Page 6 of Dare to Love

“Everyone’s staring,” I murmured, acutely aware of the attention we were drawing.

“Let them,” Reid replied, dropping his voice to a low but surprisingly confident tone as he inched toward me, his gaze pinned on mine as if no one else existed but us.Fuck he was good.“That’s the whole point, isn’t it?” To convince them all that we’re madly in love?”

I instantly felt the warmth in my cheeks as he uttered those words. “Madly in love might be overselling it a bit. I’d settle for tolerating each other’s company without homicidal intent.”

“Is that what we’re doing?” He raised an eyebrow at me as his gray eyes caught the light in a way that made them look almost silver in color. “Are we just tolerating each other?”

I paused as I suddenly became unsure on how to answer as the truth was over the past few days and the more, I’ve found myself around him I’ve admittedly not exactly hated being in his company. It’s not to say that Reid Belgrave wasn’t still arrogant and infuriating, but he was also surprisingly thoughtful in ways I hadn’t expected. Like how he’d picked up and remembered that I preferred dark chocolate to milk, or how he’d sent me coffee to my place from Bayfront Beans knowing that I had been up late the night before preparing a special order for a wedding.

“I suppose you’re marginally less annoying than I initially thought you’d be,” I conceded, reaching for my water glass to hide my smile from him as I took a sip.

“That’s high praise indeed. I’ll cherish those words forever.” Reid uttered back.

The conversation between the two of us flowed so easily that when the server returned, she had to cough to grab our attention as she held a bottle of wine—a rich red that I was surprised to find was one of my favorites. When I raised my eyebrows in question, he simply said, “I ordered it earlier and asked them to hold onto it until we were ready for our meals. Paisley mentioned it was a favorite of yours.” I wasn’t expecting him to be so close suddenly with my eccentric best friend and have random conversations with her about my likes and dislikes.

The thing was dinner at Big Chowder was supposed to be just a normal part of the dare. A public appearance to cement our relationship in the eyes of the town but with every passing minute that we spent in each other’s company I couldn’t help but feel a growing tension between us. The restaurant had a romantic ambiance—soft lighting and with the clink of glasses in the background from the other guests along with the subtle shared glances we tried to steal from one another and brisk caress and touch it instantly made the atmosphere feel charged. Reid was charming. Too charming. He was nothing like the grouch I had seen previously—a charade and act I was certain he’d ignited to protect from other women. Instead, I was greeted with a humor that matched my own, a smile that made my stomach flip and I couldn’t forget the way he listened to me—he made me feel like I was the only person in the room. Every touch, every moment between us was starting to blur the lines between reality and the dare.

“So, tell me something real,” he said after our appetizers arrived—a plate of seared scallops that were almost as deliciousas they were expensive. “Something not in the script. Something that you want to tell me.”

“Like what?” I asked as I took a sip of the delicious wine, considering his request.

“Like why chocolate?” he asked, his expression genuinely curious. “Of all the things you could have done, why open a chocolate shop?”

It wasn’t a question I was expecting if I was honest and for a moment, I found myself caught off guard. Most people just asked about my recipes or complimented my creations; they rarely asked about why I took the direction I did.

“My grandmother,” I said finally, setting down my glass on the table and dropping my gaze. “She used to make these incredible truffles every Christmas. I’d watch her in the kitchen for hours, mesmerized by how she could transform simple ingredients into something magical.” I smiled at the memory of her. “After she passed away and I was cleaning out the house I found her recipe book. It was like finding a piece of her again and I couldn’t hold back from experimenting with her recipes, then eventually creating my own. It just... felt right, you know? Like I was meant to be working with chocolate.”

“That’s beautiful,” he said simply, causing—a warmth, a sincerity—that made my chest tighten unexpectedly.

“Your turn,” I said, trying to lighten the mood. “Tell me something real. Why law?”

His expression shifted slightly as I lifted my gaze to meet his as a shadow passed over his features before he regained his composure. “Justice,” he said after a pause. “I believe in justice. In things being... fair, but you sort of figured that out when we met. I’m guessing.” I nodded at his admittance knowing there was a story there but it wasn’t for me to press further on. If Reid wanted to talk to me about it then I would be here waiting. The night flew by as we ate and drank talking about themischief Grant and him got up to and how they worked on cases simultaneously. I even shared stories about some of my more eccentric customers and of course my favorite regulars like Miri and her boss Evander. As we joked and drank more, I couldn’t help but find myself laughing more than usual and allowing my guard to slowly come down.

“I can’t believe we’re doing this,” I said, my voice low with a playful note in it as I reached my hand across the table.

“I think I’m starting to enjoy this dare more than I should,” Reid confessed grinning as his gaze lingered on my lips for just a moment too long. The words hit me in a way I wasn’t expecting, stirring something inside me. The whole point of the dare was to keep things light and to pretend but with each second I spent with Reid it had started to feel more real. I could feel a heat building between us and had no idea how to control it just as my phone buzzed on the table with Paisley’s name flashing on the screen. I hesitated for a second before answering, part of me reluctant to break the moment. The moment was lost and the flames instantly sizzled to nothing…

“Sorry, I should take this,” I said, reaching for the phone. “It might be about the shop.”

Reid nodded, gesturing for me to go ahead.

“Hey, Paisley,” I answered, trying to keep my voice casual and level.

“How’s the date going?” she asked, her excitement coming through loud and clear through the speaker. “Is it convincing? Are people buying it? Or are you going to have to?—”

“Everything’s fine.” I snapped back at her knowing it only took for our server to walk past to overhear her through the speaker. “Actually, our food is just arriving Pais, I’ve got to go. I’ll tell Reid you were asking and can you double check that Cal is alright with that recipe. If he needs me?—”

“He’s fine, Lil. Enjoy yourself, but remember—” She attempted to reinforce her statement as I shook my head before Reid reached for the phone making me squint my eyes at him.

“Bye Paisley.” He uttered down the line before ending the call. “That woman.” He shook his head, “anyway I’m going to pay the bill and then shall we get out of here?”

“Sounds like I plan.” I uttered as I watched him smoothly command the server and take control of the situation.

After dinner, Reid insisted on walking me home, even though my apartment was just a few blocks from the restaurant. The night air was cool but not unpleasant, carrying the salt of the bay as we strolled in comfortable silence.

“You know,” I said eventually, “for a fake date, that wasn’t half bad.”

“High praise from the woman who once called me ‘the rude, grumpy asshole of a lawyer,’” he quipped, though there was no heat in his words.

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