Cheque, please...
Where a night out is more than just dinner
The first mistake Matthew made was agreeing to dessert. The second was letting Nikki choose the restaurant. The third was showing up in a suit.
Nikki had spent the entire evening exploiting all three.
The restaurant was intimate without trying to be. Soft lighting. Low music. Tables just far enough apart to offer privacy but close enough that every laugh, every glance, every lingering silence felt amplified.
Especially theirs.
Matthew had long since forgotten what he’d ordered. Nikki, meanwhile, appeared to be enjoying herself immensely. Which should have worried him.
“You’ve been awfully quiet tonight.” Nikki casually said aloud.
Matthew looked up from his untouched coffee.
“I’ve spoken several times.”
“Mm.” Nikki lifted her glass. “None of it useful.”
He narrowed his eyes.
“Useful?”
“To me.”
That smile appeared. The one that always made him suspicious. The one that usually meant he was already losing.
“And what exactly would be useful to you?”
Nikki pretended to think.
“A compliment.”
“You’ve had six.”
“A better one.”
“You look beautiful.”
She waved a hand dismissively.
“That’s the standard model.”
Matthew laughed.
“The standard model?”
“Factory settings.”
“Nikki...”
“What?”
“You know I think you’re beautiful.”
“I know.”
She smiled.
“I wanted to hear you say it anyway.”
Matthew shook his head. Impossible. Completely impossible.
Nikki watched him over the rim of her glass. A cat studying a bird. A very confident cat.
“So.”
Matthew sighed. “There it is.”
“There what is?”
“The word ‘so.’”
Her smile widened.
“You’re learning.”
“That word means trouble.”
“It means I have a question.”
“It means you’re about to make my evening more difficult.”
“Maybe.”
Matthew took a sip of his tea. Nikki waited. Patient. Dangerously patient. Finally he set the cup down.
“Ask.”
Her eyes sparkled.
“What exactly have you been thinking about for the last hour?”
Matthew nearly laughed. The audacity.
“You.”
“Specifically?”
“No.”
“One thing.”
“No.”
“Two things?”
“Nikki.”
She leaned forward ever so slightly, but the scoop of her dress dipped just enough.
Matthew looked away. Nikki immediately grinned and the look she gave him should have required a permit. Matthew suddenly found the candle on the table fascinating.
Nikki laughed. Warm and victorious. The waiter appeared. An unfortunate coincidence, because Nikki chose that exact moment to lean forward again.
A touch more than before. Much more than enough. Matthew closed his eyes briefly. The waiter asked whether they wanted anything else, but neither answered immediately.
The poor man looked between them. Then wisely retreated. Nikki was still smiling.
“You know, I think that’s the third waiter we’ve scared away.”
“We’re not scaring them.” Matthew retorted. “You are.”
“WE absolutely are.”
Matthew rubbed his forehead.
“You enjoy this, don’t you, Nikki.”
“Immensely.”
“I noticed.”
“You know what I enjoy most?”
“I don’t want to know.”
“The anticipation.”
Matthew groaned. “There it is.”
“What?”
“That thing you do.”
Nikki tilted her head innocently.
“What thing?”
“Where every sentence sounds like it means two things.”
Her smile turned positively radiant. “Maybe it does.”
Silence… as outside, rain traced silver paths down the windows.
Inside, Matthew became increasingly aware that Nikki had been winning all evening. Not by much, but was indeed winning. And she knew it too.
“You know,” she said quietly, “for someone who claims to be patient...”
Matthew looked up.
“...you’ve checked the time four times in ten minutes.”
“I have not.”
“Four.”
Matthew laughed despite himself. Nikki smiled. There was something different in it now. Something softer, yet more dangerous because of it.
She reached across the table and lightly touched the back of his hand. Just for a moment, and the conversation around them disappeared. The music disappeared. The restaurant disappeared. Only she remained.
Only those eyes. Only that smile. That and the realization that she knew exactly what she was doing. And exactly what it was doing to him.
Nikki leaned back, far too pleased with herself.
“I think I win.”
Matthew stared at her.
“Nikki?”
“Yes?”
“You’ve spent two hours playing with fire.”
“I prefer ‘playfully stoking.’”
“Playing with fire.”
“Stoking sounds more fun.”
Matthew raised his arm, and made a signing motion.
The movement alone caused Nikki’s eyebrow to rise.
The waiter appeared almost immediately. A professional recognizing a man who had finally reached his limit. Matthew handed over his card.
“Cheque, please…”
Nikki laughed. It was the sound of someone who had successfully accomplished her mission.
The card was returned. The bill was paid. Chairs slid back. Coats were gathered. Rain waited beyond the glass. Matthew offered his hand. Nikki slipped her fingers into his. The victory in her eyes was unmistakable.
As they reached the door she leaned close enough that only he could hear her. Close enough for the faint scent of her perfume to finish what the evening had started.
A slow smile. A mischievous wink.
Matthew’s eyes widened. “Wait, was that a wink?”
“Yes it was.” Nikki smiled again for what seemed like the 200th time.
“You know Matthew… you got me.”
Matthew stopped.
Nikki looked up at him. Still smiling. “Now what are you going to do with me?”
It was Matthew’s turn to smile. He offered no answer whatsoever. And somehow that answer was far more devastating than words.
Together, they disappeared into the night.
