At The Roman Palace

"Ow! Stop it! Just leave it alone!" Tianna pulled her hair out of Mia's hands, and her friend's damnable weapon of choice for the evening-- a curling iron. Those blue eyes glared coldly, and Tia, clad only in black thigh-high panty hose, and a lace slip, was backing away slowly from her friend.

"Now Tia, if you would just hold still long enough for me to curl your hair you wouldn't get burned. Now come here, sit down, and be still!" Mia pointed to chair she'd brought up to her room so she could do Tia's hair and make-up.

"I swear if you weren't his sister," Tia began.

"Then you wouldn't even be in this situation, and you probably wouldn't be going on a date. Now you are going to look beautiful for him. You two haven't seen each other for a week so it's going to be extra spectacular. Sit down." Once Tia, reluctantly, sat in the chair in front of Mia, the woman once again began to curls the colored tresses. "Hold still," Mia said when Tia started to squirm, "I've only got a few more curls to do, then we'll twist it up and do your make-up."

Tianna pouted. She thought this mess was taking a ridiculously long amount of time to be done. The week had gone by dreadfully slow. First Romeo wouldn't let her work at the restaurant because of O'Brien's thug having shown up, which, sure, Tia could understand, but how was she supposed to keep busy? Second, was the day and a half she worked at Harry's. She'd hoped to run into Dominic, but he never showed up. After realizing that she'd rather be putting cars together, than selling parts for them, Tia decided to spend some time at the market with Mia. Now making sandwiches wasn't exactly right up her alley, but Dominic owned the little cafe, surely she would see him there, right? Wrong. She saw Brian, and Vince, and Leon, and Jesse... but no Dominic. The other guys said he'd been at the garage all week, working on stop on some big project that she wasn't supposed to know about. She wondered if maybe it was a present for her, if it wasn't she figured Dom would have told her about it. She figured it was Saturday, and when he picked her up, she'd found out everything, and they'd go to dinner and all would be peachy. Then Mia says Tia has to get all 'done up' with make up and curls and dresses, and shoes she can't walk in.

"All done," Mia said, placing the last few bobby pins into Tia's thick hair. After it had been curled she'd twisted it into a French twist only, instead of tucking the ends in, she let them hang loose, curling to Tia's shoulders. "Now for the make up. Do you want to focus on the mouth or the eyes?"

A brow arched sharply, and Tianna looked at Mia as if she'd just spoken some alien language, "What?" Then she shook her head, "I don't care. I'm putting my face in your hands. Personally I think I look fine, but your the girl here, you have fun."

Mia frowned, vaguely insulted, but mostly wanting to inform Tia that she was a girl to, and should be able to do her own make-up and hair and just sit and be cooperative, because that's how things works. You got dressed up for dates, it's an unwritten rule in the big bible for girls. "I think the eyes. We can make the blue stand out more. It'll be very dramatic."

"Why not the mouth?"

"Because you have a great mouth already. Full and pouty. I've seen women pay lots of money for that mouth, and you were born with yours. Close your eyes."

"Oh," Tia said closing her eyes and trying not to scrunch her nose up when the powdery stuff was brush across her eye lids. She sat in annoyed silence, while Mia instructed her-- open your eyes, close your eyes, look up, now down. relax you mouth, I said relax. --it was plucking at Tia's every nerve, but lucky for her it was over quickly. "Now what?"

"The dress," Mia stated moving to her closet, and pulling out a simple velvet dress and shoulder wrap, presented it to Tianna. "I bought this for you, for your date. I've seen the stuff you wear, and forgive me, but none of it is really worthy of where Dominic is taking you tonight."

"Oh really? Where's he taking me?" Tia asked, pulling the dress off the hanger and stepping into it.

Mia pulled the straps up over Tia's shoulders and zipped the zipper in the back. "The Rom... Hey! Stop asking me! Really that's like the eight time you've asked me that in the past hour."

Tianna grinned, "It's actually the tenth time. I was close though. You almost said it."

"Here, put these on," Mia set a pair of strappy stilettos and a leather and velvet choker on the end of the bed for Tia. "I'm going to go see if he's here yet."

As soon as Mia was out of the room Tia eyed the shoes suspiciously, "All right you shoes. I don't like you. I know you don't like me, but you better like me tonight." She sat on the bed, and pulled the hem of her dress up over her knees and strapped on the heels. Once she got comfortable in them she stood and took a couple of steps. With a short scream, and a thud, she fell. "Damnit! Why did she have to pick these shoes? I can't even walk in these." Tia growled and stood again. "I told you shoes to behave!"

Mia came back into the room to hear the last comment and laughed, "You're talking to the shoes now?"

"Yes, damnit!"

"Listen he's here," Mia picked up the choker and fastened it around Tia's neck, "he's being a gentleman tonight. It's hard to believe I know, but he is. So you have to be a lady tonight. Watch your language, watch your manners, and for gods sake Tia, don't punch anybody in the face tonight."

"I promise, I wont punch anyone in the face. Do I look okay?" Tianna was starting to get nervous, she'd never been on a date before. Add that on top of the fact that she really liked Dominic, as much more than a friend, and she was internally one hell of a mess.

"You look beautiful, now go," With a shove Mia sent Tia stumbling out into the hallway.

"Hey!" Tia started to spew an angry comment out of her raspberry painted mouth, but she heard Dominic's voice creeping up the stair well and she silenced. She could do this, she'd survived a lot worse. She could survive a date. She picked up the hem of her dress, and carefully made her way down the carpeted stairs.

"Listen, Leon, I'm about to go to dinner, with Tia. Now is not the time to be asking me what I know about Mystic. Whatever questions your about to try and ask me you can ask her. I'm sure she knows the answers better than I do." Dominic stood at the bottom of the stairs in a black blazer and a dark blue silk shirt. In one hand he held a silver cell phone to his ear, in the other a bouquet of daisies. "Look, Leon," Dominic glanced up the stairs and away, then immediately jerked his attention back to the beauty descending the steps, "I, I have to go." With out another word the phone was shut off and slid into his pocket. "You look... amazing."

Tianna blushed softly, and was thankful for once, for her naturally golden skin, because bushing didn't show up as much. "Thank you. You clean up real good, Toretto," Tianna teased lightly, tugging gently on the black tie around Dominic's neck.

"These are for you," he held the flowers out, "you said you liked Daisies."

"I do, thank you. They're beautiful." Tianna straightened the wrap around her shoulders a bit nervously.

"Shall we go then?" Dominic offered a reassuring smile to the woman despite his own alien nervousness. He'd been on lots of dates with lots of woman, and had never been nervous. He was going on one date with this woman and his palms were sweating. He couldn't understand it, just shook it off as best he could and opened the door. With a hand on the small of Tia's back he escorted her out of the house and onto the front porch.

Tia had only been focusing on two things when she left the house. One was the hand on her back that added to her nervousness. The other was where her feet were going because she could barely walk in the shoes Mia had gotten for her. Then she looked up. "Oh my god. Are we going to dinner in that?" Tia waved her daisies at the polished, black Charger parked in front of the house.

Dominic laughed, Tia's reaction to the car, and the way she lit up had completely cured him of that odd nervousness. He nodded and took her hand has she hurried down the stairs and over to the curb to run her fingers of the glossy paint. "Yes, we are going to dinner in this."

"Can I drive it?" Tia was grinning ear to ear, and was practically jumping up and down. She was truly excited over this car. She'd seen and been in plenty of supped up foreign cars, but this was truly a god of American muscle, "Can I? Please?" The last word was strung out like a child would do when begging it's parent for candy.

Dominic shook his head, "Sorry, Princess, not this time." Dom opened the passenger side door, for Tia and shut it after she made sure all of her dress was in side the vehicle. Then he moved around to the drivers side and climbed in. When he started the car he laughed at the giddy sound Tia made, and they were soon off on they're way to the restaurant.

The couple was seated at a little table by a window with a view of the Hollywood sign. A little red candle was set atop the wine colored table cloth, and the menus were printed on what, Tia was sure, had to be paper that was too expensive for it's own good. Along with plenty of things on the menu that Tia couldn't pronounce there was fillet mingion, rack of lamb, escargot, and varying things of the like. They were hoity toity dishes, and Tia loved it. She was in over her head with excitement, and couldn't keep it from showing. "What are you going to get, Dominic?"

Dominic had removed his coat, and hung it from the back of his chair. He'd merely glanced over the menu before deciding on one of the sea food dishes, "Lemon glazed Dolphin."

Tia gasped, "You can't eat that! What would Flipper say?"

Dominic laughed, "Not Dolphin the mammal, Dolphin the fish. None of Flippers friends or family will be harmed in the making of my dinner." He lifted the bottle of chilled wine he'd ordered and poured Tia a glass and then poured some for himself. It was a blush, so it wasn't a weak white wine, but it wasn't the bold, heady red wine. It was just the right wine for the night.

"Oh. I think I'll get the smaller fillet mingion. They wrap their's in bacon here. Can I get that?" Tia looked up at Dominic over the edge of her menu as she questioned him.

"You can get whatever you want, Princess."

"I'll have that then." She folded up her menu and set it on the edge of the table with Dominic's then took a slow sip of her wine. It was kind of sweet, but she liked it. If she ever had to give the color pink a flavor, it would probably be the same as the wine in her glass. She smiled when the waiter came back and Dominic gave the man their orders. She didn't say anything, she was thinking about what to say. For once, she was at a loss of words for the man.

Dominic had looked up from his glass of wine to see those crystal blues watching him. She seemed to be studying him, so he figured he would take the opportunity to really look at her. She had very little make up on, a berry tinted lipstick, that was just a shade or two darker than her natural color, and some eye shadow. It was a black and gray, the eyes shadow, and gave her eyes this smoky alluring look. The dark shadow also caused her icy blue eyes to stand out immensely. Her dress was simple. It had a plunging neckline, and an empire waist line that emphasized the curve of her breasts, it fit snug to her torso down just past her hips, then flared out in a full, but loose skirt. It was velvet, the kind of fabric Dom could just run his hands over. Of course it could be that Tia was wrapped in that fabric that made him want to run his hands over it.

"Your thinking something naughty, I can see it on you face." A wide grin spread slowly across her face, and her finger tips played along the rim of her wine glass.

"I am not. I was just trying to figure out how you won that race against Letty the other night." Dominic had been thinking a not so nice, well he'd thought it was nice, thought, and had to cover it. He decided to distract her with a question.

"You were not, but I'll tell you if you want to know. Thank you," the last comment was given to the waiter as he set the dish she'd ordered in front of her. After he'd given Dominic his, and left she continued. "So do you really want to know?"

"Yes I really do." He took a bite of the fish, it was a small bite. When the next bite came he realized he had his elbows on the table and promptly removed them. He was supposed to be on his best behavior tonight.

Tia was chewing a bite of her steak, so she didn't answer right away. She took a sip of her wine and then spoke, "All right you know how it really only took me maybe a week to finish my car," Dominic nodded, but that obviously hadn't been the answer and the look in his eyes beckoned her continuance, "however, in all the many months before that, I was building the engine. Which is not the engine of a Honda Civic, but of a Maclaren...Maclaren? God I can never remember the name of that car...anyway. You know the one I'm talking about. The really fast, really, super-expensive, foreign one. I spent months rebuilding that engine, so it would fit into a Civic frame. That's why I have six gears instead of the typical five, and that's why I beat Letty without NOS. Though I still could've beaten her." She said pointedly, then continued to eat her dinner.

Dom was silent for about five full minutes, slowly eating his fish, and letting the answer she'd just given him settle in his mind. "That's why you didn't let Jesse open her up the night we raced."

"Yep." Tia nodded, taking another bite of the steak, and looking up at Dominic.

"And why you asked Tuesday, if I looked under the hood when I repainted your car."

"Exactly. I mean, would you want a secret like that getting out? No one would ever race me again. Then I wouldn't make any money. And what fun would that be?" Tianna laughed, "Does that taste good?"

"Yes. Do you want to try it?" Dominic cut a bit of his fish, and speared it with the fork, then he held it out to Tia. She looked at it hesitantly but soon leaned forward to take the morsel of his fork.

She chewed slowly, deciphering the fish's taste and when she swallowed she arched a brow curiously, "It tastes like chicken. Do you want to switch?"

Dominic laughed but soon found that he and Tia had switched plates and each was finishing the others dinner. The rest of dinner was finished in quiet, with only occasional comments and teases. Soon the waiter returned, offering desert, but both Tia and Dominic declined.

Dom paid the bill and they exited the restaurant. Reaching into his pocket Dominic got the keys to his Charger and held them out to Tianna. "Want to drive?"

"Are you serious?" Tia was grinning in the wild, childish way she had earlier when she'd asked if she could drive.

"Sure, why not?" Dominic shrugged and put the keys in Tia's outstretched hand.

Tianna raced over to the car and slid into the drivers seat, upon the realization that she could no better drive in the shoes as walk in them her foot was soon propped again the dashboard, and the hem of her skirt falling back as she undid the buckle for those horrid stilettos and tossed them in the back. As soon as both shoes were off, and Dominic was in the car, a giddy Tia started up the car, and raced back to Dominic's. He'd let her drive has fast has she wanted, just so he could witness the wild eyed expressions dance across her face. It had been a good date, but it certainly wasn't over yet.