A/N: I had planned on maybe another two more chapters and wrapping it up, but then my muse happened and things got slightly derailed. I can't even explain it LOL Just that my initial idea for the second date had been very, very different to this result. And I blame a rerun of Gossip Girl that sparked the idea. Yes, I work in weird ways, tell me something I'm not aware of :)

As unconventional as our first date had been, the second one seemed to be off to a much more traditional start. We agreed pretty quickly on an actual date and miraculously it didn't seem to be impossible for a reservation at a restaurant. Though, admittedly, I wouldn't have minded another date at his place, seeing as he had just an amazing place, I could probably easily get lost in. Not because of its size, but rather due to the fact that I could just sit on his patio, or by the beach itself and watch the waves.

Two weeks after our first date, we went on our second, with Carlos insisting on picking me up. Usually, I'd be very reluctant about my date picking me up, but seeing as I felt like I had known Carlos for years and he had already seen pretty much my worst moments, what else could go wrong?

When I opened the door after I had buzzed him in, I was surprised to see less of him and more of an extremely impressive bouquet of Peonies, covering him completely. All I really saw very dozens of shades of pink. If this became his thing, I definitely wouldn't complain.

"You said they are your favorites," he declared, and I needed to laugh, relieving him of the massive bouquet.

"What did you do? Buy every single remaining peony they had left?" I asked, walking into my apartment to go and hunt for a vase to put the flowers in. I wasn't even sure if I had one big enough to hold the sheer mass of flowers.

"Pretty much," Carlos stated, shrugging as if it didn't matter and following me into my apartment.

Turns out I didn't own a vase that big and while I could have divided the flowers into smaller groups and spread them into several smaller vases, I didn't want to keep us too long. So… I found a small bucket, filled it with water and unceremoniously dumped the flowers in it. Weirdly enough, it didn't look as bad as I had expected it to look. I'm sure some people might look at it and call it cheap chic or something like that.

"Shall we?" I asked, grabbed my jacket and small purse and out the door we were.

"Do you plan on calling your friend on time tonight, or will I be treated to another impressive show?" Carlos asked, amused, opening the door to a very nice sports car a moment later.

I just laughed at his question. "Mary Lou didn't require a call tonight. You charmed your way onto her 'approved list' last time and when you hunted me down after our first date. She is still impressed with it and tells me pretty much every single day about it as it if had been here instead of me. And as if I needed reminding about it."

Carlos laughed at that fact, probably secretly wondering whether it was too late by now to cut his losses.

"So, where are we going?" I asked, having forgotten about the name of the place he had sent me a few days prior.

"I hope you don't mind, but I made a few changes," he stated, seeming a little nervous.

"I guess that depends on whether the changes are good or bad," I laughed, noticing for the first time that I seemed a little overdressed compared to him.

"I let you be the judge of that once we get here. But I promise you'll like it. Or, at least, I hope you'll like it. I figured we could keep the theme of unusual dates afloat."

"Since you are not driving towards Point Pleasant, I guess we won't be heading to your place again?"

"Nope, we are actually heading in the opposite direction. But I promise it will be a much shorter way than to my place."

He should be right, since about fifteen minutes later we seemed to have arrived at our destination. While I wouldn't describe myself as high maintenance, there might have been slight expectations when it came to dates. It didn't need to be the whole wine-and-dine experience with 5-star restaurants and lobster as main. But something that showed effort, which… this wasn't, really. But I tried to remain open-minded.

As a matter of fact, I myself as well as the pricy sports car Carlos was driving seemed …out of place. I was looking at something that could only be described as a bar, which was more on the seedy side of things, and I already had a very odd feeling about this. Maybe I should ask for a name, excuse myself for the restrooms, and call Mary Lou. This seemed like one of these scenarios in of these horror movies.

"I…um…," I started, trying to find words that didn't seem too harsh, but failed.

"I swear this looks worse than what it is," Carlos said, sounding almost like he was pleading a little. And was that regret on his face? Well, maybe he figured right at this moment that his change of plans wasn't as much of a success as he had hoped. But then again, who would have really jumped up and down excitedly at the prospect of some… shabby and run-down bar?

"I assume there's reason to your…idea?" I asked, trying to sound hopeful, and cautiously placed my hand in his offered one, tottering after him in my heels. "I feel slightly overdressed," I stated once we reached the door. Pulling on my dress with my free hand, I knew it was pointless, but I felt like I needed to do something. It wasn't like I was waltzing around in some outrageously sparkly dress or some extravagant design, but any dressier clothing as well as a pair of heels seemed too much for around here.

Carlos turned towards me, my hand still in his, and threw me a gorgeous smile, making me forget where I was for a second. "All eyes in their might be on you, but that isn't because of you are dressed but because everyone's going to envy me for having your sole attention tonight."

He opened the door a moment later, letting me step through first, but never letting go of my hand. The inside wasn't what I had expected from the outside. It definitely wasn't suddenly a classy restaurant or some nice old school diner, but it was less seedy on the inside.

It was lighter than I had thought, with an urban touch. Fake brick-walls gave it some kind of industrial touch, while a long and well-lit bar with mirrors reminded me of trendy New York hotspots. There seemed to be excessive amounts of plants throughout the small place, giving it some exotic vibe as well as providing some privacy. Instead of expected bikers and other drunkards, the clientele seemed a wild mix of people of all ages. I was still overdressed, but didn't feel as odd anymore.

"Look who the cat dragged in," I heard someone shout and saw Carlos next to me grin, guiding me towards the bar where a huge black guy was looking directly at us, a dishcloth over his shoulder.

"I heard you are back in town," Carlos replied, amused, and what followed was some weird and complicated looking greeting ritual with handshakes and clapping on shoulders.

"Stephanie, I'd like you to meet Tank, an old friend of mine and the owner of this place."

"It's nice to meet you, Tank," I said, holding my hand towards his. "You have…um…quite some place."

"You haven't even seen anything," Tank laughed, his baritone booming through the bar. "And likewise. I have heard a lot about you already."

"You have?" I asked, sounding more shocked than I'd probably wanted to let on. Carlos had asked the same question simultaneously, seeming surprised.

Tank looked at my date pointedly. "From Cal and Vince who got their news from Lester who I guess got it from you, seeing a he is your cousin. And what they didn't tell me, your sister filled in on. In case you have forgotten about it, I am dating Camelia."

"I keep forgetting that everyone in this goddamn family likes to be in everyone's business," Carlos mumbled, sounding less than happy. Uh-oh.

"I hope it were only good things?" I offered to Tank, hoping to someone turn the mood around. While I wasn't certain what exactly could have been said, seeing as there had only been one semi-disastrous date as well as that day of the photoshoot, it never hurt to know what was talked about.

"Oh, you bet. According to his cousin, you're a knockout. And I can only agree," Tank said, winking at me a moment later, which had Carlos all of a sudden remove his hand out of my hand and wrap that arm around my waist, pulling me close.

"How would he know?" Carlos asked, voicing my question. "Also, you are dating my sister, as you just reminded me."

"As I understand it, he was on set at one point?"

"Of course he was," Carlos said, sounding like he said it through gritted teeth. Oh, this was great. Our first date was a spectacle due to me. This could easily be a spectacle due to him.

"Can I get you anything?" Tank asked a moment later.

"We'll find a table first and I'll find you once we decided," Carlos explained, seemed to grab a menu and pulled me with him.

I wasn't entirely sure where to, since the place was not that big, but imagine my surprise when I realized that at the end of the bar counter was spiral staircase that lead downwards. Hello high heels, meet your worst nightmare. The metal frame of the staircase as well as the metal stairs that were showing plenty of holes didn't leave me with many choices unless I wanted to risk getting stuck, so I slipped out of my heels and walked barefoot down the stairs.

Carlos didn't even bat an eye and rather offered me a hand at the bottom when I stepped back into them.

"Thank you," I offered amused and saw him smile back at me, equally amused.

Looking around, I was surprised to see an entirely different location than upstairs. It had still a rather urban feel, but seemed less crowded than upstairs, with incredibly high ceilings and some better lighting. Coming off as secluded and intimate despite the sheer size was almost an accomplishment. I spotted the same plants as above, adding to an interesting vibe without seeming too out of place.

At the end of the room, I spotted a few stairs leading to a platform that seemed to host a pool table as well as something that looked like darts and some old school pinball machines.

"It is a very strange mix," I explained, looking fascinated at everything.

"It is, but it also works rather well. And the food is pretty good, though, not what you'd get at a restaurant."

"I don't need lobster in case you were wondering," I admitted, amused, and followed him towards a table he seemed to like. It wasn't like there were plenty of people around, so any table would probably have done, but Carlos was coming off as a bit picky. Not in a bad way, though. More along the lines of amusing.

The menu was straightforward and as Carlos had already mentioned, not containing anything you'd find in a restaurant. It was mainly finger foods and appetizers, with a handful of mains that were simple. What was surprising, however, was the amount of drinks that were on offer. The wine menu by itself was three pages long. The cocktail menu wasn't any less. And most of the beers that were available I had never heard about.

"Tell me what looks good to you and I get it ordered," Carlos suggested and I nodded, knowing what I wanted for food. But I was still indecisive about the drinks. After several more minutes, I finally seemed to be able to make a choice and also stick with it, sending Carlos off with the order.

While he was gone, I took another look around the place, admiring its beauty and uniqueness, never having seen anything similar in style or design. It was like a mashup of some trendy hotspot and a seedy pub in the wrong part of town, and it worked extraordinarily well.

"Is it always this empty?" I asked, once Carlos was back, and he just shrugged.

"During the week, yes. Not as quiet as right now, but definitely not as busy as restaurants. That's also one of the reasons why I picked the spot-well, apart from obviously knowing it and the owner," he laughed. "I knew it wouldn't be as crowded and we'd be pretty much by ourselves. Though, I do expect a few more people will show up as the evening progresses. On weekends, however, it is packed, and you'd only get in if you are on a list or show up early."

"Which one are you? The one who shows up early?" I asked, amused, and saw him grin widely at me.

"I'm always on the list."

"Of course you are," I admitted with a laugh.

A waitress brought us our drinks, placing my fancy pink cocktail in front of me while she smiled at Carlos widely, before informing us that our food might take a bit longer. Not that she explained why, but it wasn't like it mattered, changed things or like I really cared. I wasn't really hungry yet, anyway.

"How about we pass the time until our food arrives with a round of pool?"

"I don't think I'm dressed for a round of pool," I laughed.

"Last time I checked, there wasn't a dress code to play pool," Carlos replied, equally amused.

"I've never really played, to be honest," I finally admitted after what seemed minutes that ticked by.

"I can show you," he replied, standing up a moment later and taking my hand in his, pulling me up and almost into his arms.

While we made our way towards our intended destination, I wondered whether there really wasn't a dress code of some sorts. Like, maybe wear a dress that doesn't hike up too high when bending over. And thanks to my high heels, I was certain I'd be bending over quite a bit. But, come to think of it, maybe that wasn't for the worst. I hadn't met a guy yet who had issues with a little more skin and I figured I could work that to my advantage and have Carlos Manoso regret his suggestion within moments.

Was I playing with fire a little too much?