All right. Here we go.

  Kaitlyn shifted in her seat, the vinyl of the side common room's couch squeaking slightly beneath her. Her hand fiddled with her phone, unable to entirely stop fidgeting as she waited. Still, the glowing rectangle was a better place to direct her nervousness than the dress she wore.

  This is just a practice run. We're just going out to eat. There's no reason to be so nervous…

  "Hey, Kate."

  She looked up from her phone to see Elliot step into the common room. The ginger wore a different outfit than the one he used at the job fair. Instead of a white dress shirt, a similarly well-fitting one in forest green hugged his torso and emphasized his shoulders. A black necktie had been expertly knotted about his collar, matching the pair of black slacks and dress shoes that replaced his jeans and work boots.

  She blinked. Dang. He really looks good in that.

  It shouldn't have been too surprising. The whole point of tonight was to practice being formal, so of course he'd dress in something nice as well. Still, the fact that he pulled it off so well somehow caught her off guard.

  Kaitlyn shot him a smile. "Hey! You're early."

  The ginger chuckled as he closed the door behind him. "Speak for yourself. This may be the first time a girl's been ready before me, and I'm not just talking about Esme. I hope you haven't been waiting too long?"

  "Nope. I just finished up some work stuff early, figured I'd get away from my computer for a bit." She stood from the couch. "How do I look?"

  She looked down at her own attire. A relatively simple rose-colored dress wrapped around her torso, forming a strap over one shoulder before falling to her ankles in graceful folds. Simple pearl earrings adorned each of her earlobes, matched by the tips of her sandals where they just peeked out from beneath the hem.

  It wasn't the dress she'd ordered. That one wouldn't be finished until just before the work event. This was just the extra she'd picked up while at the tailor's shop, something to wear for the practice dinner with Elliot. Of course, even it had been altered to fit her quite well.

  As she looked up to meet Elliot's gaze, she found his attention focused entirely on her. His expression had taken on a strange kind of intensity, one that she couldn't quite place. But the attention made her cheeks warm. "You look amazing," he answered honestly. "That color works well on you. And…" His head cocked to one side. "Are you wearing makeup?"

  Kaitlyn's hand rose to her face, but she stopped herself before touching it. "Is it that noticeable?"

  It certainly hadn't been her own doing. But Heather had insisted that a dress this nice required some kind of makeup, even if it was a more natural style. Her roommate had managed to win the argument by insisting that it would only take ten minutes to apply. Of course, she'd also insisted that doing her hair was an absolute must, but that was one bullet Kaitlyn had managed to dodge. For now.

  Elliot immediately laid her fears to rest. "Not at all. It's really well done, actually. Enough to smooth over bits you might've been self-conscious about, but not in-your-face about it."

  She let out a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness… I hope it's not too much. I know it's just dinner, but still… I don't know if I've ever really dressed up like this."

  "Don't worry about it." He crossed his arms, leaning back against the wall casually. "To be honest, we could get away with a lot less than this. As nice as the place is, not a lot of restaurants actually require something this formal, much less a full-on suit like your work party calls for. But we won't stand out as being overdressed, either. And besides, you look great."

  Kaitlyn smiled. "Thanks."

  He smiled back, a bit of warmth suffusing his normally aloof demeanor. Then he chuckled. "Though I will say, we do look a little out of season like this."

  She frowned. "Huh? What do you mean?"

  "Well… it's a bit early for Christmas."

  Kaitlyn looked at herself, then at Elliot one more time. Sure enough, between the deep red of her dress and the forest green of his shirt, they looked suspiciously like they were headed to some formal holiday party. He chuckled at her look of concern. "I'm joking. Come on. Let's head out."

  He extended a hand, gently guiding her to the elevator by her elbow and headed to the parking lot. As usual, she would be the one driving to their destination—a detail that amused Elliot to no end.

  "I still can't believe you actually bought a car."

  "What? Did you think I wouldn't?"

  "Of course not. At the time, I thought it was a joke. But now…" He shook his head. "Honestly, I'm used to it."

  "To be fair, it has been pretty useful," Kaitlyn defended herself. "It's been great to get off campus. Convenient, too. Now I don't have to worry about begging rides off of people for every little thing. I can just run to the grocery store whenever I need to."

  "Fair enough."

  Kaitlyn tensed as they approached her parking spot, bracing herself for yet another outsized reaction to her car. But rather than freeze in shock, Elliot just whistled appreciatively as it came into view. "Dang. Where did you say you worked again?"

  "Er… John Avenue Capital."

  Elliot nodded sagely. "Aaah. Suddenly this all makes a lot more sense."

  "Wait, you've heard of it?"

  "Of course. The place is pretty well known in the finance world." He tilted his head curiously. "How in the world did you land a job there? Especially as a first-year?"

  If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  Kaitlyn grimaced. "It's… a long story."

  A decades long story, to be exact.

  Reading her expression, Elliot shrugged. "Well, maybe you can tell me over dinner. But either way, congrats. Seems like you've got things together even more than I thought."

  She chuckled slightly at that. "Yeah. I wish that were true. It would save me a whole lot of headache…"

  They settled in, and the engine purred to life as Kaitlyn backed out of the spot and turned toward the main road. Her grip tightened around the wheel as she steeled herself for the coming dinner.

  All right. Here we go. Time to learn how to be fancy.

  ***

  The moment they walked in, Kaitlyn knew they'd come to the right place. At least, if "being fancy" was their goal.

  The restaurant appeared to go with a classic interpretation of the theme, with decorative filigree and paintings adorning its wood-paneled walls. Gilded light fixtures hung from above, their glow illuminating crystal glassware and pristine white tablecloths with a dim candlelit ambiance. Despite most of the tables being full, the room felt much quieter than she'd expected, and the sound of soft piano music remained audible above the conversations and clinking of cutlery.

  Kaitlyn absentmindedly tucked a stray hair behind her ear. Shoot. This is nicer than I expected.

  It was one thing to go to Chella's. Though the restaurant's quality and prices certainly rendered it a few steps up from the norm, collared shirts were about the most formal thing she ever saw a patron wear, whereas jeans and tennis shoes weren't particularly uncommon—especially among regulars. But here? Every single person looked dressed to impress.

  Geez. I get that some people like dressing up like this, but it just makes the atmosphere feel… stuffy. Maybe it's because I'm not used to it, though?

  She continued to take in the scene as Elliot led her to the hostess's desk. "Hello. Table for two under Ambrose?"

  "Good evening!" A birdlike woman gave them both a polite smile. "Of course, sir. Your table is ready, if you'll follow me."

  They were led deeper into the restaurant where a private booth awaited their arrival. Plates and cutlery sat in neat arrangements before either seat, topped with a precisely folded napkin triangle. A small candle flickered near the wall next to an arrangement of fresh flowers. The hostess set menus on the table before leaving them to settle in.

  As the woman left, Kaitlyn let out a quiet sigh and smoothed her dress. Well, that's step one done. At least we're kind of hidden back here…

  A quiet chuckle brought her attention up. Across the table, Elliot leaned his chin on his fist with an amused smile. The expression made her face redden with embarrassment. "What?"

  "Nothing. Just that you really do look like a fish out of water."

  Her blush deepened. "That's why we're here, isn't it? I told you I wasn't used to this stuff."

  "I know, I know. It's just such a contrast to how you usually act." He leaned back in his seat, letting his arm rest on the table. Compared to how she felt, his entire posture radiated a calm confidence. He looked more comfortable here than she ever had at Chella's, even with the countless times she'd eaten there.

  Then again, maybe he's a regular here. Who knows.

  "Of course it is. Usually, I know what's expected of me, what I should and shouldn't do, all that stuff. But here," she gestured to the borderline opulent decor all around them, "It's totally different."

  He gave her a shrug. "It's really not. We're just wearing different clothes, that's all. Pretend like it's a normal dinner and act natural."

  At his encouragement, she forced herself to lean back, trying to mirror Elliot's casual posture. Based on the slight twitch of his lips, she wasn't entirely successful.

  She grumbled, crossing her arms and abandoning the effort. "Cut me some slack. I'm trying to practice, ok?"

  He gave her a roguish grin. "Well, that's what we're here for, right? Here, I'll explain some of the etiquette stuff so you stop treating it like some sort of secret code…"

  With that, Elliot began to explain the meanings of all the different forks, plates, and glasses that lay neatly arranged across their table. Evidently, there was a method to the madness. Each utensil corresponded to a specific course of the meal and thus had a designated order in which they'd be used. There were even guidelines about when to unfold one's napkin or where to put one's silverware once you were done with a dish.

  "You know," she interrupted as Elliot explained the different kinds of glasses, "This is just convincing me that there is a secret code. How else do you explain all of these random little details?"

  He chuckled and shook his head. "You're not wrong, but like I keep saying, this stuff really isn't that important. Like the whole 'butter individual bites of bread as you eat it' thing? No one cares. Literally no one. Honestly, I kind of suspect it's a way of catching people who are trying too hard at this point."

  "Then why even tell me?"

  "Well, you did ask. And it would be funny to see you try and do it all."

  She stared at him, hard. "You're the worst teacher."

  "First Esme, now you…" He shook his head in mock disappointment. "And I thought I was being so helpful, too."

  Katilyn put her head in her hands, trying and failing to suppress a long-suffering sigh at the ginger's antics. This guy… how can he be so helpful, yet such a menace at the same time?

  "Like I said, though, you really don't need to worry that much. Remember that you're a customer. Even if you do mess something up, you'll get a lot of leeway," he pointed out. "And if it's something major… I'll absolutely make sure to let you know. And make fun of you, for good measure."

  Her head snapped up. "Wha—?!

  The retorts bubbling up within Kaitlyn's belly were cut short, interrupted as the server appeared to take their orders. Elliot shrugged innocently, a grin blossoming across his face even as she glared at him.

  I am so figuring out a way to get you back for this…

  Despite Elliot's ribbing, the dinner progressed rather pleasantly. They chatted about etiquette, of course, but also about the food and lab and other more mundane things. Kaitlyn felt herself begin to relax as the evening wore on and the initial unfamiliarity of the situation faded.

  I guess this is kind of helping. At least I'm not worried that touching the wrong fork or drinking too much water will be some unforgivable sin anymore. Just knowing what kind of stuff to watch out for helps. And besides… She watched Elliot briefly rest his elbow on the table as he spoke. It looks like he wasn't kidding about most of this stuff not being a big deal…

  It wasn't just her, though. Elliot seemed relaxed as well. Despite their surroundings, his body language radiated a sense of quiet confidence—once reinforced by his continued willingness to mess with her at every opportunity. He was enjoying himself, more than she'd ever seen.

  Maybe this really is his home turf. The kind of thing he's used to.

  It reminded her of who she was really dealing with. Despite knowing about the ginger's family history and background, it had never really stuck like it did now, seeing him be so at home in an environment like this.

  Well, I guess there's more than one reason why he picked this place. She glanced around the room one more time and took in the elegant furnishings. Still, I've gotta admit… I do like it. Really romantic, too. It would be a great place to take someone on a date.

  Kaitlyn's thoughts screeched to a halt. Her hand froze, half-extended toward her water glass.

  …Oh.