Page 19 of Reckless

“No. I mean. Fuck.”

I smiled so wide it made my cheeks hurt. She was thinking about me. About us. About the possibility we could be more than just two strangers who were insanely attracted to each other. And while, yes, she got my cock hard as fuck, I also wanted to know her. Wanted to know what made her blush and see what I could do to make her smile. I could see us curled up together, sheets tangled around our bodies and my hand threaded through her hair while she told me about her day. About her dreams. About nothing and everything in between.

“I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t been thinking of it too.”

“I don’t know what to do with that.”

“Me either. But I’d like to see where it goes.”

‘… fine. Friday night. 8pm. I’ll meet you at Artemis.”

Holy fuck. We had a date. I clutched my phone to my chest, feeling my heart racing against my ribs. Friday couldn’t come soon enough.

Chapter Nine

STELLA

Gemini

The world is what you make of it. Take a risk. Do something out of the ordinary. You might be surprised by how much you enjoy it.

I held two different outfits up in each hand, testing one and then the other over my body so I could see what it looked like in the mirror. Either I could go with a classic black wrap dress that falls just above the knees, or I could choose the sparkly red dress that hugs my curves and shows off my cleavage.

Decisions, decisions.

Fuck it. The red dress was the clear winner. A pang signaled in my chest as I slid it over my frame. This was just the kind of thing I would have asked Andi’s opinion on. Hell, she’d probably be over here helping me get ready, giving me unsolicited dating advice and taking a million pictures on her phone, and insisting I update her after the date was over. Fuck, I missed her.

After curling my hair into submission, applying my makeup, and putting on my favorite fragrance, I was ready.

We were meeting at a rooftop bar downtown, named Artemis, known for its signature astrological drinks and stunning city views. I’d never been, but some of the dancers I worked with praised it as one of the best spots around. They usually knew what they were talking about, so even if the date ended up being a bust, I at least had the drinks to look forward to.

Callahan and I had been texting every day. Silly little things. But every time my phone buzzed, I felt a churning of giddiness fluttering about in my stomach.

He sent me a picture of his tarantula, who he said he named after Stevie Nicks, and dammit that fact alone made me like him more than I already did. A part of me had been hoping he possessed the personality of a wet sock so I could write this off as a stupid little attraction. Something I could shove down and forget about. But with each text, the possibility of wanting to forget about him became harder and harder. Did he have to be so fucking likable?

A quick ride share later and I was standing outside the building looking up to where I was supposed to meet Callahan for our date. Admittedly, despite all the reasons I kept telling myself this was a bad idea, there was a large part of me that was curious to see if I was wrong. That maybe I’d been playing it safe when it came to relationships and the shit I was so scared of was not all that scary.

As a kid, I was terrified of horror movies and would cry if someone even suggested we watch one. I would be plagued with nightmares, convinced the bad guys or monsters were going to show up in my room at any moment to hurt me and my family. It wasn’t until I was a teenager that Andi told me I was being ridiculous.

“They’re just using special effects and makeup, Stell. It’s not even real. You’re letting them manipulate your emotions,” she’d said.

Turned out she was right. The real monsters and bad guys ended up taking my family anyway, but they weren’t from some low-budget movie. It was from real human men. So, yeah, I guess I did have a reason to be scared. Good thing I knew how to kill a man if it came down to it.

The sharp taste of blood flooded my mouth, and I realized I’d accidentally dug my top teeth into my bottom lip a little too hard. At least the blood matched my lipstick, I thought as I looked into the compact mirror I’d brought with me in my purse along with some mace, my favorite knife, and another knife strapped high on my thigh out of sight. A girl could never be too careful.

“I thought you might not show,” Callahan’s voice said from behind me and my stomach flipped.

I snapped my compact shut and shoved it into my purse, turning around to find him standing there with a fist full of white calla lilies and that devastating smile I loved pulling at his lips. He wore a nice, fitted suit that looked expensive and had his hair pushed away from his face. There was one rogue curl that found its way to his forehead that I found endearing and admittedly adorable.

“Must be your lucky night,” I replied, having pushed down my nerves that were churning away in my stomach.

He smiled even wider and offered his arm to me. “Shall we?”

I took his arm, lacing my elbow around his. “Lead the way.”

His woodsy scent hit me like a warm hug around my middle. From the corner of my eye, I could see him staring at me, and my cheeks heated. Did he have to be so good looking?

The door to the building opened automatically as we walked towards it, enveloping us in a warm burst of air. It was mildly cold out tonight, but not enough that had me thinking I should have brought a coat with me.