The rain made the road blend in too much and she glanced over to the driver of the car. He seemed rather busy thinking about something and she knew what it was. When she had asked him to run her into town so she could attend the planned dinner, he had griped and said that she was being stupid. Then Stef had attacked him and they got into it. Now he was just silent and she welcomed it so she could calm her nerves.

When she saw the restaurant up ahead, she took a deep breath and he pulled over to let her out. The moment she got out of the car, she looked back at Star and he shrugged while leaning over.

He took a deep breath and said "Call me when you are ready to go."

She smirked at his concern and said "I'll be okay. Besides, I'm not allowed to have my cell tonight. That was part of the arrangements."

Star sighed and said "I think this is foolish. That jerk doesn't deserve the chance to speak to you or better yet, treat you to a fancy dinner."

She smiled and said "Unfortunately, you're wrong. He saved Hallie at the airport. Therefore, I owe him one dinner."

He groaned in protest and she said "I have to go. I'll be home late most likely. Just make sure Hallie doesn't stay up too late for me."

He nodded and said "Be careful."

She stepped back and he pulled onto the road. Now that she was cold and her jacket was almost soaked, she brushed the bangs out of her face and made her way up to the restaurant. When she saw him leaning against the wall under the awning, she allowed her eyes to scan his outfit. He was wearing a pair of black dress pants and his dress shirt was dark red with the collar folded down and the top button undone. With a deep breath, she made her way through the crowd until she was almost at the restaurant and then he saw her.

@#$%

He checked his watch to see that she still had ten minutes to show, but the longer he waited the more certain she was just going to leave him hanging. It was stupid that he was hoping she would show after everything between them, but this was the woman he had known all his life. When he saw a red car drive pass, he took a deep breath and continued watching the crowd. Then something caught his attention and when he looked up, he saw her approaching. Just the way she looked made him wish the rain kept coming, but he also wished it had never touched her.

Her dress was black and rested halfway down her legs while she wore a matching dress coat in attempt to shield herself from the rain. He smirked as he watched her step under the awning and her hand brushed her wet bangs from her face. He stepped up to her and slipped a spare jacket around her shoulders. She didn't resist his attention and he led her into the restaurant to get her out of the damp atmosphere. When they reached the desk, the steward looked at them and he gave the name of their reservation.

The man checked them off and said "Follow me."

They walked to the back section of the restaurant and when they were seated, the steward said "Your waitress will be here in a few minutes and if you need to clean up from the weather miss, the bathroom is at the end of the hall from the entrance."

He watched her smile to the man and said "Thank you."

The man nodded and walked away to see to more new comers. Then their gazes met and he restrained the urge to take her hand. When she brushed some loose hair from her face, he watched her eyes look anywhere but straight at him again.

He leaned back in his chair and said "You can go clean up if you need to."

She slipped his jacket off and said "I'll be back."

With his jacket hanging on the empty chair, he watched her disappear and enjoyed the chance to regain the control he had lost. When he saw a waitress approaching the table, he looked for her and saw her talking with someone at the entrance. His eyes narrowed a little and he watched the person leave with the steward. Then he watched her return to the table and the waitress arrived just as she sat down. He got them both the specials since he had eaten here many times and then the waitress left.

When they were alone, he looked at her and asked "Did you have much trouble coming?"

She looked at him and said "Not really. Stef wanted me to come for some strange reason, but of course Star didn't like the idea."

He smirked and said "I highly doubt mystery guy enjoyed it as well."

When a smile played with her mouth, he clamped his jaw shut and said "Well, at least you made it. At one point I figured you wouldn't show."

She did smile this time and said "That just isn't me."

PGS