She dresses in a simple dress, her hair loose down her body, and a pair of brown boots on her feet. With all her sisters at their homes, for what feels like the first time in weeks, Alexa can relax about seeing Grayson. She runs her hair brush through her tangled locks. Valentina enters the small bedroom Alexa spends a majority of her time in.
"You look beautiful."
Alexa thanks her mother with a head nod. She is still upset about yesterday, but knows she needs to build a bridge and get over it.
Alexa sets her hairbrush down. She smooths down her already smooth dress anxiously. Alexa says goodbye to Valentina and tells the woman to give Timothy a kiss for her.
Grayson stands at the local twenty four hour tavern. His eyes double in size when little Alexa comes into view. Her dress is fitted to her rather average sized bust, dips when her waist dips, and flares out when her hips flare out. It reaches a few inches above her knee. Grayson straightens his back. He's never been one to care what he looks like but looking at Alexa makes him question his outfit of choice: denim pants and a fitted shirt.
Alexa's mouth waters at the muscled creature. He's lean but has enough muscle to fill out his tall figure. Alexa comes to a stop, a puff of dust rising at the halt of her walking, before Grayson. He gives her a charming smile and insists they enter the tavern.
The normals litter the place. The sun hasn't risen yet but almost half the place is full. Grayson takes Alexa's hand, almost instinctively. They'll find a table for two in the back corner.
A waitress with a little serving tray marking on her forearm smiles at the two. "What would y'all like?"
Alexa has been to the tavern many times in her life. Grayson, however, only a handful of times. Seeing his hesitation Alexa requests a few minutes to decide. Grayson gives his date for the morning a grateful smile.
They're given menus before the waitress hobbles away.
"You look beautiful." Grayson reddens at his outburst. Alexa looks down at her attire. This is an everyday outfit, something she'd wear just around the house or to walk to Clara's house for groceries.
"So do you." Alexa realizes her mistake too late. "I-I mean-- uh, that you look rather dashing yourself."
Good job, Alexa!
Her face matches his and she groans. She knew she was awkward around men, but she never expected to be deathly embarrassing around one as gorgeous as Grayson Ryker.
Grayson finally decides on what he'd like by the time the pregnant waitress returns. Envy runs through his veins at the sight. She must have a husband, working, coming home to a pretty wife and a to come child.
Alexa orders first, as Grayson looks as through he's stuck in his mind. "May I please have an early bird breakfast, bacon instead of sausage, and the biggest glass of orange juice you can serve." She folds her menu back up and passes it to the waitress.
"Make that two." Alexa smiles to herself. The two haven't even been seeing each other for twenty four hours, but his voice gives her chills. So deep, so manly, so sexy.
The waitress hobbles off again, leaving the still slightly embarrassed couple alone.
Grayson's hand hesitantly covers the top of Alexa's. She looks up at him, a smile tugging on her lips. He mirrors her smile. "After we eat how about you and I see a movie?"
A movie at six o'clock in the morning? Alexa thinks.
Her eyes widen in surprise but an even bigger smile makes Grayson sigh in relief. He really thought she'd say no, but her enthusiastic expression says something else.
"They're playing a great new cowboy movie!" She exclaims like a child in a candy store. She clasps her hands together in joy. "May we please see it, Grayson? Pretty please?"
Her family cannot afford to go to the movie theater every time an interesting movie comes out. She's been feining to see a movie, the last one she's seen was a princess movie when she was six.
The grown man laughs softly at her pleads. "Of course, darling. How can I say no?" Her smile grows larger, much to his astonishment.
The food couldn't be served any sooner in Alexa's mind. The two inhaled their food and chugged down their drinks. With their fingers intertwined Alexa basically drags Grayson to the theater.
All throughout the black and white film Alexa holds onto Grayson's hand. Excitement would flood her body every time a fabricated gun shot rung out or when the damsel in distress would cry out for her cowboy lover. Alexa finds the movie very intriguing. Although the speaking and noises are a little bit too late for the mouth movements she was engrossed in the story. Stories like this cause her to only believe in love even more. She's a closet hopeless romantic, something her father said was preposterous and too high of an expectation.
Grayson watches Alexa more than he did the movie. The way her lips would become a perfect little circle when something scandalous happened or even when the handsome cowboy protagonist would appear on screen and she'd try to hide her googly eyes and silly smile. He notices every little twitch of her nose, every flinch at a gunshot, every dimple showing smile.
At the end, when the cowboy and the damsel share the passionate kiss, tears gather in Alexa's eyes. She doesn't want it to be over. She knows it will be a while before she will see another cinema film, so she might as well savor this one.
Grayson grabs her chin and softly makes her look at him. She smiles at her date. "Why are you crying, sweet cheeks?"
She blushes at his term of endearment. Nobody has called her anything endearing, except for her father, and the feeling is new to her.
"It's unreasonable," she smiles, "I get emotional when it comes to romance." Grayson's thumb wipes away stray tears from her face.
"It's not unreasonable. It means you have a good heart."
She raises an eyebrow at his words, not entire sure what he means. "A good heart?"
"Sweet things, like romance, make you feel good. Right there," he says and places a hand right above her heart. "You have a good heart, Alexa Hayden, I just know it."
