Chapter Twelve: The Gala

                                    

                                          
On the night of the charity gala, Ezra stood in my doorway, and I could hardly believe his words. "Will you be my date to the gala?"
I looked at him in shock, "What happened to Sofia?"
"She can't make it. She came down with a bad case of food poisoning." Ezra explains.
"Oh, Still... I'm not sure it's a good idea for me to take her place. Don't you think we'd be tempting fate? Or at least, each other?" I look at him unsure of the idea.
Ezra's eyes roam over my body, and I'm suddenly acutely aware of how thin my top is. "Yes, definitely. But I can't seem to help myself. Besides, it was Sofia's idea."
I looked at him surprised, "Seriously?" 
"She said you'd know what to do since you helped her prepare. And it was 'uncouth' for Fitzgerald Enterprises to have an empty seat at the table." Ezra smiles at me. I feel a fluttering in my chest that feels a lot like hope, but...
"What about the boys? We can't leave Mason and Mickey by themselves."
"Carter already said he can keep an eye on them." Ezra grabbed my hand. But I dropped my hand, "Okay, but..."
My mind races to come up with another reason, yet I can't...  But somewhere deep down, I know there's no turning back if I give in. "Ezra... I'm all out of excuses."
Ezra chuckles a bit. "You don't need an excuse. I don't want to force you into something you don't want to do..."
"Oh, I do want this. That's the problem. If we do this, I'm worried we can't undo it." Ezra steps forward, reaching out to cup my cheek. I can't help but lean into his touch.
"I don't know what the future holds for us, Y/N. But I do know this..." Ezra pauses a little, staring into my eyes. "I'm a selfish man. And I want one night... this night with you."
Ezra drops his hand back to his side. "But only if you want it too."
I take a deep breath, quieting the warning voice in the back of my mind.
'I'm selfish too.'
"I want it. I want you." The sentence came out barely as a whisper.
Ezra grins, "Then I'm yours."
"So... What exactly does one wear to a fancy event like this?"  I nudge him playfully.
"Funny you should ask... I thought it'd be nice if we matched tonight." Ezra presents me with a stunning gold down that glitters as it catches the light.
I'm almost in awe as I stare at the dress. "It's beautiful..."
"You're beautiful. Doesn't matter what you wear. But I do think you'd look particularly stunning in this." Ezra flashes me a mischievous grin before excusing himself to give me privacy to change.
'If I'm going to be Ezra's date tonight, I should go all in.' I look at the dress and then slip it on. It gives Ezra a perfect view of my cleavage, and then the slit reaches the top of my thigh. I examine myself in the mirror, feeling like I can hold my own at the party tonight.
Ezra knocks on my door. "You ready?"
"You tell me." I turn so he can take me in from head to toe. His gaze grows warmer as his eyes wander up my body, building to a fire by the time he reaches my face.
"I was right. You're stunning." Ezra takes two steps to cross the room, then runs his hands down the curves of my body. "Fits like a glove."
My breath catches as our eyes meet. "Ezra..."