The rest of our evening went much better. Adam ordered us some outrageous dishes I'd never heard of though enjoyed immensely, savory with mushrooms and shellfish, colorful vegetables and the freshest pasta I'd ever tasted. All while we sipped our virgin Manhattans and laughed over things I really couldn't recall. It was the first time in my life I felt like a normal girl, as if everything I'd done and become, the life I led, the challenges I'd faced and had yet to stand before, faded away into nothing under the steady sweetness of Adam's smile.
I held his hand as much as I could, no shame in it, though doing so made me blush. Easier when he scooted his chair sideways, next to me instead of across, his knee brushing mine over and over, the lush fabric of his suit pants whispering over my s
