"Yeah, I know." Ollie put his arm around Mara. "We should go help the Kittens get set up."
I glanced toward the guest house and saw Heidi going inside. "Isn't the home-wrecker staying in a tent with her girlfriends?"
Mara rolled her eyes at me this time. "Heidi is not a homewrecker. She's actually very sweet. And no, she's not staying with the other Kittens. She'll be in the guest house."
Ollie kissed Mara's cheek. "We'd better get going if we want to have time for today's Japanese lesson too."
"Can't miss that," Mara said with enthusiasm.
Yeah, Ollie and Mara were learning Japanese online, through one of those language websites. It didn't sound like fun to me, but they seemed to like it.
The lovebirds ambled off to assist the Kitten Brigade.
I wandered into the guest house to find Heidi. Not that I planned to hit on her. Not yet, anyway. But I was curious why she'd dressed like a female version of a college guy. I'd never dressed that way, but cargo pants had been the uniform of choice for a lot of the guys I'd met in college. Some of the girls too.
But not girls like Heidi. She had a beautiful face and a killer body, and last time I'd seen her, she wasn't shy about showing it off. She clearly loved stripping naked. So why hide all those curves now? And that creamy skin, with those cute little freckles sprinkled around just enough to make me want to count them all with my tongue.
I found Heidi loitering at the bottom of the stairs, her head tipped back, seeming to admire the carpentry or something.
"Hey," I said. "Remember me?"
She startled, her wide blue eyes swerving toward me. "Oh, it's you. Damian, right? You're Ollie's friend."
"Yeah, but I don't think we were ever properly introduced." I held out my hand. "Damian Petrescu, proud Rom and descendant of the Ludar line."
She shook my hand, though she looked skeptical of me. "Right. I remember now. You're the guy who loves to put on gypsy airs. I'm Heidi Mackenzie."
Airs? Hey, I might've enjoyed playing up the gypsy stuff, but it was no act. Not entirely.
Heidi raked her gaze over my entire body, and her tongue sneaked out to moisten her bottom lip. "Why are you dressed like Dracula's low-rent cousin?"
"Women love the way I dress." I smirked. "You do, that's for sure. I can tell by the way your pupils dilated when you saw me and the way you licked your lips."
"My lips are dry, and it's kind of dark in here. It makes everybody's pupils get bigger."
"Have dinner with me."
She blinked slowly, her brows hiking up. "Excuse me?"
"You heard what I said. Have dinner with me. I give awesome dating."
One side of her mouth tried to smile while the other side wanted to frown. "Yeah, I'm sure you think you're awesome at everything to do with women. But I'm not interested."
I leaned against the bottom post on the staircase, cocking my hip. "I bet you'll change your mind after a date with me. What have you got to lose? I'll buy you a nice meal, we'll have some laughs, and then you can decide how badly you want to get me naked."
"Oh please. Does that kind of talk really work for you?"
"Usually." I slanted toward her and lowered my voice. "I can give you the best time of your life, and I'll even talk dirty if you beg me for it." I grinned. "Actually, you won't have to beg. I love whispering filthy things into a woman's ear."
"I'm not into that." She crossed her arms over her chest, elevating her tits. "I'm not interested in dating or sex at all."
"Come on, you must be joking. Aren't you the girl who loves to be naked and loves to suck every ounce of marrow out of life?"
"I'm not a silly, wild girl anymore. I've changed, for the better."
Right. In the space of a few months, she morphed from a party girl into a serious, cargo-pants-wearing woman. Sure, she'd humiliated herself with Ollie last time they saw each other. But that was no reason to shun hot sex and wild times.
"Don't you miss having a good time?" I asked. "I guarantee I can make you feel good."