Perfect Beginning (The Prequel)

chapter 20

For the next two weeks, “next" was more of the same. 

You sent messages to each other knowing they were appearing in the dark when the recipient slept. 

Twice in that time Jin called again and you talked to him until he feel asleep.

You got him to end the chat as he was dozing off and you followed, drifting into dreams of sleeping in his arms.

At the end of those two weeks you got a call in the middle of the afternoon.  You were surprised to see Jin video calling you.  You ducked into your office for privacy.

“Jin, are you ok?” you asked, trying to calculate the time where he was.

“Everything is fine.  I set my alarm to wake up to call.  This time I didn't wake you in the middle of the night!” he laughed. 

This time he was the one with the gravelly voice, sleep laden eyes and crazy bed hair. 

His shirt had a wide neck and was short sleeved,  showing off glimpses of his hard chest and collarbones, his biceps flexing as he moved.

He looked freaking FANTASTIC!

“I wanted to see you just for a minute.  We are starting home tomorrow,” he hesitated for a moment. 

Your heart was pounding so hard you were sure he could hear it.

Jin sat watching your face.  It struck him that this was a stupid idea.  His alarm had jolted him from a dead sleep and he felt like he needed all his wits and charm for these next few minutes.

He ran his hand through his hair and cursed.  He should have combed his hair and put on a decent pajama top. It was too late now.

Gathering his courage, he took a deep breath and asked

“May I take you to dinner Thursday night?  That is if you don't have plans.  You probably already have plans, I should have thought of that. Oh, and if you are ready to go out with me….I mean if you don’t have plans" Jin's face was flushed as his voice trailed off. 

He told himself that was the lamest attempt to get a date in the history of dating.

“I mean….” He tried again.

“Jin…” you interrupted him. 

“Here it goes” he thought crossing his arms across his chest, bracing himself for rejection.

“Jin" you called him again.  When he finally raised his eyes to yours you whispered,“I would love to go out with you.”

“May I pick you up? How about 7?” Jin asked, not even trying to disguise the eagerness in his voice.

At your raised eyebrow he promised this was a real date, just the two of you, no other obligations or distractions.

“Just the two of us.” He promised.  The look on his face and his tone of voice sent a jolt of heat through you.

“Yes" you sighed, ending the call holding onto that promise.

Later Jin sent a message with the name and address of the restaurant  ending with “I am so excited to see you!”.

Nerves were starting to wear on you, your ever cautious heart putting a halt to any giddy hopes.

You took some time to look up the restaurant Jin selected.  It was a very exclusive establishment in the heart of the city.  Reservations were another indicator of Jin's clout. 

You wavered a bit at this reminder, but the memory of his whispered promise soothed you.

Once you got home, you stood in front of your closet, staring. This restaurant called for something more than a casual dress.

Clothes were both a weakness and a strength of yours.  You shopped too much and had way too many things taking up space in the small closet. 
But, you also loved taking the time to express yourself by what you wore.

You used your clothes as armour, to give you confidence, to control the image you wanted to project.
 
So here you were.  When you opened the front door to Jin Thursday night, what did you want him to see?

You thought back to the other times you had spent with Jin. 

He had seen you in your work suit, buttoned down and tailored.  That look was the most reserved and aloof,  yet somehow he seemed to have looked deeper to find your most vulnerable self.

Then he saw you dressed casually, ready for fun, mind and heart open to the opportunity and he ignored the invitation to know you more intimately. 

Now sitting on the floor of your closet,  you had to admit that still hurt.  It felt like you had offered him a most precious gift and he had left it behind , unopened on the table.

You decided you would present to Jin the true self you had worked for over a year to repair.

Your meaning would be clear.  You were an elegant, smart, accomplished woman.  You demanded his respect.

You wanted his affection and attention.  You craved him physically.  However, you would not sacrifice the first for any of the latter.

He would know that YOU  were the gift, priceless and irreplaceable. 

The question was whether the gift would be offered again and if so, would he take this opportunity and not squander it again.

You flipped back onto the floor, staring up at your ceiling.  That was a lot of tough talk.

You jeered at yourself. “It is a date, not a conference for world peace.  And why in the hell are you lying in the floor?”

As you stood up your mind and heart were both set.  You wanted Jin, but you could not allow anyone to break your confidence ever again.  He had a lot of work to do and he had promised to do it!

Now…..what were you going to wear.

Looking to the far left of the closet you searched your “good" dresses.  You pulled one out and sighed. 

It was a pale pink satin.  You had purchased the dress to wear to a friend's wedding.  You could not remember why you didn't wear it.

The bodice was a high neck halter. The waist was caught up in a bow and the full skirt skimmed your hips and fell at tea length on your calves.  The first impression was cotton candy sweet and elegant.

You threw your clothes off and slipped it over your head.  Looking in the mirror you remembered why you left it in the closet. 

The pink was a perfect match for the natural blush in your cheeks.  The satin glided down your body, highlighting your curves.  The waist nipped in and carefully gathered the soft fabric over your breasts. , There was a small slit open in the front, showing glimpses of your cleavage when you moved. You turned a full turn in the mirror and watched the full skirt gently twirl before settling over your bottom in a gentle caress.

Elegant?, Absolutely.  Too sexy? After several minutes of evaluation you decided that no, it was not too sexy. 

In fact you made a wish that it would give Jin fevered  dreams for weeks to come and that he would realize he wanted- and valued – all facets of you.

Now to make it through the torture of waiting until Thursday night at 7 o'clock.

NOTE: we seem to have made the turn toward the "next" in the relationship.  Please comment how you think it is going. Always thank you for your votes, comments and encouragement💜💜💜