Chapter 110 - Brain Storming

Truth be told Jake was beginning to fear Jade might refuse going out with him if he brings up another silly idea such as food adventure or something of that sort.

"Actually I wanted to grab a box of Eddy's pizza. It's my brothers favorite and I wanted some too. I think you should try it out. And they also serve this delicious banana split. You might like it" Jade said.

"Okay then, let's go check it out" Jake said with a happy smile. Happy that they were still on for tonight. "Where's the place?" He asked. 

"Its just a few blocks ahead" She said pointing with her finger.

"Okay buckle up" Jake said as he turned on the ignition.

It wasn't up to a five minute drive from Jade's office to the restaurant. Jake was feeling a bit regretful that he didn't know it was this close when she had said a 'few blocks'. He would have asked them to walk there, that way he would get to spend more time with her.

Only if the night would go slowly, that would be a great opportunit, but he also knew that was lame thinking.

A waiter approached them as soon as they walked into the restaurant, and she directed them towards a seat, but Jade requested for the seat at the far end of the restaurant close to the window. Jake raised a brow when he saw that.

"Anything special about here?" Jake was curious. He was determined to know every tiny detail about her.

"No sir, I just like the view from this angle" Jade replied with a good-natured smile.

"Miss Jade can I ask for a favour?" Jake asked with a serious expression making Jade anxiously glance at him. 'what so of favour could that be' was what she wanted to say, but instead she said "Yes'  as she nodded

"Can you please stop calling me sir, it makes me feel old. Too hold for my age" 

Jade didn't expect that to be his request. She thought it would be something more serious, but hearing this simple request made her uneasy. She knew the social distance between them. Not only was he an influential personality, he was the CEO of  a multi-billion compaby and she was sure he was older than her. So how would she be comfortable not calling him sir. What was she supposed to call him? Address him by his name? Jake could see the conflict in her eyes, and he understood her perfectly.

"Don't be so shocked" He smiled. "I'm not asking you to call me just by name, but I'd appreciate it, if you stop calling me sir like my subordinates do. It makes me feel like a tyrant who people are too scared to take his name with their mouth. They are overly cautious around me" He said with a slightly pained expression.

"So how should I address you then?" Jade asked politely. She was being careful not to cross her boundaries.

"Anything other than my last name and sir" Jake told her. Jade was confused by his last statement. Anything other than his last name would be his first name. 

Were they on the first name basis now? Jade didn't think it was a nice idea being familiar with someone of his caliber. Jade was quiet for a while as she couldn't think of what to call him. She felt like calling him by his first name was being too familiar with him. Obviously she hasn't Jake addressing more as miss Jade than miss Peterson. 

"Miss Jade?" Jake softly called out when Jade remained quiet. He has sure dealt her a complicated puzzle to solve.

"I can't call you by your name, it would be disrespectful to do that. But if it will make you comfortable I'll call you Mr Jake. I can't call your name without the honorifics" Jade stated assertively. Jake revealed a small smile, this was what he aimed for. Though he wanted to make Jade feel comfortable around him, he also didn't want to rush things and probably scare her in the process. He was going to take things slow.

They both turned when someone cleared his throat behind them. It was the waiter standing with a menu in hand.

"Sorry" Jade apologized smiling to the waiter, while Jake was totally enthralled by it. He would love to tell her how beautiful her smiles, but that would be moving too fast.

They ordered their food and ate in silence. Jake stole quick glances at her while they ate, and his heart fluttered every now and then from the sight of it.

Jake was experiencing so many feelings that he never knew he could experience since the day he met Jade. And frankly, he was enjoying every bit of it even though they were all new.

"How's your friend doing?" Jake asked out of curiosity. He still hasn't forgotten about Amy. He had noticed Blake was a little bit perplexed, but other than that he seemed fine. He doubted that would be the case for Amy, since she was the one who was interested in Blake.

"She's fine" Jade replied.

"That's good to know." He nodded.

"Well I enjoyed having this pizza, I never knew it would taste that good. The chef is sure blessed"

"I told you" Jade said with a smile.

"Thanks for doing this miss Jade" Jake said with an appreciative tone.

"You're welcome. And thanks for this" Jade said raising the box of pizza towards him as she smiled broadly. Jake had insisted on paying for the pizza she had gotten for Kevin. Though she had refused his offer but Jake was insistent. Jake was dumbstruck again by her smile. He could swear he had never seen a more beautiful smile than hers.

"Mind if I drop you off?" Jake reluctantly asked as they walked out of the restaurant. 

"No that won't be necessary. I want to walk a bit before taking a taxi. I'm quite full"

Jake didn't want this to end so soon. If Jade should leave now he won't be able to see her till weekend. What should he do? All through their meal, Jake has been storming his brain for ideas on how to keep Jade to his side for the next couple of days before the weekend. Unfortunately he hasn't been able to come up with something tangible.

It would be a pity if Jade left now. Maybe he should take the stroll with her. But that wouldn't solve his problem. It might grant him few more minutes of being with her, but what about tomorrow?

Jade slowly walked behind Jake, when he suddenly stopped. Jade walked up to him and gave him a concerned look when she noticed the distorted look on his face. His face was scrunched up and he looked like he was in pain.

"Mr Jake, are you okay?" Jade asked with a worried look.

~~~~~~

The year 2020 has/is coming to an end. It has been a challenging year for all of us, but cheer up we all made it to the end alive and strong. I'm so proud of us, because we all scaled through challenges and situations that we never thought we'll encounter.

As the new year come may it bring loads of Joy, happiness, fortunes and all the good things we desire and those we couldn't achieve in 2020. I'm happy that you and I scaled through triumphantly.

Wishing you a happy and blissfull new year.

Thanks for all your love and support all through the year. Let's do this again in 2021.

I love you all. *Muah*