Page 12 of The Heart of a Capricorn (BLP Signs of Love #19)

“Good morning, ladies.” I greeted everyone as I walked into the conference room. In one hand, I had my favorite mug, in the other was everything I needed to get through the meeting.

“Good morning.” The majority of the ladies spoke back.

I caught Addie’s eye roll as I sat down, but I didn’t address it.

I got that she was mad about Chauncey not wanting to entertain her.

That wasn’t my problem, and the sooner she got over that, the better off she’d be.

I was certain there were plenty of single men walking around that she could have talked to.

She wasn’t an ugly girl, so she shouldn’t have had no problem.

Chauncey was off-limits, though. At least in my mind, he was.

I still hadn’t told him anything about us spending time outside of our little bubble in Vegas.

A huge part of me wanted to, but I was still scared. Here, everything flowed so naturally, but at home could be different. I wasn’t prepared for anything to go wrong between us, and there was no way I would be prepared for something to happen to him.

I pushed him to the back of my mind so I could get the meeting started.

“Okay, ladies. How has everyone been doing? Does anybody have any fun adventures or places they want to share?”

Everyone took a turn talking about their trip so far and the different things they’d done. A couple of them mentioned going to a strip club and how they met a group of guys. They kept it PG, but I could tell by the looks on their faces that it was anything but.

Once everyone had a turn, they all focused on me.

“What about you?” Kim asked. I almost choked on my coffee as I looked up into all their eyes.

I wasn’t sure how much to tell them about Chauncey and me because of Ciara.

I wasn’t sure how she would feel about it, but she couldn’t say anything.

It wasn’t like he worked for the company, but it still felt like something I needed to have a conversation with her about.

“Yeah, we’ve seen you with Ciara’s brother,” Addie spoke up.

I brushed a piece of hair behind my ear and couldn’t help the smile that spread across my face. No matter what I told Chauncey, he wasn’t letting up, and I liked that about him. Each day that we spent together, I became more and more okay with the idea of us seeing where this could go.

“Ooh, look at the smile on her face. I haven’t seen you smile like that . . . in forever,” Shelly teased.

“I’ve known Chauncey since college, but we have been spending time together.” There was no point in lying since multiple people had seen us. “Enough about me. Let’s get down to business.”

If I didn’t steer things in the right direction, they would ask me questions about Chauncey that I wasn’t ready to answer. I didn’t have the answers myself.

Addie wore a scowl the whole time, but when it was her turn to give her updates, she was professional. Her dirty looks didn’t mean anything to me as long as the work was done.

As the meeting continued, my phone vibrated in my pocket. I peeked to make sure it wasn’t anyone important, and a smile broke out when Chauncey’s name flashed across my screen. I couldn’t answer, so I declined the call and slipped my phone back inside.

A few seconds later, the phone vibrated again, and I thought he was calling back, but he left a message.

Chauncey : I’m going to assume you are busy and not dodging me. I wanted to see if you had time for lunch or dinner.

Me: LOL. No, not dodging you. In the middle of a meeting. Dinner is fine. That way I won’t have to rush.

Chauncey: Aight, sweetheart. Enjoy the rest of your day, and I’ll see you later.

He followed his message up with a winky emoji.

I smiled at the phone again like he could see me, then put it away. I wasn’t sure where we were going, but since he loved those dresses I got, I would probably end up wearing another color.

“Sorry, ladies. I promise I was listening,” I told the group as I picked up my coffee mug.

The meeting continued, and we weren’t done until a few hours later. I had enough time to eat lunch in my room and relax until Chauncey reached out to let me know the plan.

“Don’t move,” Chauncey instructed as he came up behind me.

He removed the blindfold he insisted I wear. At first, I didn’t open my eyes until Chauncey whispered, “Open.”

“Chauncey.” I gasped as I covered my mouth with my hand.

Earlier, I relaxed in my room until Chauncey told me what time he would pick me up.

He didn’t give me an idea as to what the night entailed.

Since we were going on a date, I wore a dress with heels.

Imagine my surprise when I got in the truck that Chauncey rented for the night, and there was a pair of sneakers waiting for me.

The only thing he said was that I would need them for where we were going.

I asked him multiple times to tell me where he was taking me, but he remained tight-lipped.

About five minutes into the ride, he put a blindfold on me.

I protested for a good minute, but he told me that he would reward me by the end of the night.

I was anxious the whole way there. Nobody had surprised me, and this would be the second time Chauncey had done so in a short amount of time.

We talked about our day as we drove to the undisclosed location.

“Beautiful, isn’t it?”

My eyes swept over the view. We had driven to the mountains, and somehow, Chauncey had the perfect setting for two when we got to the top.

“It’s breathtaking.” The sun had slowly gone down and painted the sky beautiful shades of red and orange.

I couldn’t get over how high up we were. One false move and we would plummet to our deaths. I shook that thought from my head.

“Come, have a seat.” Chauncey reached for my hand, then led me to the table.

The small round table was perfect, with one long candle in the middle. Two covered plates were on the table, as well as a bottle of wine and water. Near the candle was a breadbasket and a few condiments.

When I sat in the chair, Chauncey pushed my chair in, then walked around to the other side.

I gazed at the view again, just absorbing the landscape. The mountains seemed to expand for miles and miles. I wondered what was on the other side.

“Lift the cover so you can see what we are having for dinner,” Chauncey suggested once he’d gotten himself situated.

The aroma of the food hit me as soon as I lifted the lid, and my mouth watered. Everything looked so good, and I couldn’t wait to dig in. On the plate was honey-roasted duck, with braised red cabbage and wild rice.

“How did you even pull this off?” My eyes flashed to Chauncey’s, then back to my plate.

A simple picnic was one thing, but a romantic dinner at the top of a mountain was on a different level. This man had pulled out all the stops, and my feelings doubled because of his effort.

“I’m a man of many resources.”

He sat across from me in a cream shirt. The first two buttons were undone, partially exposing his broad, tattooed chest and his dog tag. His pants were a shade lighter than the shirt, and he had brown shoes on his feet.

“That you are,” I said as I draped the napkin over my lap, then picked up my silverware.

“There are three glazes here for you to try.” Chauncey pointed to the three small cups that were next to the breadbasket. “I figured I’d give you the option of seeing which one you liked best.”

I picked up each cup one by one and smelled them. All three smelled good, so I figured I couldn’t go wrong with either.

When Chauncey reached over the table and began cutting my lamb, I swore hearts floated in my eyes. I never, I mean ever, had a man cut my food for me.

Lord, is this my husband?

“I think you should start with this one,” Chauncey suggested as he passed me the first cup. “It’s an orange sauce. It’s not my favorite out of the three, but it’s still good.” He jabbed his fork into a small piece of meat, dipped it in the sauce, then held the fork to my mouth.

We held each other’s gaze as I opened my mouth and stuck my tongue out as I wrapped my mouth around the small piece. Chauncey’s eyes lowered as he watched me intently while I slowly chewed, savoring the flavor. The sauce gave the duck a little sweet and tangy taste.

“That’s really good.” I put my hand over my mouth so he wouldn’t see the food inside.

“It is. Try this one, though.” He repeated the same thing with the other sauce.

The second sauce was just as good as the first one, and I told Chauncey that. He smiled as he dipped another piece in the last sauce.

“Hmm.” I moaned and closed my eyes as the flavors danced on my tongue.

“This is a plum sauce and my favorite out of the three.”

The sauce was sweet and fruity, and it made the duck taste ten times better.

“I think that is my favorite as well,” I informed him.

He dipped another piece and fed it to me before he picked up his fork to eat his food.

For a minute, we ate in silence, both admiring the view, but we would steal glances at each other every few seconds.

Chauncey poured us each a glass of Pinot Noir he’d gotten from a brewery in North Valley. The wine paired well with the meal.

As I looked over the horizon, I thought about how I could get used to things like this. I knew it wouldn’t happen all the time, but I wanted to be able to escape from the world at times. Up here on this mountain, nothing else mattered but the moment.

I was the first one to break the silence. “Do you think you’ll ever settle down and start a family?”

“I will. I’ve been on my job long enough, so I wouldn’t mind taking some time off.

I could always work at headquarters, so I would be able to attend doctors’ appointments, late-night cravings, and everything in between.

Whatever my partner and my kids need, I want to provide that.

I would do everything in my power to never miss an important moment. What about you?”

“Yeah. I want to have kids one day, but time is ticking. I only have a few more years left before the chances of a successful pregnancy lowers. I wouldn’t mind at least one child.”

Chauncey stretched his arm across the table and grabbed my hand. For a moment, he stared into my eyes as he rubbed his finger on the inside of my palm.

“I think you will make an excellent mom. Knowing you, you’ll probably work until you go into labor.”

I snatched my hand away from his and giggled. “Shut up. You might be right, though.”

Chauncey’s deep rumble of laughter made me smile.

“Nah, on some real shit. You remind me of my mother. Work hard but also took care of her family. You know y’all are the same sign,” he informed.

“No, I didn’t know.” I picked up my wineglass and took a swig. “My kind of lady.” I winked.

Chauncey reached for my hand again, and we fell into an easy conversation about a multitude of things. We discussed more about having children. We talked about our dream house, whether we were living together or not. The importance of making time for your partner when children were involved.

It was a lot, and I really enjoyed it. We didn’t stay too much longer after dinner because the sun had officially gone down, and we weren’t trying to be out there in complete darkness.

I had such a good time, and Chauncey ‘Tank’ Baldwin had really steamrolled his way into my heart.