Page 56 of Make Her Mine
“You really want me to go to that anniversary party, don’t you?” she asked.
Not to put undue pressure on her… but I wanted her to do all sorts of things with me! Best to pick and choose my battles appropriately. “Ella, it’s just a party. What I really want is just to spend more time with you. And I’d like to do it sooner than a month from now.”
“It’s only three more weeks now,” she said. “Maybe less.”
“Ella, please tell me why you’re staying with your cousin in Dallas.” I need to know. From what Darleen said, there was more to it than helping Sherry out—something Ella wasn’t doing anyway. “You said you’re going shopping and to get your hair done. That’s not helping out at the daycare. You didn’t go there to do that, so what is it? Come clean with me.”
“It’s confidential,” she said. “No, I’m not here to help Sherry. I came to get her help. And I’ve got it. She’s helping me with responsibilities, Brandon. Can you take that answer for now?”
If it meant that much to her, sure. “I guess so. I just wish you trusted me more. For instance, what’s your favorite pastime?”
“What does that mean?” she asked.
“What do you like to do when you have time to waste?” She liked to draw, and I’d like her to tell me more about it. She was talented, and I wanted to tell her that and discuss her taking classes and maybe doing it professionally one day. But she had to let me in on that before I could make her dreams come true. If that was her dream. What are her dreams? She wouldn’t talk about herself that much.
“I play games on my phone when I’m bored.” For a moment I thought she might divulge a bit more information. “It’s not like I’ve got loads of time to waste.”
With a sigh, I let that go. “Okay. There’s a lot of other stuff to talk about. Like what’s your favorite color?”
“Crimson,” she whispered. “Like the red bird. We’ve got loads of them out at the ranch. Each one has its own personality. Some are more skittish than others. Some are more daring, but each is his own bird.”
“Wow.” Ella was insightful and loved nature. She had a thing for cardinals as she had many drawings of them in her hideaway. “Would you say that’s your favorite bird?”
“I love their colors, but my favorite bird is the Mountain Jay or Steller’s Jay.” She sounded engrossed as she went on, “We’d gone up to a small park outside of Denver, Colorado. We were there on vacation. One of a handful we’ve taken in my life. I saw this sapphire-colored bird with a black head. Its body type reminded me of a cardinal. While I love the red more than the cobalt, the way that bird behaves! It’s like an old bird who’s lived in the rugged mountains forever.”
“We should take a trip there,” I said. “Whenever you want to go, just let me know, and we’ll jet off to Colorado. You know what’s super cool about dating a billionaire, Ella?”
“Lots of things, I bet.” She laughed.
“Yeah, I would imagine so. But the cool thing is that I can take you anywhere in this world you might ever want to go. I can take you to see whatever you want to see.” I found a way to get her brain working on what she could do with a boyfriend who had more money than he could spend. “When I get to Dallas, even if you won’t come to my parents’ party, we could go do anything you want. There’s a great art museum we could check out.”
“You like art?” she asked.
A little, but I knew that Ella was a covert artist who needed to come out of the closet. “Sure, who doesn’t? I don’t know much about it, but I can discern appealing things. So, what do you say, will you join me this coming weekend?”
As quiet as a mouse, Ella said nothing for the longest time. I sat there, patiently, then she said, “That might be nice.”
It almost sounded like she agreed to go out with me. “I’ll take that as ayesand make the plans. We can do it on Sunday. Think about coming to the party with me, too. But we’ll for sure go to the art museum on Sunday, no matter what.” I wasn’t letting her back out. “And we’ll do brunch before we go. You love brunch and plenty of restaurants serve magnificent ones in Dallas. Ones that can rival Todd’s Sunday brunches.”
“Is this our first date, Brandon?” she asked, warily.
I wasn’t going to let her think it was anything else but that. “Yes, that will be our first date. Unless of course, you go with me to the party. Then that will be our first date. And I am extremely pleased that you’ve accepted.”
It might’ve taken me some time to finally go out on a real date with Ella, but I was about to show her things not many men could.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Ella
Pulling one item after another out of the wardrobe, I just couldn’t find something to wear to the museum the next day. It wasn’t just that Brandon was in town. I’d been too insecure to go to the anniversary party with him. “No, that’s not any good either, Sherry. I’ve got nothing to wear. I’m not going.”
She took out the new red dress I purchased. “This would be perfect for the party.”
“I’m not going to that. I told you that already. Brandon’s not troubled with my answer, why are you?” I tossed a pair of heels on the bed. “Those hurt my feet. Why did I buy them in the first place?”
“Because they’re a staple of every girl’s wardrobe, Ella. And I’m not taking no for your answer because you obviously want to see Brandon and go to this party. You’re just being shy and insecure. Stop giving in to those feelings, Ella.” She pulled out the azure dress Meagan made me buy. The girl who worked at the daycare proved to be a control freak, but a talented fashionista.
“No,” I held my hands up. “That one is way too…what’ s the word?”
