by KB Winters
“I honestly don’t even know. He said he would come by and pick me up and I forgot to ask.”
I could hear Heather snort. “More like you were so busy thinking about his mouth and/or being attached to said mouth that he left before your brain had time to come back online.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I replied, throwing the dress down and picking up another. I was seriously cursing my lack of clothing variety—nothing I picked out looked good enough for a date and I didn’t want to wear the same dress as I did the last time. “I give up. I have absolutely nothing to wear!”
“Why don’t you wear your dark-wash skinny jeans with that sheer blouse you stole from me the last time you stayed over?”
I laughed. “I thought you didn’t know I had it.”
“Not a chance. I let you think you had gotten away with it, but never forget that I am the paperclip ninja as well as just generally being naturally observant.” Heather giggled before we lapsed into silence. I took her suggestion sliding on my jeans and then the pilfered blouse. Glancing at myself in the mirror, I had to admit that the top made my boobs look awesome and the jeans of course hugged my curves.
“You sure that this outfit wouldn’t be a bit…much?” I inquired while turning to look at my ass in the mirror.
“No way. I’m sure you look hot and Cole won’t even know how to keep his hands off of you when he sees you again. Put on those black boots that Kelly got you for Christmas last year and please do something other than your standard make-up routine.”
I groaned. I hated putting on makeup, mostly because I was usually too lazy or forgetful to remember to take the makeup off before bed. I always wound up washing my pillow cases twice as fast as the rest of my laundry.
“What’s wrong with my standard makeup routine?” I asked. I picked up the phone and walked over to the connected bathroom.
“There’s nothing wrong with it for work, but for a date with a guy as hot as Cole, you really want to do it up a little more.”
I huffed unconvinced. “Fine, but I don’t really see the point. He already knows what I look like without makeup.”
“Just go with me on this one, okay? Now, what time is he picking you up?”
I had just enough time to glance down at the watch on my wrist before my doorbell rang. “Shit! He’s here and I’m not ready!” I heard Heather’s laughter as I sprayed perfume on my wrists. “What should I do? Should I make him wait?”
“No you heathen. Go answer the door and let him know you aren’t quite ready. Invite him in, get him a drink and then show him to the sofa and be sure to hurry the hell up. You don’t want him to think you are chronically late to everything.”
“True, great, thanks Heather. I’ll let you know how things go,” I said hastily.
“Sure. Call me tomorrow after he’s gone.”
I couldn’t help but chuckle. “What makes you think he’ll be here in the morning?”
“Sweetie, I might be a lesbian, but as hot as that man is…if you don’t want him to stay the night then please send him my way, I may ” she joked, just before hanging up.
I looked at the phone in amusement before tossing it on my bed and making my way to the front door. I could see Cole’s outline through the glass cutout on the door and I sighed in relief when it didn’t look like he was in formal wear. That would have been extremely awkward. I took a deep calming breath and then opened the door.
“Hey.”
Cole’s smile and greeting was enough to make my heart palpitate. I hadn’t had a chance to pay attention to him when I’d run into him at work and I internally kicked myself for that oversight. I was no stranger to men and women in uniform, but the sight of him in his blue and khaki officer uniform made my mouth water.
It wasn’t obscenely tight, but it fit well enough that I could clearly see the definition in his arms and the ribbons on his chest drew attention to how broad his shoulders were. My gaze wandered to his crisply pressed slacks and the slight bulge between his thighs that I didn’t think could ever be downplayed. I didn’t speak, but I moved back slightly and gestured for him to come in. I tried not to stare too obviously at his ass as he walked through the doorway. The back of him looked just as good as the front and I jerked my gaze upwards as Cole reached up to takeoff his hat.
“Wow, you have a beautiful place,” he said as he glanced around.
I couldn’t help but laugh. “It’s not like it’s the first time you’ve been here,” I kidded as I closed the front door behind me.
“True, but the last time I wasn’t paying any attention to the décor.” Cole turned and gazed at me with an intense look. “I was more focused on the owner of said residence rather than the residence itself.”
“Oh,” I replied already flustered with the attention. “Well…are you thirsty? I’m not quite ready yet since I haven’t put on any makeup or anything.” I walked past Cole motioning for him to follow me into the kitchen. I swore I could feel the heat of him practically radiating outward like a furnace. “It should only take me a few minutes to do that and get my shoes and then we can go.”
“I’m good and, forgive me if I’m being too bold and feel free to tell me off, but I don’t think you even need to put any makeup on.” I grimaced at the thought of having to make sure I cleaned my face before going to bed. It was a step I wished I could’ve skipped.
I paused, my hand halfway to the refrigerator door. I turned around to look at Cole. “You don’t like makeup?”
He put his hands up, as if surrendering. “I don’t have a preference either way. Okay, no, that was a lie.” I smiled slightly as he continued. “I am not a fan of makeup that radically changes what the lady looked like before putting it on, but really, it’s up to her. It just doesn’t seem as if you are all that happy with having to put any on at all, so if it’s something you’d rather skip, please, feel free. It’s not like I don’t already know what you look like without it.”
“That’s what I said!” I exclaimed with a smile. “I told Heather that you’d already seen me with no makeup so there was no point in putting it on. I’m so glad you understand.” I placed my hands on my hips, secretly happy my make up routine was decided upon. “Well, then I just need to grab my shoes and I’m ready to go.”
Cole nodded and put his hands down. “Sounds great to me.” He followed as I exited the kitchen and turned down the hallway towards my bedroom.
“Where are we even going?” I called out not bothering to turn around. At that point, I could feel his presence as if it were a physical weight—comforting and warm. “I forgot to ask.”
“Well, it’s kind of a secret,” he answered. His voice sounded amused, probably realizing I hadn’t remembered to ask because I was too busy enjoying the feeling of his lips on mine. This time I did glance back as I walked through the doorway of my bedroom.
“A secret?”
“Yup,” he said with a little pop on the last sound of his answer. I shook my head in amusement as I walked over to my bed. I crouched down on my knees and leaned down until I could see under it. I knew I had put those boots under there somewhere. Most of the shoes that I didn’t wear often hid out under my bed. “Wow.”
“Wow, what?” I asked voice probably muffled by the fact that half of my body was now under the bed. I sneezed at the dust that I disturbed and vowed to clean better from now on. Dust bunnies from hell were not a good thing.
“Nothing, just an amazing view.”
“Aha!” I grabbed the boots and shimmied out from under the bed. “I found you, you little bastards.” The sound of Cole bursting out into raucous laughter made me turn around, my cheeks aflame with embarrassment at my reaction to finding the shoes. Immediately, I was swept into Cole’s arms and my lips taken in a sweet kiss.
The kiss was different from the Friday night kisses and the ones in my office. The ones on Friday had been passionate and a touch desperate while the ones earlier in my office had a frantic edge—no doubt brough
t on by the fact that anyone could have just walked in on us. No, these kisses now were like coming home, syrupy sweet and spine-tingling in the best way. I let go of my boots, not caring where they fell, before wrapping my arms around Cole’s neck and kissing back with everything I had inside. I didn’t understand how I could feel so comfortable with him so quickly, but I didn’t want to fight it—I just wanted to feel.
“You know, if we keep this up we aren’t going to make it to dinner,” Cole mumbled, separating slightly. Our breaths curled around one another and his lips brushed against mine as he spoke. I didn’t bother to open my eyes, instead pulling his head down again in order to taste his lips. Kissing him was like a drug and I didn’t care if I was addicted at all. All that mattered to me was getting more of his touch.
I was ready to say to hell with dinner and tell Cole I would just cook when my cell phone let out a loud beep. The sound made both of us jump slightly and I opened up my eyes to see Cole’s expression turn from hungry to amused. I’d intended to pull him in again when my phone made the noise again. With a sigh of frustration, I untangled my arms from Cole’s neck and stepped back so I could grab my phone from the bed. Whoever was texting had better have a good reason for interrupting.
‘Stop making out with him and go to dinner.’
‘Don’t kill me. Kelly made me text.’
I chuckled softly at Heather’s texts before looking up at where Cole still stood. His hair was slightly out of place, but otherwise he looked less affected than I probably looked. I ran a hand through my hair.
“Sorry about that.”
“No,” he said with a smile. “Never apologize for kissing me. I more than welcome any touch from you.”
I took a step towards him. “Oh? Any touch?”
One of his eyebrows rose as if he understood where my line of thinking was going. “Any touch that is pleasurable in it’s intent.”
“Touché,” I replied with a smile. He was quick and I was enjoying our verbal sparring matches as much if not more than the physical exchange. “Well, I just need to get these boots on and then I’m ready.”
“Perfect, let me get out of your hair here and get changed out of this monkey suit. Is the guest bathroom back down the hall?”
“Yeah, but your Marines uniform is no monkey suit. You look hot, you should keep it on.” I said, my voice a bit breathy at the thought of him getting naked in my house. It wouldn’t be the first time, but it was still a sexy thought.
“I think I’ll pass. Restroom?”
“I can show you-—”
“No worries ma’am. I am an officer in the United States Marine Corps, so I’m sure I can find my way. I’ll just change quickly and find a nice couch to sit on while I wait.”
“You don’t have to leave,” I said taking a step towards him. He moved with my motion taking a step backwards.
“Trust me, if I don’t leave this room now, we won’t be making it to our reservations this evening.” Cole smiled and I did as well. Perhaps there was some truth to his statement since all of our encounters were fraught with sexual tension that ended with us kissing—or more. I turned back to the bed and closed my eyes as I heard his footsteps exit the room. I barely registered sitting on the bed or even sliding on my boots. All of my being was focused on the fact that Cole was here in my house—yet outside of the bedroom. I didn’t know where this evening would lead—and despite my nerves—I was excited.
Chapter Three
“So tell me more about yourself.”
I smiled into my glass of wine. The night had been going great so far and my nerves had steadily faded into a stable sense of enjoyment. We were parked at the only drive-in theatre in town and I had only had a moment of surprise before he pulled a picnic basket from the trunk. I’d never had a date where the person prepared food for me.
Typically in college the only food I got was a bowl of cereal if that before I was being pushed out the door. No, this was something brand new for me, but I was quickly finding that I liked it.
I set my glass carefully on the blanket that Cole had spread out for us and reached for the plate he held toward me. “Well, there’s not much to tell really.” I gave him a bashful smile before looking down at the food he had prepared. “Oh! This looks delicious, what is it?” It looked like a mini Twinkie wrapped in lettuce.
“I somehow doubt that,” Cole intoned as he took a seat beside me. “This is golabki.”
“Golabki,” I said trying to mimic his pronunciation, and mangling it. His warm laughter made me less embarrassed though and more pleased that he was apparently enjoying my company.
“Close. It’s a cabbage roll with minced beef, onions and rice.”
“Wow.” I’d never heard of it before, but it smelled heavenly and I could feel my mouth water. After giving Cole one last smile, I set the plate in my lap and picked up my fork. The first taste of the roll was like nothing I’d ever had, and I couldn’t help the slightly pornographic noise of pleasure that left my chest.
“I take it you like it then?” Cole asked. I opened my eyes and looked over at him with a wide grin.
“This is the best thing I have ever freaking tasted. It’s like a party in my mouth. I could never make anything half as good as this,” I replied honestly. I wasn’t lying. I was not a good cook and most of my meals were either from the school cafeteria or ready-made meals from the local grocery store. Occasionally, I’d go over to Kelly’s place for dinner and every Sunday evening I got together with Heather and she’d cook traditional Cantonese food. I was sure I hadn’t mentioned it to Cole—but I was a sucker for any kind of cabbage dish.
“You look like you’ve tasted ambrosia from the gods,” Cole joked with a smoky chuckle.
“I love cabbage.” I mentally smacked myself over the head for that dopey sentence. “I mean, one of my best friends is Cantonese and she makes this cabbage soup dish that is just as amazing and my mom makes some awesome fried cabbage too and…” I trailed off as Cole threw his head back and let out full-bellied laughter. I could feel my cheeks flush and I ducked my head down in embarrassment.
A large warm hand covered my own and I hazarded a glance up beneath my eyelashes. Cole was looking at me, lips in a wide smile and eyes twinkling with amusement. “Don’t be embarrassed. I love that you enjoy food, plus cabbage is pretty awesome.”
I didn’t answer. I looked back down at my food as I cut into it again. I wasn’t angry at him for being amused by my lack of brain to mouth filter when food was involved, but it was still enough to cause my anxiety to make an unwanted return.
“I’m Polish on my mom’s side and before she got sick she taught me how to make golabki and a few other dishes. My sister isn’t quite into it as much as I am, but I always wanted to go to culinary school and maybe do something with the book of my family’s recipes.”
I looked up at Cole to see him smiling almost wistfully into his plate. Some of my embarrassment gave way to a warmth I’d never felt before. “Why didn’t you?”
He shrugged as if brushing off the ‘what ifs’. “Life.”
I giggled. “That’s a pretty nondescript answer, especially with how you seemed to really be passionate about it while you were talking.”
“What can I say? I’m a food lover and an all around sensitive guy.” Cole gave me a sharp smile and I laughed. “But what about you? Did you always want to be a principal?”
I gave a shrug of my own. “I always knew I wanted to work in education in an administrative capacity. Both of my parents are retired teachers and the struggles they went through to try to educate their students and make a difference made me want to do something to make things better.”
Cole nodded. “Definitely can understand that. Kids can tell between the teachers that are only there to get a paycheck and the ones that are really there to help them. I had some amazing teachers when I was in school and even a decade or more later—I still remember them.”
I took another bite of my food as we lapsed int
o comfortable silence. The movie played on in the background as we finished the food Cole had brought as well as put a major dent in the bottle of wine.
“This was really incredible, Cole.” I breathed out, content with the fullness of my belly. It truly was a wonderful meal and the company wasn’t too bad either. I felt comfortable with Cole in a way I had never felt with any other man before.
“Well thank you kindly ma’am.”
I tilted my head. “Where are you from? I know you said your mom was Polish, but your accent occasionally slips into something…Southern.”
Cole chuckled. “I was born in Kentucky and lived there all my life until I joined the Marines. I’ve only been here in Washington State for three months.”
“Oh, that makes sense now. Have you ever lived anywhere overseas?” I was curious about Cole’s life especially as I’d never left the state for anything other than a short vacation in Los Angeles. I hadn’t really enjoyed the hustle and bustle there though and the traffic was atrocious.
“Not lived—but I’ve been around. Did a couple of tours in Afghanistan, stayed in Hawaii for a while,” he answered, before taking a sip of wine. “What about you?”
I shook my head. “Wow. You went to Afghanistan? God, I’m not even worldly. I’ve lived here in Puget Sound all my life. I went to the University of Puget Sound and got my masters a year after my undergrad.”
Cole raised his eyebrows as if surprised. “Really? That’s very impressive. Did you ever think about leaving and trying life out somewhere else?”
“Not really. I’ve always loved this city and never really saw myself anywhere else. I did get a job offer down in Los Angeles and I was seriously considering it until I actually went there for a tour of the city.” I grimaced at how that experience ended. My feelings about that must have shown on my face because Cole chuckled.
“I take it you weren’t impressed by what Los Angeles had to offer?”
