Chapter 14 Surprise

Phil pulled into a parking lot next to a restaurant Amelia had never seen before. It was in a strip mall that she frequented, but never noticed. The windows looked tinted so she couldn't tell if the lights inside were dim or not. There was a sign above the entrance that said "Tony's".

Phil came to her side of the car and opened the door for her. He held out his left hand and she took it as she tried to get out of the car gracefully.

Thank goodness this dress goes past my knees, Amelia thought. I would have shown him everything south of the border!

"Thank you," she said.

Phil smiled and closed her door. He tucked her hand into his left arm and walked with her to the entrance. He opened the door for her and she went in.

The first thing she noticed was the music. A live band was playing classic jazz/big band music. She was trying to remember the name of the song.

"In The Mood," she yelled.

The hostess laughed and said, "Good ear! Table for two?"

"Yes," said Phil. "We have a reservation under the name of Phil."

"Here you are," she said. She grabbed two menus. "Please follow me."

Amelia and Phil followed her to their table. There was a big open dance floor and tables around the sides. It reminded Amelia of restaurants in old movies and was fashioned after the 1920's. Many people were wearing clothes from that era or close to it. Amelia wished she had brought her dancing shoes. It had been so long since she went dancing.

Phil pulled out a chair for Amelia and pushed it in once she was seated. Amelia was really impressed with his gentleman behavior, but he had always opened doors for her when she was his patient and he helped her open tricky water bottles. She had never noticed how attentive he was towards her needs; more attentive than Nick ever was.

"Here's our menu," said the hostess. "Your server will be with you shortly. Have a great night."

They both said thank you at the same time and Amelia blushed.

"This is an awesome place," Amelia said. "Have you been here before?"

"No," he said. "This is my first time. A friend of mine is the bartender and told me about this place. He said he makes the old cocktails and drinks like Shirley Temples. I remembered that you are not fond of alcohol and thought you would like this."

"I was looking at the Roy Rogers," she said with a smile and he smiled back.

Their waiter came over and took their drink and food orders.

"Do you want to dance while we wait for our food," asked Phil.

"I would love to," said Amelia.

They got out of their seats and walked hand in hand to the dance floor. The band played some swing music and Amelia was impressed she remembered some steps. Phil was very into the music and they were both enjoying dancing. The band played "Funny Valentine" and Phil held Amelia close as they slow danced. Amelia sang the song in Phil's ear and thought it was the most beautiful song he had ever heard.

They looked over after a few songs and their food had arrived. They walked back to the table and Phil helped Amelia with her chair. Amelia drank half of her Roy Rogers and realized how thirsty dancing can make you. She looked over at Phil and he drank all his Shirley Temple! She laughed.

"What," he said.

"Nothing," she said. "It's just really cute how you drank all of that."

"Well dancing is really a workout!"

They talked about favorite movies and music as they ate their dinner. Amelia couldn't remember the last time she had been on such a fun date. When they were done, they did a dance with paying over the check and Phil paid for their meals while Amelia left the tip. He helped her get into her car and he drove her back to her house. They continued to talk about music until they arrived at Amelia's.

Phil helped her out of his car and held her hand as he walked her to her front door.

"I feel like a teenager again," Amelia said. "I haven't had this much fun in a long time. Thank you so much for this wonderful night. Would you consider this our first or second date?"

"I would say this is our second date," he said. "Coffee was our first one."

"Thanks again Phil."

They looked in each other's eyes and started leaning in. Amelia closed her eyes and felt Phil's lips on hers. Nick was the only guy Amelia had ever kissed so this was a whole new experience. Her whole body felt tingling and numb at the same time. Her head felt like it was spinning. She didn't want the kiss to ever end. They both eventually pulled away and said good night to each other. Phil watched her go into her house and he walked to his car smiling from ear to ear.