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my purse and opened the door. Keaton gave me an innocent smile and offered me his arm.
    “You look amazing. Ready to go?”
    I nodded.
    Keaton led me out of the house and into his sleek, silver Mercedes. We drove in silence to downtown Boston and then parked on a side street. I got out and shivered. I pulled my shawl closer to my body as my date led me down the stairs and into a hidden Italian restaurant. From the layout of the place this was an exclusive establishment. Most of the patrons were the upper crust of Boston. The others that I looked at gave me the shivers. Keaton pulled a chair out for me at our table. The waiter handed us our menus. They were entirely in Italian. Keaton ordered a glass of merlot.
    “How did you get into this place?” I asked.
    He met my gaze and gave me a fabulous smile. “I know a few people. Besides, you told me to woo you. So here I am wooing.”
    “Yeah, but you didn’t have to bring me here. This place is overpriced, and I can’t read anything on the menu.”
    He stared at me until I felt uncomfortable. “You deserve the best. Does it make you uncomfortable?”
    I hated that he had gone to all the trouble. “Yeah. Sorry. It’s not that I don’t appreciate the thought, but—”
    He stood up and pulled a bill from his wallet to cover the wine. The waiter looked at him but said nothing. We walked back into the night. Keaton slipped his fingers through mine. I glanced down, and felt a coil of warmth unwind in my heart. I laid my head on his shoulder for a moment. Being with him knowing how much he was trying made my heart soften. He stopped when we got to the car and squeezed our combined hands before bringing them to his lips and kissing my knuckles. A small sigh escaped my lips.
    I hadn’t had anyone try and romance me for a long time. My luck with relationships was horrible. I shuddered to think about all the bad luck I’d had. But that wasn’t something I wanted to dig up now. I only hoped my curse with men had been broken.
    “Hey, you okay?”
    I blinked and stared into his concerned eyes. I brushed a piece of hair from his face. I smiled. “Yeah. I’m okay. Just thinking about the past.”
    “Well I hope it isn’t too bad. It took you away from me for a moment.”
    “I don’t want to go away. I like what we have going here. Even if you are a bloodthirsty monster.”
    “Only for your blood. Look, I’m sorry about that the restaurant. I should’ve asked you where you wanted to go.”
    “It’s okay. I appreciate the thought. It’s been a long time since anyone has done anything so nice.”
    “Well that’s a shame. I’ll have to remedy that. So where do you want to go?”
    He ran his fingers along my cheek. For being a vampire, he was a good guy. I caught one of his fingers when it slid across my mouth and sucked it in between my lips. He tasted good. Thoughts of going back to his place ran through my mind. But a slight headache had formed behind my temples from not eating. He growled when I released his finger.
    “I know a place in Jamaica Plain. This pub that serves some great goat cheese quesadillas. Do you eat?”
    “I can in small quantities. I just haven’t in a long time. Food tastes like sand after several thousand years. But with you it might taste better.”
    “H-how old are you?”
    “I’ll tell you later. Right now, get in, and I’ll take you wherever you want to go.”
    We drove back to Jamaica Plain to the pub that my roommate had introduced me to. The restaurant was upstairs away from the main bar. We sat down, ordered, and when the food was delivered, I dove into it while Keaton watched. After a couple of bites, I noticed he wasn’t touching what he had ordered.
    “Everything okay?”
    He smiled. “Yeah. I was just enjoying watching you eat.”
    I blushed and ran my napkin over my lips only to come away with a long string of cheese. Keaton chuckled. “Why didn’t you tell me there was cheese on my face?”
    “I figured you wanted it