with her dating all three of them, then she was too. She could not be too hasty in giving her heart away. She still had some healing to do. These three men could help her through it, but only she could do it.

Alex took Laura home without the eye mask. When his car pulled up to her building, he opened her door and let her out. He walked her to the door and for a few moments they both stood together, holding hands, facing each other. “I had a wonderful time, Laura,” the usually quiet Alex broke the silence.

Laura smiled, then both leaned in to share a kiss. First date jitters and doubts aside, that single peck on the lips became a kiss worthy of any romance novel Alex might write for the best seller list or for the big screen. They released hands. Alex made sure Laura got in safe then entered his car. “Love Bud Flower Shop,” he called out to the smart phone system set up in his car. “Hi. It’s Alex. Please send 12 dozen long stemmed roses to the following home address first thing in the morning and put it on my tab,” he ordered. “Enclose a card with the message: for a 21st century woman of astral beauty. Love, Alex.” He gave them Laura’s address and then drove away with a smile on his lips and the lovely Laura on his mind.