"Honey, are you sure going on a date tonight is a good idea ? " Sanaa asked her daughter as she watched her get ready.

After her little encounter with Chresanto, which went very well since she got a date out of it, Ebony couldn't help but tell everything to her sisters and cousin. She didn't know why, but she was just so excited about it and couldn't wait to spend some time with Chresanto.

Once they were done at the mall, they went back to her mother's house and of course they had to tell her what was going on. That's how close all the women of this family were; they always knew something about somebody's business.

Now, they were all currently at Eb's apartment, helping her to get herself together. Paris insisted on doing her hair, while Lyona absolutely wanted to do her makeup. Deka helped to pick the outfit. Sanaa was the emotional and mental support; she was making sure that her daughter was truthfully ready to already mess with a new man.

"Yes, mama," Ebony simply answered as she started getting annoyed.

"You just broke up with the asshole though."

"I know, but don't worry, I'm good. I'm not going to be confused or anything like that. I stopped having real feelings for Jerome a very long time ago. At one point, we were both staying in this relationship just to stay, nothing was really going on. We didn't kiss for the past six months or so. Sex life was nonexistent after the second year. We were there only physically, well barely, but emotionally and mentally ? We've been detached," she explained, hoping that it was enough to comfort her mother.

"Okay. I just wanted to make sure that you know what you are doing. I don't need you out there jumping from a relationship to another one, and another one, to then end up completely broken. I just want what's best for my babies." She sat next to her.

"I know." They hugged. "I love you."

"I love you more. So ? What's that Chresanto about ? What do you know about him ? "

Eb nervously bit on her bottom lip, feeling as if she was sixteen all over again. She already knew how her mother was going to act after her response. "Well...I don't know much about him. That's why we're going on this date."

Sanaa instantly frowned, looking at her oldest daughter as if she was crazy. She stood on her feet. "Are you out of your damn mind ? You're going out with a stranger ? Oh hell nah ! "

She sighed. "Mom, I'm a grown woman. You won't cancel my plans."

"Don't be too sure about that. You know me, Ivory. But seriously, what were you thinking when you said yes ? Anything can happen to you tonight. He could be a serial killer, or a rapist or worst." She began panicking.

"Or he could be her future husband and father of her children. Did you think about it ? This is also a possibility." Lyona joined the conversation as she chose a lipstick to put on her big sister.

"True," Paris agreed as she unplugged the flat iron since she was done doing her sister's hair.

"And you taught us self-defense. Do you remember when you forced us to go to your kick-boxing classes ? " Deka also intervened, while the three sisters nodded their heads.

Sanaa sighed in defeat. "Y'all right. Sorry, I'm just a mother." She shrugged, sitting back down.

Eb chuckled. "And you're a good one. Don't worry, and trust your work, you raised us right. As soon as I feel unsaved, I'm getting the fuck outta there." Her mother slightly popped her in her mouth. "Mama ! "

"Don't be crazy, cause I will show you crazy."

"I'm sorry." She licked her lips, slightly frowning.

"Well, we'll be there, waiting for you."

Eb instantly shook her head. "No, I don't think so."

"Girl, we need details," Paris said, looking at her as if she had lost her whole mind.

She rolled her eyes. "I swear, y'all so nosey. But don't worry, I'll tell you everything tomorrow or maybe the next day. I don't know exactly when I'll be back home."

Her mother smacked her teeth. "Oh, I see. Are you planning to do something you shouldn't do ? "

"Please, auntie ! " Deka fanned her off. "She's grown ! Getchu freak on, sis ! "

"Aye ! " Lyona began twerking as her cousin hyped her on, while Sanaa looked at them with squinted eyes.

"But she's not ready for a whole damn baby. Correct me if I'm wrong, Ebony."

It didn't take her too long to agree. "You're not. And I never planned to have sex with him. Anyways, let me get dressed before I be late."

As she was about to stand up from her bed, her little sister stopped her. "Don't move ! Let me wipe off that powder and put the lipstick on." She did as she said, then finished the makeup with a setting spray. After that, Ebony went in the bathroom to put her dress on.

She looked at herself in the mirror, liking what Lyona did with her face. Her skin looked flawless and she was glowing like a disco ball thanks to the highlighter she used. Her eyeshadow was well done, not being too extra, as she liked it. And she was definitely obsessed with her dark red lipstick from NYX. She passed her hands through her hair, also satisfied with the work.

She unbuttoned her robe and threw it somewhere, leaving her in her undergarments, before putting on her dress. She decided to wear a black French Connection Scubalicious halter fitted dress, which she accompanied with a pair of Giuseppe Zanotti sandal heels and some jewelries.

She didn't want to do much, so she just put earrings on, a ring on her right ring finger and an elegant watch-and-bracelet set from Style & Co on her left wrist. She hesitated to wear a necklace, but finally set on not putting it on because she personally thought it would be too much with the way the dress was.

She went back in her room, where her family wasn't present anymore, then to her huge closet and checked herself in her full-length mirror. "Okay, girl ! You better work it ! " She complimented herself, snapping her fingers.

She then chose a perfume and sprayed it on herself. After that, she grabbed her bag and faux fur cape, hoping it will be enough to keep her warm. Today, although they were still in winter, the weather wasn't too cold, so she wasn't too worried about that. Plus, Chresanto told her they were going to be inside most of the time.

She didn't know exactly what to expect from this date. First reason was because Chresanto didn't tell her much since he wanted to surprise her; the second reason was because she didn't know him personally; and the third reason, there were so many possibilities for how this date could go, from great to very bad.

She was hoping for the best, but got herself mentally ready for the worst also.

She took a couple of pictures with her phone, then joined her family in her living room. "He's supposed to be here in like ten minutes."

"So, we're leaving in like five. Have fun, but not too much. And do not hesitate to call us if anything happens," her mother told her before giving her a motherly hug.

"I know, and thank you." She hugged her cousin and her sisters, then they left, not really rushing out the door. Ebony only had time to take a deep breath before she got an iMessage from Chresanto, telling her that he was pulling up in front of her building in a few minutes. She replied with an alright, and sat down, waiting a bit before leaving her apartment.

Since she was getting anxious, she suddenly ran to her closet and checked out her outfit one more time.

"Stop it, girl. It's okay, you look great. This date is going to be good, let's put this into existence. God, please, I hope he's a nice guy." She felt like she was going to throw up everything she ate from the past week.

She didn't know why she was getting so nervous. She was acting as if her life depended on this date. Being on the market again was scaring her. Since things didn't really work out with Jerome, now she had to do everything all over again and it was freaking her out. She wasn't really good when it came to relationships and interactions with the opposite sex; it was stressing her out more than anything else.

What if Chresanto turned out to be another Jerome ?

He cleared his throat as he rang the bell, trying to calm his nerves. It wasn't his first time taking someone on a date, but for some reason, he was putting a lot of pressure on himself for this one. He didn't know what it was about Ebony, but he wanted this night to be perfect for her.

As he was waiting for her to answer the door, he couldn't help but wonder if his outfit was appropriate for the occasion. He was wearing a dark blue classy shirt, which was tucked into his black dress pants, with the top two buttons unbuttoned, giving him a Latin lover type of vibe; black Gucci leather moccasin shoes, and since they were still in winter, he was also wearing his long black trench coat, his black Gucci scarf and leather gloves. He went to his barber yesterday to get cleaned, his nails didn't look like a struggle and he was smelling good. His breath was alright also.

No lie, he was feeling himself a little bit.

"Oh, I wasn't expecting you to come get me at my door."

"Well, I hope it's not a problem. Is it ? " he asked, as his eyes travelled her body from the top to the bottom.

He couldn't see her dress, but with what he could already see, he thought that she was looking wonderful. Her face was glowing and he loved the lipstick she had on. Dark lipsticks were one of his weaknesses. He just found it so sexy on a woman; the dark color added confidence and also mystery, intriguing him to get to know her more.

She had black hair, another one of his weaknesses. He didn't care about the length, but as long as you had black hair, he was interested. Then he quickly looked at her toes since she had open shoes, and he was glad to see that she was taking care of them, as he let out a small sigh of relief, which sounded like a normal sigh to Ebony.

"Oh, not at all. It's nice. Let me just grab my bag and we're out." She did that, then locked the door behind her. She led the way to the elevator and soon they were getting in the car. As the gentleman Chresanto was, he helped her to get in.

"Your car is something else. Never seen one like this before," she commented looking at the interior, which had a design that made you feel immediately comfortable, even though the color black was dominant. You could see some touches of royal blue, like the door handles, the steering wheel, dashboard and on the headrests where his name was written in italic. The car ceiling looked like a dark sky with millions of stars shining through.

"Should I say thanks ? "

"Hell yeah ! " she exclaimed, making them chuckle. "And your seat feels like a big cushion, not your typical leather or polyester seat. What is it ? "

"If I tell you, I'll have to kill you after," he joked, "this is actually something I'm working on. I'm testing it before putting it on the market."

"Oh...I see. I'll stop asking questions then."

"Thank you. Well, are you ready to go ? By the way, you look pretty."

"Thank you, you don't look too bad yourself. And yes ! Can't wait to see where we're going. You told me to dress classy but comfortable, I hope I did well."

"For what I can see, yes you did. You look beautiful."

She smiled. "Thanks. You look good too, Black King."

"Thanks, Black Queen." He started the car and got them to their destination, which took them almost an hour. When Ebony saw the name of the restaurant, her eyes opened widely as she unintentionally gasped in shock.

Il Magnifico was a well known Italian restaurant, where all the very important people went to eat. Politicians were often there and it was the perfect place to have business meetings. Many royalty from other countries were also regular clients. You had to make your reservation at least three months in advance to be sure to get a table. Five or six months when it was the holiday season, like Christmas or even Valentine's Day.

Ebony's heartbeat quickened as she wondered who exactly Chresanto was to take her there. More questions were running through her mind when she realized that they had the entire restaurant to themselves as they entered. She was at first confused when he got some keys out and used them to open the door as if he was the owner, but now she was getting it, kind of. She was so shocked.

"Let me take this for you," he said, motioning her cape as he took his coat off as well.

Ebony gave it to him, still looking around, impressed. The restaurant had black walls, a black carpet, black tables dressed in white sheets and black chairs, giving a dark vibe at first, but the white lights brought the brightness the room needed, giving an intimate atmosphere. Some paintings decorated the walls, reminding people where the owner was from, Italia. It seemed like they were telling a story.

There was a bar at the back, connected to the kitchen. A little stage on the right side, where the band usually played music, to set an even more classy but cozy atmosphere. The large windows at each side of the principal door brought natural light in, adding some romance.

She looked up and noticed that somebody actually painted a mural on the ceiling and it went so well with the rest of the decoration. It was a sky, with clouds and the colors used were dark, so it didn't take all the attention, but it sure was intriguing. It seemed like you could see faces through the clouds; Ebony was soon losing herself in it.

"Impressed ? " Chresanto chuckled, getting her out of her trance.

She looked at him, not too sure of her whereabouts for a moment. "Oh ! Sorry, I'm so sorry. It's so beautiful. I understand why this restaurant has so much popularity. It's amazing. But uh, I have a question though."

"Yes ? " He raised a brow.

"How ? " she nervously asked, not wanting to sound rude or anything. She was just really not expecting this for their first date.

He beamed, showing his dimples. "Mr. José is a friend of mine," he answered truthfully, while he hung her cape and his coat.

A couple of years ago, Chresanto helped to customize Mr. José's son's car and somehow it helped to rekindle the relationship between the father and son. Mr. José was so grateful, and since then he swore he owed Santo a favor, so he always got his back. Santo never asked him for anything until today, for this date.

She nodded her head. "Oh...I see. Well, thank you so much for this. I feel special." she honestly said, making him smile.

"Great. Follow me, please." He held his hand towards her, and she gladly slid her hand in, happy to feel the smoothness of his skin.

What kind of lotion is he using ? And how does the other parts of his body feel like ? She immediately ordered her brain to put those thoughts away. It wasn't the time nor the place.

They went to the kitchen, which was the biggest one she'd ever been in. She quickly noticed that some ingredients were out on a metal countertop. "Oh ! Are we supposed to cook ? " she asked, smirking.

"Yes ! I hope you don't mind. I thought it would be cool, so we can get to know each other and it's a little different from the usual dinner date."

"I agree. What's on the menu ? "

"Well, we're taking care of the main menu and the dessert, but for appetizer we're having nachos and pomegranate guacamole."

"Oh ! I love nachos and guacamole." She got excited as they went to the bar, where they sat at the counter. Well, Ebony sat down while Chresanto made their cocktails. So far, it was the best date she ever had. Like, the man was willing to do all of that and he knew nothing about her, except her first and last name...and career.

While they enjoyed the appetizer, they told each other about their day, getting more comfortable with one another. Once they were done with this, they went back in the kitchen to cook the rest of their dinner. Ebony really liked that idea; it was different from the usual dates as he said.

Chresanto on the other hand was more relaxed than at the beginning of the evening, seeing that Ebony was enjoying the date. Since he got her number, he'd been thinking about this date and what they could do to make it an exceptional night. It was when he talked with his father and brother that he got the ideas and he didn't waste time to start organizing it.

"So, tell me more about yourself. Do you have siblings ? " she asked while she beat the mixture with an electronic mixer. While she was making their dessert, a tiramisu, Chresanto was cooking the main meal, which consisted of roasted asparagus, white rice and seared salmon with balsamic glaze.

He first put the asparagus on the side since he was done with it, before answering her question and starting on the rice. "I have one brother, he's younger than me. His name's Chadwick, but I call him by his middle name, Chance. What about you ? "

"Well, I'm gonna do short or we'll be here forever if I have to explain the whole situation with my family," she began, shaking her head just thinking about it.

"Well, we have time," he said nonchalantly.

"Okay. I have multiple siblings on my paternal side, but I know none of them. I don't really have a relationship with my sperm donor. Then on my mother's side, I have two little sisters, Paris and Lyona, but none of us have the same father. Are you and your brother ''full'' siblings ? " She made the quotation marks with her fingers.

"No, but yes. We have different mothers, but we consider each other full brothers," he answered, hoping that she wasn't going to question him about his mother. It was a subject he didn't like to talk about.

"Yeah, I understand. My sisters and I feel the same way, then there's my cousin Deka whom we're really close with. She's like the fourth sister. So, what do you do for a living ? "

"I own a huge car shop slash a garage, so you can get car accessories, get your car customized, repaired and all that."

"Oh, what's the name ? "

"At Santo's."

She nodded, thinking. "I think I heard or saw something about that. I'll stop by one day. I do need to get some things done on my car."

"And since you know the owner, you can get some discounts."

She hummed quickly, "I didn't want to sound greedy, but since you said it...aye, it's lit." She made a little dance move, making him chuckle as she continued to whip the cream into the egg mixture.

He finished seasoning the salmon. "What about you ? I mean, do you do something aside being an interior designer ? By the way, my father chose something yet ? "

"No, I don't have a side hustle. I aspire to become the most known interior designer and I can say that I'm on the road to this goal. And he chose number two. We'll start on this on Monday."

"Cool, can't wait to see the final result. So, being an interior designer is the career you've always wanted ? "