Her Unexpected Valentine

She glanced at him over the glass of wine she sipped. “I wore this crystal because it matched my outfit, and I also wore it because of its energy. Not that this has anything to do with you, but the last real date I went on was with my ex. Let’s just say that the relationship was great in the beginning, but ended horribly. In a way, I guess I’m still healing from it.”

“I understand completely,” Kendrick said. “My last relationship was full of lies and betrayal. On her end, not mine. I learned some valuable lessons because of that experience.”

“Like what?”

Kendrick thought about his relationship with two of his exes. “I learned more lessons than I can even remember right now, but one of the biggest was that I will never date someone I work with.”

“I hear you,” she said, shaking her head. “I used to work with my ex before I started my own business and partnered with a few friends. Before that, I had to see him all the time. Even worse, it seemed like all the people we worked with were in our business.”

“It’s a feeling I don’t wish on anyone,” Kendrick said. “And for me, it’s happened more than once, so I now have strict rules against mixing business with pleasure.”

She smiled. “Then I guess we should be glad that we don’t work together.”

“We should,” he said with a laugh. “And be thankful I didn’t ask to see your résumé to confirm that we never would in the future.”

“Can you do hair and makeup?” she asked.

Kendrick shook his head. “I can do my hair, but you don’t want me to try and do a makeup tutorial. Are you a graphic or creative designer of any kind?”

“Not at all,” she said with a laugh. “I’m not horrible at drawing, but I much prefer to creatively make up faces and eccentric hairstyles than try to design anything.”

“Then we’re good,” Kendrick said, clasping his hands together. “Now we can plan the rest of our lives together without any issues.”

She laughed so hard that the waitress came over to ask if everything was okay. In other words, they needed to be quieter so that they wouldn’t disturb others who were eating.

Once her laughter died down, she continued eating. Kendrick observed her, wanting to know more about her, but not wanting to seem too nosy. He wasn’t sure what it was about her, but she intrigued him more than other women had lately. At times she seemed so transparent, and other times she was hard to interpret.

Conversation through the rest of dinner flowed smoothly. As the night neared its end, Kendrick almost hated to say goodbye, but he needed to get to sleep too. She wasn’t the only one with a busy workday ahead.

“Thanks for having dinner with me tonight,” he said as they approached her car, which was parked down the street from the restaurant.

“You’re welcome.” She turned to face him. “Thanks for asking me out.”

“It was my pleasure.” Kendrick studied her eyes, wondering if a good-night kiss was out of the question since this was their first date. “You mentioned that you’re starting a new job, but I’d love to take you out again next weekend if you’re free.”

Her lips widened into a smile. “I think I’d like that.” Her eyes briefly dropped to his lips and had he not been paying attention, he would have missed the longing reflected in her eyes.

He watched the rise and fall of her chest, wanting desperately to see how her lips tasted. What’s the worst that can happen? Just one kiss and I’ll be satisfied...at least for tonight.

Kendrick bent his head toward hers as she stood on her tiptoes, awaiting his kiss. When their lips were centimeters apart, the loud rumble of thunder caused her to jump back from him.

“I forgot it was supposed to rain,” he said. “With this drought, all of LA and surrounding areas have been waiting for this storm.”

She smiled. “Then I guess we should call it a night.” She kissed him on the cheek. “Have a good night, KD.”

“You too. I’ll call you in a couple days with plans for our next date.”

“Sounds good.”

Kendrick watched her get into her vehicle just as the first raindrops began to fall. He was still looking in the direction of her car after it was out of sight. It had been more than a year since he’d had such a good and relaxing time with a woman, and whether she knew it yet or not, he planned on seeing a lot more of her.

Chapter 3 (#ue7ca70ca-2be2-527b-b728-d7d0622e299d)

“Kendrick, come over here for a second.”

Kendrick walked over to where his friends Monty and Angelica were standing. “What’s up?” he asked as he approached the group.

“Who do you think is more talented... Viola Davis or Taraji P. Henson?”

Kendrick shook his head. “Another debate?”

“Yeah, man,” Monty said. “Ange always thinks she’s right.”

Angelica smirked. “That’s because I usually am.”

Monty threw his hands in the air. “See what I mean?”

“I don’t know, you guys. They are both amazing actresses.”

“We know that, but you have to have an opinion on it,” Monty said. “It’s a simple question. Which one is more talented?”

“Kendrick, if you don’t answer, Monty will never let me get back to work.”

Kendrick laughed, knowing what Angelica said was true. He’d worked with Monty and Angelica in the movie industry for the past six years. They all belonged to The Gilbert Monroe Agency as did most of the crew. Although Kendrick was a creative director, Angelica was a visual effects editor and Monty was a cameraman, they were lucky enough to have been placed on several projects together.

Most recently, they’d each specifically been requested by a major client to do a series of Valentine’s Day commercials that would tie into the promotion of a documentary on the true meaning of love.

“I guess if I had to answer, both are fierce and leaving a mark in Hollywood.”

Monty sighed. “That’s not an answer, Kendrick.”

“Well, it’s the best one I got.”

A voice sounded on the intercom. “Meeting in ten in the main galley.”

“Let’s go now and make sure we get a seat,” Angelica said. Kendrick couldn’t help but be excited for this meeting since he was itching to get back on set. He hadn’t worked on a commercial since before the Christmas holiday.

Whenever he had too much free time on his hands, he tended to do something reckless. And by reckless, he meant he had a tendency to occupy his time with the wrong type of women.

But Bianca was definitely the right type of woman. She was funny, beautiful, had a great—yet edgy—personality. However, she wasn’t the type of woman he needed to see again. Kendrick had made a vow to focus solely on his career in hopes of landing a director role before the fall. He didn’t have time to date around, especially a woman like Bianca.

Unfortunately, he doubted he could stay away from her. She was the type of woman he always imagined he could be with. He’d been immediately drawn to her when he met her at the bar, and their date last night exceeded his expectations. He realized that he was getting more attached than he probably should.

Another date won’t hurt. Although he didn’t have any time to seriously date, he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to get to know her more. One could argue that he was thinking too much about the situation, but he’d have to disagree. If anything, he wasn’t thinking enough given all he’d been through with women in the past couple years.

“Look, I spot some seats.” Kendrick followed Angelica and Monty to three open seats in the corner of the room.

“Hey, you never did tell me why you missed poker night yesterday,” Monty said.