I hoped.

“Alright,” I said. “If it’s going to make you happy, I’ll do it. That’s all I care about.”

He smiled, relief smoothing the lines on his forehead. “Does this mean I get to meet your parents?”

“No way!” I laughed. “My dad, remember?”

“Your dad who hits you.”

I tensed. “I don’t want to talk about that right now, okay?” I wrapped my arms around his neck. “All I want to do is spend time with you, eat, and then maybe we can sit on the couch. You can read, and I can watch the game.”

Enzo’s lips brushed over mine. “My boyfriend, the game watcher.” He chuckled.

I poked him in the ribs. “Shut up.”

Our lips pressed together. The rest of the world melted away as I held onto Enzo, melting against his body. I never wanted to let him go.

“Meow!”

I stepped back. “Alright, food’s coming.”

“I bought him one of those automatic feeders like the ones in your place. It should be here today.” When I stared at Enzo, he rolled his eyes. “You don’t wake up early enough to feed him, and he whines about it and steps all on me.”

“You love him,” I teased.

“Whatever. I love both of you.”

My heart squeezed. “Say it again.”

Enzo groaned. “I love both of you!” he snapped.

“Good boy.”

“Just because there’s a hole in me doesn’t mean I won’t kick your ass.”

I grinned. “Bring it on, baby.”

“Wow, I know for certain it takes months to get reservations here,” Tex said. His gaze bounced all over the room. The floor was cleared of the usual tables, and only one sat in the middle. The lights were dimmed, and the only people there were the band, a waiter, and the chefs.

“This way, Mr. Vitale,” our waiter said.

“You rented out the entire place?” Tex asked.

I gestured for him to sit, and we took our seats. His head turned every which way, still admiring the place. A huge chandelier hung from the ceiling above our table. White pillars were wrapped in black silk and adorned with silver tulle. The beautiful sounds of the cello and violin wrapped around the room.

“When you said you would make arrangements, I didn’t know you meant this.”

“Do you like it?” I asked.

Tex finally met my gaze as he nodded. “Yeah, no one has ever done something like this for me.”

My shoulders eased, and tension seeped out of my muscles. I’d been nervous for the past few days about the date. My mind had been a mess. Would the things I enjoyed really work for Tex?

He shrugged. “I would have been fine going to Chili’s.”

I shuddered at the thought. “Why must you ruin a good moment?”

Soft laughter bubbled out of Tex. “Excuse me, not everyone can afford five-course meals. Half-price appetizers and happy hour can be romantic.”

“How so? It’s noisy, crowded, and not to mention the multitude of smells.” There was no way it could be romantic, let alone enjoyable.