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Chapter 28/Beyond the First Date

Chapter 28: 28/Beyond the First Date

Chapter 28

Stephanie’s Point of View

His features shifted for a moment, and a look of annoyance crossed his face. "What is wrong, Stephanie? I never meant it that way." He then turned to the waiter and commanded, "Give the lady the menu so she can choose whatever she likes."

I took the menu and began scanning the names of the complex dishes, eventually choosing something familiar with a side salad. The waiter withdrew, and a brief silence followed before Cedric broke it, leaning across the table and locking his eyes with mine. "Are you still angry?"

"No," I said sharply.

"Yes, clearly!" he replied with a light smirk.

Ignoring his sarcasm, I asked, "Is this a date? The candles, the roses, the dress, and what you wrote on the card... this isn’t just an ordinary dinner."

"Yes, it’s a date," he answered with a sincerity that sent my pulse racing. "I want to get to know you more, Stephanie. What you love, what you hate everything."

Trying to protect myself, I asked coldly, "Why?"

At that moment, his voice dropped, becoming deeper and more resonant. "Because I like you... and I feel drawn to you in a way I’ve never experienced before."

I felt my heart soften despite myself; the hardness I had built began to crumble before his blunt confession. I lowered my gaze to my glass and spoke softly. "But your life and mine are so different, Cedric. You have a world full of danger, weapons, killing... I never imagined I would be part of a world like this."

Cedric looked into my eyes with a truthfulness that made my heart hammer. He spoke in a calm, confident voice: "I completely understand your fear, but believe me, I will never hurt you, Stephanie. I will always protect you you and my children."

I swallowed hard, feeling my twins move in my imagination as if his words had touched them. "Are you saying you want me to be your girlfriend?" I asked, my voice wavering.

"Yes," he answered without hesitation. "I want you to be by my side, always."

I looked down and said doubtfully, "I don’t think this will work, Cedric."

He reached across the table, squeezing my hand gently. "No one knows... if we don’t try, we’ll never find out."

He was right. Perhaps I should give this relationship a chance, especially since I carry two pieces of him inside me. I had to allow myself to see Cedric through a different lens not just as a "mafia man" or the "brother of my ex." Perhaps this was the best choice for my future.

"We’ll see," I said with a shy smile.

His smile widened. "Is that a yes?"

"We’ll see," I teased again.

The waiter brought the food, and the time passed with a smoothness I hadn’t expected. We talked about everything; he asked about the smallest details what I liked and disliked and he hung onto every word as if life itself would crumble if he didn’t focus on the tone of my voice.

We finally left the restaurant and got into the car under the starlight. "Did you enjoy tonight?" he asked quietly while driving.

"Very much," I said truthfully.

When we arrived home, I scanned the foyer subconsciously, looking for any trace of Alexander, but he wasn’t there. The house was shrouded in an eerie silence. We climbed the stairs together until we reached my bedroom door. I turned to him and said gratefully, "Thank you so much for tonight. It was wonderful."

"I’m glad you liked it," he said, smiling tenderly.

At that moment, a childish thought occurred to me; isn’t a man supposed to walk a girl to her door and kiss her on the first date? Even though I was already in his house, I wanted the rituals of this date to be complete, just like in the novels.

"Goodnight," I said with a hint of hidden disappointment.

I turned and opened the door, but as I took my first step inside, I felt his strong hand grip my arm. He pulled me toward him suddenly until our chests collided.

He placed his large hand on my bare back, which the dress had left exposed, and brought his face so close I could feel the heat of his breath dancing against my lips.

"Just goodnight?" he whispered in an overwhelming masculine tone. "Is that how my girlfriend says goodbye to me?"

My body trembled at the word "girlfriend." Was I really Cedric’s girlfriend now?

"I don’t know," I said, lost in the moment.

"I know," he said possessively, tightening his grip on my waist.

Suddenly, he leaned in and kissed me with power and passion.

I didn’t resist; instead, my hands reached up to cup his face, and I began to return the kiss with a madness I hadn’t known I possessed. It wasn’t a goodbye kiss meant for sleep; it was a blatant declaration of the start of a night where our eyes would never close.

Cedric pushed me into the room with a force that carried a mixture of desire and possession. With a swift, decisive motion, he turned the key in the lock, as if announcing to the world and to Alexander that this space was now his alone, and that he would allow no one to interrupt what was about to happen.

Before I could even process standing inside the room, he lunged for my lips again with a kiss more violent and deeper than the last. It wasn’t gentle; it was a breathless struggle. He sucked my lower lip hungrily, as if trying to reclaim every second he had spent away from me, while our hot breaths merged to draw the lines of an irreversible night.

I felt his hands squeeze my waist, lifting me until my feet nearly left the floor.

I didn’t stand idly by; my trembling hands reached eagerly for his brown blazer, pulling it off his broad shoulders and letting it drop to the floor without a thought. In the midst of my disorientation, as his kisses moved to encircle my jaw and neck, Cedric skillfully turned me around so my back faced him.

I felt the cool air touch my skin as he slowly lowered the zipper of my red dress, as if every inch he revealed was a new victory. The dress slid off my body, pooling at my feet and leaving me before him in only my underwear.

He didn’t wait a second; he leaned his head down and began to plant damp, warm kisses on my shoulders and the curve of my back, while his hands roamed over every curve of my body, igniting a fire inside me that made me release a faint moan I couldn’t suppress.

His touch told me one thing: Tonight, I belong to Cedric, and Cedric alone.