50 Shades of Drake 1 and 2

Chapter Forty-Four

    In the limousine, Aubrey wiped her tears from Destiny's cheeks. "Do you want to talk about it?" he asked.

    She shook her head quietly and stared out of the window.

    "If you do, I'm here."

    She nodded.

    The ride was quiet. The limousine pulled up in front of one of the most highly regarded restaurants in D.C., located on the Potomac River. He helped her out of the car and escorted her through the front door of the establishment. They were shown to a premium table where Aubrey pulled out her chair for her, always the gentleman.

    She glanced around the restaurant. A man was playing the piano in the corner of the room. Well-dressed people ate, drank, and conversed.

    "Have you ever been here before?" Aubrey asked her.

    She shook her head.

    "Their food is top-notch."

    A waiter arrived with their menus and explained that evening's specials.

    "Could we have a few minutes?" Aubrey asked him.

    The young, dark-haired man nodded. "I will check back on you both in a few minutes."

    Aubrey watched him leave and turned his eyes onto Destiny. "Talk to me."

    "Chad and I broke up," she blurted out with her eyes lowered. "The day you and I...the day of graduation. After you left."

    "I'm sorry to hear that."

    "Are you?" she asked him, meeting his gaze.

    He stared at her for a long moment. "No," he said. "I'm not."

    She shook her head and looked away from him.

    "I'm not sorry that you broke up with him," he amended, "but I am sorry that you're hurting."

    "He was an amazing guy," she told him. "He loved me. He was sweet to me. He did everything he was supposed to do. He did everything right."

    "Why did you break up with him?" Aubrey asked softly.

    "Because I didn't love him."

    "You realized that the day of graduation?" he asked, his eyes narrowing.

    She blinked back tears. "I knew for quite awhile."

    "Why did you stay with him so long if you knew that he wasn't the man for you?" he asked her.

    "Because I wanted him to be the one," she told him.

    He nodded. After a moment, he gestured to her menu. "You need to look over your menu. Decide on what you want."

    She sniffled and dabbed at her eye with the napkin before picking up the menu. She could barely see past the veil of tears in her eyes, but she settled on a chicken Caesar salad. She wasn't particularly hungry.

    When the waiter returned, Aubrey relayed her order and put in an order for a salad for himself.

    She stared at him. "That's all you're going to order?"

    He grinned. "Are you used to men ordering steaks and potatoes? What should I have ordered?"

    She shrugged. "It just seems...light."

    "You ordered it," he pointed out.

    "Yeah, but I feel miserable. I'm distraught. I'm not that hungry."