Chapter 9 Dinner with the Devil

Arnold had booked down a private table away from the prying eyes of the public and the press. A story about the devil taking a lady out to dinner would sure make the headlines.

"I hope you're okay with Italian food with all the spices they add to their food and all". He asked jokingly.

"It's no problem actually" . Jenny replied Looking round the restaurant.

Pulling out Jenny's chair so she could sit before going over to take his.

As they sat down, Arnold couldn't help but notice how beautiful Jenny looked in the soft light. He smiled, feeling a sense of excitement and nervousness.

Jenny, on the other hand, was taking in the intimate atmosphere of the restaurant. She loved the vintage decor and beautiful colouration and display of artworks.

Signalling to the waiter with his hands,Arnold tried to engage Kenny in small talk.

"So you were born in New York". He made it a statement rather than a question.

Jenny looked up at him after the statement.

"Yes I was". She replied coldly as she does not like talking about her past.

"And please don't start asking me about my childhood". She added quickly,this time in a very cold manner.

Arnold was confused,'what on earth were they supposed to discuss',his heart was racing.

He was losing control again- all because of a lady,as the waiter approached their table Arnold composed himself.

"May I take your order",he asked politely with a smile that went on to his cheeks.

Arnold spoke up,I'll have the spaghetti specials here and she'll have the risotto.

"Alright,a plate of spaghetti and risotto coming straight up". The waiter announced in his heavily stained Italian accent.

Jenny was stunned;

"I'm guessing you've brought Jessica here a lot of times and have dictated what she ate and took right?". She asked sarcastically.

"No",Arnold replied sharply,alarmed at her accusations.

"I ordered the risotto because the doctor asked that you don't take any food with high fibre content or stimulating factors and the risotto was the perfect food I could order". Arnold explained,obviously offended by her accusation.

'He did care about her'. Although she Felt sorry for making the statement at first,she was not going to apologize.

And instead of apologizing...it was a simple 'alright' that came out of her mouth.

He couldn't blame her for her arrogant nature,what did she gain when she decided to be humble anyways,a bruised head and so her new arrogant nature was not a case for him.

The silence between them was getting very awkward; as they waited for their food.

The waiter was back,smiling sheepishly as he approached them with a big tray in his hands.

"We brought you the couple's ice-cream",he announced happily.

It's on the house and we give it to couples who order this table.

Oh!Arnold was excited.

"Oh great!,But we're not a couple". Jenny muttered with her face hardened.

She was determined to play it hard tonight.

As if on cue,both the waiter and Arnold ignored her and continued to make a fuss around the ice cream with Arnold taking pictures of the tray of food.

"I'm going to post this,he said softly".

Jenny was angered by his arrogance and the fact that he ignored her statement.

'Who did he think he was',she should not have come for dinner in the first place.

As the waiter handed her her plate of risotto,

"finally" Jenny whispered.

The risotto wasn't a bad choice of meal as she had thought it would be.

Across the table,Arnold didn't seem to be troubled by her stubbornness and nepotist behaviour since the skirmish on ordering for both of them and her reference to Jessica.

Arnold's aura and charm was something no one could resist;the way he went about his duties coupled with his ego was amazing.

She was literally having dinner with the most powerful man in the city and her pettiness would not allow her to get the best from him tonight.

He was obviously waiting for her to either apologize or talk to him first.

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Her sarcastic nature is pissing him off, she's obviously still pissed about the assault this morning or his choice of risotto for her.

'Well I'll wait till she comes around before saying anything to her',he thought as he stole a glance at her beautiful face again.

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"Thanks for ordering the risotto",she finally said.

Pretending to look up from his meal,he replied

"No problem, I just want the best for you Jenny".

He asked her "Jenny". Jenny's heart missed a beat as the implication hit her,he now considers her as a friend... the heat was rising up to her cheeks again.

"And for the records",Arnold continued oblivious to the discomfort he was causing the lady sitting across from him on the same table.

"You're the first person I'll take out on a dinner like this,so this is a first for me and I don't know if I'm faring well or not"

Jenny felt proud as he spoke those words.

"I've never taken anyone out for dinner outside the mansion;not even my mother",he completed.

"Oh! really",Jenny pretended she was not shocked.

'Yeah',Arnold replied, fidgeting with his fork.

The rest of the dinner was as eventful as any dinner,Jenny let down her guard and spoke freely with her boss turned dinner mate;they spoke about everything and everything from hobbies,to childhood memories,travels and others.

Arnold even told her jokes about his father and mother,Jenny found herself laughing and joking more than she's ever done before.

As they finished their meal and prepared to leave, Arnold reached across the table and took Jenny's hand. "I had a wonderful time tonight," he said, looking into her eyes. "Would you like to do it again sometime soon?"

"Sometime soon",she repeated.

"Tomorrow I will make twenty one days in your mansion as your home secretary and I don't know if my boss will give me the job," she paused.

"So I don't know if there would be mother time".

Arnold laughed at her attempt to remind him of their boss to employee relationship. He decided to play along.

"Why would your boss refuse to give such a brilliant mind as yours ?".

Taking her hands,he lifted her gently from the table using his other hands to remove her chair gently.

"Being a gentleman was indeed hard work",he was used to getting things done but now he has to open doors,lift chairs and do other things for a lady.

Still locking her hand in his,he guided her towards the car,moving slowly as if they didn't want to go home.

"What did I do on my first dinner ?". He asked.

"Oh!,I think you did just great. The choice of restaurant,the food and atmosphere is a solid 100",she said chuckling.

She was finally back to herself,Arnold was excited.

As they walked to the car, hand in hand, the cool night atmosphere carried the sweet scent of Jenny's flowery perfume to his nostrils.

Arnold opened the car door for Jenny, and she smiled as she slid into the passenger seat. He walked around to the driver's side, feeling elated and hopeful.

Arnold turned to take a look at Jenny's face again.

Jenny's heart skipped a beat as she felt a flutter in her chest. She looked away quickly trying to compose herself.

The drive back to the mansion was filled with comfortable silence, the only sound being the soft beat of jazz music from the car stereo and the occasional buzz of passing cars.

Both of them were immersed in their own thoughts.

As they pulled up to the garage, Arnold turned off the engine and turned to her. "I had a great time tonight, Jenny. Would you like to do it again soon?" he asked, his voice filled with hope.

Jenny smiled, feeling a sense of excitement and possibility. "I'd love to," she said, her voice barely above a whisper.

Arnold's face lit up with a warm smile as he leaned in, his lips brushing against Jenny's in a soft, gentle kiss.

She couldn't bring herself to say no to his kiss,she was sure her heart was going to burst out if it's ribcage.

Arnold stepped out of the car first,opening her door for her for the fourth time that night.

"Let me walk you to your room Jenny". Arnold stated.

He called her Jenny again...Jenny's head was spinning.

"And for your information,Arnold interrupted her thoughts, you've been promoted from home secretary to office secretary. It'll be official tomorrow morning though,he added.

"Yeah sure",no problem about that,she was trying to avoid mentioning his name .

"Eddy or Mr Arnold" which she would call him.

As they moved closer to her door,memories of the other night flooded her.

The electricity and connection between them that night was from another world entirely.

Saying goodbyes was not her thing,but for now she just wanted the night to continue and never end with Arnold beside her.

They were going to have the moment again,she knew it as Arnold moved closer to her

As Arnold's lips touched hers, Jenny felt a rush of excitement and happiness. But just as they were getting into the kiss, Arnold's phone suddenly rang, shattering the romantic moment.

Jenny pulled back, laughing. "I guess that's a mood killer," she said, smiling.

Arnold groaned, apologizing as he reached for his phone. "I'm so sorry, Jenny. I'll just turn it off."

But as he looked at the screen, his expression changed. "I'm so sorry, Jenny, but I need to take this. It's my mother."

Jenny's eyes widened in surprise, and she felt a pang of disappointment. She nodded understandingly. "It's okay, Arnold. Take it."

As Arnold stepped back a bit to take the call, Jenny couldn't help but think that their moment together had just been ruined. She sighed, feeling a little frustrated and surprisingly sad.

But as she watched Arnold talking on the phone, she saw the tension in his body, the same feeling of resignation and frustrations on his face. She realized that he was dealing with more than just a simple phone call.

Jenny's curiosity rose , wondering what was going on.

Did his mother have a problem with their outing?,or was it something more about business ?.

Hoping she was the cause of the distress call,she waited for him to finish the call with his mother.

The call was definitely a mood spoiler;after hanging up, Arnold walked back to her with a rather sad expression on his face.

"I have to get to an emergency meeting with some investors immediately".

Mother said she should have called earlier but she's didn't want to Interrupt the dinner I was having with you,Arnold said lightly

A phone call ruined the fantastic moment that we were just about to have with each other,giving her a hurried hug,he rushed away quickly to get his car.

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Alone now in her room,she reminisced on the events of the day..

It was indeed a long day, from getting hospitalised to getting a dinner night out with her boss

It was indeed interesting.

She was drifting from the plan,Arnold must never identify her as his mystery woman. She didn't fall under his charm then because it was just one night but after just spending some days with him,filling seems inevitable .

Most people,especially ladies often see him as an hard hearted man who is simply in incapable of loving or being loved,but there is a side of him that she's seen and lived with which shows that her boss is either a kind devil or an angel people proclaimed to be a devil.

Despite that,Jenny cannot afford to fall in love with him.

Falling in love was out of the option for her.