Risk & Reward

Seventeen

Calum can't help but grin as he pulls into his driveway, the green Bronco parked where it had been last weekend. Pulling into the garage he steps out of his own car, hearing Shi close her door behind him.

"Hey." She greets him with a big smile as he exits the garage again to find her. Her curls are bouncy and eyes sparkling with help from the makeup she's got on.

"I've missed you." He chuckles, pulling her carefully into a hug, avoiding crushing the dress she's got laid over her arm.

"That is a mutual feeling." She mumbles into his chest.

"Come on, I need to change so I can take you out to celebrate this big job promotion you got."

"I need to change quickly too. Makeup I can do in the car, but I was not getting naked in your driveway."

"Probably smart, come on, we've got a reservation to make." He laughs, keeping his arm over her shoulders as he guides her into his house.

Hurrying into his own room Calum pulls a pair of fitted dark grey slacks down along with a white button up. Quickly changing into the dinner outfit he slips into a pair of boots he rarely wears anymore. Ducking into his ensuite he double checks his hair, brushing his teeth quickly before heading back out.

"Perfect timing." Shi exits the bathroom across the hall as he steps out of his room.

Looking up he's practically stunned by the dress she'd picked. The navy blue color stunning against her tanned skin, and enhancing the blue of her eyes. It's not by any means skimpy but the shirt is flirty and short and it hugs her waist just right. "Wow." He clears his throat after a moment, "you look amazing." He adds.

"You clean up real nice yourself, Cal." She blushes slightly at his complement.

"Come on, I'm excited for the plans I made tonight." He motions for her to step in front of him, a choice he's glad she took as he sees the open back of her dress, a bow tied just below her shoulder blades and the skirt hugging just above her hips. A floral tattoo of some kind running up her spine and disappearing behind the bow and her hair.

Grabbing his wallet and keys from the counter where he dropped them he follows her back into the garage, slipping his hand into hers as he pulls her past his everyday Range Rover.

"Taking a different car?" She cocks an eyebrow at him in surprise.

"We're celebrating tonight, we're taking the fun car." He nods, leading her into the third space of the garage, separated by an almost complete wall.

"Wow." She gasps slightly, and Calum grins.

"You deserve the best celebration tonight, Shi. You got your dream job after all." He reaches down, opening the passenger door of his blacked out Porsche for her. He rarely drives it, but he knew tonight was going to be one of the times he did as soon as she'd agreed to the date.

"You sure do know how to spoil a girl." Her smile shows just how appreciative she is of that and he can't help but blush slightly. Closing her door behind her he hurries around to the driver's seat, giving himself a mental pep talk to calm down.

"So," Shi turns slightly towards him as he starts the car with a low rumble, backing carefully out of the garage. "Where are we going for dinner that deserves this nice of a ride?"

"A nice Italian place up in the canyon, we have a table reserved on the patio with a view of the sun setting over LA." He offers her a smile, not totally surprised to see the shock on her face.

"Are you kidding me?"

"No. You got your dream job, Shi. I want to celebrate that with you, it's amazing. It's something I know you've worked incredibly hard to do, and it's worth celebrating to the fullest. Plus, next week marks two months since we met, and that's two of the best months I've had in a long time, and taking you out for a proper, and nice, date has been something I've wanted to do for at least a month. So, I'm taking this opportunity to show you just how special you are to me, and to celebrate that your talent has become the job you only ever let yourself dream of." He reaches over, squeezing her thigh softly, noticing another tattoo he had yet to, three small dragonflies just above her knee. "I can keep blubbering if you need more convincing." He adds when she doesn't respond.