Valentine Masquerade

Hope you enjoy! :D 3

Chapter 14: Close to You

Daniel smirked when he noticed that Betty was looking at him during the drive. He glanced to her, shooting her a flirty wink, causing her to blush. "Hey gorgeous, see something you like?"

She blushed brighter and nodded "mhm...you are so charming and look so ridiculously hot in those pants!."

He chuckled, his eyes shining in delight at how much she enjoyed him dressed like this. "Thanks sexy"

"I'm still surprised. You really think I'm… well, that?"

He looked at her with his eyebrows raised "sexy?"

She nodded with a blush.

He was thankful for the light turning red. He leaned over and kissed her; her arms quickly wrapped around him, pulling him closer.

He smiled trailing a few kisses across her cheek, stopping near her ear to say in a husky voice "incredibly so...you have no idea what your blushing does to me… it is insanely sexy, especially with you looking like a knockout."

She looked at him with a surprised smile "really?"

He nodded and noticed the light turned green. He started to drive again and took a glance at her, taking her in from head to toe, "Let's just say a few very ungentlemanly thoughts have crossed my mind seeing you in this outfit"

Her cheeks tinged in color again at the implications, her heart pounding and mind racing. "Like what?"

He looked to her in surprise "Are you sure you wanna know?"

She bit her lip in thought, then nodded shyly. "Mhm" her response came out in a rush. He looked at her with the naughtiest smirk "all I can think about is you in my arms in nothing but that breathtaking smile on your face, this sexy little jacket and those damn cute shoes, kissing you senseless and making that blushing of yours a permanent accessory" his voice sent chills down her spine and she blushed, the image he created making her heart pound.

She bit her lip, trying to keep her desire in check at the sound of his electrifying voice. She'd never felt so bold with anyone. Their date barely started and it was already heating up.

She felt flustered at the desirous look he gave her, his eyes making her heart race. She suddenly felt hot all over and reached the nob for the ac turning it on high.

A hearty laugh reverberated through the car from him, "you are so freaking cute!"

She blushed, but wanted to tone the heat between them down to a simmer. "So, where are you taking me?"

He smiled "I figured I could take you dancing"

"Oh, I love dancing"

He glanced to her with a smile "great! I'm warning you, though, I'm a terrible dancer"

She shook her head "last time I remembered, you weren't so bad. I enjoyed dancing with you"

A warm smile crossed his face as he thought back to their evening. "I'm good with slow dancing"

Betty felt flutters thinking to how great it felt to have his arms around her when they danced together. "I can teach you if you like"

He nodded with a grin "sure…it would be fun. Hell of a lot more fun dancing with you!"

'Meaning?" She asked curiously, knowing there was something else in his implications.

He sighed "My ex had me go to this Latin club when she was playing me, and danced with her ex fiancé the whole night to make me jealous. I even resorted to calling my mom to have her instruct me on the phone. Of course that didn't work because my mom didn't give a damn about me impressing her, so she just berated me the whole time. It was a pretty awful night. What was I thinking? I hate when my mom is right!"

Betty listened interestedly, "so… your mom didn't like her?"

He shook his head with a grin "no, she felt there was something off about her and that she was playing games, which I hate to say, but she was totally right."

Betty bit her lip, in thought. He noticed the pensive look in her eyes "what do you wanna know? Ask away"

She blushed "I don't want to pry"

He shook his head "no prying. I have nothing to hide. Pretty much I was an idiot and was easily seduced by her. She was basically playing me from the start,everything she did was part of her game and I was such a moron to fall for it. I found out she paid that Hunter guy to pretend to be her ex fiancé to make me jealous, and found out he was some male stripper"

"What? Are you serious?"

He nodded "sadly, yes, I couldn't make this stuff up even if I wanted to. The whole time since I met her, she was using me as this ploy for her magazine."

"I just wonder, why did she do that to you?" Betty asked

He shrugged "because I was a player and she wanted to get me to fall for her and dump me to make a point that even a former player like me could be manipulated into getting hitched in as little as 60 days, and hell, if Daniel Meade can be duped then it'll work on any guy"

"That's awful!"

He sighed, "maybe I did deserve that. I mean I would never do that perse, but I used girls for my own pleasure."

"It still doesn't make what she did okay. I used to admire her. She was like my role model, but when I found out she did that, I lost respect for her. I can't believe she would resort to hurting someone for her gain. I would never do something like that."

He smiled "yah, you're an amazing woman, and are so nice and kind and forgiving. You have a beautiful heart. I know I don't deserve you, but I'm going to try really hard to show you how much you've made me feel happy and hope to make you happy"

She smiled looking to him "thanks, Daniel. You're off to a good start" she gave him a once over, her eyes lingering on him as she took in how ridiculously hot he looked. He looked so carefree; the way his shirt wasn't buttoned fully, was fitted in a way that made it very apparent that he was in great shape, and his sleeves rolled up; and of course, the tight leather pants.

She blushed as her eyes met his. He laughed " these pants are like gold. I'll never take them off"

She bit her lip, then said in a flirty tone "that's too bad"

He grinned, his eyes alight with mischief "let me rephrase that! You can be the one to take them off me… whenever you like" he wiggled his eyebrows playfully. She laughed, her face rosy. He chuckled.

When they finally arrived, Daniel parked out front, tossing his keys to the valet and quickly came around to open her door. She took his hand and he pulled her out of the car, his arms circling her waist and planting a kiss on her lips. She quickly melted into the kiss, her arms wrapping around his neck to pull him closer.

Betty was taken by surprise when Daniel kissed her in front of everyone who was waiting to go inside the club. She never felt so free and happy and desired like she did with Daniel.

When she parted from him she looked at him with a dreamy smile "every girl here is going to be throwing death glares at me all night that I'm here with you, looking as hot as you are right now"

He smiled and held her close to him, "hmm… I'd say every guy that sees you is going to be jealous that you're mine" he held her tighter against him, his tone claimed that he had no intention of sharing her attention with anyone.

"Ehem…" the valet gave them an amused look as he stood near the driver side waiting there for them to finish and close the door so he could go to park the car. Betty blushed, while Daniel said "sorry" he closed the door and led Betty away from the car.

He looked to her and she had this playful smile on her face. He chuckled, "I like you so damn much!"

She laughed "you 'like' me?"

He grinned "it's more like I adore you. You make me forget everything else."

She took his hand in hers "I like you a lot too…" she pulled him close and placed a sweet kiss to his cheek.

Betty noticed flashes in their direction and said in a low voice "uh… I think there are people taking pictures of us"

He looked around noticing a few people snapping pics but shrugged as he looked to her. "I'm used to it, but I hope that you're not embarrassed to be seen with me."

She looked at him with an amused smile "You're kidding! You're so hot and handsome! Why would I be embarrassed? If anything, maybe you might be embarrassed by me?"

He yanked her close, making her gasp when he dipped her and planted a firm kiss on her lips. She slowly let her hands trail from his shoulders all the way up to his face savoring the incredible moment. When he parted from her lips, he looked at her eyes with a smirk "I'm so happy to be with you. Let them take pics; if anything we look like a power couple looking all sexy like this"

She laughed as he pulled her upright, and nodded "ok...so shall we go in line?"

He smirked taking her hand in his and walked right up to the front barely exchanging a nod in the bouncer's direction, and they were inside the club. Betty shook her head as he looked to her with a wink.

The club was bustling with people dancing to the fiery Latin music. She glanced to Daniel "is this the same club you came here with… you know, your ex."

He shook his head "definitely not! I wanted to take you somewhere different, and not be reminded of her."

Betty bit her lip as Daniel led her through the club, then she found herself blurting "do you miss her?"

He stopped and pulled her close "does it make me sound like an asshole if I said no, because I honestly don't miss her; if anything I'm so glad I'm not engaged or married to her or anyone, because then I wouldn't have gotten to be here with you. I'm so much happier with you."

She smiled and hugged him. He smiled as he held her closer, enjoying her warmth and how happy she really did make him feel. "Are you going to teach me to dance or what?" He whispered in her ear.

She let go of him and nodded "mhm, good luck keeping up, mister hottie!" She said with a wink and walked over to the dance area and started to dance to the spicy, electrifying music.

He grinned, seeing how confident and sexy she was in her movements. He reached her and quickly wrapped his arms around her, placing a playful kiss to her throat making her laugh, but then swatt him away teasingly "Now, come on, focus and follow my lead" she pulled him close, and he was surprised when her hand landed on his butt.

He looked at her with a wolfish grin, his eyebrows raised in flirtation, "I know I don't know how to salsa, but I don't think your hand is supposed to go there, but I'm very happy to follow your example" he let his hand slowly migrate down her back and rest on her butt.

She blushed, but said "I'm sorry, but I couldn't resist!"

He grinned holding her closer to him, her softness melting into his body "I am not complaining, missy, you can touch me however you like, just know I plan to do the same." He said in gravelly tone, trailing his lips down her neck to tease her, while he slowly trailed his hands up and down her back.

Betty felt like her heart was dancing just like the music in here and couldn't believe the things she found herself saying and doing to him, but couldn't stop herself, especially when the man was as gorgeous and irresistible as he was.

"I wouldn't mind us continuing this lesson in private" his voice was low and

sent tingles down her spine, but she pulled her focus and said, "no, come on, let's do this. I want to teach you. It will be fun"

He smirked "I'm having a blast so far." He gave her a quick but deep kiss, resulting in her cheeks to color, her eyes shining as she looked at him.

For the next fifteen minutes she taught him how to salsa dance, but he was having a difficult time restraining himself from ravishing her right here in front of everyone. She was really hot, her skin was glowing from her dancing, and she had this breathtaking smile on her face as he danced with her, and of course, she looked damn hot in her dress and jacket, and not to mention, the more flirtatious style of dancing was turning him on.

Betty found she couldn't keep her smile away as she taught Daniel how to dance. He surprised her by picking it up fairly well, so much so she felt their bodies and movements were in sync, as they moved together as one. Her heart was racing both from dancing and the desirous look in his eyes, as it seemed he couldn't take his eyes off her, and the electric she felt from his touch.

He surprised her when he twirled her into him, his arms circling her waist, dipping her playfully, making her laugh as he gave her a flirty kiss on her throat before he pulled her back up spinning her underneath his arm and once he had her facing him again, he pulled her close, his hands slowly sliding down to the curve of her back, just barely resting on her butt.

She looked into his eyes, her breaths becoming deeper and more rushed, as she took in the intense look in his eyes, and that incredibly sexy smile of his, which were making her feel flustered, so she said in a slightly breathless tone "I think I might need a break " she pulled herself out of his grasp, knowing she needed to put some distance between them or else she was sure she'd be more than tempted to jump him right here in front of everyone.

Daniel felt like their gaze was fire and that he was easily becoming swept in her beauty. He nodded slowly, "sure, let me get you a drink"

As they walked over to the bar, Betty took off her jacket, as the heat between them seemed to only be heightened. Once she was next to him, he looked at her, his warm smile turning into a very hot, very intoxicating smirk, "damn, you look hot!"

She blushed, pulling at the top of her dress, self-consciously, but he wrapped an arm around her and gave her a deep, consuming kiss, that reignited the inferno and crackling chemistry between them.

She found her hands had a mind of their own as they felt the firmness of his arms and chest. She pressed her palms against his chest and pushed herself back from him, looking at him with a dazed, starry look.

He smirked, his eyes sparkling in mischief, as he watched her order a drink, looking quite flustered. He couldn't deny how much he wanted to lift her on top of the counter and kiss her till their lips were on fire.

He ordered his own drink and watched Betty take hers and down her fruity cocktail so fast, he looked at her in surprise, but smile seeing her reaction to the obvious intensity between them, "sweetie, you might want to take it easy with those, there is way more alcohol in those types of drinks. I wouldn't want you passing out on me. Our date is far from over, missy"

She blushed, her face flushed with warmth, as he placed his hand protectively around her waist. She watched as he took a big sip from his drink. She stared at him, her eyes devouring his attractiveness, then stood on her tiptoes to place a light, teasing kiss to his cheek and whisper "why do you have to be so hot?"

He grinned and held her closer "its my lethal weapon into getting you to fall madly in love with me"

She bit her lip, as he ghosted his lips by her ear, then looked in his dreamy eyes "in love?"

He shrugged , "yah, maybe not right this minute, but...eventually"

She smiled, then her breath caught as he trapped her against the bar , "would you want me to fall in love with you" his voice gave her butterflies and she found herself melting, but tried to play it cool "what do you think?" She let her hand lightly trail up his arm.

He grinned, "I think we already fell in love that night, and we're using this date to see if what we felt was real"

The warmth and low tone of his voice made her stomach flutter. She found herself yanking on the collar of his shirt, capturing his lips in a passionate kiss, her heart was racing and mind was spinning, and she felt like she was floating as he held her closer, returning the kiss with equal intensity.

She was dazed when his lips left hers, stumbling back from how intoxicating he was, but his arms circled her waist holding her up, this playful smile crossing his face; her hands slid down his shoulders, as her eyes met his sparkling blue ones, and in a breathless chant uttered "It was real"

He smiled and hugged her, his warmth flooding her, a stark contrast from his passionate embrace.

"Let me take you to dinner…" he whispered and she nodded as he pulled away. "Come on" he took her hand and led her out of the club.

Nearly twenty minutes later, they were walking into this fancy restaurant, when two people with cameras came in and loudly blurted "look, it's Daniel Meade!"

Before they could react, the other person shouted "that must be that Bella girl!"

Betty blushed, not used to such attention, but was surprised when Daniel leaned into her to whisper in her ear "let's ditch these idiots and find someplace more private" his voice and his charming scent made her heart skip, but she nodded and squeezed his hand in agreement.

He smiled and the next thing they know, they are running out, the 'paparazzi' trying to catch up to them, when Betty nearly tripped but he was able to keep her steady, "I knew you drank that cocktail too fast, now you're getting tipsy on me"

She laughed, and he chuckled holding her hand tighter as they continued their run, luckily they were much faster and took a few deceptive turns managing to lose them completely.

Betty laughed when Daniel pulled her against him as he stopped next to a store front, leaning against it, trying to catch his breath, when Betty giggled "I can't believe we had to ditch the paparazzi! That's such a fun word. Paparazzi!"

He chuckled and hugged her close "I'm sorry that happened. I hope that doesn't scare you away. I'd be devastated if you decided you don't want anything to do with me anymore"

She took his face in her hands and pulled him to her for a kiss "it takes a lot more than that to scare me"

He smiled "too bad we couldn't stay there. I'm starving"

She nodded "me too, but that place was too fancy for me anyway." She took a glance around and said "Oh, look there's a pizza place right over there"

He grinned "I could go for pizza" he led her ahead and then wrapped his arm around her shoulder pulling her close "I'm so happy I found you"

She glanced up at him with a smile and wrapped her arm around his waist pulling herself closer to him. They walked in the quaint and cozy pizzeria, the scent of fresh oven-baked pizza and the sound of someone singing in an off-pitch voice engulfed them.

Betty looked to him with a smile "this place looks way more fun than that snooty fancy restaurant"

He chuckled, "You have no idea how refreshing it is to hear you say that"

They were led to a table close to the back, once the waiter placed menus down and left them, Betty looked at him with a bright smile.

Daniel smiled but quickly got up from his chair and came around and captured her lips in a deep fiery kiss, taking her by surprise, but then she managed to surprise him when her hand came up to his face and her other hand grabbing a fistful of his shirt pulling him closer and making his heart burst at her passion and warmth.

When she let go of him, she looked at him with such a sweet smile, he found his own smile brighten. He placed another small kiss to her lips, then another across her cheek until he reached her ear and whispered "I like you so damn much" then placed another small kiss to her cheek once more, noticing her blush as he went around and took his seat across from her.

She was so freaking cute and he didn't know how to contain his affection for her. She made him feel so happy, and he felt he could be himself around her. When their waiter came back with waters , they placed their order for pizza and he ordered a beer, while she simply ordered a soda.

'Good call, I don't want you getting drunk on me. I want you to remember every minute of our date"

She smiled "trust me, I will remember every second I spend with you"

He reached for her hand across the table and placed a sweet kiss.

"I can't believe we actually got chased by paparazzi!" She laughed and he chuckled "it seems that you are a hit, my Bella!" He smiled noticing her blush.

"hey, why don't we check out your blog?" He got up and pulled his chair around next to her and quickly found her blog on his phone.

She looked to him with a starry smile "You bookmarked my blog?"

He looked to her with a sweet smile "of course, I did. You're an amazing writer and I'm definitely looking forward to reading more from you"

She hugged him.

He laughed 'Come on, let's see…" he held his phone between them, as he found her post. Their eyes grew wide in astonishment "oh my god, it has over fifty thousand hearts!" Betty couldn't believe what she was seeing. Was that really her blog?

He grinned "Betty, that's amazing! I'm so proud of you! I knew you were going to become a star! Look how many comments there are. There's easily a few thousand! Let's read some..."

She nodded, her smile beamed as she read some of the comments.

Happyvision35: its like you lived a real life fairytale meeting your prince! How romantic! And it's even more dreamy that your Prince Charming commented on your story! Seriously swoon worthy! Get your Prince, Bella!

He chuckled and she smiled as she looked at him seeing how handsome he was and how much fun she was having with him and how happy he was for her.

Betty blushed reading this comment knowing exactly who wrote it.

QueensHottie_HS: oooo, sexi Bella! What a romantic Valentine you had! I'm so jealous! Aren't you lucky your cool sister dragged you to this party to wind up finding your Prince!

P.s. Have a fun date! ;) xoxo

Booknerdwizard: what a beautiful and romantic image you have created. It feels like we are there seeing it all happen! I love the way you write. You have an amazing voice and I am eagerly looking forward to your future posts!

Dreamerswhowrite: Where has this blog been all my life? I love this so much! And I like that you write from your heart! But this… this is just special because you're sharing your heart with us! You have a new fan!

JS_Phantom: OMG! Daniel Meade is your Prince Charming and left that amazing comment! Eek! I totally ship you! You need to marry him!

Daniel chuckled, as Betty blushed reading the last comment. "Betty, look at you, you're a hit, sweetie! I'm so happy for you!"

She looked at him with glossy eyes "thank you…"

"For what?"

She smiled and leaned toward him, placing a small kiss to his cheek "for inspiring me, and for encouraging me to share my heart. And having you help me edit and post it means so much to me! I'm so happy I found you!"

He picked up her hand and placed a sweet kiss, his eyes locked with hers. She felt flutters in her stomach and was feeling so happy. "I'll be right back" she said as she got up, but brushed her hand along his arm as she passed him.

He felt his heart lift at how good it felt to be with her. He was happy that her blog was now a hit. And was even happier she was here with him.

When she came back a few minutes later, she had a suspicious smile on her face. He smirked "oh, what did you do?"

She shrugged, "I don't know what you're talking about"

He gave her a skeptical look. A minute later their pizza was placed down.

"'mmm… that looks so good!" Betty stated as the aroma filled their space. He smiled "it smells great! I'm really glad we found this place"

She grinned "good, because it's our turn" she said as she got up, a delighted smile on her face. 'Our turn for what?" He said as she pulled him up.

"our pizza is half off if we sing"

"What? but I'm rich!"

She laughed and pushed him ahead "oh, come on, live a little" she smacked his butt, and he looked back at her with a grin, "hey, you're lucky I like you so much, missy, or I'd have to press charges for your constant advances"

She laughed "you know you love it"

He grinned as she pulled him on stage beside her. "I know what I love" he whispered and placed a kiss to her cheek and picked up one of the microphones. "I can't believe I'm doing this"

Betty stared at him in a daze for a moment at his words, but quickly pulled herself back and said "It'll be so much fun."

She scrolled through the list of songs. They picked their song, and sang together, both laughing and having fun letting loose, dancing on stage together and getting into their performance. When they finished their song they got a big round of applause.

Daniel twirled her on stage one final time and then dipped her playfully causing her to laugh and everyone in the restaurant to cheer. He pulled her up and looked at her with a smile, then was surprised when she threw her arms around him in one of her amazing hugs.

He smiled and hugged her closer. They heard a few whistles, and pulled apart, Betty blushing, especially when Daniel kissed her cheek.

When they went back to their table, Betty stared at Daniel for a lengthy moment, then said, "You know you have such a sexy voice, Daniel"

He grinned "thanks cutie. Uh…" his face reddened "when I was in college I played guitar and sang a little"

She grinned "aww…"

He laughed, but said "what about you missy, I'm guessing this is not your first time doing this karaoke stuff"

She blushed and nodded "guilty, my nephew and I love to sing. I know I'm not any good, but it's still fun."

He nodded, "I don't think I could ever be bored with you. Even just talking to you is fun."

She smiled, and they enjoyed their pizza; after a while Betty said, "so, how is your mom? She seems really nice and funny. I ran into her while I was getting my drink and she said something about needing to get out of there or else she'd drink herself away"

He chuckled "yah, my mom has a very odd sense of humor. She used to be an alcoholic. She's been sober for over a year, but every once in a while she gets stressed and it hits her."

Betty nodded, "and your um… ?"

He chuckled "yeah, not so much the fatherly figure, I know, but uh, it is what is. He's still my dad, I guess. We have our ups and downs, but I'm still just a screw up to him."

She frowned, "I know how hard it was for you at Mode, just as tough it was for me…"

He frowned "if only I wasn't blind to see you were on my side from the beginning, maybe we'd be in a different place"

She nodded, but said "I think we are exactly where we need to be"

He smiled "right! By the way, I nearly forgot but my mom said she'd like to see you, and told me I should bring you over tonight, but... like, no pressure, if you feel like that's weird"

She shook her head, "I don't mind. I'd love to see your mom again, besides, I'd say then it would be even since you got to meet my family."

He nodded "yeah...great, maybe we can head over once we're done here"

She smiled "ok"

A half hour later once they finished their dinner, and went back to get Daniel's car, they made their way to his parents mansion, which she saw was where the party had been. "I still can't believe this is your house!"

He shrugged. She smiled, but laced their fingers together. 'I'm kind of nervous about seeing your dad"

He smiled and lifted her hand to place a kiss "don't worry, he makes me nervous, too" they both laughed, but he said "honestly, I know my mom likes you already, and my dad did hire you for me, remember?"

She nodded with a frown "yah, so you wouldn't be tempted by me"

He smirked, "well, the jokes on him, because I am very tempted by you. In fact, I don't feel like sharing you just yet, so" he captured her lips in a deep consuming kiss. She wrapped her arms around him losing herself in his passionate embrace.

After several minutes of them making out in his car, Betty blushed when he looked at her with such a deadly smirk, and dropped his voice lower and in a seductive tone said "you are one amazing kisser…"

She bit her lip, feeling like her heart was on a race circuit, and that she was floating on air, and that her lips were so tingly still from their kisses. He was the amazing kisser!

Daniel was having a really hard time getting out of the car, especially with her looking so damn tempting! Her blushing, her gorgeous, full, luscious lips, and that sweet smile were quickly making him lose his sanity.

"Ready to go?"

She looked at him with a smirk "I feel like we're going into battle"

He chuckled "in some ways we are. I don't know what my family can throw at me."

She laughed "whatever it is, we'll battle it together."

He smiled and gave her a sweet kiss."let's do this, and get back to our date! I am not willing to share you longer than necessary"

She laughed "deal"