Date Shark

by DelSheree Gladden

  One quick taste to convince herself the soup was perfect, then Leila turned off the heat and moved on to the biscuits. A small tornado seemed to be unleashed then as Leila bustled about the kitchen pulling down dishes and plating the meal, setting the food at the breakfast bar—her favorite place to eat—and pouring drinks. Eli would have stepped in to help, but she moved too quickly to intercept. The table was laid before she stopped moving.

  “Did you have a good day today?” Leila asked when they were both seated.

  Eli smiled. “I did. How was yours?”

  “Better now,” she said.

  It was almost too much to come home to Leila, to eat dinner with her, to have a seemingly mundane conversation. Eli needed a dose of reality before he upset dinner by grabbing Leila and kissing her until she gave in to him completely. He needed a distraction.

  “So,” Eli began, “you finally get a night off, and you aren’t out doing something exciting and death defying with Luke? Why not?”

  Leila’s head ducked down briefly, but popped back up right away. “Luke already had plans tonight.”

  “And he wasn’t willing to break his plans for you?” Eli asked. That truly surprised him. Leila had been so busy lately, anyone other than Ana getting to spend time with her was rare. When she did have a moment, Luke quickly swooped in and stole it away from Eli. He had been more demanding of her time since the double date. Not commandeering Leila again seemed unlikely.

  Turning so she could just barely see him from the corner of her eye, Leila said, “I didn’t ask Luke to change his plans.

  “Then I have you for the rest of the evening?” Eli asked, unable to contain his smile.

  “Yes, I believe you do.” She was smiling as well.

  A while later, Eli cleared the breakfast bar and left the dishes for later. Leila was already curled up on the couch clicking through the menu of online movies when he made it to the living room. She settled on one of her favorites, Singing in the Rain, and leaned against Eli when he sat down next to her. He loved that she hummed along with the songs, completely unaware she was doing it. She snuggled closer as the movie went on and toward the end her eyes were drifting closed. But she didn’t quite fall asleep.

  “I should go,” she said, rubbing her eyes as the credits scrolled across the screen.

  He knew she was beyond tired, but Eli wasn’t ready to let go of her. “Have breakfast with me in the morning,” he said.

  Leila smiled sleepily. “I would love to, but there’s no way I could squeeze in running, coming over for breakfast, and going home to get ready for work in the morning.”

  “Why don’t we cut out some of the driving then?”

  She didn’t ask what he meant. All she said was, “I don’t have any clothes here.”

  “You asked me to pick up your dry cleaning a few days ago. It’s in my closet.”

  “I’m not running in heels and a skirt.”

  “Missing one day of running won’t make a difference,” Eli said. “Stay with me tonight. I don’t want you to go. I’ve missed you lately.”

  Still leaning against Eli, he could feel it the second she gave in. Her body released the tension it was holding. Her hand curled around his biceps. “Can we watch My Fair Lady next?”

  Eli started the movie and dropped his arm around her shoulders. There was some relief that she hadn’t asked about sleeping arrangements. He would have offered her his room, of course, but he didn’t know if he could resist the allure of her in his bed. Eli wanted her close, and he hoped her request for another movie meant the same.

  Leila’s eyes began to close again shortly after Eliza met Professor Higgins in the street and the bet was wagered. Eli wasn’t sure she was totally awake when she left his shoulder and laid her head on his lap, but she did seem lucid when she pulled him down next to her. Eli fell asleep pressed against Leila with one arm draped over her body, happier than he had ever remembered being.

  Chapter 25

  Girl Friday

  Leila’s phone buzzed in her pocket. It was the second time in so many minutes, but she had no time to check her messages. She pulled another lid off of a box and nearly cried when she finally found the programs that had been missing since Tuesday. How they ended up with the general office supplies was beyond her, but she wanted to kiss the intern, Cecily, for mentioning the ridiculous number of boxes clogging up the supply room.

  From her place on the floor, she hit the button on her phone that dialed Ana’s office. It was picked up immediately. “Please tell me you found them,” her harried voice nearly yelled.

  “I found them. They were in with the printer paper.”

  Leila could hear Ana plop down in her chair. “I think I would have lost it completely if we hadn’t found the programs. Will we ever get through a show without something going wrong?”

  “I seriously doubt it,” Leila said.

  The grunt that came over the phone said what she thought about Leila’s pessimism. “Well, thanks. I owe you double the whipped cream on your blueberry pancakes after the show.”

  “I might need something stronger than whipped cream.”

  Ana laughed. “You and me both.”

  With that, Ana hung up and both women went on to the next impending crisis, whatever that happened to be. The list changed frequently. Before trying to find the quote from the caterer to prove that they were overcharging Ana, she slipped her phone out of her pocket to see who had been trying to get a hold of her. When she opened her messaging program, Leila stared at messages from both Eli and Luke. She hesitated only a moment before selecting Eli’s message.

  I’m sure you’re about to tear your hair out, but don’t worry. Everything will fall into place. I’m thinking of you.

  His words made the whole world take a breath. The storm of fashion mayhem that had been hanging over her head for the past month dissipated. Leila knew it wouldn’t last, but that only made her savor the moment even more. It cleared her head enough for her to ask a question that she had been curious about for some time.

  Are you going to be at the show tomorrow?

  She waited anxiously. Neither Eli, nor Ana had ever explained the real reason behind Eli being banned from the show. Leila knew it had something to do with her, but she had never figured out what. She had suspicions that Ana disapproved of Leila and Eli having a relationship. The why was what really confused her. Eli had been a wonderful friend. He had helped her through tough decisions with Luke and other areas of her life. He was everything she ever could have asked for in a friend. Eli was everything she could ever ask for, period. It was frustrating that Ana couldn’t see that.

  When Eli texted back, the buzzing startled her into almost dropping the phone. Once she was recovered, she opened the message.

  It depends.

  Leila’s brow furrowed. She started typing back immediately.

  It depends on what?

  Before she could even hope for answer from Eli, her office door swung open. The image of Luke standing in her doorway with a bouquet of gorgeous flowers stunned her into silence. He swept in and scooped Leila off the floor and into a hug. An enthusiastic kiss followed as soon as he set her back down. Leila was giggling with delight when they finally pulled apart.

  “Luke, what are you doing here?” she asked.

  “Didn’t you get my text?”

  A small rush of guilt swept through her mind. She had bypassed Luke’s message to read Eli’s. Leila had meant to look at Luke’s right after, but had gotten distracted. “Uh, sorry. I felt it buzz a few minutes ago, but I hadn’t had a chance to check it yet. What did it say?”

  “It said that I was coming to whisk you away from this insane place. Let’s go.”

  Leila’s phone buzzed again, making her jump. Luke was too observant not to notice. There was no way she was going to read Eli’s text in front of Luke, so she shoved it in the back pocket of her jeans. Luke gave her a questioning look.

&n
bsp; “Do you need to check that?”

  “No, I’ll read it later.”

  A teasing smile spread across his lips. “Not checking your text messages is a bad habit. You’re likely to miss something important, like me coming to rescue you.”

  That brought Leila back to his early statement. “Luke, you’re sweet, but I can’t go. There’s still too much to do before the show tomorrow.”

  “I already cleared it with Ana,” Luke said. He grabbed her sweater off the back of her office chair and held it out for her. “There’s nothing so important that you have to be here tonight. It’s already nine o’clock.”

  He didn’t wait for her to argue anymore. Luke pushed her out of her office and into the hallway. As they were passing by Ana’s office, Leila broke out of Luke’s grip and darted in to see her boss. “Ana, Luke’s here, and …”

  “Oh, yeah,” she said rubbing at her eyes. “Go ahead. I’ll see you bright and early tomorrow morning.”

  “Are you sure? I can stay if you need help with anything.”

  Ana seemed to debate her answer. Leila wasn’t sure which she wanted to hear more, that Leila could take off, or was still needed to tackle some other fiasco. She only got more confused when Ana answered, saying, “You can go … if you’re sure you want to.”

  There was an odd expression on her face. Hopeful? Worried? Before Leila could puzzle it out, or respond, Luke pulled her away from the door calling out a thanks to Ana before she disappeared from view. They were to Luke’s car before Leila pulled herself together, somewhat.

  “Luke, listen. I have been at work for thirteen hours. I’m exhausted, and I look terrible. I don’t know what you have in mind, but …”

  Luke cut her off before she could continue. “What I have in mind is a quiet, relaxing, stress-free dinner at my apartment. After, well—that’s up to you. I have movies prepared, ice cream, or I could always massage your feet if you would like. It’s completely up to you.”

  “What’s for dinner?” Leila asked after a moment’s hesitation when thoughts of Eli crept into her mind. In reality, she was only able to push them out because she knew Eli wasn’t home.

  “I thought you might appreciate something familiar,” Luke said as he helped her into his car. He slid into his own seat before answering. “I have food being delivered from that American diner down the street from my apartment you like so much.”

  “Pot roast and mashed potatoes?” Leila asked. Her mouth was already watering.

  Luke took her hand and squeezed it gently. “Of course, it’s your favorite.”

  Half an hour later, they were walking through the door of Luke’s apartment. His timing was just about perfect, because the delivery girl knocked no more than five minutes later. Leila wasn’t nearly as familiar with Luke’s apartment as she was with Eli’s, but she did know where the plates were kept. She had the table set by the time Luke returned with the food.

  Luke set the food on the table and kissed her cheek. She turned into his embrace and he kissed her again. “Go ahead and sit down. You look beat. I’ll dish out the food.”

  He didn’t have to ask twice. Leila slumped into the chair and tried to keep as much weight off her feet as possible. Luke filled each plate and sat down across from her with a smile. The romantic air was stifled just a little by the fact that Leila was ravenous. She downed nearly half her food before she could be bothered to take more than a breath between bites. The half-smile on Luke’s face made her self-conscious, but not enough to keep her from taking another bite.

  “Will I see you at all tomorrow?” Luke asked when the feeding frenzy had calmed.

  Leila sighed. “I doubt it. I’ll be back stage all day, and you’ll be out in front shooting the models. And I know you have to leave as soon as the show ends to catch your flight to New York.”

  “Lunch?”

  She shook her head. “Lunch will be catered, but I usually only have time to snag a bite here and there. You saw the aftermath of the last show. It’s total chaos.”

  Luke smiled at the memory. “When is Ana going to hire someone to help you? You’re the only marketing director I’ve ever met that does as much as you do.”

  “Maybe once Ana works out whatever expansion project she’s working on.”

  “What expansion project?” Luke asked.

  Leila shrugged. “I’m not sure. She’s been very secretive about it. I know she’s working on a second line, maybe even a second store, but aside from having me feel out customer responses and developing preliminary plans for what it would take to branch out, I haven’t seen a single design.”

  “That’s not like Ana. I thought she ran pretty much everything by you.”

  “Usually,” Leila agreed, “but I think she’s overly protective of this project. It would be a huge step for her to open a second store with a completely unknown brand. If it tanked, it could ruin St. Claire’s. I don’t blame her for keeping it close. I wouldn’t trust anyone with something like that until I was absolutely sure.”

  Luke set his fork down and leaned back into his chair with a frown. “It isn’t about trust. Ana trusts you implicitly. She wouldn’t ask so much of you if she didn’t. That’s the real reason she hasn’t gotten you an assistant. She trusts you so much it’s hard for her to bring anyone else in who might screw things up. There must be some other reason.”

  If there was, Leila wasn’t going to worry herself about it in the middle of a delicious dinner. Whatever Ana was planning, it was months in the future. Getting through the fall show was more important than anything else at that moment. She would ask Ana for more details after the show.

  Sensing the topic had fizzled, Luke dove into a new one. “This is nice, eating dinner together like this.”

  “It is,” Leila said with a smile. They had never actually had a meal at either of their apartments before. Dinner plans usually included a new restaurant with foods that made Leila nervous. It wasn’t homemade, and it wasn’t at a breakfast bar, but it was … nice.

  “We should do this more often,” Luke offered.

  Leila smirked at him. “I don’t know. You’re likely to fall asleep on me any minute.”

  Luke laughed as well, but underneath Leila’s facetious exterior, a burr of irritation rubbed against her mind. The first time they had taken a break from the exciting world of Luke Deveron, Leila had attempted to introduce him to scrapbooking. It wasn’t the first time he fell asleep on her. She thought he would be interested in helping her with a print layout for the fall show banner, given his artistic nature, but he only lasted an hour. Even the cooking class she signed them up for had been interrupted by Luke nodding off and knocking over the utensil caddy. Sure, he had just gotten in from a flight, but after a while Leila began to feel like her hobbies were simply too boring for him.

  Unaware of her internal frustration, Luke continued. “I’m serious, though, Leila. We should do this more often, hang out and relax. I like the idea of being with you at home, just knowing you’ll be here.”

  Home?

  “I know I can get a little caught up in all the rock climbing and travelling and kayaking, but I love being with you. The past month has really opened my eyes. I’ve barely seen you, and I don’t like it. I miss you too much. I want to be able to come home and know that you’ll be here, too.”

  Leila was honestly too stunned to respond at that point. To be perfectly honest she hadn’t even considered what Luke was suggesting. If that’s what he was actually suggesting. Leila struggled to center her thoughts and ask, “What do you mean about coming home, and …”

  “I don’t want this to be a rare thing. I’ve realized that even though we have fun going out and trying new things together, I like this too. I’m not asking you to make a decision right now, but I’d like you to think about moving in together.”

  “Moving in together?” Leila said slowly.

  They had been dating for almost six months, so maybe his request shoul
dn’t have been such a surprise to her, but it was. There was still so much she was unsure of. Moving in with Luke meant giving up the possibility of “what if” with Eli. Every day she spent with Eli, that elusive dream felt more realistic, but what if she gave up what she had with Luke for something that would never materialize?

  Luke reached across the table and took her hand. “Leila, this doesn’t have to happen next week, or even next month. I brought it up because I want you to know I’m thinking about it. I want you in my life more.”

  “You’re gone so often, and I get so busy, we’d hardly even see each other more than we do now. What would I do when you’re travelling for the paper?” Leila asked.

  “What do you do now when I’m gone?” he asked.

  Go to Eli’s house.

  “Look,” Luke said, “it’s not about that. When I’m gone, it would make me happy to know I can walk through my apartment door and see you. I don’t like being away from you. I told you before that I wouldn’t make a commitment to anyone without a long track record with them, but I only thought that because I’ve never dated anyone I felt was worth giving up my freedom.”

  An odd, tingly feeling started in her fingertips. “You feel that way about me?”

  “I do.”

  The feeling spread all over her body. “Really?”

  Luke laughed. “Really.”

  The constant on-the-go, thrill seeking lifestyle Luke usually led was a testament to how much he valued his freedom. He was self-sufficient and didn’t like relying on other people. Dashing off all over the country kept life from getting boring, something Leila suspected he feared. But he was suddenly changing his tune. He wanted Leila with him, in his life for real. It would mean making decisions together, compromising, giving up some of his endless adventures. He knew that, and still he was asking her to move in with him.

  “Luke … I think I’m too surprised to react right now,” Leila said honestly.

  His small smile was understanding and kind. “I know. Just promise me you’ll think about it, okay? And don’t feel like it has to be you moving in here. I love your apartment, too, or we could find somewhere new together. You think about it, and let me know when you’re ready to talk more, okay?”