by Jada Cox
I thought he was painfully handsome, and I loved listening to him talk. He was so interesting and had done so many things with his life. To top it all off, he was polite, considerate, and seemed interested in my life. He was really everything I should be looking for in a partner.
But was that what I really wanted right now? A relationship? It was one thing to have fun every now and then, but I was just at the start of my career, and I should really be thinking about that.
There’s more to life than a career, I reminded myself. It was also one thing to pursue a casual relationship and see where it went, but I knew that if I let myself get swept away with Julian, I would. And it felt like he would try to sweep me away. He was so intensely focused on my wants and needs.
Finally, it clicked what I was reading in the email.
It was from Jeremy. He had sent back his alterations on the proposal and wanted me to deliver it to Julian.
Crap, I thought.
I couldn’t handle the idea of going over to his house again today. Not after what had happened the last time I was there and the progression in our personal relations, which threatened to spill into my professional relationship with him.
And then I would have to be in his house again, possibly alone with him.
I didn’t need to go into his bedroom this time, though, not if I was just passing along and discussing the proposal. I could keep things professional, right?
My mind answered me by reminding me of the feel of his breath on the back of my neck, his fingertips dancing along my skin as I ached for him.
You are a pro, Cora, I told myself. You’ve kept your mind mostly out of the gutter for this long. You can continue to do that.
After several attempts to pick up the phone and dialing, only to put the phone back, faced down, onto my desk, I managed to actually get as far as hit the call button. It rang a couple of times before he picked up.
“Hey,” he said, his voice smooth like silk.
“Julian,” I said, wondering how I would greet him on the phone if I hadn’t just been having sex with him not even eighteen hours earlier. How did I used to greet him? I hoped I didn’t sound as muddled as I was feeling. “I got the proposal back from Jeremy. He wants me to come around and discuss it with you.”
“Is that really why you called me?”
I could hear the smile in his voice, the gentle tease. He kept his voice the same level as it had been as he spoke to me when he kissed me, when he slowly undressed me, when he had his tongue spreading my lips apart between my legs—how the hell did people not think about sex all damn day? How did anyone get anything done? I couldn’t stop thinking about him, about the night before, and now his voice was about to make me fall off my chair.
I cleared my throat trying to keep my focus. “When do you have some availability?” I asked, trying to dodge his question.
“I’m free this afternoon,” he said.
I felt my breath catch in my throat. I would see him again this afternoon, as in, a couple of hours. My hand was beginning to shake as it held the phone to my ear. Oh boy, this was going to be difficult.
“This afternoon is just fine,” I relayed. If I don’t melt into a puddle before then.
I realized that that would actually be a possibility.
I stared at his house for a long time before I managed to convince myself to actually get out of the car and go up to the door.
I didn’t know how to act. I had never been in a situation even close to this one before. How was I supposed to greet him after the last time I saw him? Was I supposed to kiss him? Be affectionate toward him? Or was I supposed to act like nothing had happened?
Well, I knew the answer to that. I did need to act like nothing had happened. I was here for work, not pleasure. Even if we did have an ongoing relationship, I didn’t think it would be appropriate to be anything other than focused on the work while I was here. After all, I wasn’t just here for my own career. I was here representing Jeremy, and beyond Jeremy, I was here representing the company.
I didn’t need to stay here long. That much I knew. I only needed to go over the proposal with him and get his okay. I didn’t have to talk at all about anything other than work. I could do this.
Finally, I pushed open my car door, grabbed my purse with the iPad in it, and marched up to the front door.
When he opened the door, I felt the heat coming from him as if he were a furnace. It didn’t matter that I stood about as far away from the door as I could while still being on his doorstep. The memory of his touch was enough to intensify the pulse in my veins and rile me right up. All manner of thoughts ran through my head, from the first time he’d taken his shirt off in front of me to our explosive finish.
“Hi,” Julian said, leaning against the door. “Good to see you.”
“Hi,” I said as he stood aside. I tried to force my feet to move forward into the house without deviating and landing me on him. “This is just a quick visit. I just need you to okay the proposal that Jeremy altered so that he can move forward.”
“Is that all?” Julian closed the door behind him and leaned against the wall of the massive entryway.
“Yes,” I said, trying to sound defiant.
Julian didn’t look as confident as he had every other time I had seen him. Despite his cool exterior, the relaxed stance of his posture, and the slight smile he kept planted on that handsome face of his, I could detect something slightly forced, as if, somehow, he was off kilter. Had something happened? Or was it possible that he was nervous around me?
I resisted the urge to ask him if he was alright. I needed to remain professional. I couldn’t bring up personal matters. This wasn’t a social call.
I dug into my purse and pulled out the iPad. I turned it on, opened the file, and passed it over to him. I watched in silence as Julian studied the proposal, swiping through the slides, glancing up and into nothing from time to time to seemingly get an image in his mind of what the proposal might look like in action.
“Do you have any questions?” I asked when it looked as though he had gotten to the end.
“Nope,” he replied, passing it back to me.
“Any thoughts?”
He shook his head. “It looks fine to me. Let’s go with it.”
“You’re sure?” I asked. “It’s alright if there are some alterations that you want to make. You’re the one who is living in this house and paying for our services. We don’t want to do something that you won’t be happy with.”
This time, he gave me a real smile, the one that seemed to always be on his face when he looked at me. “I’m sure,” he said. “It would be nice if the guys were here to finalize it, though.”
“I’ll make a note of that,” I said as I put the device back into my purse. “I’m sure we can arrange a meeting with Jeremy once he’s out of the hospital to make sure everyone is happy.”
“Will you be there?” he asked, running his hand back through his hair, which sprung forward into place again. He was like a shampoo commercial.
“Most likely.” I tried to ignore how appealing his hair was, how my fingers itched to have a go at it. “Usually when those meetings take place, it’s with everyone involved. So it won’t just be me, but possibly anyone else that Jeremy plans to have work on this particular account.”
Julian nodded, his eyes wandering along the entryway ceiling before they ran down the walls and onto me. He studied me for a minute, his eyes kind and curious, and I tried to resist squirming under his attention.
“Are you alright?” he asked. “I mean, after last night?”
“I’m fine,” I said. I didn’t want to tell him how confused I was with everything, that I didn’t know what I wanted, and furthermore, that I thought that I had no business getting involved with him at a time like this. Never mind that, on the flipside, I wanted him to push me up against this wall and carry me to his bedroom, and that I wanted to wake up in his arms.
But I couldn’t. I knew that anywher
e this went with this guy was likely dangerous. He was beautiful, to say the least, and beautiful guys didn’t go for girls like me, not for the long-term. And even if he did, I needed to think about my career that I had worked so hard for. I was just starting to get somewhere, and I didn’t need my head to be muddled by cute men and hotel rooms.
“What are you doing tonight?” Julian asked.
“Nothing,” I said before I could stop myself. How the hell had my mind and mouth disconnected?
“Then let me take you out to dinner,” he said. “I want to take you on a real date, like you deserve.”
I opened my mouth to tell him that no, it wasn’t appropriate, but instead, my rebellious, traitorous mouth said, “Okay.”
Chapter 11 – Julian
If there was one thing I was good at, it was dates. I knew how to make a girl feel special, how to woo her in ways that would get me to where I wanted to be. Despite the fact that I didn’t really waste my time with relationships, I did have a romantic side. I did like the courting process. I was somewhat of a soppy romantic.
And I never failed to wow a girl on a date.
But this one had me uneased. I drove through town to the southern edge trying to assure myself that I had made the right decision, that it needed to happen tonight. If I left it too late, it might not go too well. If I had any hope in building something with Cora, I needed to be upfront with her from the beginning.
The question revolved in my mind, turning slowly like a weary clog that was rusting. It was difficult to get it to move, to build any momentum from it. But I needed to. How do you convince a human that shifters existed, that Dragons existed, all the while trying to get them to keep calm?
My idea was short and to the point, and a terrible tactic. I planned to take her someplace nice, wine her and dine her, and keep her where she couldn’t make a scene. I felt like a sleaze for even thinking of using this tactic, but it was the only way I thought I could keep her in one spot long enough to listen to me. I needed her to hear me out.
And so, for the first time in decades, I was nervous about a first date.
Her apartment was in a single-story apartment building, the second one from the end. She said she shared it with her friend and that she would meet me out front. I actually had wanted to meet her friend and see who she chose to keep company with, but I could understand her not being ready to make that leap yet. After all, nothing had been defined between us yet.
She wasn’t, however, out in front of her apartment when I arrived, though as soon as I killed the engine of my truck, she came hurrying out, pausing to lock the door behind her.
I held my breath as I watched her. She was so beautiful, and she didn’t even know it.
Cora piled her hair on top of her head in an intricate and tidy bun, that showed she had spent time practicing how to make those long locks of her work magic. Silver earrings dangled straight down from her ears, sparkling in the light from the apartment building, and dripping down to her shoulders, which were bare except for the straps that held up her dress.
The dress was tasteful, a dark purple like the color of her underwear the night before, with a neckline that suited both a church service and a romantic date. The length of the dress though showed off her legs, far more than church attendance might deem appropriate. It flared out at the end and swayed lightly in the slight breeze of the night air.
Her legs were bare down to her little silver ankle bracelet which gave way to dark brown ankle boots.
The transformation from her work wear to her play wear was astonishing. The way she carried herself was even different. I didn’t know if it was because I had already seen her without her clothes or if she was just more comfortable in evening wear, but her shoulders were squared but relaxed, and her head was held higher.
If this was the first time I’d met her, I might have fallen for her just as hard.
I hopped out of the truck and went to her side to greet her and let her into the passenger side. I had taken the truck in earlier, and the cherry-red finish popped against the graying late spring evening. I had hoped that the cloud cover would burn off for our date but was beginning to give up on that hope.
“I didn’t know you had an antique,” she said as I pulled the door open for her.
“I prefer the term ‘classic,’” I said. “It’s a 1950 Chevrolet. I went to get a pickup when we moved in just so I could haul stuff around if I needed. I saw this one, and I couldn’t resist. It’s in supreme condition. It even came with a spare tire.”
“It’s very nice,” she said, and I saw her polite disinterest.
“Sorry,” I said. “I’m a closet car nerd. I try to keep it under wraps, though.”
I closed the door on her side and went around to resume my position. “I thought we might go a little way out of town,” I said. “There’s a place in the woods a little ways called The Forks. Have you heard of it?”
“Have I heard of it?” Cora asked, astonished. “It’s supposed to be one of the nicest restaurants in all of northern Georgia.”
“So I’ve heard.”
“How did you even get a table there?”
“I have my ways,” I said. “And I have a pretty well-known name as well, which gets me a lot of things.”
“I feel underdressed,” she said shyly, her fingers twiddling the hem of her skirt.
“You are perfect,” I said. I leaned over and kissed her cheek before I started the engine. I hadn’t meant to kiss her, but it felt so natural, like it was something we did all the time. She didn’t tense up but instead accepted it just as naturally. The feel of her cheek against my lips was enough to put my worries to rest. I felt my confidence return a little as I pulled away from the curb.
It was a nice drive to the restaurant. They were known for their sleek jazz and elegant menu. It was a set menu, which I hoped would suit Cora fine. When I had viewed it online, I had been particularly drawn to it due to its inclusion of rabbit and pigeon on the list. I had always enjoyed meat options that were different to the norm.
When we arrived, there was already a bottle of champagne in a bucket of ice waiting on our table and a folded cloth next to it along with two crystal glasses. I pulled out Cora’s chair and allowed her to sit before I took my own. The waiter popped the cork and poured our bubbly for us.
“I’m really glad you let me take you out tonight,” I said, taking my glass. I held it up. “To tonight.”
“To tonight,” she said, smiling as she clinked her glass against mine. She sipped it before putting it down. “I’ll have to watch myself tonight. I don’t usually drink, especially not the night before working.”
“You can always call in sick,” I suggested. “We could bring more of this home, and I can spoil you all night.”
“Julian,” she said softly, trying to hide the blush coming to her cheeks. It was a warning tone, reminding me that she was still processing what was going on. I needed to watch what I said and how much I alluded to.
“I’m sorry,” I said. “I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable. I just want you to know that I really enjoyed my time with you last night, and I hope you did, too.”
“I did.”
“And I also want you to know that last night meant something to me. It wasn’t just having fun or a one-off.”
“It wasn’t?” Cora asked, her eyes meeting mine for the first time since I’d picked her up. There was something in them. She looked hopeful, relieved, but also a little scared.
I shook my head. “No. I wouldn’t want to be your first if I wasn’t going to be a gentleman. If I hadn’t been hoping for something more than just a fling between us, I would have left you alone.”
Cora reached for her water and sipped at it, looking away.
“I’m sorry,” I said. “This is kind of heavy.”
“It’s alright,” she said. “I suppose it’s clearing the air a little bit.”
“My intentions exactly. I want to have a good time with you tonight, Cor
a. I want to show you that I’m interested in you, not just sex. So, I wanted to show you what you mean to me.”
She smiled, though tried not to let on how pleased she was, trying to keep her cool. It was adorable.
“Right,” I said. “So, this place has a set menu. Is that alright?”
“It’s fine,” she said.
“Good. We have a four-course meal ahead of us, so I hope you’re ready.”
She giggled. “I don’t think I’ve ever had anything so indulgent.”
“When was the last time you let yourself indulge?”
“Aside from last night?” she asked. “I don’t know. I went to a couple of parties in college but nothing really beyond that. I think it was probably when I was in high school, and even then, I kept a pretty tight rein on myself.”
I leaned back in my chair, my hand going to my chest. “You’re breaking my heart! You’ve got to let that hair of yours loose some time. Let’s go to Europe, check out the Alps. I bet that’s something you’ve never done.”
She laughed, and to my relief, sipped at her champagne instead of the water. She was beginning to relax.
“No, I can’t say I have. But I’m at the beginning of my career. I can’t just dart off whenever I want to.”
“Sure you can,” I said. “Money’s nice and all, but living is really the treat of life.”
“It’s a little bit easier to say coming from your position,” she said, still chuckling.
“I’m trying to invite you into my position,” I said.
The first course arrived. We each received an oyster on a half shell accompanied by a small shot glass with vodka marinera sauce.
“Do you like oysters?” I asked. “If not, I can take that one from you. I love them.”
“Back off,” she said with a smile. “I quite like oysters and don’t have them nearly enough.”
