Page 29 of Through the Fire

“I’m your biggest fan.” He continued to sing that Rod Wave song “IRan.”

I lifted the flowers, and he held my hand to assist me in getting inside. Once I was secure, he closed me in then jogged around to the other side. I smiled when he eased in beside me.

“Here’s to the first of many date nights with you.”

* * *

A little over an hour later,we arrived in Charleston. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but Heim seemed confident. I trusted him wholeheartedly, so I patiently waited to see what he had up his sleeves. Like the gentleman he was, he turned the truck off then came to open my door for me.

I carried one of my bouquets in my arm and held his hand with the other. He guided me down to the beach. At the top of the sand, he took my heels off for me and carried them in his free hand. He even rolled up the bottom of my jeans so they wouldn’t get wet. I smiled when I saw the romantic candlelight dinner that was waiting for us.

I was proud of myself for being strong and pushing my fears to the side in pursuit of something better than endless heartache and pain. If I hadn’t, I would’ve never gotten this first-time experience with a man who made my heart flutter.

Heim held my seat out for me then joined me on the other side of the table. A server came down shortly after with our appetizers. Heim scooted his chair around the table so that we were side by side. With his arm around the back of my seat, he fed me the crab cakes we’d been served like I wasn’t a grown woman capable of feeding myself. I allowed him because, in truth, I loved being babied. In everything he did, Heim let it be known he deeply cared for me.

“This is so beautiful,” I said, commenting on the picturesque scene of the sun setting.

“Not nearly as beautiful as you.” He complimented me while dragging a finger down the side of my face.

I never got tired of his compliments. He could shower me with his every breath for all I cared. He stopped feeding me to pour us some champagne. We tipped our glasses together for a quick toast before indulging.

“I feel like a Disney princess right now…” Turning to him, I asked a random question. “If you could be any Disney channel character, who would it be?”

Shyheim chuckled and shrugged. “I don’t know. I have to think about it. Why? You know who you would be?”

I nodded. “Absolutely. I’d be Raven Baxter, and not even because she had psychic powers. Her outfits were always tea. Sometimes when I get ready, I try to channel my inner Raven Baxter.”

Shyheim cracked up beside me. I nudged him gently with a smile of my own.

“Whatever. Who would you be?”

His arms slipped around my waist. “Well, that’s easy. I’d be Devon so I could keep loving you.”

He kissed my cheeks being cheesier than I thought I could handle. Staring into his eyes, I knew it’d never be enough. I wanted him to be obsessed with me.

We continued to enjoy each other’s company as the server came to bring our meals. I was excited to dig into my lobster, steak, and shrimp because everything smelled amazing. There was no one else I’d rather be with than Shyheim. He made giving love a third chance so worth it. After dinner, he took my hand then led me along the beach.

“Baby…”

I gave him my attention.

“It’s something that’s been on my mind, and I wanted to see how you felt about it.”

We stopped walking as he took my hands in his.

“I want you to officially move in with me and Shy Shy,” he confessed.

I was so shocked my mouth fell open. I think he took it the wrong way because he started trying to backtrack, but a finger to his lips silenced him.

“I would love to move in.”

His eyes ballooned. “Really?”

I nodded. “If we’re being honest, I already live there.” Stepping closer, I placed a hand on his cheek. “And I love what we’re building together. I want to see what happens next.”

“We already have love, so that would be marriage then a baby in a baby carriage.”

He could be so silly, but I loved when he talked about our future like that. It confirmed what I felt—he couldn’t see a future without me in it.

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