Sharona opened the door to find Randy standing there with a dozen, long-stemmed, red roses in his arm. When Randy saw Sharona and her dress, his mouth hung open, his blue eyes wide with appreciation.
"Wow!" said Randy, still awe-struck.
"Hey, good looking, you might want to close your mouth, you know, it's fly season," quipped Sharona, teasingly.
Realizing that his mouth was hanging open, Randy quickly closed it and handed Sharona the bouquet of roses. Stepping aside so Randy could enter, Sharona walked into her living room and placed the roses in a vase. Randy came up behind Sharona and wrapped his arms around her waist, burying his nose into her hair, inhaling the sweet perfume of her shampoo.
"Are you ready to go?" asked Randy, huskily, the desire in his voice sending shivers down Sharona's spine.
"Yes," replied Sharona, leaning against Randy's long frame, clearly feeling his desire.
Randy released Sharona's waist, brought her a sweater and placed it on her shoulders and held the door open for her. With a quick yell goodbye to Benjy, Sharona walked out. Ever the gentleman, Randy held the passenger door open for Sharona and closed it once she was settled. Walking slowly to the driver's side, Randy tried to calm his lower half or else he would be walking funny all night!
Driving towards downtown San Francisco, Randy drummed nervously on the steering wheel. He hoped that he wouldn't be a total idiot in front of Sharona tonight. Turning onto Sutter Street, Randy pulled up in front of a restaurant and parked the car.
"Oh, my god, Randy, we're going to Fleur de Lys?" exclaimed Sharona.
"Tonight's real special," explained Randy, but offered no more details.
A valet opened Sharona's door for her to step out. Randy went round the car to hand the valet his keys. The driver handed Randy a claim ticket and Randy and Sharona walked into Fleur de Lys.
Walking into the lavishly decorated restaurant, Sharona was awe-struck by the rich, red carpet and ornamented walls as well as the high vaulted ceiling with the many chandeliers hanging down. Destroyed in a fire in 2000, Fleur de Lys rebuilt itself into a more opulent restaurant than its predecessor.
Randy gave the maitre'd his name and the maitre'd showed Randy and Sharona to their table. Placing menus in front of them, the maitre'd wished them bon apetit.
"Bon soir, Monsieur, Mademoiselle. My name is Pierre. I will be your server this evening. If you have need for anything, don't hesitate to call for me," said Pierre.
"Thank you, Pierre," said Randy, "may we have a bottle of your best Pinot Noir?"
"Certainly, Monsieur. Please take a look at your menus and I will return to take your order," said Pierre.
"Wow, Randy. I'm speechless. What's going on? The expensive restaurant, the bottle of wine?" asked Sharona.
"You'll see," said Randy, cryptically.
Pierre returned with the bottle of wine and allowed Randy to sample its bouquet. After receiving a not of approval from Randy, Pierre poured the wine into Sharona's glass and then Randy's.
"Would Monsieur, Mademoiselle, like to hear of our chef's specials or have you decided on your choice?"
Sharona looked up and grinned at Pierre and said, "I'd like your lobster tail and filet mignon."
"Tres bon!" said Pierre, "and how would you like your filet?"
"Medium well," replied Sharona.
"Would you like a baked potato or vegetables?"
"Baked potato with butter and sour cream," replied Sharona, licking her lips.
"And for Monsieur?"
"I'll have the ribeye, medium rare, with a baked potato, butter and sour cream," stated Randy.
"Excellent! I will place your order," said Pierre, as he turned to leave.
Alone, for a while, Randy took hold of Sharona's hands and gazed into her blue eyes. Feeling a little self-conscious at Randy's attention, Sharona lowered her eyes and started blushing.
"Sharona, I have something to ask you," began Randy.
"Yes, Randy?" asked Sharona, a little nervous.
"Sharona, will you," began Randy, as his cell phone began to chirp. "Sharona, what I'm trying to say is," said Randy, as the other diners began to get annoyed at the persistent ringing.
"Disher," said Randy, a little irritated with the caller. "Captain! Sorry, uh, yes. Well, I'm with Sharona at dinner. Uh, huh, understand, sir. Bye."
Looking apologetically at Sharona, Randy said, "I have to go. There has been a murder and the Captain wants me there. I'm really sorry. I can call you a cab."
"No, I'm going with you," said Sharona, a little hurt and angry at the interruption.
"In that?" asked Randy, shocked.
"No, I thought I might strip completely out of it," snapped Sharona, "yes, flyboy, so get the lead out of your backside and let's go."
Randy signaled for Pierre, explained the situation and paid for the wine. When he was finished, the two bolted out of the doors, with Randy's thoughts that he would never be able to step foot again at the Fleur de Lys.
