Page 14 of Unwritten Vows

Liza

After Derrick’s somewhat chauvinistic words about one of his many old flames, I should expect him to continue on the same path of being a jerk.

He was nice enough on our last date, but he was on his best behavior, I’m sure.

Tonight, he’s sure to start letting some of his true character spill out. He can only cover it up for so long.

To my utter dismay, however, he is the perfect gentleman throughout dinner.

I’ve picked a small, high-end bistro downtown.

I thought of this low-key French place as a good appetizer for the high drama of the opera.

Plus, Daddy knows the guys here somehow, which means Derrick won’t be paying for my meal.

I would rather he didn’t pay for anything if this will be our last meeting.

Derrick gets out of the car and smoothes his suit down before reaching his hand toward me.

He pulls my chair out for me when we get to the table.

He talks about the appetizers and entrees in a knowledgeable way, even though the entire menu is in French and some are authentic dishes rarely found in American restaurants.

I look down into the bread basket as I contemplate my own thoughts. Last meeting. Why do those words feel so uncomfortable? They’re so final— too final. But isn’t that how I wanted this night to go? Don’t I want this to be the end?

It’s not like you’ll never see him again. I catch myself thinking about this in a whimsical fashion and banish the thought completely. I know, though, that this is not good news. It feels like I want to see him again. And I don’t even know why.

“Try the bread; it’s amazing,” Derrick says. I look up at his beautiful face, lit up by the flicker of the candle light, and a pit forms in my stomach. Shit .

“You’re super quiet, little Liza. Are you worried about something?” He eyes me casually, seeming truly interested in my response.

“Why do you like me?” I blurt out all at once. I’m not sure where it came from, but now that it’s out, I don’t hate the question. I’m not admitting anything. I’m not giving him a reason to think I like him .

He blinks and although his face doesn’t change, it’s the most startled I’ve ever seen him look. “Why do I… I don’t think a girl has ever asked me that before.”

“Just answer the question.” I raise an eyebrow.

“What is this, some kind of interrogation?” He shifts in his chair, and shit, I’m almost positive it’s because he’s worried.

“You’re stalling.” Now I have to wonder if there’s more to this little game than meets the eye.

Something strange happens to his face. It goes from startled, to searching, to finally, a defeated sort of look.

He gazes off, as if in resignation. “I think we would be good for each other, Liza. We could help each other in a lot of ways, but that’s only part of it.

I know you like me. And you know what? You happen to be different than I thought you’d be, too.

I thought you were going to be some prissy little primadonna. ”

Instead of being angry that he thought of me that way, I’m somewhat amused. But I won’t let him know that. “So you didn’t like me. It really was just for our fathers’ approval.”

“Well, yes. I was pretty upfront about that, wasn’t I? Plus, you’re hot as hell.” He meets my eyes uneasily for the first time since I met him. “I wouldn’t usually be so blunt about all this, but I’ve gotten the feeling from you that you’d rather I be honest.”

“Everyone would rather be told the truth!”

Derrick shakes his head. “No way, Liza. That’s just not the case. In fact, I’ve known lots of women, especially when I was younger, who I tried to be honest with. You know what they did? Got very fucking angry. Spread rumors about me. Lied about the way we broke up. And you know what I did?”

He has me captivated, pinned in his gaze. I shake my head no.

“I shrugged. I shrugged and moved on. Why?” He leans forward and cocks his head. “Because that’s my schtick. I’m the one who doesn’t care. I’m the one who makes a joke and changes the subject. I move. The fuck. On.”

The appetizer comes right on cue, but he only releases the tension when I finally break my gaze from his.

We take a few bites, with a few mumbled words about how great the quiche is, when I finally come up with something to say. “You know, you didn’t give a direct answer for why you like me. Or even whether you do or not. And now that I think over it, it feels more like you don’t.”

His eyes meet mine again and I find myself holding my breath. “Well, you’ve got it backwards then, Liza. I thought you were someone you weren’t, and I was wrong. Not only do I like you, but I’m intrigued. And that doesn’t happen very often.”

I’m a little breathless. That usual hint of insincerity is gone and is replaced by a clear gaze, straight into my eyes. There’s definitely still something resigned in there, but mostly, it seems like he’s getting a load off his shoulders. Like the more he speaks his mind, the lighter he feels.

“Okay,” I say, and dip my head to take a bite of my dinner and get away from his skewering gaze.

“Okay,” he says with a smirk, and does the same.

*****

We arrive at the opera house about 20 minutes before the show starts.

We’re let in through the back, our security surrounding us so that no one knows we’re there.

Once we get to our box seats, he pulls my chair out for me, and I almost roll my eyes.

But whether he’s just showing off or really trying, this side of him is admittedly very nice to see.

The show begins, and as always, I get sucked into the swell of the music, the rising and falling, and the emotions of the singers vibrating through me.

When I’m watching a beautiful live show like this, I feel like I can actually breathe it in.

There is no other feeling like this in the entire world.

I become aware of my surroundings just before intermission, when Calaf, the unknown prince who has fallen in love with Turandot, the Chinese princess, gets all three of her riddles correct to win her hand in a marriage that she doesn’t want.

I look over to Derrick, and I’m shocked at what I see.

He’s riveted, the same way I was, to the action playing out before him.

I find myself watching Derrick more than the show, as Calaf, who has fallen in love with the young princess, tells her that if she can figure out his name before sunrise, he will forfeit his life so that she can be free of him.

Derrick’s face falls, almost comically, as soon as the words leave his mouth.

He still looks surprised when the lights for intermission come on. He blinks and looks around, then notices me staring at him.

“Oh, you want a drink or something?” He turns to one of his men and motions with his hand.

The man turns to leave, and I give him a slow smile as he looks back at me. “Enjoying the show?”

He shrugs and clears his throat. “Sure, it’s great.”

I wait just a few seconds, staring at him expectantly.

“Okay, I liked it, but then they had to go and ruin it by doing something completely unrealistic. He had what he wanted. He answered the riddles correctly and won her, fair and square. No one would give that up.”

I can’t help but smirk and answer back sarcastically. “I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again—you are such a romantic.”

“Yeah, whatever,” he says, waving my comment away.

“It’s not about romance at that point. There’s no way someone would play that game with their life just to get a woman to love them.

But, okay, let’s say times were different and he did it for marriage, to better his situation.

He gets it… and then he gives it up in hopes of her falling in love with him?

Even though he has everything he wants from her? No way.”

I look at him, somewhat incredulously. “He doesn’t have everything he wants from her, though, obviously,” I point out. “The most important part is her love . Her willingness.”

Derrick turns his body towards mine, fully engaged now in a way I’ve never seen him.

He never cares about anything, and it’s strange to see him worked up in any way, even if it’s just to make a point.

He’s even hotter when he’s being all smart , I think, and wince at my own sentiment.

There’s a part of my brain that says, Well, this is not what you had planned, is it?

But I ignore it for now and just focus on what he’s about to tell me.

“What does he love about her, Liza? He loves her beauty, right? He’s got it.

He loves her money? He’s got that too. He loves her prowess and her reputation, even though her reputation is for being sort of a conceited monster.

Guess what? He’s got both of them. What else could he love about her?

He doesn’t even know her. But there are others who could benefit from him accepting her hand in marriage—his family. His own father!

His shockingly cogent argument reduces me to silence. I bite my cheek, considering how I want to counter him while the waiter comes back with two glasses of bubbly, sweet smelling liquid.

“Maybe he just sees something in her. Sometimes you just can’t explain why you feel a certain way about someone.

And instead of wanting to procure her, like some award-winning piece of livestock, he wants to give her some feeling of control over her own fate.

So that she might choose to love him back. ”

Derrick snorts and swirls his champagne. “I’m just saying, it would never happen. And I already know what she’ll do. She’s going to find out his name and not give him up because—uh oh!—she’s fallen in love.”

I had already figured this might happen as well, but his skepticism is completely ruining the entire grand gesture that I was looking forward to. “So what? You know, maybe that’s all us women want. Just a little say over our own future!”

Silence falls around us as we both realize that this discussion has become about us and not the show. I watch as he leans in to say something, but then second-guesses himself and relaxes his posture. I think I know why. He’s wondering if he’s said too much. He’s wondering if he’s lost some ground.

But what he’s done tonight was the complete opposite of what I expected in every way. He’s been pleasant, gentlemanly, and has even opened up to me. If all there is to him is the womanizing party boy, then he wouldn’t be able to give me real feelings, even just discussing an opera with me.

Fortunately for him, but most unfortunately for me, he’s gained a great deal, whether I like it or not.