apartment and turned the engine off. Neither of us made a move to get out of the car. Instead, Rhys turned toward me, waiting for an explanation.
I decided to go with the former. “Yeah, it slipped my mind, Rhys. My fault. I ran into her a few days ago in Barnes & Noble, and I asked her if she wanted to do something tonight.”
“Uh huh,” Rhys grunted. The corners of his lips turned up like he could tell I was holding back. I played it off like I didn’t even notice.
“So,” Rhys said after a moment, “where are you taking my Izzy? It better not be Burger King or some shit like that.”
I looked over at him as if he had lost his damn mind.
“Hell naw, I'm not taking her to Burger King. And, no, I ain’t taking her to Mickey D’s either. Some new restaurant opened up in Virginia Beach a couple months ago. Toriello’s. It’s supposed to be a ‘grown and sexy’ theme tonight. I figured we could have dinner over there, maybe some dancing. And before you say anything, yes, I plan to keep my hands to myself. I know about her man. It's just fun. Does that sound decent enough for 'your' Izzy?” I threw in that last comment because I knew for myself that Toriello’s was a great place to take a woman. It was one of the most expensive restaurants at the Beach. Most women we’ve dated in the past never got a first date like the one I was going to give Isabel, and he knew it.
Rhys nodded in agreement. “Yeah, that sounds cool. Just, you know—”
“What?” I asked, curious.
Rhys took a deep breath. “You know that Izzy is important to me. I mean, she’s like a sister, man. I just don’t want her to get hurt or disappointed.”
“I have no intentions of doing that man,” I reassured Rhys. “You know me better than anybody. When have I ever disrespected a female, besides a couple of whacked out females you tried to set me up with?”
Rhys chuckled. He knew I was right.
“Listen, man, I ran into her and we talked. I like her, too. I mean, what’s the big deal? We go out tonight and converse a little, have a good time. We become friends just like she is to you and you are to me. That’s all I’m looking for, dude. She told me all about her man in Texas. I know she's off the table. I just want to get to know her like you did.”
Rhys looked at me and grinned a little. “Yeah. She said she hit it off with you too. And she told you about Kyle, huh?”
I nodded. Rhys had mentioned her fiancé before Isabel and I had met, and I couldn't lie and say I was less than pleased to discover she wasn't single. That's not to say I was surprised, though. A nice woman like Isabel wouldn’t stay single for long.
“Well, alright Rich. Y’all have fun tonight. Let me know how it goes.”
“Oh for sure!”
We gave each other a fist pound and he got out of my car. I sat in his driveway for a few extra seconds before I pulled off. Strange as it may seem, talking about my date with Isabel actually gave me butterflies. What the hell was I nervous for?
* * * *
The look on Isabel’s face when we walked into Toriello’s was priceless. The huge restaurant doubled as a club with two upstairs dance floors: one for the smooth types who just desire good music, strong drinks and a grown and sexy atmosphere, and the other for the diehard dancers who needed to sweat out a few issues to the latest Hip Hop and R&B songs. The entrance to the building was grand with a high ceiling, and the restaurant portion of the building had floor to ceiling windows, soft lighting and plenty of well-dressed bodies. The atmosphere reeked of “money.”
It was obvious that this place was different from anything Isabel was used to. I took her through the main dining room, my arm around her waist. By the time we made it to a large tropical aquarium near the center of the
I decided to go with the former. “Yeah, it slipped my mind, Rhys. My fault. I ran into her a few days ago in Barnes & Noble, and I asked her if she wanted to do something tonight.”
“Uh huh,” Rhys grunted. The corners of his lips turned up like he could tell I was holding back. I played it off like I didn’t even notice.
“So,” Rhys said after a moment, “where are you taking my Izzy? It better not be Burger King or some shit like that.”
I looked over at him as if he had lost his damn mind.
“Hell naw, I'm not taking her to Burger King. And, no, I ain’t taking her to Mickey D’s either. Some new restaurant opened up in Virginia Beach a couple months ago. Toriello’s. It’s supposed to be a ‘grown and sexy’ theme tonight. I figured we could have dinner over there, maybe some dancing. And before you say anything, yes, I plan to keep my hands to myself. I know about her man. It's just fun. Does that sound decent enough for 'your' Izzy?” I threw in that last comment because I knew for myself that Toriello’s was a great place to take a woman. It was one of the most expensive restaurants at the Beach. Most women we’ve dated in the past never got a first date like the one I was going to give Isabel, and he knew it.
Rhys nodded in agreement. “Yeah, that sounds cool. Just, you know—”
“What?” I asked, curious.
Rhys took a deep breath. “You know that Izzy is important to me. I mean, she’s like a sister, man. I just don’t want her to get hurt or disappointed.”
“I have no intentions of doing that man,” I reassured Rhys. “You know me better than anybody. When have I ever disrespected a female, besides a couple of whacked out females you tried to set me up with?”
Rhys chuckled. He knew I was right.
“Listen, man, I ran into her and we talked. I like her, too. I mean, what’s the big deal? We go out tonight and converse a little, have a good time. We become friends just like she is to you and you are to me. That’s all I’m looking for, dude. She told me all about her man in Texas. I know she's off the table. I just want to get to know her like you did.”
Rhys looked at me and grinned a little. “Yeah. She said she hit it off with you too. And she told you about Kyle, huh?”
I nodded. Rhys had mentioned her fiancé before Isabel and I had met, and I couldn't lie and say I was less than pleased to discover she wasn't single. That's not to say I was surprised, though. A nice woman like Isabel wouldn’t stay single for long.
“Well, alright Rich. Y’all have fun tonight. Let me know how it goes.”
“Oh for sure!”
We gave each other a fist pound and he got out of my car. I sat in his driveway for a few extra seconds before I pulled off. Strange as it may seem, talking about my date with Isabel actually gave me butterflies. What the hell was I nervous for?
* * * *
The look on Isabel’s face when we walked into Toriello’s was priceless. The huge restaurant doubled as a club with two upstairs dance floors: one for the smooth types who just desire good music, strong drinks and a grown and sexy atmosphere, and the other for the diehard dancers who needed to sweat out a few issues to the latest Hip Hop and R&B songs. The entrance to the building was grand with a high ceiling, and the restaurant portion of the building had floor to ceiling windows, soft lighting and plenty of well-dressed bodies. The atmosphere reeked of “money.”
It was obvious that this place was different from anything Isabel was used to. I took her through the main dining room, my arm around her waist. By the time we made it to a large tropical aquarium near the center of the
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