A/N: Hey guys, as a heads up, this is not the beginning of the story. In the process of writing it, I lost the beginning. I am trying to locate it in the depths of my hard drive. If not I'll rewrite it and post it here. Thanks! ~Melissa
Chapter 1
We pulled up to a small, cottage-like building. The marquee read "Guidice's Ristorante." I immediately loved the place. I absently reach for the door handle. After a few moments of groping around for it, I turned my head towards the door. Derek was standing there, holding the door open for me, with a smile on his face. I sighed inaudibly. Of course he was holding the door. He's perfect, remember? I smiled. "Thank you, Sir." I chuckled. "You're quite welcome, Milady." He replied.
When we step into the restaurant, my nose is pleasantly assaulted by the smell of oregano and tomato. We are greeted by an over-friendly hostess, who leads us to our seats. She only addresses Derek, agitating me further. The hostess must have spilled to the waitress about how gorgeous Derek was, because she was even friendlier. She didn't even look in my direction. What I realized was that I wasn't upset because she was ignoring me. I was upet because the waitress wasn't ignoring Derek. I was still trying to figure out why I was so upset that they were giving him attention. I thought that I couldn't possibly have feelings for him. Or could I? I thought. .
I decided on mushroom ravioli and Derek ordered lasagna. "I love this place already.", I said halfway through my meal. "I thought you might.", he replied, smiling. "Is there any more surprises I should know about for today?", I asked, partially teasing him. "Maybe.", He replied ambiguously with a impish grin.
Within another half hour, we were again on the road in Derek's Lexus. I called dibs on the radio the second we got in the car. Derek obliged. My favorite song came on: Taylor Swift's Safe and Sound. I unknowingly began to sing aloud to the song. "You're voice is beautiful.", Derek commented and he looked over towards me. I subsequently blushed because I forgot he was listening. "Thanks, but I don't compare to Taylor Swift's version.", I said laughing. "You're right, you're better than Taylor Swift.", he replied. As I glanced sideways, I could see something about his eyes, but I couldn't put my finger on it.
Twenty minutes later we arrive at a apartment complex in downtown Los Angeles. I assumed we were going to his apartment. Once again, Derek opened my door before I could. From then on it didn't bother me that he did chivalrous acts like opening the door for me. My hand briefly brushed against his. An electric shock rushed through my hand at contact. Both our hands jerked away immediately. I couldn't help but think that he felt it too.
A few moments later we arrived at his apartment. The door read 5C. He then unlocked the door and lead me inside. It was a cozy little apartment. A small kitchenette with stainless steel appliances and granite countertops took up majority of the left side of the room. The adjacent space held a small sectional, a coffee table, and a sixty inch plasma atop a small black composite entertainment center. As my eyes reached the back of the room, I saw a platform bed neatly downturned with a simple navy duvet. To the right of that, I saw two doors. I assumed that one was a closet and the other was a bathroom.
"It's so cute.", I finally said, after analyzing the space. "Thanks.", he replied, smiling. "Make yourself comfortable.", He continued, as he went into the kitchen area. Taking his cue, I plopped down on the sectional. "Anything to drink?", he called from the kitchen. "Surprise me.", I called back. A few minutes later, Derek walked towards the sectional with two margaritas. "They look really good.", I commented. "They taste even better.", Derek replied.
We eventually decided on watching a movie. Unfortunately, Derek called dibs on choosing the movie. Even though Derek had an extensive movie collection, he began scrolling through Netflix. He decided on Final Destination Three. I groaned loudly. "Don't worry, I'll protect you.", Derek teased. "I feel much safer now.", I teased back. I tried to close my eyes, but it didn't reduce the scary factor. I jumped at a particularly scary scene. I ended up in Derek's lap. "Sorry.", I apologized, thankful that he couldn't see me blushing. "Nothing to apologize for.", He said smiling.