Chapter 16
1370 Words
CHAPTER 16:
Things with Matt seemed to be really heading somewhere. After the afternoon at Coral Bay, Matt and Rachel kept in touch. They didn’t text constantly like teenagers, both she and Matt were busy people, but they asked each other more questions about work and life.
Lisa first realized something was going on about a week later. They were dining together on Alex's signature carbonara, when Rachel received a text.
what u doing?
Rachel replied and continued to eat. She was about to help herself to more pasta when she noticed Lisa staring at her with suspicion in her eyes.
“What?” she asked.
“Are you dating?” Lisa asked directly.
The question almost made Rachel choke on the half-chewed noodle in her mouth. “No.” She answered instinctively, but then, on second thought, she said, “Maybe.”
“Holy Jesus Christ! Why didn't you tell me?”
“There is nothing yet to tell!” Rachel laughed. "We haven't even had our first official date yet."
“Did he ask you out?”
“Yes, he did. But we couldn't agree on the time since we were both really busy last week. But we will meet up this weekend for a cheeky lunch.”
“Hmm. Lunch. Interesting.”
Lisa's exaggerated gesture and suggestive gaze made Rachel laugh.
"Lisa, seriously, stop."
“No, seriously, this is the first time I've seen you dating a guy in the last couple of years. Sometimes I wonder if you haven't shown any interest towards men because you are secretly in love with me. I mean, I know that I am gorgeous and funny, and, not to mention, amazing but it will be awkward.”
“I will let you know if I desperately love you, ok?”
They both smiled knowingly at each other and giggled.
Lisa seemed really excited, she continued to interrogate Rachel: "How is he?"
"I don't know. Nice?”
“How does he look? Is he rich? Does he have a job?”
Rachel laughed exasperatedly. “Lisa, slow down. We haven't even been on a date together yet!”
“Well, soon you will.”
To her own surprise, Rachel was really looking forward to their date. Standing looking at herself in the mirror, Rachel felt strange. While putting on lipstick, she thought, it's been a long time since I tried to look good for a man.
“How do I look?” Probably the hundredth time Rachel asked Katy.
“You look horribly beautiful,” Katy said. Although Rachel never thought of herself as a stunning beauty, she knew she looked stunning in a bare-shoulder red dress with straps that went around the neck, snuggled up and flared at the hips. It accentuated Rachel's light skin tone, and she decided she wouldn't wear too much makeup, just a little mascara and lip gloss.
In an odd way, she felt less anxious, and more in control of herself. They used to be friends, and even if this didn't work out, it was worth meeting up with an old friend.
Rachel told herself she needed to move on. The wound from the breakup of her first love had caused her pain to the point of paralysis over the past few years. Perhaps fate had arranged for her to meet Flynn again, or Dalziel, as he was known now, to make her realize that what they had once had was all just a dream, an illusion she had built for herself. lt took her years to get over it. But she had got over it and she would move on. She had to move on. She knew she deserved to be happy. That realization gave Rachel strength, the strength she thought she had lost. She wouldn’t run away, she wouldn’t turn her back on those who wanted to come to her with sincerity. She wanted to walk into the restaurant when he was there, feeling warm, strong, and beautiful. And indeed, when she walked in, he was already there. She felt all of these emotions and she felt brave as well, an entirely new feeling for her. Rachel could see the surprise written on Matt's face. Apparently, this was the first time she had dressed like this in front of him. A lacy, glamorous dress, instead of grey, boring office clothes. Rachel approached and flashed him a warm smile, making him want to bask in it.
"You're beautiful," he said softly, frowning slightly.
“Thank you,” Rachel leaned in and gave him a kiss on the cheek, before pulling out a chair and sitting down.
“Did you come here by taxi? You should have let me come pick you up.”
She said, "It's okay, it's not convenient where you live. Besides… I wanted to keep my place a secret.” Rachel let out a spontaneous joke.
“Rachel,” he whispered, “You've always been a mystery to me. Always very mysterious and aloof.”
Rachel felt a twinge of guilt for turning down his offer once. That day, although she greatly appreciated Matt's care, she was not ready to open her heart to another man. She said softly, “I still want to be a mysterious woman. But I may allow you a few glimpses of the real me from time to time.”
He smiled at her, it was a complicated smile. They started chatting a bit about work. She didn't have much to say but Matt, one of the best stock advisors, did. He told her about his clients and the amazing projects he had been involved in. The topic then extended to current news and events in the country.
“You know, the stock market is directly influenced by what you see in the press and on the news.” He paused for a moment, looked into her eyes, and then smiled and said, "I must be boring you to death."
"Not at all." Rachel quickly reassured him. She really enjoyed listening to his stories, his world was interesting and exciting. Perhaps a bit too exciting for Rachel, she admitted: “I'll never be a good investor, because I'd have a heart attack if I woke up one morning to find my account half empty."
Matt laughs: "It happens more often than you think, especially in the uncertain situations across Europe right now."
“Perhaps, you can help me invest in the stock market.” She jokingly suggested.
“Right,” he laughed. "You’ve said this before, and I’m still waiting for my chance to win you as a client."
He seemed to be hinting at something further. Rachel could hear the sincerity in his voice and she knew he was telling the truth. She missed this atmosphere, missed the comfortable jokes, missed the pleasant friendship they had once had together. The longer they sat in the restaurant, the better it felt. She was just as beautiful as the first time he'd seen her, but Matt seemed to see something more important, a gentle, loving, feminine personality that drove any man insane, and made them drunk like fine wine. Matt teased Rachel about her job and they laughed after she told him what she liked and didn't like about her job.
None of them ate too much, but there was so much to say, so much to talk about now. They almost didn't have a chance to breathe, nor finish their sentences. Their stories overlapped as they were having a few conversations at the same time, covering the absolute gamut of topics. Finally, when the waiter brought the bill, they both stood up and smiled at each other . “I'm really happy,” Matt said as they stepped outside.
"Me too. I didn't think it would be this fun to be with you." And when Rachel turned to look at him, a feeling of pleasant intimacy welling up, as the two of them awkwardly stood on the sidewalk outside the restaurant, suddenly Rachel felt a little tense again. Matt seemed to feel the same way. He coughed and said, "Let me take you home."
"Okay. Thank you."
"You don’t need to be so polite to me."
- Writer
