This is for LaPaige's challenge: Prompt #29: Valentine's Day

Valentine's Date

By angellwings

Nate's eyes were glued to Ella as she sat at her desk. He couldn't quite figure out what she was doing. She was distracting him, which wasn't a good thing. He was supposed to be finishing writing his speech for this banquet Jason and Shane were forcing him to go to. One of them had to go since it was sort of being thrown to thank them for their contributions to the children's ward of a near by hospital, but Jason and Shane already had plans for that night.

Since it was going to be Valentine's Day and all.

It fell to Nate to represent them and give the thank you speech. He'd sequestered himself in Ella's office because usually he could work in peace there. Ella never tried to bother him. She was fine to just let him quietly sit and do whatever he needed to do. But he couldn't work right now because Ella was doing something very curious.

She had chocolates. Small heart shaped chocolates wrapped in pink and silver foil. She would pick one out of the bag, unwrap it, stick the chocolate in her mouth and then stare at the wrapper. Then she would open her desk drawer and rifle through it before either throwing the wrapper into the drawer or the trashcan. For the life of him, he couldn't understand what she was doing.

He set his laptop to the side and stood from his chair. He made his way to her desk and stood in front of it, watching her, for several more minutes. She finally paused what she was doing and looked up at him.

"Yes? Can I help you, Nathaniel?"

His brow furrowed. "What are you doing?"

"I'm stuffing myself with chocolates because it's the day before Valentine's Day and I'm still dateless. Do you have a problem with that?"

His eyes widened and he held his hands up in surrender. "Not what I meant, El. Believe me. I meant what are you doing with those wrappers?"

Her glare relaxed and she shrugged. "Oh, well, they have sayings on them. I keep the ones that I don't have yet."

"Sayings? What kind of sayings?" He asked.

She picked one out of the drawer and read it aloud. "Things like, 'A gentle touch speaks volumes.' They're just little sweet things. I take them home and tape them to my mirror."

He wrinkled his nose. "…why?"

"Because they make me think that maybe I won't always be forever alone, okay?" Ella admitted.

He chuckled. "Ella, you're not going to be forever alone. You're not alone now."

She scoffed. "Right. Do you see a boyfriend in my life, Nate?"

"No," He answered. Thank God, he thought.

"Exactly, see? Forever alone."

"Ella, seriously, that's not going to be you," He told her with an amused glance.

"Whatever," She muttered as she waved her hand at him dismissively.

"What are you doing tomorrow night?" He asked suddenly. He had an idea.

She glared at him. "Did you not just hear me say I was dateless for Valentine's?"

"Right," He said as he nervously cleared his throat. "I forgot."

"Why do you ask?"

"I have to go to this banquet thing, and I thought, if you weren't doing anything else, you might like to go with me," He said as he worked very hard not to stutter.

"Go with you? Like as your date?" She asked.

He nodded. "Sure, or, you know, we could call it a friend thing if that would make you feel better. So, what do you say?"

She gave him a small smile. "Okay, sure. It will have to be better than pigging out on chocolates I bought for myself and watching a chick-flick marathon, right? Plus, I have the perfect dress. This thing is formal, yes?"

He nodded. "Very."

"Good. Well, then Mr. Gray, you have yourself a date."

He smiled slowly and nodded. "Right, a date. Pick you up at 7?"

Ella glanced out the window and wasn't shocked at all when Nate's limo pulled up promptly at 7 o'clock. The boy just couldn't be late for anything, which is why she'd made herself start getting ready thirty minutes earlier than she would have normally. It was the only way she'd be ready in time. She pulled her long white coat out of the closet and put it on and then put everything in her wristlet that she knew would be necessary for the evening. (Keys, wallet, lip gloss, mints, etc.) Nate knocked on the door just as she'd finished buckling the t-strap on her heels. She buttoned up her coat before opening the door.

Nate had on his coat as well, but even with the coat covering the spectacular tuxedo he was sure to be wearing he looked very good. Very…dapper. She licked her lips instinctively and gave him a once over. "You clean up well, Nate."

He chuckled. "I should say the same about you, Ells. You look very nice."

She blushed. "Thank you, but you haven't even seen the outfit yet."

"You're Ella, I can't imagine you wearing anything that looked less than gorgeous on you," He said with a crooked smile. He cleared his throat and then held out a corsage to her. "I know this isn't prom or anything, but I was at the florist getting a bouquet for you when I saw this. It looked much more you than a bouquet."

She smiled brightly at the sight of the soft pink roses and baby's breath. "It's beautiful. Thank you."

He gently slipped it around her wrist and then pulled out a boutonnière. "I figured we should match. Only, I couldn't pin it on, so…"

"Do you want it pinned to your coat or your tux jacket?" Ella asked. He didn't answer. He just slipped off his coat and then stood expectantly in front of her. Ella chuckled. "Okay, tux jacket it is."

He handed her the boutonniere, and she carefully pinned it on him. Her hands were shaking from his close proximity and she was very glad she didn't accidentally stick him. She smoothed down the lapel of his jacket before she pulled away. She looked up to find Nate watching her very closely. His eyes were cloudy with some sort of emotion and a soft smile was fixed on his lips.

"Be careful when you put your coat on. You don't want to crush it," She warned him.

"I just won't button my coat," He told her with a nod as he seemed to come back to reality. "Are we ready?"

Ella nodded, and turned to shut and lock her apartment door. When she turned back around Nate offered her his arm and she giggled. "Such a gentleman."

"Yes, well, my mother raised me right," He said with a dry smirk.

Yes, she did, Ella thought to herself with a nervous gulp. And I'm in big trouble.

Why hadn't she clarified what kind of date this was yesterday? Nate had said it could be a date or a friend thing. Which one did he think this was? Which one did he want it to be?

They stepped into the limo, and Nate turned to give her a small warm smile. "Thanks for coming with me tonight. I didn't want to do this by myself. Apparently, Ruby's going to be there tonight."

Ella's eyes widened and then formed a glare. "She is, huh? You think she would leave if I ripped out some of her hair?"

Nate gave her an impressed look before he laughed loudly. "Yeah, probably. But then they'd kick you out too, and I'd be dateless. Where would be then?"

Ella groaned. "I know, sorry. I just…really don't like her, especially after what she did to you with…"

"You mean how she cheated on me with Luke Williams?" Nate asked knowingly.

"Yes, that," Ella shook her head. "I will never understand how anyone could choose him over you. She's more of a ditz than me."

Nate's brow furrowed at her. "Don't say that."

"Oh, sorry, I didn't think you'd mind me insulting Ruby since she—"

"No, El. I meant don't talk about yourself like that. You're not a ditz."

She scoffed. "Sure, if you say so."

He rolled his eyes. "You're not."

The limo stopped and the driver lowered the partition to let them know they'd arrived. Before the driver opened the door Nate turned to Ella.

"There's going to be press out there, just a warning. It's sort of a red carpet type of thing. Are you gonna be okay with that?"

She nodded. "As long as I can stick close to you, I'll be fine."

He smiled softly at her and took her hand. He laced his fingers through hers just as the door opened, and screams and flashes surrounded them. He stepped out first and then helped her out as well. He kept a tight hold on her hand as they headed toward the carpet lined walkway. If he didn't let go of her hand the paparazzi and the reporters were going to get the wrong idea about them. Not that she didn't secretly want that idea to be true.

Nate stopped to chat with as few reporters as possible. He could feel Ella's nerves and he wanted nothing more than to get her inside where she would be more comfortable. He had stopped to talk to the last reporter that was positioned the closest to the door of the hotel where the banquet was being held. Once that was done he turned to go inside and sudden shouting erupted from the paparazzi.

"Nate! Who's your date?"

"Is she your girlfriend?"

"Can we get a picture of you both?"

"Give her a kiss!"

Ella turned a very dark shade of crimson and Nate took a deep breath. He ignored them and stepped inside. In his head he rattled off what his answers would have been.

"My friend and stylist, Ella Pador."

"No, unfortunately."

"As long as you send me a copy."

"And I'd love to. If I knew for sure that it wouldn't scare her away."

The door closed behind them and Nate kept her hand in his until they reached their table inside the ballroom that had been reserved for this event. He released her hand and then reached to help her remove her coat. He gulped as his eyes fell on her shoulders. No wonder she'd been wearing a coat, she wasn't really wearing anything even remotely warm underneath it. The straps of her dress were thin and might as well have been invisible. The further he peeled the coat off of her, the harder it was for him to breathe or keep from staring.

She was beautiful. Not that he expected anything less, but…

Well, he hadn't truly been prepared for it either.

His fingers brushed against the bare skin of her upper arms and he bit his lip to keep from sucking in a breath. Her skin was softer than he'd imagined it to be. He placed her coat on the back of her chair. She moved to sit down but Nate took her arm to keep her from doing so.

"Hold on," He said with a smirk that was far more confident than he felt. "I haven't seen your dress yet, remember?"

She blushed. "Oh."

"Spin," He commanded gently. "Let me see it."

She laughed. "You're a strange one, Nate Gray."

He grinned and shrugged at her. "Just spin, Smarty."

She crossed one arm over her chest and held the elbow of her other arm. She looked everywhere but at him and she spun slowly in front of him. Her modesty was adorable. He blatantly admired her as she turned. The dress was a soft pink, and had a seam that ran across very bottom of the bust where a pleated flowing skirt completed it. Two of the pleats consisted of matching baby pink lace. He burned the image into his memory. He never wanted to forget the image of her standing shyly in front of him. He wondered if she had any inkling of just how beautiful she was.

He pulled at the arm she'd crossed over her chest and then held both of her hands in his. "You're gorgeous, Ella. You really are."

She bit her bottom lip before meeting his eyes and speaking. "Thank you. I'm glad you're not ashamed to be seen with me."

She was joking, and he knew she was joking. But it wasn't a joke he particularly liked. "I would never be ashamed to be seen with you. Ever."

"Ditto," Ella said with a bright smile and a blush. "…can we sit now?"

He laughed and pulled out her chair for her again. "Feel free."

They sat down and at first it was fine. They chatted and laughed, but then…more people started joining them at the table. They were all couples. They were leaning into each other, and whispering, and holding hands, and kissing. Basically, they were acting like the couples they all were, but it just emphasized the fact that he and Ella weren't a couple, and left them stupidly ignoring the elephant in the room. Suddenly one of the guys at their table stood up and proposed to his girlfriend…

Nate decided he need to take a walk, and clear his head. He leaned toward Ella. "I'm gonna run to the bathroom. Are you gonna be okay out here by yourself?"

She nodded. "I'll be fine. Don't worry."

"I'll be back," Nate said as he walked away.

Ella sighed and rubbed the back of her neck as he left. This was bad. This was so bad. And so awkward. How could she talk to Nate like he was just her friend when what she really wanted was to be like everyone else at their table? She didn't just want to be his friend. She wanted to be his girlfriend.

A shadow suddenly blocked her light. She smiled and looked up. She assumed it was Nate coming back. She was wrong.

"What are you doing here?" a disgusted voice asked.

Ella rolled her eyes. "Lovely to see you again too, Ruby."

"Where's Nate?" Ruby asked as she flipped a piece of dyed red hair over her shoulder.

Ella sighed as she answered the petite brown eyed girl. "The bathroom."

Ruby turned her almond shaped eyes on Ella. "So, Nate couldn't find a real date, huh? He had to ask his back up, I see."

Ella tried to ignore her, but she wouldn't go away. "Will you please leave me alone? I don't want to see you and I'm positive Nate doesn't. He's far too good for you, anyway."

Ruby smirked at her. "You're in love with him, aren't you? Oh, aren't you precious!"

Ella didn't answer her, but Ruby continued.

"For once, I'm going to be a decent person and give you some much needed advice. Don't let things go to far between the two of you, El," Ruby said as she studied her own bright red nails.

"And why would I listen to you?" Ella asked.

"I'm totally saying this for your own good. I mean really, sweetie, look at yourself and then look at me. Tell me what you think?"

Ella rolled her eyes. "Stop playing games and just say whatever it is you're hinting at."

"Have you ever noticed that you and I look a lot alike?"

Ella glared at her. "I don't look anything like you."

"Yes, you do. I mean, I'm still prettier, but even I have to admit that we look very similar," Ruby grinned. "Let me guess, Nate asked you to come with him just last night, didn't he?"

"So?"

"Oh, Ella, you're so uncorrupted," Ruby chuckled. "Sweetie, he asked you because you reminded him of me. "Same skin tone, same color eyes, similar facial features. Face it, girly, you're a poor man's Ruby. Nate wouldn't look twice at you if you didn't look like me."

Ella wanted to glare at her again, but she froze. Suddenly, she saw it. She saw exactly what Ruby was talking about. She was right. The only real difference between them was their heritage. Ella was Filipino and Ruby was Korean, but it was a close enough resemblance despite that. Their bone structures, eyes, nose…they were nearly identical.

In fact, if Ruby hadn't dyed her hair red they could have looked like sisters.

Ruby smirked triumphantly at Ella's horrified look. "It's nice to know Nate's not quite over me yet, twin."

Ella looked down at her lap as Ruby sauntered away. Was that true? Had Nate asked her to come with him because Ella looked like her? No, he wouldn't, would he? Maybe—Maybe he didn't realize that's what he'd done. Maybe he thought he really wanted to go with Ella, but subconsciously he wished she was Ruby instead. It would certainly explain why he'd so attentive and sweet or why he'd even asked her to begin with. Ella closed her eyes and sighed.

She'd gotten her hopes up for nothing.

She felt someone sit down in the seat next to her, and few seconds later she heard:

"Ella, are you alright?"

She opened her eyes and shook her head. "No, I'm not feeling very well right now."

She felt Nate's arm drape across the back of her chair and then she felt his hand squeeze her shoulder. "You probably just need to eat. They're going to serve dinner as soon as I've made my speech."

She nodded weakly. "That's probably what it is."

She leaned forward in her chair to get away from his arm and the hand he'd placed on her shoulder. She didn't mean to be rude, but…

She didn't want Nate touching her if he secret thought he was touching Ruby.

Someone stood up behind the podium and thanked everyone for coming. The man talked about why they were there and then introduced Nate and asked him to join him.

"Time for my speech," He whispered in her ear as he stood. "Wish me luck?"

The feeling of his breath on her neck caused goose bumps to rise on her arms, but instead of getting a nervous thrill…it only depressed her. She rubbed her arms and held them across her stomach.

"Luck," she muttered with a half-hearted smile.

He gave her a concerned questioning look. He wanted to ask what was wrong, but he couldn't at this particular moment. He kept his eyes on her as he made his way through the room. He noticed she kept her eyes on him as well…

Until he passed Ruby's table.

Ruby stood up and hugged him unexpectedly. Nate gave her an awkward pat on the back but what he really wanted to do was pull her off of him and shove her back down in her seat. He'd really prefer it if Ruby never touched him again, honestly. As he walked away he caught Ruby flashing Ella a wicked smile.

He bit back a groan. Of course. Ruby had said something to Ella. It all made sense now. He cursed himself for leaving Ella alone. He shouldn't have left the table. He hadn't really needed to clear his head. He should have stayed at the table and kept Ruby at bay. But no, he'd convinced himself to take a short walk instead.

He gave his speech but he was certain he came across as distracted. Because well…

He was distracted. Ruby had gotten up from her seat during his speech and sat down next to Ella. Nate wanted to jump off the stage and whisk Ella away, but he was sort of stuck. Ella had buried her face in her hands so Nate couldn't see her expression, but he saw Ruby place a hand on her shoulder and then watched as Ella violently swatted it away.

He finished his speech and briskly walked toward his table. As Ruby passed him she winked mockingly at him. He approached the table cautiously and sat down. "Ella?"

She looked up at him and sighed sadly. Her lips were pursed and she rubbed a hand across her brow. She looked confused and upset. "I'd like to go home now, please."

He hadn't been expecting that. He reached forward to grab her hand but she conveniently moved it away to take a sip from her water glass. He ran his hand through his curls instead. "Are you sure? Dinner should be served soon and—"

"I'm sure," She said quickly. "I'm feeling queasy and would just like to go home."

He sighed in resignation and nodded. "Alright, let me just call the driver."

Ella nodded, but she didn't wait. She grabbed her coat and stood from the table. He watched in shock as she practically ran from the room. The elderly woman sitting next to her turned to him and glared.

"Go after her, boy, what are you waiting for?"

"I—I don't understand. What happened?" Nate asked aloud to himself.

The woman reached over and patted his hand. "Your little girlfriend just had her heart ripped out of her chest by that conceited red head over there. You've got a complicated night ahead of you, son. I hope you can keep up."

He blinked at the woman and then quickly called the driver on his cell phone. What did that mean? What did Ruby say to her? He wanted to pull Ruby aside and ask her, but he needed to catch up with Ella. He stopped by the host's table and explained why he would be leaving and thanked him for a great evening. He passed their table one last time and noticed Ella's wrist bag still sitting there. He picked it up quickly and hurried out of the room.

He found her standing in the lobby with her coat on and buttoned. She was staring at the floor in a thoughtful daze. She had her arms crossed over her chest protectively. He gingerly reached out and placed a hand on the small of her back. She gasped and jumped nearly a foot before turning to look at him. He smiled softly at her and held out her bag to her.

She bit her lip and took it from him. "Thanks."

"Are you alright?" He asked as his brow furrowed in concern.

She nodded. "My lunch just isn't agreeing with me right now."

He didn't even pretend to believe her. He gave her a look that told her he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that she was lying. She looked away from him and fiddled with the buttons on her coat.

Through the door Nate saw the limo pull up. He moved to grab her hand but stopped himself. Instead, he held his hand out to her and let her decide whether or not she wanted to take it. It took her forever to think it over but she finally placed her hand in his. He noticed she didn't lace her fingers with him though. Whatever Ruby told her about him must have been bad. Ella was acting like she didn't want to be anywhere near him.

He sighed and put on a blank expression as he led Ella through the cameras and reporters. He didn't stop to talk to anyone this time. He wasn't in the mood. He let Ella step inside the limo first and then he followed her. His jaw set sternly as he noticed where she was sitting, and as soon as the door closed he turned to glare out the window. She'd situated herself as far away from him as possible. She had hidden herself in the corner on the opposite end of the limo from him.

He couldn't understand what had happened. What had changed? Why did she seem so repulsed by him all of a sudden? He turned his glare on her. "Why the hell are you sitting so far away? Have I done something to offend you? Am I some sort of monster? What? What is it?"

The limo pulled away and silence swallowed the air between them. He continued to glare at her as he waited for an answer. He heard her take in a shaky breath and she began to speak. He had to strain to hear her. She was whispering so quietly that it could have been mistaken for breathing.

"I'm a poor man's Ruby."

"What? Ella, what does that mean?" He asked as his expression softened. In the darkness he couldn't see her face, but he could hear the pain in her voice.

"I look like her, Nate."

"Like who?"

It was her turn to glare at him. "Don't play dumb, Nate. You know who I'm talking about. If I dyed my hair red I could be mistaken for her twin."

"So," He started slowly. "You're mad at me because Ruby looks like you?"

"Because I look like her, yes…and I'm not really mad, Nate. I'm not."

"Then what are you?" He asked in confusion.

"I'm…sad."

"Sad?"

"It's not entirely your fault, though. You can't help it if you're not over her, and I guess it makes sense for you to want someone who reminds you of her. Really, I don't blame you at all," Ella said very quietly.

Nate's brow furrowed as she continued to ramble. He was trying to make sense of everything she'd just said.

"I think it would be best for us if you take me home, and we go our separate ways. We'll pretend tonight never happened and go on just like we were. No hard feelings, no awkwardness. You'll still come over to my office to hide from your brothers and I'll still sneak glances at you when I think you're not look—"

"Wait. Just wait. Let me—so, you're saying that I asked you to come with me tonight because Ruby looks like you. Is that it?"

"Well, didn't you?"

He shook his head. "No."

"Nate," She said sternly.

"Ella," He said as he mimicked her tone.

"There are too many similarities. You had to. Maybe you just didn't realize that that's what you did—"

"No! Ella, you're wrong."

"I don't think I am, Nate," She mumbled.

"You are wrong. I dated Ruby because she reminded me of you. And that's the truth. My very confusing and, until tonight, well hidden truth."

"Nate—"

"I didn't ask you out because you reminded me of her. Why would I do that? I despise her. It's not logical. Ruby knows it too. I talked to her about it that night we broke up. Well, more like I yelled at her about it. She knows I only dated her because I was in love with you…"

"Stop it," Ella protested softly.

"…I was just too stupid to realize it at the time. I assumed that because Ruby looked like you that…she would be you. But she's not. She not you. She could never be you. No one could, Ella. I lov—"

"No! Nate! Stop it!" Ella yelled. "You can't mean any of this!"

Nate's expression softened, and as she continued to yell he slowly moved toward her. She gulped and her words became more hesitant.

"You're just saying everything you want to say to her. You don't—you—you can't—"

Ella cut herself off as Nate finally sat next to her. He put an arm around her shoulders and pulled her against him. He spoke up in a low voice, "Why? Why can't I mean it?" He leaned closer to her ear before he continued. "Why can't you believe that I wanted Ruby to be you? Why do you find it so hard to believe that I could and do love you? Or that I have loved you for years?"

"Because that would be too easy. Too convenient," She whispered as her breathing and heart beat sped up.

He smirked knowingly at her and lowered his lips to kiss the spot between her ear and the edge of her jaw. He kissed her there for a minute or two before he pulled away. "And why is that, Ella?"

He was cruel. Very very cruel. Her lips quivered as she took in a slow breath. "Because…I love you too." He moved his lips to kiss a spot just behind her ear. His tongue grazed her skin and Ella whined. "Nate…"

This was torture. Yes, okay, she enjoyed the feeling of him kissing her there, but that's not the spot she'd truly prefer. She turned her head and caught his lips with her own. That was much better. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled herself closer. She parted her lips when his tongue pressed against her front teeth and felt a shiver run down her spine at the contact. He groaned and pulled her into his lap. They both had their coats on so there was very little skin for either to touch.

She sucked in a breath when she felt one of Nate's hands on her knee. He ran his thumb back and forth across her skin as he continued to kiss her thoroughly. She sunk her fingers into his curls and then his hand moved downward from her knee to her calf, and he traced that line several times over. She whined again and sunk her fingers even deeper into his curls. For several more minutes the only sounds that could be heard in the limo were of the two of them kissing.

Somehow, by the time they pulled apart, both their coats lay on the floor of the limo and Nate had Ella's back pressed against the side of the cab as they both stretched across the seat. Nate placed one last kiss on her neck as they both sat up. She scooted as close to him as she could and rested her head on his shoulder. He leaned down and placed a kiss on the top of her head. The limo suddenly came to a stop, and the partition that was directly behind them lowered.

"We're her—" The driver's eyes widened at the sight of their ruffled hair and swollen lips. He stared at them a moment before he chuckled and winked at them. "I see someone's having an eventful Valentine's Day."

Ella blushed and quickly pulled the pins out of hair. There was no chance of saving it. Nate watched her fuss over herself with an amused smile.

"I'm sure it turned out much better than some of us hoped," Nate said as he gave Ella a pointed look and smirked.

She reached up and wiped some of her lip gloss from his lips. She kept her hand on his chin for a moment longer and nodded. "Much better."