Chapter 4

Before Sydney knew it, a whole week had passed and she was standing in front of her mirror, trying to choose something to wear for her date with Michael. She wanted to wear something that made her look like a goddess, that wanted him, but it had to make it look like she wasn't to eager, or easy.

After almost an hour, and a the excruciatingly painful process of taking apart her closet, she ended up choosing a knee-length black skirt with a scalloped trim and a black tank top with a white lace over-shirt. Francie squealed when she saw her in the final outfit.

It was 10:50 and Sydney was beginning to go crazy. She didn't even know why; she had hated Michael Vaughn when they first met, but now something was different. Now, he liked her. Now, they were going out… on a date! Francie and Will had told her that if he hurt her they would castrate him, throw it out to sea and then hang him from the statue of liberty for all the immigrants to see as their first sight of New York City and America.

She loved them for it.

A few minutes later (which turned out to be exactly) 11:00 AM, there was a knock at the door. "Sydney!" she heard Will call, "Michael's here."

Sydney walked into the room slowly and Michael's jaw dropped to the floor. She was stunning. Wearing hardly any makeup and clothing that was modest, but wonderful, made her look like she was glowing. It seemed that she had achieved her goal to look like a goddess today.

"You look fantastic," he said after a few moments of pure gawking at her.

Sydney blushed and smiled, "You look good too," she whispered nervously.

They went out the front door and drove to the park. "So, what do you do?" Michael asked when they sat down on a small blanket. The food was laid out in front of them. Immediately after asking the question he mentally slapped himself. "I mean… what do you do… in your spare time," he covered nervously.

Sydney giggled, "I try to sleep and see Will and Francie. Up until last week, I guess, I would try and see Danny… but…" she drifted off.

"Who's Danny?" he asked her curiously.

"My ex. We just broke up. I caught him in bed with someone else. It was the day before you and I met. That was one reason why I was a little bitter and mean to you."

He nodded, "I don't get it," he said. Sydney looked at him confused, "I mean, I don't get how someone could cheat on you."

Sydney blushed, "Well, he did. We hadn't been seeing each other for long, but it still hurt."

"Well, I honestly couldn't have done something like that to anyone. I don't understand how someone could cheat on someone."

"Well I guess that's something I won't have to worry about with you," she said smiling.

He smiled at her, "You mean, you actually want to see me again?" he asked.

"Well, you're cute, you've got a great job with a future, and you just told me that you won't cheat. That's all good in my book."

"So you're just after my money, aren't you?" he asked jokingly with a smile on his face.

Sydney smiled and nodded, "Of course! I'm such the gold digging type, aren't I?" she batted her eyelashes at him.

"Well, that's what I thought."

They finished their lunch in the park and headed off to the Statue of Liberty. It was windy on the ferry ride, so Michael bought her a hat and sweatshirt to wear, keeping her warm. That was something that no one had ever done for Sydney before. Michael was the first man to ever keep her wellbeing above his own. He made her feel special and feminine.

When they reached the top of the tower, to the observation deck area, they just stared out into the horizon, watching the clouds move through the almost clear sky. "It's really a beautiful day," Sydney said after a long silence.

"It's a perfect day," Michael answered.

"I don't want it to end."

"Neither do I."

"It doesn't have to, you know…" Sydney said slyly. "We could have dinner together too."

"I like that idea," Vaughn whispered.

"But, I have to go home for a few minutes and get changed."

"I guess I'll have to do that too. I somehow think that jeans and a t shirt are not appropriate for dinner."

"Where do you propose we got tonight?" Sydney asked.

"Well, I don't know what's here… I want to take you somewhere that's really romantic, because I'm trying to make a good impression."

"Well, I can say that so far it's working."

Sydney and Vaughn smiled at each other and walked back down to the ferry. When they got back on the mainland, Vaughn drove Sydney back to her apartment, and went to his hotel. When he got to the hotel he asked the concierge to make a reservation under Vaughn at a romantic, high-class restaurant. When he came back down to the lobby the concierge gave him the name of the restaurant and the address. He was back to Sydney's in forty five minutes.

When Sydney opened the door, Vaughn was speechless. She was wearing a black halter dress that was knee-length with a criss-crossed back. A pair of black lace heels were on her feet, making her legs look longer and more slender than they already were. She was stunning. "You're a goddess," Vaughn sighed.

Sydney blushed and took his hand, "Thank you."

"Well, we're going to 'Le Select Bistro' for dinner tonight," he said happily.

"You know, I've never been there before. But I've always wanted to go."

Vaughn smiled, "Well, you're going with me now."

Sydney nodded and smiled, "I've heard that the food is fantastic."

"That's what the concierge told me," Sydney shook her head and laughed as they drove to the restaurant.

Dinner went fantastically. There were no awkward pauses in conversation and the food was impeccable. After a dessert, which they shared, Vaughn drove Sydney back to her apartment. They walked to the door and stood there, staring at each other for what seemed like hours to them. "I should probably go," Vaughn said.

Sydney smiled and nodded, "You probably have a meeting or something tomorrow morning," she whispered. Vaughn nodded, "I had an amazing time today Michael."

"So did I," he whispered. Their faces were moving towards each other slowly. Sydney's hand reached up and cupped his face, milliseconds before their lips touched. It started out sweetly, as a soft and tentative first kiss, but ended up as so much more. They kissed with such passion and ferocity that they had never felt before. Nothing could compare.

When they broke apart, both of them had soft smiles on their faces. Sydney took out her key and opened the door. She kissed Vaughn on the cheek softly before stepping into the house. "Goodnight," she whispered before closing the door.

"Goodnight."