Real Challenge (Atlanta #2) (5 page)

The biggest difference seemed to be the people. According to Cassie, everyone at Georgetown seemed to be out to impress everyone, goal-oriented. Scott assumed the prestigious school would impress her, but she looked at his school in a completely different way, of course. She compared his university to her community college, and started changing his way of thinking, too, in that moment.
 

“Most of the people in my nursing program are like me. We’re all doing whatever we can to get an education for a decent job. We talk about wanting to help people, not impress them,” she said this analytically. She did not want him to think she was judging. She was just fascinated that there were so many people out just trying to come off better than the rest of them, who were all doing the same thing. It was borderline insanity as far as she was concerned.
 

 
By the end of that conversation, Scott had admitted that her program was probably more impressive than his because of the underlying goals and different kind of work ethic. He admitted that he had never thought from that perspective before.
 

“I didn’t realize what a snob I can be.”
 

“I don’t think you’re a snob,” Cassie said. “I just think you’ve never had the chance to think about things any differently. Most people don’t question the values they’re raised with. For me, I had nothing
but
questions. It worked out though. I love who I am now.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone say that,” Scott said honestly.
 

“Most people either don’t think about it or don’t love themselves, but it’s not a bad thing. Everybody who learns it, learns it in their own time.”

Cassie loved how real he was in that moment. They talked about people and priorities. He dropped all the charm somewhere in the middle of the conversation causing her to feel a little victorious. She wanted to hear more about him because the real Scott was back.
 

Listening to him talk about business school gave her a sense of why he had that corporate drive. Erin had told her how fast he got promoted through the ranks. He was obviously intelligent and a hard worker. His Olympic gold proved he had dedication, too. As much as she hated to admit it, he was a pretty impressive guy. Mostly when he wasn’t trying to be.

She got him to talk more about his love of swimming and she shared her favorite past time of yoga and “junking” as she sometimes liked to call her shopping jags into used-items markets. He laughed when she described a few of the items she
didn’t
buy.
 

“I swear it on my life,” she said laughing. “I actually saw an old, vintage dentist chair decorated with fringe and lace, and it had a little sign that said ‘recliner’ on it. If I didn’t hate the dentist so much, I would have bought it and left the damn sign on it for my living room.”
 

“Wow. I didn’t even know so many places like that were around. Sounds like a trip,” Scott said, laughing at the ridiculous idea of that chair.

“I can take you sometime if you’d like,” she said, again with the warm smile.
 

“You know, that actually sounds like fun,” Scott said, also smiling. She couldn’t believe he would go shopping with her, but she at least like the idea that he might want to spend more time with her. She was gutsy suggesting another sort of date so early in the evening, but bold was kind of her thing.

“Hey – look up there. Do you see the spotlight?” Scott said abruptly.

She looked in the direction of his pointing and saw a beam sweeping through the sky. “Is that a search light from the old jail?” She laughed at the thought.
 

“Yep. They kind of mix the jail motif with the posh/gourmet atmosphere. It’s a strange mash up. Based on your house alone, I’m guessing you’re going to like it,” he teased.

Instead of acting insulted, she just grinned and said, “We’ll see how it compares.”

When they reached the parking lot, a valet parked the SUV for them and Cassie knew just how ritzy this old jail actually was. Scott tipped the valet entirely too much and Cassie saw a hint of that strut she first saw at the party. It made her kind of sad that he felt he had to act important that way, but she understood that was the world he was used to.
 

She walked in and dropped her jaw at her surroundings. The old sergeant’s desk was polished up to serve as the hostess station and there was a wall of old, many-sized mail cubbies behind it. Each was filled with things like vintage pearl-handled pistols, large-calibre bullets, shiny like-new handcuffs, and a folded, vintage prisoner uniform in a classic stripe pattern. The collection of varied colors, textures, and vintages was something she could genuinely appreciate. She loved the place instantly.

“Party for Scott Merchant,” he said to the hostess who was dressed in a simple, elegant black outfit. Cassie watched the honest Scott from the car get all puffed up and haughty when he spoke to the hostess. He was acting important and obviously trying to be impressive in this environment.
 

“Welcome to The Big House, Mr. Merchant, Ms. Walker. Please follow me.”

Wow, they even knew her name. He had gone all out. Cassie took in all the sights around her. The large lobby/booking area of the station had been converted into a dark, warm-toned bar with several high-top tables. The warm wood tones clashed with the charcoal gray of the cinder-block walls, but somehow the combination seemed intimate rather than strange. Black and white framed photographs of courthouse scenes, Alcatraz, and some of the more famous criminals throughout history dotted the walls.
 

The hostess walked them down one of the many long hallways of the cell block. Each had been carpeted in soft gray and pictures flanked by curtains helped to soften the institutional feel of the building. They passed larger holding cells with several tables in them each, and just as Scott had described, there were no doors on the prison cells. Again, the cinder block and iron walls would have seemed cold if not for the posh booths along the walls and warm lighting from candles and modest chandeliers.
 

They walked all the way down to the end of the hallway and the hostess showed them to a small, individual holding cell that was lined on three walls with the benches of the booth table. The entire cell was taken up by the table and seating. Scott gestured for Cassie to sit down and followed her onto the bench seat as she scooted around the corner. Their table was private and totally swanky. The benches were tufted leather and capped at the corners with brass fittings. Cassie guessed this was probably the best table in the house and she wondered which palms he had to grease to get it at short notice. She chuckled internally at the thought of him trying to impress her again.
 

“Your waiter will be here in a moment. Enjoy your meal,” the hostess said nicely.

“So what do you think?” Scott asked Cassie, obviously trying to read the look on her face.
 

“I’m trying to decide if I should be my usual smart-mouth self or tell you how absolutely amazing this place is.”

“Stick with the smart mouth.”

“I can’t believe you took me to a jail for dinner. That just subtracted points from your running total and you have a lot to make up for when you try to kiss me tonight,” she said with her typical beaming grin.
 

“Do I get a warm-up kiss for practice?”

“I suppose that would only be fair.”

He leaned in and kissed her. The kiss was very nice, no romantic bravado, but very sensual and deep.
 

“You’re getting better,” she said with an appraising smile.
 

“Thank you.”

They were interrupted by the waiter bringing them short-stemmed water goblets and a simple parchment menu. He described the specials for the night and Cassie was amazed at the flavor combinations he described. Before the waiter had even finished his spiel, she already knew she would try the beer-braised pork chops with apricot onion sauce. That dish combined the oddest mix of flavor she could imagine and she had to try it.
 

Scott ordered them an artichoke-feta shrimp appetizer and wine. He thanked the waiter and turned again to Cassie, hoping she was still impressed with the place.

“You look ridiculous in jeans in here, you know,” she said playfully. “I thought we were going some place casual.”

“Well, these are my good jeans, not my ripped up ones, so I thought it would be ok. Besides, I couldn’t just take you to a fast food place. I prefer to look down at a table when I’m ordering rather than up at a value-menu.”

“You don’t have to do that, you know. Try to impress me. You don’t need to,” Cassie said, still with a smile, but also very sincerely. “Looking up to order is fine with me. It’s the company that I think about. But tonight I’ll admit that I’m impressed with the company and the restaurant.”

Scott couldn’t contain his grin. “Good. That’s what I was going for.”

She smiled at him and looked at his blue eyes and dimple and couldn’t help herself. She leaned over and kissed his dimple and allowed herself the tiniest little sweep of her tongue along the little crease. She pulled him around the corner to sit beside her and rested her hand on his thigh. He shook his head at her move and reached his arm around her.
 

Scott sat back against the booth, pulling her back to rest with him. They sat like that for a while and Cassie let her hand rub his leg a bit. Scott moved his fingers along her shoulder in response and she smiled. They only sat upright when the waiter brought the wine and appetizers. Everything was delicious, including the conversation. They talked and laughed through their meal, and ordered a simple pineapple sorbet for desert.
 

“God, the food here is amazing,” Cassie said when she sampled the sorbet. “Thank you. I’ve never been anywhere like this.”

“You’re welcome.” He seemed to appreciate her sincerity but she saw his face change when he noticed she got an ornery look in her eye.

“Ask for the check,” she said with a devilish grin. “I have an idea.”
 

“I’m scared to ask,” was all he could say to her as he gestured for the waiter. He gave his credit card and looked at her questioningly while he waited for the slip to sign.

“Just wait,” she said mischievously. “You’ll find out soon enough.”

He just rolled his eyes at her and pulled her back against the seat again, but he smiled when her hand went right back to that spot on his thigh.
 

He signed the bill when the waiter brought the small leather binder back to the table and helped Cassie out of the booth. He followed her out of the restaurant and kept his hand at the small of her back all the way to the valet. She loved the feel of warmth from his hand through her dress. The late evening air was a bit colder and she shuddered a quick chill without meaning to. She felt Scott pull her backward into his arms and held his hands around her abdomen.
 

“Are you using the weather as an excuse to hold on to me? You cad,” she said.

“Yes, blatantly. I planned the weather and your outfit so I could spend thirty-two seconds holding you before they brought the car,” he grinned, obviously loving this opportunity to throw her attitude right back at her. “You caught me.”
 

When the valet brought the car back, Cassie quickly ducked out of his arms and walked to the driver’s side door to get behind the wheel. Scott stared dumbfounded as she hopped into the his seat and shut the door. She opened the passenger window and said innocently, “Aren’t you coming?”

Scott shook his head and laughed as he hopped in the passenger side of his own car and watched her adjust the driver’s seat and mirrors. The valet smirked at them as they drove off. Scott couldn’t believe his date was driving him who knows where in his own car. This was not like any date he’d ever had. He knew he had impressed her with the restaurant, but not because of the cost of the place.
 

Again, she proved herself unique. Most dates wanted the attention, the princess treatment. He was usually well rewarded. But Cassie seemed to loved the originality of the place, not the cost. She appreciated life for an entirely different set of criteria than anyone else he knew. Her energy consumed him, and because she was driving, he could let himself focus on her completely…and those tightly-covered legs under that little fringy dress.
 

Night had fallen completely by the time Cassie drove back along the state route toward Atlanta. However, when they got close to the suburbs, she took a side road that led to the middle of nowhere. She drove them past the suburbs and into the rural area beyond. She turned a few more times down some backwoods roads before finally pulling into a little gravel driveway and up to an old barn.

“Where the…what is this place?” Scott asked, completely amused by the puzzle sitting next to him.
 

“It’s an abandoned old barn that belongs to a friend from work. Well, actually her grandparents, but they don’t use it anymore. We come out here to talk and relax. The electricity is still hooked up, so it’s kind of cozy. There’s a space heater in the fort we built. It’s one of those infra-red ones so we don’t burn the place down. She lets me come here whenever I need a get-away.”

“You built a fort??” he laughed out loud at Cassie. There was nothing but energy and surprises from her. She was bigger than life. She reached for his hand once they left the car. He loved the feel of her touching him. Her fingers offered more of that same energy, injected directly into his hand. He couldn’t get enough, and he only planned on getting more.
 

He was confident he would have her. He had yet to be outright rejected after an evening like this one. His thoughts of getting her naked were interrupted by her boisterous response to the question he almost forgot he asked.

“Of course we built a fort! Jenna laughed at first, too, but it was practically a requirement with all the straw bales sitting around. It took both of us several visits to haul those bales where we wanted them around the loft, but we got it. We even brought old blankets and quilts to sit on and a little electric lantern for extra light. It’s awesome. I want to show you. Come on!”