Dinner in a Restaurant to start

Tom smiled faintly to himself, staring into the mirror at the well-made up young man gazing back at him. Not bad, if he could say so himself. A subtle, natural look, his lips full and glistening under a covering of lipstick and his cheeks faintly flushed with red blush. Just what women really wanted when they blithely said they liked boys without makeup, having no clue of course how much work in front of the mirror this still took to achieve. As if Julie would still be interested in him if he wondered out there looking like a slob with no makeup on! Tom found himself silently thanking his Dad for teaching him how when he was a teenager. He hadn't had any reason to try this hard in a while, but for Julie...the effort certainly felt worth it.

After a shift at Crumble's that had just seemed to never end and way too many of Mrs. Miller's smirks and teasing comments every time he got distracted, he'd ducked into the staff room at the mall to get changed and put on his makeup. Julie had messaged a few minutes ago to say she was on her way and just seeing her name appearing on the screen of his phone had made Tom want to cheer. He'd never felt this way about a woman before, just the thought of meeting up with her had his belly fluttering with excitement and a wide smile on his lips.

The only worry he had was whether his outfit was quite good enough for a date with a woman like Julie. Tom had always tried not to care that much about fashion. He could hardly afford expensive clothes on his meagre salary while paying for rent and food too, no matter the jealous looks he sometimes found himself giving the achingly well-dressed men he saw everywhere here in the city, hanging daintily on the arms of confident women. It had taken almost an hour of scrounging through his small closet, trying on everything this morning before he'd finally settled on the clothes he now wore.

A flowing, thigh-length skirt, black tights and a pair of cute blue heels he'd always liked, then a light button-up shirt on top with his jacket over. It looked smart enough, but not so much that he'd seem like he was trying too hard and putting too many expectations on what was still just a first date. Women hated that, he knew, when men tried to get them to commit too early, and no matter the romantic dreams floating through his head Tom knew he'd have to play it cool when he was out with Julie or else he might scare her off. Just the thought made his stomach sink, but he bit his lip and brushed down his skirt, trying to to stay positive. Landing a date with Julie was the best thing that had happened to him since he'd moved here, and he wasn't going to screw it up!

The piercing trill of his ringtone made him jump, and he fumbled around in his purse until he found his phone again. Another message from Julie, and she was waiting for him in the plaza. Damn it...he'd spent too long in here trying to fix his stupid lipstick and now he was making her wait! With a sharp sigh, the young man turned on his heel and strode for the door, feeling rather like a whole swarm of butterflies were fluttering around in his stomach.

Julie was waiting for him by the edge of the food court, leaning casually against the wall and hardly seeming to notice the longing glances she was getting from every man who wandered past. She was wearing a short-sleeved collared shirt, loose over the curves of her breasts, with a black jacket tossed over one shoulder. Tom found his cheeks flushing as he admired the toned muscles of her forearms. She was just so...hot. It made him a little dizzy just looking at her, and he felt that familiar ache between his legs. Still a first date, no need to get ahead of himself, he reminded his stiffening dick. At least he'd thought to wear a nice tight pair of panties that would keep his erection in check and stop it awkwardly tenting his skirt if it was as hard to control himself around her as it had been yesterday. As he shuffled closer, she glanced up and spotted him, her dark eyes gleaming as they flickered up his body.

"Hey, Thomas." She smiled, baring perfect white teeth. "Wow, you look amazing." Tom felt his heart skip a beat as she leant over to look at him, her eyes flickering down his stockinged legs with obvious admiration. Good thing he did settle on a shortish skirt in the end, even if it did make him feel a little exposed.

"Thanks..." The young man stammered awkwardly. "You look great too, Julie." Like always. She wasn't that much more dressed up than yesterday, but a woman like her would look amazing in pretty much anything. Or even better wearing nothing, a lustful voice inside his head saw fit to remind him.

"Ready to go then?" She stepped forward and held out her hand expectantly. Did she want him to...? Nodding quickly, Thomas darted forward and grabbed her arm before he could overthink and get too nervous. Her hand was very warm, and bigger than his own, her callused fingers giving his a gentle squeeze that sent shivering tingles up his arm. Still rather dazed, he followed eagerly as she led him off through the mall and towards the exit. All those men who'd been hurriedly checking her out must be eating their hearts out now, he thought with a wicked thrill as she guided him out the doors and onto the bustling city streets.

"So...where are you taking me?" The young man asked, managing to keep his voice rather steadier this time.

"There's a great Italian restaurant just round the corner from here, an old favorite haunt of mine." She explained, her hand squeezing his tighter for a moment. With such a tall, imposing woman leading him, Tom found the crowds parting for the two of them, where usually he had to awkwardly shuffle out the way of the suited businesswomen rushing home from work or be bowled over. It seemed like she was protecting him, and that made him feel...warm and safe, in a way he hadn't since many years ago when he was back home on the farm. Tom bit his lip, reminding his stupid aching heart not to get ahead of itself. She was the most amazing woman he'd ever met, but he couldn't fall in love with her just yet. "You came here from the sticks right, ever had proper Italian before?" Julie asked, flashing him a teasing smile.

"Um...I don't think so." Tom shook his head. They'd served pizza in the diner he'd worked at back home, but he was pretty sure there was nothing authentic about it.

"You're gonna love it then." She continued. "Don't get nervous about choosing or anything, I'll pick out some dishes you'll definitely enjoy." He smiled to himself, enjoying her thoughtfulness even though he knew he could choose for himself. Of course he was always trying to be an independent man, but right now with her it felt like he could relax a little and just be treated like he wasn't. "Here are we." She nodded down a small side street. A cheery-looking restaurant with a wooden fronting was just around the corner, with pretty flowers in pots lining the glass. Tom breathed a sigh of relief that she wasn't taking him anywhere super-fancy. He'd have gotten even more nervous then!

As she led him by the hand through the door, a portly older man with a wiry black mustache stepped up to meet them, a wide smile on his face and a handful of menus under his arm. Tom stared curiously from behind Julie. He was too young right now himself, but as men got into their thirties or so they could grow out their facial hair like that. Some whose wives didn't mind it even had back home, but here in the city even he knew it was considered very unfashionable. On the forums he'd been browsing lately, he'd read about some masculinist men who did it as a statement to show they weren't letting female beauty standards define them, but he doubted this cheery guy was one of them.

"Juliette, our favorite customer!" The man boomed with a thick, expressive accent, waving his free hand excitedly. "The usual table for one, I assume."

"Actually, could I have it for two this time." Julie reached up to rub the back of her head sheepishly. "Brought company."

"Oh?" The man gasped theatrically, his gaze flickering to Tom and his smile getting even wider. "Can it be? Our dear Juliette on a date? And with such a gorgeous young man too, you lucky girl!"

"Come on, Ernesto." Julie shook her head, a faint blush coloring her handsome face. "You don't have to embarrass him like that." Tom smiled at the sight, his own cheeks glowing hot as well. It was kind of fun seeing this handsome, confidant woman get a little embarrassed like this, even if he was also being teased. "This is Thomas." Julie continued, gently pulling him up to her side and wrapping her strong arm around his shoulders. "We're just getting to know each other now, but he's a real sweetheart."

"Well, my wife is going to be so thrilled to hear you finally found yourself a man!" Ernesto crowed. "Come, I have a special booth just for the pair of you. It's over in the corner, nice and sheltered, perfect for a pair of young lovers." Tom pursed his lips around an embarrassed denial. They weren't lovers...yet anyway, but he didn't want to embarrass Julie by stammering that out. Her arm still wrapped around his shoulder, she led him after the large Italian man towards the side of the restaurant. It seemed to be fairly quiet now, with just a few other couples he could see eating by flickering candlelight. The wooden furniture and shadows gave the place a very...intimate, romantic look, and he found himself blushing even hotter as Ernesto pointed out a booth in the corner, cut off from the rest of the restaurant by a wooden pillar. Julie let her arm slip from his shoulders and moved round to sit at the other end, tossing her jacket across the chair. "You are a lucky boy, Thomas, eh?" Ernesto leant in with a conspiratorial smile, his voice hushed. "Juliette has never brought a man here before and she's a very special lady, isn't she? If I was your age and not married to my wonderful wife, I'd be trying to steal her from you." He chuckled as Tom let out a shocked gasp, darting forward to his own seat to escape the older man's teasing smile. Ernesto laid out some menus in front of them, flashed another cheeky wink, then turned and strode away, his apron swaying over his portly belly.

"Sorry about Ernesto." Julie smiled across the table. "He's an old family friend so he likes to wind me up. I used to help out his wife Bianca in the kitchens when I was studying for the Academy."

"You worked here?" Tom gasped. It was hard to imagine a fierce, strong woman like Julie working in a kitchen. Wasn't that...a man's job?

"You don't have to act so surprised, even if it makes you look adorable." Julie smirked. "Let me tell you, working the kitchen for a restaurant like this is tough. Bianca's older than Ernesto and she could still wrestle me to the ground with one arm while rustling up her famous risotto with the other. The other line cooks I met were almost as rough as she was. Lots of ****, open flames, and the foulest language you've ever heard. And people still say cooking is just for boys?" She shook her head. "Not in a place like that. A cutie like you would get eaten alive in there." Tom bit his lip uncertainly. It was true that all the famous chefs he'd heard of were women, but...that didn't mean a man couldn't do it. Men worked hard in kitchens everywhere cooking for their families, and doing it for a restaurant instead couldn't be that much different, no matter what Julie said. "Here, let me pick out some wine and a few nice dishes for you, you'll love everything, I promise. That okay?" She glanced at him, raising an eyebrow expectantly.

"Sure." Tom smiled eagerly, shoving away that lingering uncertainty over what she'd said. The last thing he wanted to do was spoil the best thing that had happened to him by getting upset over a casual remark like that. Julie was nice, she'd stepped in and saved him from those awful women yesterday, hadn't she? She wasn't some horrible sexist or else she'd have stood back and laughed at him then instead. No, he was going to enjoy himself tonight, he promised himself as she glanced down the menu, enjoy a date with this handsome, amazing woman who actually liked him.