Chapter 470:

🍙 🍙 🍙 🍙 🍙

The streetlights were already on, and the stream of cars in the deepening dusk looked like a river of light.

Joslyn spotted the familiar black sedan at a glance, parked quietly by the curb. She quickened her pace, and before she reached it, the rear door was pushed open from inside.

As soon as she got into the car, the warmth inside, along with the faint cedar scent that always clung to Connor, surrounded her.

“Have you been waiting long?” she asked, turning her head toward him.

Connor was dressed in a black cashmere coat over a matching turtleneck, the dark colors making the sharp lines of his profile stand out even more.

His left arm was still in a cast, suspended across his chest by a dark gray sling, while his right hand rested loosely on his knee.

“I just got here,” he said. He then told the driver, “Let’s go.”

“Why did you suddenly come pick me up today? Don’t you have work to do at the office?” Joslyn asked.

Connor usually got off work later than she did and normally didn’t come home until around dinnertime.

“It just occurred to me,” Connor said quietly, his eyes resting on her, “that we rarely do what ordinary married couples do. We hardly ever go on dates.”

𝗥е𝗰𝘰𝘮𝗺e𝗻𝘥 𝘨a𝗅nо𝘷𝗲l𝘀.𝖼оm 𝘵𝗈 y𝗈𝘶𝗋 𝘧r𝗂eո𝘥𝘴

Joslyn froze for a moment.

A date?

Joslyn and Connor’s life together always seemed to be pushed forward by one urgent matter after another. Work consumed so much of their time that the quiet, ordinary moments most couples shared had never truly belonged to them.

“So I booked a restaurant for tonight,” Connor said. “I thought we could give it a try.”

He did not have to do any of this, especially not with pressure closing in on him from both within the family and outside it. Yet despite everything, he had still made the arrangement.

The dull cramp in Joslyn’s lower abdomen sharpened for an instant. She drew in a quiet breath and leaned a little deeper into the seatback, letting a clear, bright smile spread across her face.

“That sounds lovely,” she said softly, her voice carrying a faint, velvety rasp. “Which restaurant?”

“It’s an exclusive place,” Connor said. “Very difficult to get into. Damien spent an entire week securing a private room for tonight. The atmosphere is quiet, private, and well suited for us.”

“You really went through a lot of trouble. I’m looking forward to it.” Joslyn turned her face gently toward the window.

The passing lights outside brushed across her composed profile. Her stomach was still unsettled, and she had almost no appetite, but this was the first proper date Connor had planned with such care. The reservation had not been easy to secure, and no matter what, she did not want to be the one who spoiled it.

It was only one meal. She could get through it.

The restaurant occupied the top floor of an old building, hidden away with impeccable privacy.

A server in a crisp white shirt and black vest guided them to the private dining room reserved for the evening.

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