Free Defensive by J.D. Rivera

the whole typical date thing, except going out for dinner a few times. I strolled up to her door carrying pink flowers. Instead of unlocking it like usual, I knocked. I waited a few minutes so I knocked again, louder. A couple of minutes went by and she finally opened the door. I could tell she had just woken up because one side of her face had red marks from the pillow and her hair was out of place. She looked beautiful.
    “Hey, babe. I thought I’d take you out on a real date,” I said as I handed her the flowers and gave her a gentle kiss on the lips.
    She gave me a quizzical look as she pulled back, “Thank you, they’re beautiful. Why are you taking me on a date, though?”
    “I wanted to surprise you. I realized today that we’ve never done the whole dinner and a movie thing. I’m sure Channing Tatum or Zac Efron have a new movie out you’d like to see.”
    She kissed me again. “Aww, babe. You’d sit through a movie while I drool over another guy? So sweet.”
    I watched her walk into the kitchen, getting a vase down from the cabinet and filling it with water. She put the flowers in and arranged them until they looked perfect to her. “I’d do pretty much anything for you. Even watch you drool over another guy,” I told her.
    She put the vase down on the counter, then walked over to me. “I love you so much, Jackson Berrios. Let me go get dressed.”
    “Okay. You’re picking the restaurant, so wear whatever you want.”
    “Ohhhhh, let’s go to some diner and eat home cooking.”
    “Whatever you want.”

    “Fried okra is one of the best things ever invented,” she said as she crammed a piece into her mouth.
    I smiled. I loved that she wasn’t shy about eating around me. I hated watching girls pick at their food or always order a salad. “It is really good.”
    “This chicken fried steak isn’t bad, either. How’s your catfish?”
    “It’s good. How was your day with Amanda?” I asked as she popped another piece of okra in her mouth.
    After she swallowed, she answered. “It was fun. We had pedicures and then we went dress shopping.”
    “Did you buy anything? I love seeing you wear a dress.”
    She laughed. “You wouldn’t have liked me in these dresses.” I gave her a confused look so she went on. “Neither one of us had any money so we played this game that we’ve done since high school. We basically go through and find the most hideous dresses to try on and see who wins.”
    “Seriously? That’s what you did?” I asked.
    She giggled. “Seriously. What’d you do?”
    I took a drink of the best sweet tea I had ever drank. “I played video games with Eric.”
    A smile crept across her face. “You hung out with my nephew? That’s so sweet.”
    “I hung out with your brother, too.”
    “Did he mention Amanda at all?” she asked.
    “Not that I can remember. Should he have?” I asked before taking a huge bite of catfish.
    “I texted him a picture of her is all. I thought maybe he would’ve said something.”
    “He didn’t. Sorry. Although Eric had my attention on the game.”
    “You know he really likes you. He thinks you’re amazing.”
    “I am amazing. You don’t think I’m amazing?” I teased.
    “Of course I think you’re amazing. More than amazing.”
    I grabbed her hand. “I feel the same way about you. Now eat up because we can’t miss the movie.”

    “I can’t believe you fell asleep,” Vanessa said as we drove out of the theater parking lot.
    “I’m sorry. I tried, I really did, but romance movies make me tired.”
    “I guess it’s okay. I still had a really great time tonight. Only one person asked for your autograph.”
    “I’m glad you had fun. Next time I’ll stay awake. I promise,” I said with a wink.
    “Don’t make promises you can’t keep,” she muttered.
    I decided not to say anything about her comment and pretended I didn’t hear her. I didn’t want anything to ruin our night. We had both had fun.
    As soon as we got inside my