Alexander

Dakota

I arrive early at the restaurant Dakota gave me. It takes 7 seconds to make a first impression on someone and I don't want her to think I'm some guy that is always late.

I await at the bar with a martini in my hand and I sip it slowly. "Waiting for me?" Grinning I turn around to see the beautiful Ms. Dakota.

"No, I was waiting on the beautiful girl from the beach. Not this stunning woman before me." She laughs and it's the sweetest laugh I've ever heard like God laced her voice with honey before he created her.

Dakota had on a black V-cut shirt and a light pair of blue jeans her hair was pent up in the back and she had on red lipstick and looked absolutely amazing. "Care for a drink?"

"I'd love one." I get her a martini and a waiter walks us over to a table. I pull Dakota's chair out and she has a seat.

"A real gentleman, aren't we?" Now this isn't the Dakota I talked to on the phone. That Dakota was shy, this Dakota is confident, strong and it was something about this Dakota that I found irresistible.

As she took a sip from her martini I found myself mesmerized by the way her lips griped the straw, the way how her posture was so perfect, the way her hair draped across one side of her face. Sober she was shy, but tipsy she was Madeline.

Later into the meal, I found myself stealing glances at her and when she would look at me, I would quickly look away and hide the smile that dared to spread on my lips. At one point Dakota stared into my eyes, and at that moment I saw a beautiful girl that I don't think I could ever let go.

"So, tell me something." She looked at me with a fork partly in her mouth.

"Tell you what?"

"Something about you."

"About me?" I grab the straw in my glass and start to swirl it around. "What about me?"

"Anything. Like your family."

"My family."

"Or, your work."

"Work."

"What do you like, you know?"

"What do I like?" I take a sip of my martini and swallow hard.

"Well, there's just my parents and my brother, but they don't live here. I grew up in a really rough town, we made best of what we had."'at each word I speak she seems to get more and more intrigued.

"Wow, so how'd you end up here?"

"I wanted a change." She nods and for a moment I want to get the subject off me before I reveal too much. "What about you?"

"Me?" She puts her hand across her chest and I nod as she searches to find details about herself.

"I have a sister and a mom, but that's it. My dad walked out on us when I was a baby. My mom struggled to provide for all of us, so when I turned 16 I got a job at a fast food restaurant to help my mom pay bills. When I got old enough, I quit for a better paying job and moved out."

Maybe I underestimated Dakota, she seems more fierce than I've taken her for. When the time is right Alexander. When the time is right. "You're quite the lady Dakota."

"Why, thank you Eli. I must say, you're not that bad of a man yourself." She winks at me and I can tell she border line between tipsy and drunk, so I check my phone and pretend something important just came up.

"Uh, something very important just came up with work. Why don't I call you a cab." I pay for our meal and leave a tip.

"What about my car?"

"Write down your address, I'll have someone send for it." She writes down her address, than hands me her keys, and we walk outside, so she can get some fresh air.

"I must say, Eli, I've had a wonderful time." I keep my hand placed on her back because I can tell she's staggering a bit and I wait for Phillip to show up.

"I did too, Dakota." As Phillip pulls up, I put Dakota in the car and go over to Phillip's car window. "I've sent her address to the GPS. Phillip checks it and I confirm it. "Make sure she gets in good and thank you."

"No problem, boss." I shake Phillip's hand and watch as he drives off. I call another one of my guys to come for Dakota's car which I notice is red.

I don't want anything to happen to Dakota's car, so I wait until my guy comes to get it and wait a few minutes after he's gone. Just as I'm about to go home, I get a phone call.

"You think this is funny !" A sly smile spreads across my face as I hear the anger in Blane's voice.

"Blane, so good to hear from you. How are things?"

"I'm not playing with you Alexander ! Wait until I get my hands on you, you're a dead man!"

"Blane, haven't you heard? I'm already dead. You started the game, now I'm finishing it." I hang up, with the satisfaction that Blane is hot. He should know by now that if you want to play big boy games, make sure you're not in no mans land.

I get to my house safe and sound and Clark greets me. "You want a drink, man?" I shake my head.

"I've reached my limit today, thank you." He looks at me shocked.

"Your limit? You never have a limit." I lay back on the couch and stare at the ceiling.

"You're right. It's just, I've met this amazing girl and for the first time in forever....I don't know. Maybe I really could use that drink." He hands me the drink and I take a sip.

"I haven't seen you this way since...." His voice trails off and I finish the sentence for him.

"Madeline." There is an awkward silence between us and then he finally speaks.

"What's the lucky girls name?"

"Dakota." He smiles warmly.

"So, that's why you decided to stay a while. Sir, I must warn you, be careful. You know how harsh the business we're in can be and with each moment of success comes a designated hater."
I nod.

"I understand."

"What's she like?" I sigh and smile. It seems like I talk about Dakota for days, but I know it's only a few minutes. "She sounds like a really nice girl."

"That's because she is." It feels like I'm a patient as I lay on the couch and Clark is a therapist. It's good to have that one person you can tell everything to while in this business. If you kept everything to yourself you wouldn't make it. So, I always keep a line of therapist stand by for my employees.

"How's business?" At the sound of the word business, a sly grin spreads across my face at even the thought of
Blane's frustration.

"Good, I got a new employee."

"That's wonderful news! Who?"

"A new barista, her name is Blythe." Clark looks as if he's in deep thought.

"Hmm, that name sounds so familiar."

"Who cares, I stole her from Blane." Clark's eyes go wide.

"Oh, no."

"What?" Clark shakes his head.

"Blythe is Blane's girlfriend." I look at Clark and it all pieces together.

No wonder there was such a commotion after I gave Blythe my card, and when she called me and said that she nearly escaped death, it makes sense. "Are you okay, Eli ?"

"Oh, I'm going to have fun with this." I smile and take a drink.