It would have been easy for Francesca to blame the alcohol for her behavior in the car on the way back home, but in actuality she wanted to sit with her legs pressed against Bens, and her head resting upon his shoulder on the ride back to their building
....
"So, I guess this is where I drop you off.." Ben said as Francesca let go of his arm and began to twist her key in her door.
"It is." was all she'd manage to get out before the door opened and her90lb pup Roxie came rushing out the towards her, however as soon as the dog spotted Ben it began sniffing around his feet in a circle - causing Francesca to laugh softly.
"Sorry about that, I guess she likes you too."
As she smiled towards Ben and leaned her head on the door jam she wasn't quite sure what to expect. A lot of men would attempt to talk their way into her place and subsequently her pants. However, much to her appreciation, Ben didn't try his hand at some sleazy come on and he surely wasn't trying to insert himself into her place, instead he was being the gentleman at the end of their evening that he was at the start.
"I hope we can meet each other again. I don't want to push my luck, but would you like to go out for dinner tomorrow night?"
Francesca's face lit up at the suggestion, but her expression quickly changed to one of apprehension. "No!" she yelled out, as soon as she saw Roxie Laying in the middle of the elevator. Thankfully she got there in time to stop the elevator doors from closing and sending her dog on a little journey. After pulling Roxie out she'd hold onto her collar and walk the dog back inside the Condo before addressing Ben again.
"Sorry about that, she can be a bit mischievous at times, a pouco perturbador* as my mother would say. I meant to respond with a yes, I'd love to."
Francesca would walk slightly out of the door opening until she was close enough to Ben to lean in and kiss him on the cheek. "It's been a pleasure." she'd whisper in his ear, before stepping back into her apartment - holding her finger up to Ben as if to say "hold on." Several seconds later she'd come back to the door with a piece of paper that had two sets of numbers written down on it. "My home and my cell." she began with a smile as she placed the piece of paper in Ben's pants pocket. "I tend to get calls to my cell quicker, but either will do. I'm free all day tomorrow, so whatever time is best for you will be just fine with me."
It had been longer than Francesca cared to count since she last went on a real dinner date with someone, and it was certainly the first time in her adult life someone showed interested in her solely for who she was as a person, and not for what family she belonged to or what parties she could get into. The idea of him eventually learning about her family caused a gulp of apprehension to form in her throat, but it quickly faded, and Francesca would stand smiling in the doorway until Ben stepped onto the elevator, and once the doors on it shut she'd step back into her condo and shut her own door.
There were a myriad of missed texts from Damian on her phone, questioning her about who she was with, where she was, and so on, however instead of responding a tipsy Francesca made her way into her room where she'd drop her phone on the nightstand, take everything but her undergarments off, and flounce down on her bed.
Roxie quickly followed her into the room and began to paw at the side of the bed for permission to come up, which Francesca naturally gave to her. Too lazy to get under the comforter she'd pull a thin blanket at the end up the bed up and over her body, and within a few minutes she was completely out.
.....
Like clockwork Francesca always walked Roxie at 9am and then fed the pup shortly after, so when she woke up to see 11:47 on the clock she instantly shot up - quickly spotting a dejected Roxie laying by her open bedroom door.
"Oh I'm sorry I'm sorry, gosh - I really overslept!"
Francesca quickly grabbed a red silk robe, wrapped it around her frame, and headed out into the living room. She'd slip into a pair of black flip flops, run her fingers through her hair a few times, and then attach Roxie's leash to her collar before heading out the front door.
Several minutes later the pair meandered back into the Condo and Francesca would promptly feed her pup before slowly making her way to the master bedroom's bathroom, where she'd stare at herself in the mirror and sigh. Brushing her teeth and following that with a swig of mouthwash usually came after the shower, but this morning she felt the need to get the lingering traces of alcohol out of her mouth before jumping into a nice warm shower.
Her phone went off a couple times while she was bathing, and as much as she rather lay back down and ignore the blinking light she knew she had to check and see who called - hoping it was perhaps Ben. Instead the dampened brunette found two missed calls from two club managers, and as she listened to their messages Francesca sighed and rolled her eyes. As expected they were inviting her to what sounded like the a-typical bash, something she might have been more excited about if it was a year ago and she didn't have quite the headache. Besides, she was much more focused on her upcoming date with Ben. It was now only a little past noon but she couldn't help but think about her dinner date as she slowly got dressed in a burgundy short-suit with matching platform flip flops. Once dressed Francesca would put her damp hair up in messy bun, pet Roxie on the head, and then head out the door once again with her phone and keys in hand.
It only took a few minutes to make her way own to the building's restaurant, and once inside Francesca would buy a large cup of black coffee to wake herself up and two blueberry muffins to fill her stomach. Even though the place was largely empty she took her order to a table in the back of the room beside the window and sat down away from the entrance.
*Pouco perturbador means "little troublemaker" =)