Chapter 2: Dinner date (Snippet)

 Shane reached for her hand, puzzled she gave it to him. He bent his head and prayed: thanking God for the dinner date and the meal. When he lifted his head he saw that she was smiling at him in a melancholy way.

"What?" he asked her amused.

"You pray? Since when?" she asked.

 "I've always been God-fearing," he told her.

"Yeah, but yuh never used to pray. You have a chain with a cross around your neck, but that's it. As far as I know," she challenged him.

"Yeah, well, sometimes you have to come to the reality that you don't know everything in this life, or the next. You have to make certain choices and move accordingly as you get older and wiser," he told her. He sobered up.

"What does that mean? You're saved?" she chuckled. She couldn't believe it. "You're too much of a heathen!" She laughed jokingly.

Shane did not smile. 

Lissa, observing his body language, was alarmed. She felt like a jerk. "You are?" Did she misjudge him?

He nodded. Lissa stuttered. "I'm really sor ... I ... I didn't mean ... I mean, to make a joke. I'm sorry." She was supposed to be the understanding and empathetic counselling psychologist but in this moment she was being insensitive. She felt like a douche. 

"I'm really sorry Shane." She looked at him, her eyes sad.

Shane shook his head. "It's no problem. You're not the only person who has made it clear that I can't change," he replied quietly.

He started eating his meal, focusing his eyes on his plate. Lissa felt crappy. She started eating. She would offer to pay for her meal to appease him. 

They were eating their meal when suddenly they heard giggling coming from the private booth area. It sounded like a woman's voice. Lissa looked up to observe the walkway leading to the private area to see who would emerge. She looked over at Shane, but he was focusing on his food. 

After a minute the silhouette of a man and a woman emerged from the shrouded area. They stopped briefly before it and kissed. There were tall potted plants surrounding the booth. She couldn't make out the faces. Her heart skipped a beat. She hoped it wasn't Derrick and another woman. She watched as the kiss between the two people stretched out to almost a minute. 

They stopped kissing. Lissa heard giggling and a male voice. Lissa gripped her fork tighter. That was Derrick's voice! She moved to stand up. "Sit down." Shane told her quietly. She looked over at him. "It's Derrick. That's my boyfriend!" she hissed.

"I know," he replied. "Play it cool. Don't embarrass yourself, or so help me God, I will walk out of here and leave you." He was nonchalantly cutting a piece of chicken with his dinner knife. He didn't look at her.

Lissa stared at him. She couldn't believe what she was hearing Shane say to her. That was her boyfriend. She needed to confront him! 

Lissa breathed deeply.  "I ..."

"You're going to play it cool and follow my lead. Okay?" Shane lifted his head and looked at her. His dark eyes bored into her. The steely resolve in his gaze made her lower her eyes. 

"Okay," she said quietly.

As the happy couple walked closer towards the better lit area of the balcony, Derrick realized that his girlfriend and a man in police uniform were having dinner. He looked over at his date and smiled at her awkwardly. "I have to stop for a bit, okay?" he told her softly. 

The young woman nodded. He handed her his car keys. She smiled at him, walked passed Lissa and Shane, and went downstairs. Derrick stood before Lissa and Shane's table. He cleared his throat. 

"Hey ... I meant to call you," he said smiling awkwardly at Lissa. He ignored Shane.

Lissa looked over at Shane. Shane smiled at her, cocked his head to one side and winked at her. Lissa cleared her throat and looked up at Derrick. "Derrick, this is Sergeant Shane Crosby, a work colleague of mine. We decided to come here to have a meal. You know I've been longing to come back here for some time and Shane suggested that we could have a meal." 

She looked over at Shane who gave her a satisfied smiled. She smiled slightly. Derrick turned to Shane and told him, "Hello."

Shane nodded in response but did not smile at him.

Derrick, feeling flustered, turned to Lissa again. "I did mean to call you, you know. I've just been busy ..."

"With your clients, yes, you told me. This client seems to be a very satisfied customer," she cut him off. Her heart was burning in her chest. She felt her lips tremble. She wanted to rage and shout at him. She glanced over at Shane who was watching her. He stared at her and shook his head slowly. He mouthed the word, "No".

Lissa stared at her plate. She couldn't keep it together. Not raging against Derrick made her feel weak and vulnerable. She felt like crying because of her frustration. Derrick saw her body language and was about to say something, when Shane spoke, "We're glad you could stop by Derrick. Lissa has a long day tomorrow. I'm sure you'll call her tomorrow. I'm also sure you would have wanted to drop her home tonight, but since you're already occupied, I'll do the honors."

Derrick looked at Shane. He knew that was a jab. It dawned on him that they probably saw the kiss between himself and the young lady. "Lissa, I can explain ..."

"Derrick, I'll see you tomorrow," Lissa said her voice trembling. 

Derrick looked at Shane's dark, brooding stare and backed off. He went down the stairs quietly.

Lissa sighed deeply. She was trying to hold her pain inside. Shane stood up and came to her. He extended his hand to her. "I'm taking you home," he said.

Lissa nodded. She stood up. Her legs felt wobbly. Her left leg tripped on the chair and she was falling forward. Shane grabbed her and pulled her to his chest. He planted his feet firmly. Supporting her weight, he held her close to him. He felt her trembling. Lissa broke down and started crying. 

Shane sighed. Slowly, he put his arms around her and held her close to him. He felt her go limp. He looked at her. Lissa fainted.

***

Lissa woke up feeling movement around her. She looked up and found herself leaning on Shane's shoulder, his left arm wrapped around her, while his right arm maneuvered his vehicle. She sat up slowly. Shane lifted his arm and placed it also on the steering. He looked over at her. His eyes were unreadable. "How do you feel now?" he asked her.

Lissa stretched. She winced a little. She had a headache. "I have a headache," she said. She sighed.

Shane glanced at her briefly then focused his gaze on the road. "You fainted," he said matter of factly. "I'm taking you home. We're about ten minutes out from your house."

"Oh," Lissa said. She didn't know what to say. Well, yes, she did. She turned towards him. "Thank you for stopping me from making a fool of myself." 

Shane nodded. The charming smile his face held earlier was replaced with a serious, almost angry mask. His eyes, when he looked at her, seemed even darker and cold.

"Shane, look at me please," Lissa requested softly. Shane looked at her.

"I was insensitive to the new path you've taken. I'm sorry. I didn't take what you were saying about your beliefs seriously, I'm really sorry." she said smiling ruefully at him. He nodded and stared at the road. He relaxed his shoulders a little and sighed. 

"Apology accepted," he replied.

Sergeant Crosby had only brought her home twice since they made their acquaintance. She was surprised he remembered where to take her, but as she looked out the window, the familiar streets of her neighborhood appeared before her. He looked before him maneuvering the vehicle into a left turn. He stopped at her gate. 

She looked over at him. "Thank you for tonight. I'm glad you stayed and kept my company. You paid the restaurant bill for both of us?" Shane nodded. She was grateful. "Thank you," she said.

She leaned forward to kiss his cheek but he gently held her at arms length. "It's okay. I was being a good friend. Whatever you were going to do as a gesture is not necessary," he told her. She paused and looked into his eyes. He looked into hers. Lissa realised his guard was up. 

She took him in. His attractive oval shaped eyes were like black smoldering coals adorned by thick lashes and nicely shaped eyebrows. She observed his stubborn jawline and full, soft lips. She never noticed how handsome he looked clean shaven. His dark skin was clear with no blemishes. It looked divine to touch. She wondered how it would feel on her skin.

Unashamedly, she leaned on his chest. Shane was surprised by this move. "What...? What are you doing?" he asked her. Lissa heard a slight tremor in his voice. Somehow she had to crack his hard exterior. She pressed her left hand on his chest and looked up at him while her head still rested on him. "I didn't know you were that strong," she told him.  

"Gym four days a week, cardio once a week in the early mornings," he responded. She reached up and touched his face.

"You caught me. Your reflexes are very good. Did you carry me down the stairs?" She was curious about him now.

Sergeant Crosby nodded. "Yeah, I carried you."

"I weigh about 159/160," she told him

"No problem," he replied. "I bench press more than that regularly." She lifted her head, her eyebrows raised as she looked at him. She was impressed.

Lissa rested her head on his chest again and listened to his heart. It was beating fast. She wondered if it was because of her. She reached for his arms and circled them around her. He allowed her to do it. 

He sighed. "Why are you doing this, Lissa? What does all of this mean?" he asked her. 

Lissa pressed her face into his shirt and smelled his cologne. It was nice. Shane sighed, wrapped his arms around her and started rubbing her back. He would humor her for a little. Ordinarily, a moment like this alone with her would have made him very happy, but after their conversation about his faith, and how she reacted to her boyfriend's infidelity, he wasn't sure what to think about her anymore.

Lissa loved the solidness of his chest. She never noticed that before. She made herself comfortable. "This is nice," she told him. "Thank you." She looked up at him and smiled cheekily.

Sergeant Crosby looked at the cheekiness in her gaze and chuckled. He shook his head. A slight smile curled up his lips. He squeezed her closer to him. "This better?" he asked her. 

"Yes," she answered. She closed her eyes and smiled. Shane lifted the lever of the car seat easing the angle of the seat further back. He closed his eyes and held her, relaxing his shoulders. He took a deep breath and released it slowly.

"Shane?"

"Hmm?"

"Why aren't you married yet?"

Shane laughed softly. "I haven't found the right one, I guess." He was tempted to kiss her hair. It smelt wonderful. "What about you? Do you want to get married?" he asked her.

"I want to get married. I thought it would have been to Derrick, but I guess I was a fool for thinking that way," she said sadly.

"That fool doesn't deserve you," he replied.

She felt a twinge of annoyance. A part of her wanted to defend Derrick and tell Shane that he wasn't a fool, but she held her tongue. She would be the bigger fool to defend a man who was clearly cheating on her.

Shane tentatively brushed his fingers through her relaxed hair. It was shoulder length, thick and jet black. He brought his hand up to his face and inhaled the scent. He wasn't sure what it was but he liked it. "What's this thing in your hair? The product? I like the fragrance."

Lissa smiled. "Lavender oil and water. My cousin recommended it to me and so far my hair has benefited," she replied.

"It smells good," he told her. He brushed his hand in her hair, stroking it slowly. Lissa sighed. His touch was soothing. He brushed his fingers on the side of her face. He wanted to kiss her. 

"Lissa?"

"Hmm?"

"I want to kiss you."

She lifted her head and looked at him. The street lights were a few feet away from where they were parked. In the modified position his chair was in she couldn't see his eyes. He touched her face. He bent his head forward and gently brushed his lips on hers. A shock of pleasure rushed through her. She opened her mouth and kissed him back. She heard him groan softly and intensify his kissing, pulling her down on top of him. Lissa liked how she was feeling. He brushed his left hand through her hair while his right hand held her face to his. 

"Lissa." She heard him sigh. The way he said her name sounded very sexy to her. She closed her eyes and kissed him more deeply. He skillfully teased her with light feathery kisses, delicately pulling and nibbling on her lips while groaning her name softly. His kisses and his soft groans were turning her on. She felt her loins respond to him. 

He said, "Mmhh", opened his mouth and playfully flicked his tongue on her lips. Lissa moaned softly and opened her mouth wider to receive him. Shane slipped his tongue inside and groaned deeply. He cupped her face. Lissa felt tingly all over. His kisses were doing things to her she never expected. After properly teasing her mouth with his tongue, he tore his lips away to tease her ear, gently nibbling on the outer lobe. Lissa opened her lips and breathed in air sharply. He moved his head down to her neck, pressed his soft lips on her skin and closed his eyes. ...

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