by Xenia Melzer
“Collin? Is that you? This is Martin. Martin Carmichael. You helped me out yesterday.”
All of a sudden Collin was wide-awake. A strange feeling sizzled through him, like an electric current, only nice.
“Yes. Yes, it’s me. I…um…just woke up. Good morning.” Collin rolled his eyes at himself. So much for dazzling Martin with his social skills. He sounded like an idiot.
Martin chuckled. “Good morning. I’m sorry for waking you. I know how hard it can be to have a conversation without a cup of coffee under your belt. Should I call again later?”
“No!” Collin blushed, glad Martin couldn’t see him. He tried to get a grip on himself. “I mean, no, it’s fine. I’m awake now and I don’t need coffee. In fact, I steer clear of it because the caffeine does strange things to me and then I can’t sleep and feel antsy all the time, and anyway, very often coffee is harvested by child labor, and who would want to support something so nasty when a glass of water is perfectly fine and doesn’t make your skin crawl or your hands shake?”
Collin realized was babbling again when Martin’s rumbling laughter echoed over the line. “I’ll remember not to give you coffee, then. I’m calling about our dinner and wanted to know if you had time today.”
“I thought you had forgotten!” Collin slapped his hand over his mouth. He’d spoken without thinking again. Martin’s silence told him the man finally realized what a nut job Collin was. But when Martin started speaking, it wasn’t the blunt rejection Collin expected.
“I haven’t forgotten, Collin. And I apologize for worrying you. I most certainly didn’t mean to. I was stuck on the phone, first with the car dealer and then with getting the SUV towed in. When I was finally finished, it was almost midnight. I didn’t want to disturb you so late.”
Collin felt a little better that Martin hadn’t forgotten and at the same time bad for giving him a hard time. “I should apologize, Martin. Of course, you have more important things to do than phoning me. I didn’t mean to nag.”
Again came the warm, rumbling laughter that did funny things to Collin’s stomach. “You’re not nagging. I told you I would call and I didn’t do it, so you have every right to question me. I promise, it won’t happen again. Now, are you available tonight?”
That was a no-brainer. “Yes, of course.”
“Then how about I pick you up at six and we’ll have a nice dinner at one of my favorite restaurants?”
Collin felt giddy with joy until he remembered something. His face fell. “Um, I don’t have the clothing for a fancy restaurant, and I don’t want to embarrass you.”
“Don’t worry, Collin. The place I have in mind is cozy and not uppity at all. You’re going to love it, and jeans are perfectly acceptable there. By the way, I do need your address.”
Collin felt as if a lead weight had dropped from his heart. “Then I’m looking forward to tonight.” He rattled off his address and added, a little shyly, “Thank you.”
Martin chuckled again. “You’ve got it wrong, sweet one. I’m the one who has to thank you. See you tonight.”
The line went dead, and Collin stared at the receiver for an eternity before he dropped to his knees and hugged Dog, who was sitting on the floor eyeing him with mild curiosity. “I think I have a date, Dog. I’m so excited.”
XENIA MELZER was born and raised in a small village in the south of Bavaria. As one of nature’s true chocoholics, she’s always in search of the perfect chocolate experience. So far, she’s had about a dozen truly remarkable ones. Despite having been in close proximity to the mountains all her life, she has never understood why so many people think snow sports are fun. There are neither chocolate nor horses involved and it’s cold by definition, so where’s the sense? She does not like beer either and has never been to the Oktoberfest—no quality chocolate there.
Even though her mind is preoccupied with various stories most of the time, Xenia has managed to get through school and university with surprisingly good grades. Right after school she met her one true love who showed her that reality is capable of producing some truly amazing love stories itself.
While she was having her two children, she started writing down the most persistent stories in her head as a way of relieving mommy-related stress symptoms. As it turned out, the stress relief has now become a source of the same, albeit a positive one.
When she’s not writing, she translates other authors’ manuscripts to German, enjoys riding and running, spending time with her kids, and dancing with her husband.
Website: www.xeniamelzer.com
Email: [email protected]
By Xenia Melzer
A Dom and His Writer
Love Wins (Dreamspinner Anthology)
Published by DREAMSPINNER PRESS
www.dreamspinnerpress.com
Published by
DREAMSPINNER PRESS
5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886 USA
www.dreamspinnerpress.com
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of author imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
A Dom and His Writer
© 2017 Xenia Melzer.
Cover Art
© 2017 Aaron Anderson.
[email protected]
Cover content is for illustrative purposes only and any person depicted on the cover is a model.
All rights reserved. This book is licensed to the original purchaser only. Duplication or distribution via any means is illegal and a violation of international copyright law, subject to criminal prosecution and upon conviction, fines, and/or imprisonment. Any eBook format cannot be legally loaned or given to others. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the Publisher, except where permitted by law. To request permission and all other inquiries, contact Dreamspinner Press, 5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886, USA, or www.dreamspinnerpress.com.
ISBN: 978-1-63533-826-3
Digital ISBN: 978-1-63533-827-0
Library of Congress Control Number: 2017910300
Published October 2017
v. 1.0
Printed in the United States of America
