“Now?”
“Yes. We’ve only had dinner. The night is still young. Show me.”
“And you’ll correct me if I do anything wrong.”
“Not until the end of the evening.”
He rolled his eyes. “So I can do anything I want with you.”
She laughed. “Within reason.”
“Okay.” He signaled for the waiter, who brought the check.
Savannah reached for it.
Cole gave her a look. “You’re kidding me, right?”
“This night was my idea,” she said. “I’ll pay.”
He pulled the check across the table and took out his credit card. “I don’t think so.”
Savannah grinned. “Does the idea of a woman paying for dinner offend your masculinity?”
“Hell, yes. Deal with it.”
After he paid, he led her out to his car. The drive was short, since they were already downtown. When he parked across from the Arch, Savannah’s lips curved. He held the door for her and walked her toward the curved icon that symbolized the gateway to the west, the beautiful silver arch that had stood on the banks of the Mississippi River for as long as he remembered.
“Ever been?”
“Actually, no. I’ve always meant to go, but I’m always too busy.”
He laid his hand at the small of her back and guided her inside, where he paid for them to take the tram up to the top of the Arch.
“We have some time to kill before our scheduled trip up,” he said. “Care for a little history?”
Her eyes gleamed with excitement. “Of course.”
They wound their way through the exhibits from the 1800s. Cole had been here before when he was a kid, had remembered enjoying seeing all the stagecoaches and fur traders and guns and everything associated with the exhibit.
It was even more fun looking through it as an adult, now that he had a more thorough knowledge of history. Plus, seeing it with Savannah was enjoyable. She made comments as they wound their way through each section, ending with a recap of the construction of the Arch.
“So fascinating,” Savannah said as they got in line to take the elevator ride up.
“Growing up here, I always take it for granted, but it’s a pretty unique piece of architecture. Wait till you see the top.”
They rode up and Cole helped Savannah up the ramp toward the windows.
She leaned forward to look out.
“It’s beautiful. I can’t believe it took me so long to get here.”
She moved between the east and west windows, wandering in between the tourists who’d accompanied them. Cole leaned against the carpeted sill so he could look out over the lighted city, never more glad to be back home. Seeing the river on one side and the city on the other relaxed him.
This is where he belonged. This felt right to him. It was going to be a good season.
They left the Arch and Cole drove them a few short blocks to one of his favorite places.
The club was dark and had a moody atmosphere. He hadn’t been here in a while, had almost forgotten about it because he usually went to the other club these days.
This challenge with Savannah had reminded him of some of the old places he used to frequent, like this one.
Savannah gave him a dubious look as they grabbed a booth in the back of the club. It was quiet right now. The band must be on a break.
“Someplace else your groupies hang out?”
“I used to come here a lot. Not so much anymore. No idea who hangs out here.”
The waitress came by and they ordered drinks.
Savannah gave the place a once-over. Very dark wood paneling graced the walls. There was no ear-splitting loud music. Not a strobe or neon light in sight. The waitresses wore dark pants and tuxedo-like shirts and vests. There were business people in here. Some folks were dressed up. It was…classy.
Very much not a Cole Riley kind of place.
Several guys stepped up to the band area, pulled up trumpets and trombones and bass and guitars and started playing a slow, very mellow song. A woman got up and started singing, her voice melancholy and filled with lost love and regret.
Surprised, she looked at Cole. “It’s blues music.”
He raised his glass to her. “Yeah.”
She listened for a while as the song sank deep into her bones. She closed her eyes and let the lyrics and the notes fill her as she sipped her most excellent wine. The singer’s voice was deep and throaty and filled with pain.
She turned to Cole. “I love this.”
“I thought you might.”
Then she smiled. There were obviously facets to Cole she hadn’t explored yet, parts to him he didn’t let people see. All the media saw was the party Cole, the angry Cole. That side of him was definitely present, but she’d enjoyed seeing the city from the top of the Arch tonight. It had been so thoughtful of him to take her there. There was nothing more fun than playing tourist, especially when a native indulged you like that.
And this club? Heavenly. She relaxed into the booth and every bone in her body melted into the music.