Chris shrugged. “What’s wrong with roses? Isn’t that what all women want?”
“Ha. That’s what I thought, too. Apparently, we’re wrong.” Nick set the roses on a table and checked his watch. “Roses are a ‘cliché,’ according to Liz. And I’ve got half an hour to get flowers and make it to her house.”
“Traffic’s a bitch, Nick.” Chris plopped onto a couch and made himself comfortable.
“Dude. When is traffic not a bitch in this city? We’re in fucking Los Angeles.” He ran his fingers through his hair and patted his pockets, searching for his keys. “Do you see my keys anywhere?”
Chris sat up and looked around the room. “Nope. Kitchen?”
“Thanks for the help, man.” Nick rolled his eyes and went to search the kitchen. When he found his keys on the stove, he frowned at their location and himself. What the hell was wrong with him that he left keys on stoves?
“Find them?” Chris asked, turning his gaze from Nick’s giant television to glance over at him.
“Yeah. How do I look?” Nick smoothed his shirt and made sure all the buttons were in place before looking up at his best friend.
Chris fought to not laugh. “Nick, you sound like a woman. Next thing I know, you’ll be asking me if you look fat in that. Don’t you dare,” he added threateningly.
“Relax. Just tell me if this is good for dinner and maybe a movie or hitting a club,” Nick said impatiently. If he didn’t leave in the next two minutes, he was going to be late, which was not the best way to start off a first date.
Chris looked him up and down then nodded. “You look good. So you’re letting her decide if you do anything after dinner? You’re not just gonna automatically give her the Nick Carter special?” he asked, wiggling his brows suggestively.
“Screw you,” he replied, reaching for the doorknob.
“Have fun.”
“Don’t burn my house down.”
“I won’t. You’re gonna be late.”
The door shut.
“You’re late.”
Nick winced and held out the cheerful daisies out as a peace offering. “I got you flowers. They’re not roses,” he added weakly.
Liz stared from the daisies to his face. She tried not to laugh at the terrified expression in his eyes. Although it was definitely a very powerful feeling to know that she had the famous Nick Carter practically shaking.
She reached out and took the flowers before opening the door wider and letting him in. “Thanks. Good to know you can listen. I’m just going to put these in water,” she called over her shoulder as she disappeared into her kitchen.
Nick breathed a small sigh of relief. He’d been fifteen minutes late, and then trying to find a parking space near her apartment building had taken another ten. The result was that he was nearly a half-hour late, which meant they’d be lucky if his reservation at one of the trendiest restaurants on Sunset was still standing. If it wasn’t, Liz was probably never going to want to see him again.
Swallowing nervously, he looked over as a pretty, ginger-colored cat gracefully swept into the room followed by Liz, who was carrying the vase of daisies. She set them down on the coffee table in her living room then turned to him.
Now that he was over the initial terror of being late, he decided he could truly appreciate the way she looked. Though nowhere near what any of his former dates had ever worn, her outfit consisted of a black top that swept to mid-thigh and was decorated with tiny flowers around the neckline that showcased the subtle swell of her breasts. Beneath the pure white pants, her feet were encased in black moccasins. Her hair fell straight past her shoulders, and her bangs framed gray eyes that were watching him expectantly.
“Well?” She held her arms out to the side. “What do you think? Do I measure up to your celebrity standards?”
Crossing the room, he took her hand in his and smiled at the look on her face. “You’re perfect. Better than perfect. You terrify me.”
Her look turned to one of confusion. “Terrify you? How on earth is that possible?”
“Maybe, once we get in the car, I’ll tell you,” he replied, tugging her out the door.
Once they were in his car, heading towards the Hollywood hills, Liz turned to him. “Is your dinner reservation going to work out now that we’re nearly an hour late?”
“Uh…” He hadn’t expected her to think of that but realized he should have. She was far more intelligent than the other women he’d dated and more intuitive, too. He sighed. “I don’t know. Honestly, I’d like to think they would wait on me because of who I am, but I’m not so popular that they would. Sorry,” he added. “I wanted to make a good impression, but I guess this date’s a bust.”
Liz studied his face as he drove. He looked so downhearted, and his voice had been shadowed with sorrow and doubt—in himself as much as in the reservation. He was so cute when he was sad, she decided and felt the need to cuddle him. Instead, she laid her hand over his on the gearshift. “Pull over.”
“What?” Nick couldn’t believe it. Did she want to get out and leave him altogether now that he’d ruined everything? Had he screwed up that badly? Then again, he remembered how hesitant she’d been in agreeing to have dinner with him. She was probably relieved, he thought, that she had a way out of the date. He slid his gaze sideways to meet her eyes. “Are you sure?”
When she nodded, he knew he had no choice but to listen. At the next light, he turned right and parked in a tiny lot. And waited for her to get out.
His heart gave one joyful leap when she kept her hand on his and asked, “Can I drive?”
“Seriously?” He hoped she didn’t want to drive herself back home, but he was completely unsure of his footing with this woman.
Liz saw the look on his face and squeezed his hand. “Relax, Nick. I’m not ditching you. I told you I’d go out with you, and I’m going to finish this night out. So, can I drive?”
“Where?”
“I know a place. I think you’ll like it better than whatever snooty place you were about to take me to,” she said with a smile and pushed open her door. “So switch places.”
Horribly anxious, he did as she asked and watched as she turned the car on again. “Don’t hurt my baby.”
She rolled her eyes. “Hello. I’ve been driving for years, Nick. Relax. Besides, I like my Jag more than I like your BMW.”
“You have a Jag?” He’d loved his own Jag before he’d sold it years ago.
“You don’t think I can handle one?”
He shook his head. “Uh-uh. I think you can handle it all. What kind of Jag?”
“A gorgeous black Coupe.” Liz studied the upcoming intersection before switching lanes and heading into the left turn. “It handles amazingly and practically purrs. I don’t hear this car purring, Nick.”
He grinned. “I used to have one of the convertibles before I got this one. I thought it was time to grow up, but, you’re right, it doesn’t purr.” He looked out the window to see where they were and found that they were nearing Anaheim. The homes were more middle-class, while the area was quieter. “Where are we going?”
“A place I know,” she replied, turning them onto a smaller, tree-lined road. “We’re almost there.”
Five minutes later, they pulled into a parking lot next to a row of cabin-like structures. There were plenty of cars in the lot, and Nick could see people milling around both in and outside the buildings.
“What is this place?”
Liz slid out of the car and waited for him before starting towards the last building. A small sign was lit over the door and simply read “Arianae’s”.
“It’s one of the best places to eat Greek food in the entire state of California,” she told him as she pulled open the door. “I come here every week at least once.”
“Wow.” Nick stepped in and, after a moment, realized that no one was going to direct them to a table. Picking a booth towards the back, he took Liz’s hand in his and started to walk back when they were interrupted by a shout from behind the counter.
A tall, dark-haired man in his late twenties grinned at Liz. “Look who finally decided to show up. It’s been six days, and Mama and I were just saying we were wondering where Lizzie had disappeared to.” His voice held a slight trace of accent, but his dark eyes twinkled as Liz stepped up to the counter. “And, look, she’s all pretty tonight, too.” Those eyes flicked over to Nick briefly. “Got a big date, carina?”
Liz grinned back and leaned up to kiss his cheek. “Dorian, it’s only been six days. It hasn’t been eternity. How are things?”
“Things are good, now that you’re here.” He tugged on her hair playfully. “So, why so dressed up?”
“I’ve got a date, like you said.” She gestured Nick closer. “Nick, this is Dorian. His family owns this restaurant. Dorian, this is Nick. My date.”
Nick shook Dorian’s outstretched hand. “How’s it going?”
“It goes pretty well,” the other man replied. “So long as you don’t hurt my girl.”
“Uh, I don’t think he will,” Liz said with a laugh. “Can I borrow a menu? We’ll be in the back.”
Dorian pulled one out for her, and she tugged Nick back towards the booth they’d been heading towards.
“So, the people here are like family to you?” Nick asked once they’d settled in.
She pushed the menu towards him. “Pick what you want. And, yes,” she added, “they’re very much family. Dorian’s mother is my mother’s stepsister.”
“Cool.” He scanned the menu then looked up at her with a sheepish smile. “Help? You come here all the time, right? Tell me what’s good.”
“Everything’s good.” Dorian made his way to their table with a notepad. “For you, Lizzie, I’m taking the order personally.”
She smiled up at him, and Nick couldn’t help but wish she’d smile at him like that. “Thanks, Dorian. And we’ll both have my regular.”
“It’s good, right?” Nick asked in a small voice.
“If I cook it, it’s good,” Dorian replied matter-of-factly. “It’ll be out in a few minutes. I’ll see you, carina.” He brushed his fingers over Liz’s hair and strode towards the kitchen.
Nick watched him go before turning to his date. “He wasn’t serious about kicking my ass, was he, if I do something wrong?”
“Nick, don’t be silly. Dorian’s as harmless as they come.” Liz stretched her legs out so they rested on the opposite bench of the booth, next to Nick. “God, I’m so exhausted.”
“Long day?”
She shut her eyes briefly. “The longest. Being Autumn’s agent is great, but the other two clients I have are so much work. They have potential, and that’s the only reason I took them on.”
Nick tried to resist but ended up stroking his fingers over the part of her ankle that lay bare. “Are they actors, too?”
“I’d tell you to stop, but that feels nice,” Liz replied after a moment. “Add pressure. And, no, they’re not both actors. One is a singer. He does folksy music. Plays the guitar, harmonica, banjo, and even has one of those contraptions that lets you play the guitar, cymbals, and harmonica at the same time. His problem is drive. He doesn’t have the amount of ambition that’s required to truly make it.”
“Is he any good?” Nick slid her shoe off and pressed the heel of his hand into the arch of her foot. The sound she made had him grinning.
“Uh…What did you say?” she finally asked after a few moments.
“The singer you rep, is he any good?” he repeated.
“Oh, yeah. He’s great, but, like I said, not enough drive.” She pulled her foot away from him and waited until he slid her shoe back on. “Thanks.”
“No problem.”
For a moment, they both just studied each other.
“This is good,” Liz finally said.
Nick smiled. “Yeah. Yeah, it’s good.”
