All notes disclosed in chapter one.
A/N: The dress mentioned later in the chapter is a real dress worn by Christina Aguilera in Allure magazine about 2 years ago.
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One week later
Dana had never felt tempted by money before. She'd never had the money to be tempted in the first place. Sure, she made good money as a doctor but most of her paycheck went away into a savings account for Cassie or to the rent each month. She always spent her money wisely, never indulged.
Now she was being told to indulge and she had no clue what to do.
Mulder handed her his credit card. "I want you to go out, take Viviana, your mom, or whoever with you, buy yourself a dress, shoes, jewelry— whatever, the works. And when I get the bill, I better not see you spent less than $3,000."
Dana eyes went wide. "But, Mulder…" she tried.
"No buts; I want you to do this. I want you to feel pampered," he insisted.
She put on a defensive face. "You saying I don't look good?"
He tweaked her nose; he knew she was just teasing. "I'm saying you're gorgeous and I want the world to know it," he explained. "I want you to feel like the most pampered woman ever."
"But Mulder, I already do."
"I know, but I have the money; it might as well get spent."
"Mulder, you've already got me. You don't have to buy me things," Dana told him, clutching his hand tightly.
He, in turn, pressed his forehead against hers. "I know," he paused to kiss her, "but I want to. I just… I want you to have everything. You deserve everything."
"I already have you. That's all I need." She kissed his nose, making him chuckle.
"We haven't ever had sex yet, so that says a lot," he teased.
"Yet?" she repeated.
He wagged his eyebrows and said, "Oh, yeah. I've got plans for tonight."
"I bet you do." Her lips lingered on his for a moment. "I can't wait."
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"You would look wonderful, Dana, why not?" Viviana complained, admiring the red dress she held.
Dana kept walking. "Because it's not me, that's why not."
"But Dana, if that's true, you wouldn't want anything here!" Viviana exclaimed, finally snapping her attention away from the dress. "Dana, you must let go."
"Let go of what?"
"Of yourself! Mulder does not easily trust. That he trusts you after four weeks says so much. That he loves you wholeheartedly and your daughter says much." She finally caught up to Dana, who had stopped at hearing her last statement. "Become someone else for a night."
Dana turned slowly, her eyes downcast. "You really think I should?"
"Yes! You will look gorgeous in anything here."
"Really?" She sounded so insecure.
"Yes, everyone will notice you," Viviana pointed out.
Dana bit her lip. "That's what I'm afraid of," she muttered lowly.
That's when it clicked. "The cameras. That is why you won't try. Do they bother you much?"
"No, I'm just not used to them," she defended. "To be with him, I can deal with all the cameras."
Viviana rested a hand on Dana's arm. "Sport marriages and relationships don't end up like in Hollywood. We last."
"I hope they do," Dana admitted, "because I don't know if I can let him go."
That's when she saw it. The perfect dress. It wasn't her at all but she loved it. Maybe that's why she bought it.
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She had never been more nervous in her entire life. They'd been together for four weeks and the nerves finally decided to kick in.
Dana adjusted her Dolce and Gabbana dress as she stood in front of her bathroom mirror. The dress was at mid thigh, a length she thought she'd never wear. But she had to admit—she looked good.
She had curled her hair, something else she never did. Her make-up was flawless, or at least she hoped. Her Manolo Blahnik heels were only slightly uncomfortable, but beautiful. She felt absolutely beautiful. She had Mulder to thank for that.
When she heard the knock at the door, she would forever swear she stopped breathing for a short length of time.
Her steps echoed in her head, each click louder than the rest. It faintly occurred to her she was acting like someone in a horror movie, but she quickly got rid of the notion. She pulled and tugged in all the right places before opening the door.
Mulder's jaw dropped when he saw her. She could feel the blush creeping up her neck under his gaze. He followed her in the apartment at her unspoken invitation. He made a slow circle around her, admiring her from every aspect.
"I have died and gone to heaven," he told her softly. "You are gorgeous."
"I take it you like the dress then."
His eyes caught hers. "Like it? I love it. I'm starting to think we should spend the evening in instead," he suggested.
"No, I don't think so," she vetoed. "You wanted to show me off and you're going to."
He sighed. "I suppose so," he teased. She tapped his nose.
"Where're we going?"
"That Italian restaurant on Broadway. They take care of cameras for us. Plus, they have the best dessert in town."
She grabbed his tie and pulled him to her. "I thought I was your dessert?"
She could have sworn she saw his eyes roll back in his head.
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"Cassie missed you this week," Dana told him over dinner.
He glanced up at her. "You didn't miss me?"
"No, I missed you all right," she corrected. "I tried hard not to think about missing you but Cassie kept mentioning you."
"I missed you both a lot. Being on the road is lonely now."
"I doubt that."
"No, it's true. You were on my mind the whole time."
Dana just rolled her eyes and returned to her meal. She missed him more than she let on. He was only gone for three days but it had been the longest three days of her life. Cassie had missed him immensely. Dana hadn't realized how attached she was to him until the second day. She hadn't wanted Dana to read her bedtime story because she didn't do it like Mulder.
"So when do I get to meet the parents?" he asked, his voice cheery.
She chuckled nervously. "Not for a while if I have anything to say about it," she admitted. "I like keeping this between us… and cameramen apparently."
"Is your family secretly crazy? Is that why you don't want me to meet them?" he joked.
Luckily, she laughed. "No, we are all perfectly sane. That's not the reason."
She set down her fork with a clank and a sigh. "It's just… I… I like that they don't know. I really did mean it when I said they're sport fanatics."
"So… you're afraid they're going to embarrass you and then I'll leave because they're such fans," he pieced together.
Sheepishly, she nodded her head. He took a hold of her hand to assuage her fears.
"I'm not leaving, Dana. No matter how crazy your family is. As far as I'm concerned, this is forever. I know it's only been five weeks but if I'm feeling like this now, I can only imagine how I'm going to feel in a few months."
She brought his hand to her mouth, turning it over to press her lips to his wrist. "I feel the same way," she whispered.
His eyes met hers, his passion evident in the swirling mazes of green. Her passion was evident as well, the already deep hues darkening as they continued to look at one another.
"Will you come home with me?" he asked, his masculine tone becoming even deeper.
Her eyes said all he needed to know. "There's no place I'd rather be."
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Another A/N: There's a reason why I didn't go into more description at the end. Maybe in a later chapter I will, but for now, I think it's best to leave it to your imaginations.