Revive (The Revival Series Book 1) (10 page)

Picking up the house phone she dialled the number for her stylist and booked an appointment for the next day to have her hair done. She was shocked it was so close but they had a cancellation and managed to fit her in, and she was so desperate to be herself now she couldn’t say no. Running her fingers through her hair she couldn’t wait to get rid of the blonde tresses and to replace them with her normal hair colour. They say blondes have more fun but she couldn’t agree as all her blonde hair was just part of the mask she had worn.

Returning to the kitchen she opened the oven to check the food, it was almost ready and she was hoping Daniel would like what she had prepared. Shutting the oven again she hoped he would arrive in time for it not to spoil, and set the table along with some tall candles and matches, before going to the fridge and pouring a glass of wine.

Carrie relaxed slightly as the cold liquid soothed her throat and her nerves. Despite feeing like she had turned a corner, the guilt and doubts were still eating away at her and she needed to be strong and to push them away, or she would never move forward.

Eventually after what felt like an eternity, the buzzer went and her heart leapt in her throat. Excitement and nerves at seeing Daniel, made her light headed. Pushing the button to let him in, she opened the door and gave herself a quick once over in the hall mirror hoping she looked ok.

Daniel appeared at the door and leant on the doorframe, his gaze wandering all over Carrie from her head to her toes. She looked stunning and he wanted nothing more than to forget all about eating and to get her out of that dress as soon as he could.

“Hey” Carrie said shyly

“Hey back” He replied smiling

“Come in” She said stepping back from the door and allowing him to walk into the apartment, as he walked past he grazed his fingers over her stomach before taking her hand and pulling her to him. Carrie put her hand out and pushed the door shut just in time for his lips to meet hers as he pulled her into a deep passionate kiss.

“Mmmm” Daniel murmured leaning his forehead against hers, without opening his eyes.

“I have been dreaming about kissing you all day” he continued, running his hands up and down her back. Carrie giggled before beginning to panic about the dinner.

Rushing to the kitchen, Daniel followed her, the smell of her cooking invading his nostrils and reminding him that he hadn’t actually eaten since breakfast. Carrie quickly dished up a wonderful chicken casserole with potatoes and vegetables, and Daniel took a seat at the small dining table, looking in wonder at how much effort she had gone to. Picking up the matches he lit the candles as she placed a plate full of food in front of him and a glass of wine and then sat opposite.

“I hope its ok” Carrie said nervously, fiddling with her fork. Daniel took a mouthful of food, and put his thumb up at Carrie.

“That is beautiful babe” he said washing it down with a mouthful of wine,

“So how did today go with your in-laws?” he asked, thinking how weird that sounded

“Really well actually. I mean they are wonderful people, but after everything that happened with Ian, I always find it hard to visit” She said sighing and poking a potato on her plate.

“Why do you find it hard?” he asked generally wanting to know more about Carrie life. Despite how much he felt for her, he knew he still needed to do a lot of work to get to know the real Carrie, and that wasn’t going to be easy.

“Guilt” she replied nibbling food on her fork “If I’m honest I think I should be the one that died that night not Ian” Tears stung the corner of her eyes and she took a few deep breaths determined not to break down. She wanted to enjoy her time with Daniel this evening looking forward, not dragging up the past she was trying so desperately hard to finally get passed.

“I can understand why you would feel like that, but you can’t change what happened, you can’t swap places with Ian and you need to get over the feeling of guilt and stop letting it haunt you” Daniel put his hand out and took hers and gave it a squeeze, linking his fingers with hers.

“I know, and trust me I’m trying now, I really am but it’s hard” Daniel squeezed her hand tighter, and stood up from the table. He pulled her up into a standing position and pulled her into his arms, holding her as tight as he could.

“I don’t want to ruin the night by reliving the past” she whispered in his ear, and turned her head and put gentle kisses across his cheek until she reached his mouth. Daniel felt himself stop breathing as her lips grazed his, a warm feeling spreading through him.

Taking Daniels hand she led him into the living room and turned on the radio, the soft sound of music filling the room. He sat on her sofa and looked up at her smiling, wondering what he had done in life to deserve this beautiful woman in front of him. She leant toward him running her hands over his shoulders, before straddling his lap, the top of her dress digging into her thighs.

Daniel put his hands on either side of her face, staring directly into her chocolate brown eyes.

“Beautiful” he whispered before claiming her mouth with his own, revelling in the way she tasted. He ran his hands down her body and around her back, gripping her and pulling her as close to him as he could, never wanting to let her go.

Waking, Carrie stretched herself out and let her arm fall across the bed, panic surged through her as she realised she was alone. Jumping out of bed she threw on her dressing gown and quickly walked out of the room, wondering what she had done to have made Daniel leave. Terror filled her veins that things had gone horribly wrong…that was until she heard humming coming from the kitchen.

Stopping in the doorway to the kitchen, she leant against the door frame, taking in the sight in front of her. Daniel was at the oven, a pan on the hob, in nothing but his boxer shorts. She licked her lips at the view of his muscular frame in front of her, before he stopped humming and turned noticing her standing there.

“Good morning” Daniel said, walking over and slipping his arms around her waist and kissing the top of her nose.

“I made pancakes; I thought you would be hungry”

Carrie pouted as he let her go and returned to the pan before transferring the pancakes onto a plate and gesturing for her to sit. She took a chair at the table as he placed the sweet dish in front of her and she felt her mouth water at the smell. Daniel then placed a bottle of pancake syrup in the centre of table before returning to the oven to cook more for himself.

It wasn’t long before he joined her, and started tucking into his plate of food as if he hadn’t eaten in a long time.

“Come on, eat up” he said pointing to her plate with his fork. Carrie took the syrup and drizzled it across the contents of her plate and then cut into the pancake and took a bite. It was by far the best pancake that had ever passed her lips.

“Wow, I’m impressed” she said, shovelling the rest of the food from her plate into her mouth, savouring each mouthful.

“Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, it needs to be a good one” he said smiling at her

“I normally skip breakfast” she admitted, thinking that if this was on the menu she would start eating breakfast more often.

“So what are your plans for today?” He asked her hoping to maybe spend the day with her.

“I have a hair appointment this morning and if I’m honest I really need to get some work done. I’ve been slacking a little lately” she said sighing

“No problem but can I see you again tonight?” He asked, secretly praying she would agree.

“That would be lovely. What do you want to do?” she asked, standing up and placing her plate in the sink, and turning to get the orange juice from the fridge. She offered him a glass and began pouring as he answered

“Well I want to take you out, on a proper date” he said leaning back in the chair.

“That sounds nice” she said sipping the cool orange juice.

“Ok well how about I pick you up at 7? And we go out for dinner; I will book us a table somewhere”

Carrie smiled and nodded and didn’t know how she would make it through the day.

Chapter 13

Arriving at the hair salon, Carrie took a seat in the waiting area, flicking through a range of out of date magazines on the table before she was called. Taking a deep breath she followed her stylist Alan through to the back and sat in the chair, whilst he wrapped an overall around her to protect her clothes.

Carrie stared at the mirror in front of her and prepared herself for saying goodbye to the fraud she had been for the past two years.

“Are you sure about this?” Alan said brushing the knots out of her hair

“Totally, let do it” she smiled back at him and he started work.

By the time Carrie left the salon, she felt like a different person. Gone were her blonde locks and in their place were long dark brown tresses. She had opted for hair extensions until her hair grew back to the length she wanted.

After leaving the salon she stopped into a nail shop and managed to get her nails done, having acrylic nails then having them painted a dark burgundy red.

On the walk back home she decided to treat herself even more; with the new or rather old her and popped into a few dress shops, coming home with a new set of black and silver matching underwear, a new black strapless dress, and a very expensive pair of black heels. She smiled, not caring how much she had spent. All she cared about was looking nice for her date with Daniel.

Carrie returned to earth with a bump in the afternoon, sitting on the floor of her living room, her laptop switched on and mounds of paper and proposals all around her. She went through it all 1 by 1 hoping to catch up on everything that had landed on her desk whilst she had been away. Slamming down the lid on her laptop 2 hours later she decided she needed a break and went to the kitchen for a well needed coffee.

The shrill of her mobile made her jump and her heart race and she hoped the caller would be Daniel but instead saw her brother’s name appear on the screen.

“Hey Jase” she answered, stirring her coffee and taking a cautious sip of the hot liquid

“Hey Caz, how are things?” he asked an odd tone to his voice, as if he was trying to judge the mood she was in before continuing the conversation

“Things are great, really good actually. How’s mum?” She asked, walking back into the living room and perching on the arm of the chair.

“She’s not good if I’m honest, though she won’t admit it” He replied taking a deep breath.

“Are you back home yet?” She asked wondering whether she needed to go and visit

“Not yet, we should be but Daniel offered us the barn for a little longer, for no charge and mum wanted to stay so were still in Devon, although Lacey and Mia have gone back as Mia has school” he replied

“That was nice of him” she answered, smiling at the nice gesture Daniel had made to her family

“Have you erm, have you heard from Daniel at all?” Jason questioned. Carrie chuckled sensing that this was the real reason for the call.

“I have indeed, he is here in London and things are good”

“That’s great news sis, he seems a great guy” he replied his voice brightening up

“In fact we are going out on a date this evening so everything is fine”

“I’m glad to hear it. You deserve to be happy” he said and she could tell he was smiling on the other end of the line. The buzzer shrilled through the apartment, and Carrie wrinkled up her nose, wondering who would be here at this time of day.

“I’ve got to go Jason, I will call you tomorrow” she said standing up and making her way to the door.

“No worries sis, enjoy your night” he replied before hanging up the phone. She pressed the accept button and spoke through the intercom to find out who it was before letting them into the building.

“I have a delivery for a Miss C Warren” the voice on the other end replied. Carrie pressed the button to let the man in, confused with receiving a delivery and also to who was using her maiden name.

Opening the door a skinny man, with black hair and in need of a shave stood in front of her holding out a very large box. He pushed a clip board at her and asked her to sign before passing over the package.

Carrie closed the door and put the box on the hall floor before pushing it with her feet into the living room and retrieving a knife from the kitchen to cut the tape.

Carrie gasped as she took in the contents of the box; a huge bouquet of pink roses, with a large grey teddy bear holding a card and a box of chocolate truffles. Taking the card she carefully undid the envelope and pulled it out

Missing you already

              I can’t wait to see you tonight.

              Daniel x

              Carrie couldn’t help the enormous smile that spread across her face; she couldn’t wait to see him either and wondered what the evening would have in store.

Deciding to forget work Carrie cleared everything away, and opened the chocolates; enjoying the sweet taste as they melted in her mouth. Settling on the sofa she curled her legs underneath her and grabbed her e-reader off the side table and decided to spend the afternoon getting lost in a new book.

              After spending an hour getting ready, Carrie paced the apartment, butterflies once again making her feel nervous and hoping that Daniel liked her ‘old’ look.

              When Daniel arrived, he stared at Carrie, and swallowed. She looked stunning and he felt like the luckiest man on earth.

“Wow” was all the words he could push out of his mouth. Utterly speechless at the beautiful goddess stood in front of him.

              “Thank you for the flowers” She said leaning in to kiss him on the cheek. “What do you think?” She asked, feeling nervous and giving a little twirl.

              “Carrie you look amazing” he replied pulling himself back together. “Are you sure you want to been seen with me?” He asked playfully.

              “Come on, let’s get out of here” Carrie chuckled; threading her arms into her coat and then taking Daniels hand before they both left the apartment.

              Hailing a cab outside, Daniel helped Carrie in the back and gave instructions to the driver. He didn’t once let go of her hand the whole journey and eventually they pulled up outside a very upmarket restaurant. Carrie turned to Daniel with her mouth open.

“Here? Really?”

“It’s ok isn’t it? If not we can go somewhere else”

“No. no it’s fine, I’m just shocked, and I thought the waiting list for this place was huge”

“It is but I have a few contacts, and some people who owe me favours from when I lived here” he said, grinning back at her before paying the cab driver and pulling her gently from the cab “And I only want the best for someone as beautiful as you”

Carrie blushed and felt like the luckiest woman on earth at that moment. After Daniel spoke to the maitre d, they were shown to a booth at the back of the restaurant. The seats covered in a luxurious plush material, and Carrie sank right into the comfort of the seat, thanking the waiter who passed her a menu.

Daniel ordered them a bottle of wine that Carrie had never heard of as she scanned the menu, trying to decide what to eat but finding herself distracted by the prices.

“Erm Daniel, not to be a party pooper but a meal here is going to cost the same as my monthly food budget” she whispered worrying about ending up in the kitchen doing the washing up.

“Don’t worry about the prices Carrie” Daniel chuckled whilst running his foot up her leg underneath the table “I’ve got it covered, just enjoy the food and hopefully enjoy my company”

After ordering an extremely expensive steak dish, Carrie sat back and took in the luxury of the restaurant; enjoying the exclusivity of it all but also feeling out of place and out of her comfort zone surrounded by what looked like the elite class. How Daniel had managed to get a table here niggled her thoughts at what the favour must have been.

“What’s wrong?” Daniel asked picking up on Carrie unease

“I’m just not used to all this” she replied gesturing to the room around her “I mean don’t get me wrong I appreciate it all, I’ve just never been a girl who needs to be impressed. Does that make me sound ungrateful?”

“Not at all, it makes perfect sense, but I didn’t bring you here to impress you Carrie, I bought you here as I think you deserve the best and trust me the food here is wonderful. When I lived in London I used to eat here a lot with my more upmarket clients and I know it’s expensive but it’s worth it.” Daniel thanked the waiter as he placed a very small plate in front of him with a thick piece of steak and garnish on, and placed a bowl of potatoes next to it, before placing the same in front of Carrie.

“If you feel really uncomfortable, we can leave if you want” Daniel asked staring at Carrie waiting for an answer before he tucked in to his meal.

“No, no it’s fine really, I just hope I don’t show you up” She replied sipping her wine, which was like nothing she had ever tasted before, and her taste buds lit up excitedly.

Smiling Daniel cut into his steak and started eating, closing his eyes and pulling a face like he was in ecstasy “Wow this is one of the things I have missed about London” he said, before opening his eyes and looking straight at Carrie.

Carrie cut into her food, and placed a piece of steak into her mouth, so soft and succulent, and she could understand in that moment why he said the food was so good. Everything that passed her lips was cooked to perfection and tasted delectable. Both of them making little work of finishing the meal. The issue with expensive restaurants being that the prices were high and the portions were small.

After finishing the meal, the pair finished off with a cheesecake, which topped of the meal beautifully. Carrie despite feeling uncomfortable to begin with, found herself relaxing as the evening continued and was really enjoying herself. Daniel was making her laugh so much her cheeks were starting to ache from smiling so much.

“So what do you want to do now?” Daniel asked Carrie, before asking the waiter for the cheque.

“Hmm well it’s been a while since I’ve actually had a night out and if I’m honest I’m not sure I’m ready to call it a night yet” she replied, random thoughts whirling through her mind. “How about we hit a club?” she suggested. Daniel raised his eye brows shocked at her suggestion but excited at the prospect of Carrie letting her hair down.

“What the lady wants, the lady shall get” he replied standing up from the table and offering her his arm. Carrie chuckled and stood and took it and the pair left the restaurant and made their way to the nearest club.