Khaleed checked his watch for what felt like the fiftieth time and was about to ring the bell for a waiter to pull his bill when he got a message from Damon
"Where you at?"
"King's Kitchen"
"A lunch meeting?"
"A lunch date actually
with Jasmine"
"Fr? So you weren't kidding about hitting that chic" Damon sent with a surprised emoji
"Shut up dude...It's not just about hitting"
Damon sent a laughing emoji in response "Yeah yeah, whatever you say, bro, do you"
He was typing a response when he heard a low, raspy voice
"I hope you've not been waiting for long?"
He looked up at the source and grinned, relieved she came
"I've been here for a while, didn't think you'd show up"
She tilted her head at an angle and it seemed to make her look more beautiful, "You're calling me a no-show?" She asked
He shook his head slightly, it's too early to be whipped Khaleed, he chided himself and stood up to pull out her chair
"Oh?___thanks" She said genuinely surprised
He shrugged "What would you like?"
Jasmine didn't have the chance to eat the spaghetti she cooked, and was hungry.
'I'd prefer a big serving of anything on the menu' she thought, but that wasn't proper dating etiquette. Though she hasn't been on enough dates to know what proper dating etiquette was for the life of her.
A glance at the menu almost had her eyes bulging out with the insane prices of the food
What happened to burgers and pancakes? and the good old milkshakes too.
Khaleed watched her staring at the menu for a long time and wondered what the problem was "You having trouble deciding on what to order?"
"Yes, actually
I hope you don't find this weird, but I'd prefer a burger and fries over the fancy dishes"
He raised his brow in surprise, most girls would have no issue ordering the priciest thing on the menu, but this girl preferred a burger? she's interesting
"You can get it if that's what you want"
"Really? orange juice too?" she asked, her eyes lighting up
"Of course" He nodded, smiling then rang for a waiter.
"We would like two burgers, French fries, and orange juice, thank you," Khaleed told the waiter and if he thought his order was unexpected, he didn't react or comment.
'Good man' Khaleed thought.
She couldn't help but stare at him, everything about him was refined, from the way he spoke to how he was dressed.
She had to admit, he looked hot in a three-piece suit that had to be custom-made, with the way it hugged his body
He had perfectly groomed hair that glinted brown and almost brushed his shoulders, giving his otherwise put-together ensemble, a bad-boy look.
"So tell me about you," She said when the waiter left, suddenly eager to know more about him, he was always vague on the phone
He glanced at her, she had a knack for surprising him, she wasn't like the women he was used to in any way.
Most women didn't care to know about him, only about the things he could buy them and the money they can get from him
Which meant she didn't know who he was, he thought she would have figured it out when he told her his name is Hadi.
"I should have asked first, but since you beat me to it___what do you wanna know?"
"Where you're from for starters, have any siblings? Your hobbies and stuff like that"
His lips twitched, that's all she wants to know. not if he's in a relationship, or what he wants in a wife? her obliviousness to who he is was refreshing
Their food was brought to the table with a jug of orange juice, she thanked the waiter and put ketchup on a side of her plate, she didn't like squirting it on the fries at once. Then speared some fries with a fork and took a bite, she moaned at the taste, damn this is good
She opened her eyes and found him staring at her intently with a look she couldn't quite describe
"Is there something on my face?" She asked reaching for a serviette then dabbed at her lips self-consciously
Way to go, Jasmine, he's probably appalled at your manners. Her subconscious said in a snarky tone
Khaleed was going to say he was from New York when she made that sound, his eyes were riveted on her lips as she chewed with her eyes closed.
She caught him staring and started dabbing at her which was probably good, he was seconds away from licking 'non-existent' sauce from her delectable lips.
She had asked if there was something on her face, and he cleared his throat.
"No, there's nothing on your face, I just got...." He trailed off, I got carried away for a minute.
Her eyebrows pinched together in confusion, Her subconscious reared its head again "Carried away, thinking about your poor table etiquette or lack of, no doubt"
"Thinking about what?" She asked
He stared for some time before collecting himself, his glance finally moving from her bow-shaped, glossy lips to her arched eyebrows and her brown orbs, which looked dark, framed by long lashes. Again her face looked devoid of makeup, for someone whose job was being a makeup artist, she didn't seem to care for it.
"You're beautiful" he commented
"Even without makeup"
Not this again, Jasmine thought.
She never understood why people called her beautiful, she was tall and has a slim body with an almost tiny waist. The one thing she loved about herself was her long, curly hair, which had natural bronze highlights from spending time outdoors.
She always finds it hard to respond to compliments "Thanks" she replied and took a drink.
"I believe I asked you a question"
Well that didn't go well, Note to self: she doesn't like to be called beautiful, which only made him more curious about her
"I'm from New York"
She raised an eyebrow "You're home then"
"Yeah, you can say that I was born and raised here before going to college. How about you?"
"I was born in Texas, but my family and I recently moved here"
"Nice...how long has it been?
and how are you liking it so far"
"It's almost a year now__and honestly it's been great
I got a great job and a lovely boss" Her face lit up at the mention of her job, clearly she loved it
"Nice...but I could have sworn you're mixed?"
She smiled "You're not wrong
my mom is Nigerian and my dad is from Texas"
"I knew it, I have a friend that is from Nigeria.
what part of Nigeria is your mom from, if you don't mind me asking"
"No it's fine" She shrugged
"She's from Ondo state, so she's Yoruba"
"Wow, can you speak her dialect?"
"Oh yes I can" She grinned
"I'd love to hear it sometime" He smiled
"So back to your question, I have a sister, Cassandra, she's the sweetest
I'm mostly too busy to have hobbies, but in my free time, I love sailing__the feeling of controlling the ship, riding with the waves
it's relaxing"
Sailing? A very expensive hobby
"I'm not sure I'm into that, never been on a boat. I like the beach but I'm scared of the water"
He laughed "You won't know until you try, I could take you sometime"
She seemed surprised at his suggestion "I'd leave you to ride the waves, thank you" she quipped
"You're always too busy? What is it you do exactly?" She asked him curiously
"I work at Hadi Holdings"
Her eyes widened, he had to be big deal at work then "Wow, that's amazing" She exclaimed.
He chuckled at her reaction, she seemed fascinated by the idea of his workplace and not him or the money he earned.
He wondered how she would react if he told her he is the CEO but decided against it.