They arrived at Alex's door and kissed again, long and passionately like on the bench. "Goodnight, Alex. Thanks for the walk and the sunset. See you on Thursday!"
"Goodnight, Wes. I'm looking forward to our date already!"
She shut and locked the door, again leaning back against it like the previous night. She still had worries about moving too quickly, but every minute she spent with Wes reduced those worries and made some of them go away. She already knew that it was going to be difficult not to see him tomorrow, and she wondered how she was going to manage the weekend without him.
Wednesday was a repeat of the start of the day Alex had enjoyed the two previous mornings. It had been a long time since she'd had a romantic evening that would top what she and Wes had the night before with the sunset stroll at the apartment complex lake, followed by some pretty hot kissing. But perhaps more importantly to her was the calming presence she felt when she was with Wes. To her, it was almost like they had bypassed the awkward part of a new relationship where two people were still learning each other and gone straight into what she would refer to as "quality time."
She still had a nagging sensation that they were moving too quickly, and that concern had prompted them to agree to not see each other in person until their dinner date on Thursday evening. They both realized it was going to be harder than they might have expected earlier in the week, but then neither of them could have predicted they'd already be to this point in their budding relationship.
That evening, they spent their time texting each other back and forth, determined not to walk the short distance to each other's apartments. The specter of the M&M bet was still fresh on their minds, and they were trying hard to adhere to the challenge of not going to each other's apartments. They had met in the clubhouse at the complex on Monday, followed by a walk to a pizza place for dinner together. And then the previous evening had been spent on the sunset bench. Each of those evenings had concluded with Alex and Wes kissing as he dropped her off at her front door.
They couldn't have guessed this is where they would be, when just four days prior, they had first met after Wes' son Wesley had run up to Alex with a sprig of wildflowers in his hand, telling her that a beautiful woman deserved beautiful flowers. From that moment, things exploded in a short amount of time.
But with every passing hour of every day, Alex found herself worrying less and less about going too fast with Wes. Part of that was because since he had come into her life, she had not thought about what her ex-fiancé Anthony had done to her, causing her to call off her wedding. She had spiraled into a deep darkness for the two months following that terrible discovery. But she was so thankful that a handsome man and his impossibly cute three-year-old son had reached down and pulled her out of her misery, giving her a new bright outlook on life.
On Thursday, Alex found herself peeking at the clock in her classroom all day, wishing it would go faster so she could be with Wes again. She was happy they were going to make their goal of not being with each other until he picked her up for their date. But she also realized how much she missed him, even though they had been in communication with each other. She also knew that no matter how the date went, they were still going to have to resist finishing the night in one or the other's apartments. She wasn't going to lose the bet with her friend Lori, no matter what it took! She had to prove that she was responsible enough to stay in control and not give in to her desires.
She and Wes had decided by text that even though this was really their first formal date, they would dress casual, since they were planning on having dinner together at Allen's Smokehouse, known in foodie circles as the best BBQ in town. They both agreed that it wasn't really a place where you saw a lot of formal dress, so as she got ready for him to pick her up, she tried on three different outfits before settling on a pair of blue jeans and a western shirt that she purposely left a few snaps open on the top.
Finally, Wes knocked on her door. It was a few minutes before 7:00, but she had been ready for half an hour, so she didn't mind him already being there. She waited a few seconds to open the door because she didn't want to appear needy and desperate. When she did, there was her handsome friend, flashing a smile with which she become familiar. Being careful not to step into her apartment, he held out his arm for Alex to take, then led her to his car.
Alex was impressed to see a mid-size SUV waiting for her. Like a gentleman, he opened her door for her, waiting until she was seated before shutting it. Once he got in, he started the SUV, but before he pulled away, he reached over and grabbed her hand, giving it a squeeze. She looked up at this unexpected gesture, only to hear him say, "I really missed you!" Alex blushed and squeezed back. It was a nice little romantic way to start their date.
Even for a Thursday night, the Smokehouse was packed. They were given the option to spend their twenty-minute wait time at the bar, and they both agreed. Alex was a little surprised when Wes ordered iced tea, so she chose the same thing, causing Wes to look at her again and smile. He could see the surprise on her face, so after their teas were delivered, he explained his choice.
"Part of the reason I'm a parent today is the beer-fueled decision I made to have a one-night stand with what turned out to be Wesley's mom. After that happened, I did a major review of my life choices to that point, and clearly saw that alcohol of any kind wasn't going to help me reach my dreams. I still have a drink occasionally. But being with you tonight, I absolutely don't want any alcohol dulling my senses and robbing me of any enjoyment with you. I haven't really asked if you're a big party girl or not, but I figured I should let you know my stance and what brought it on."
Alex took a drink of her tea, and then looked at Wes. "I admit to having some good times in the past, although I don't have any one-night stands to my credit. But with Anthony, there was always something around to drink, and that's because it seemed there were always some of our friends with us - well, really his friends, as I would come to find out after the fact - and that meant there was plenty of beer and even stronger things to drink. As sad as I was after I called off the wedding, I was smart enough to realize that I was going to feel lousy for a long time, and I didn't need alcohol to drive me into deeper darkness. So, I haven't had a drink of anything since I canceled the wedding."
Wes held up his mug of iced tea. "How about a toast - here's to not needing alcohol to having a good time!" Alex raised her mug, and they clinked them together before taking a drink at the same time."
It was Alex's turn to offer a toast. "And here's to many more good times together!" Before Wes raised his glass to hers, he laughed out loud.
"I was going to say the same thing!" They clinked and drank again. Once the mugs were put back on the bar, Wes turned to Alex again, getting her attention. "One more - here's to the start of a very good night together! With that, he leaned in and kissed Alex - not a long kiss, but long enough that Alex felt a flush spread through her body.
