I sat down in the second bedroom that I converted into my design room. I grabbed all my sketches and spread them out on the floor. It was one thing when I was going to try to do the campaign myself, but the fact that I was going to have Luca Romano’s professional eyes on my work, I knew I had to bring it. Tapping a notebook, I planned to flesh out my best ideas. I’d just finished writing out the first idea when my phone rang.
My stomach flipped as I stared at the name flashing across my screen.
“Hello?”
“Hey, Serena.” His voice was unique—deep, sexy, accented. I knew who he was before he introduced himself. “It’s Luca.”
“Hey!” I greeted him. “How are you?”
“I’m cool. How are you?”
I looked at the spread around me and the one sole idea that I had written down on my notebook. “I’m fine.”
“Are you busy?”
“Not really,” I lied. “What’s going on? Everything okay?”
Please don’t cancel our meeting tomorrow, I prayed. Please don’t cancel our meeting tomorrow.
“Yeah, everything is cool. I just finished up a long day and was going to take a ride.” There was a heavy pause. “Talking to you last night was a good time. I figured I’d ask if you were interested in getting together—to talk.”
My eyebrows flew up. I sat in a stunned silence for a few seconds. “You want to get together tonight?”
“Yes.”
“Um…”
“No pressure. It wouldn’t even be about work. We will still have our meeting on Monday, and I’m still moving forward with you in my project. It was just a thought. Don’t worry about it.”
I glanced at my sketches around the room. “No, I want to. But what time? I’m not dressed.”
“I could pick you up in an hour.”
“Oh! O-okay,” I stammered, suddenly nervous.
I gave him my address, and then we exchanged goodbyes.
Leaping to my feet, I ran to the other end of the apartment to figure out what I was going to wear. After pulling out two outfits that I couldn’t decide between, I showered and moisturized. While slipping on a sexy bra and panty set, I realized what I was doing.
“This isn’t a date,” I muttered to myself as I looked at myself in the mirror. The bra was sexy, and the panties were barely there. “What am I doing?”
I put the dress I’d pulled out back in the closet and went with the more casual look. Deciding on the skintight jeans and a long sleeved emerald green shirt, I paired it with brown boots. My tightly coiled hair was left in its natural state. Sliding gold pins in my hair, I added gold earrings and a watch to complete my look.
Serena: Luca called. He wants to talk, and he’s on his way to pick me up now.
I’d barely put my phone down when it rang, and I knew it was Vanessa before I even looked.
“Hello?” I answered with a laugh.
“What do you mean he’s on his way to pick you up? Is this a date?”
“Nessa, no!” I made my way to the bathroom to do my makeup.
“Is it business?”
“Well…no.”
“You’re going on a date with Luca Romano!”
I looked at my face in the mirror. “It’s not a date.”
“What are you wearing?”
“Just jeans and that long-sleeved green top that I got on sale this summer.”
“The low cut one!”
I looked down. While the shirt showed off my assets, it wasn’t obscene. And it wasn’t low enough to be considered “the low cut” shirt.
“The one with all the buttons on the wrists,” I explained, looking at myself in the full-length mirror.
“Yeah, we’re definitely talking about the same shirt and it’s perfect! It’s casual, but not too casual. It’s sexy, but not too sexy. Where are you going?”
“I don’t know. I think we’re just going to ride around and talk.”
“Ride around and talk?” Vanessa yelled something to her husband before continuing with me. “Derrick always complains that I take too long to get ready, but guess who just finished getting ready?”
I laughed as I heard Derrick arguing his side of the story in the background.
“Anyway,” Vanessa said loudly, directing her attention back to me. “This could go either way, but it feels like a date to me.”
The idea of it being a date stirred something up.
“Okay, so last night when we hung out, it was a really good time,” I admitted, deciding against makeup.
“Yeah, I got that from your text last night,” she giggled.
Rolling my eyes, I continued, “We talked a lot about work and how we got into it and pursuing our passions and just…it was about business, but it was bigger than that. It wasn’t just discussing his project and my project, it was about how our work was our life.”
“I like the sound of that. But as I was saying, if you two talked for like five hours last night, what other business stuff would he need to discuss with you?”
“That’s the thing, he said it wouldn’t be about business.”
“Oh my god, it’s a date!”
“I don’t think so. I didn’t get the sense that he was asking me on a date. He called and literally asked me to go for a ride with him. Like a friend. It’s a friend date.”
“A friend date?” She sounded skeptical. “I don’t know…”
“When we were out last night, it felt like we’d known each other for years. It was just easy. But now…” I hesitated before continuing in a hushed tone. “I got butterflies when I thought about it being a date.”
“Oooooooooh! You’re not worried about if it’s a date or not. You’re worried because you want it to be. That’s exciting because you haven’t been into a guy in months.”
“Vanessa!” I groaned, shaking my head. “You’re missing my entire point.”
“What’s your point? I’m listening. I’m obviously not at dinner!” She added that last part loudly, clearly directed at Derrick.
I chuckled under my breath. “My point is that if we’re business associates, that’s fine. If we’re friends, that’s fine. If it’s a date, that’s fine. But all I was looking for was a mentor. I gave Akila my card in hopes that he could mentor me, maybe help me with my campaign. I never thought he’d be so—”
“Handsome? Funny? Talented?”
“Great. He’s a really great guy.” I exhaled. “And I don’t want to end up messing up a business thing because I’m overthinking everything.”
“Well, take it one day at a time. You two may hang out tonight and you realize that he’s a great collaborator, but he wouldn’t be someone you’d date.”
Not likely.
“I don’t know. But you’re right about one thing. I’m going to take it one day at a time. We’ll chill tonight and then we’ll have our business meeting tomorrow and then we’ll go from there.”
“Wait! I forgot you were meeting him tomorrow!”
“Yes.”
“You know what this means? This is a date!” She squealed excitedly before dissolving into a fit of giggles. “I’m just kidding. Sorry. Hello? Serena!”
I pursed my lips and glared at my reflection in the mirror since I couldn’t glare at her. Shaking my head, I refused to laugh. “And for that, I’m getting off the phone with you, and I will not call you with the details when I get back.”
“Don’t be like that,” Vanessa chuckled. “Call me later and tell me what happened!”
“Nope! Enjoy dinner with Derrick!”
“Send me a text and let me know where you’re going.” Vanessa laughed even harder, triggering me to laugh as well.
“I will. Have fun at dinner. And what is Derrick doing?”
“I’m about to go check and see. Text me when you make it back.”
We said our goodbyes and I ended the call.
Fifteen minutes later, I grabbed a brown jacket that matched my boots and headed outside. It was a beautiful night, an
d I wanted to eliminate any potential weirdness by not having Luca come to the door.
My phone vibrated in my back pocket. Pulling it out, I smiled at Luca’s text.
Luca: I’ll be there in two minutes.
Serena: I’m outside.
By the time I slipped the phone into my bag and slipped it on my forearm, Luca’s black luxury sedan pulled up in front of me. He rolled down his tinted window.
“Serena Brooks.”
“Luca Romano.” I walked to the passenger side and slid into the leather seat. The smell of his cologne infiltrated my lungs, and I resisted the urge to make an appreciative noise. Looking around before making eye contact, I nodded. “Nice car.”
He looked at me and smiled. “Thank you. Are you ready?”
I quirked a perfectly arched eyebrow. “Are you?”
He chuckled to himself. “I don’t know what I’m going to do with you.”
The sound of his laugh warmly spread through me, and I instantly relaxed. “Oh! I love this song!”
He turned the music up. We pulled out of my apartment complex and cruised down the road, heading toward downtown. Once the song was over, I adjusted the volume and turned in my seat.
“What’s on your mind?” I asked, staring at his profile. His perfect bone structure was on display, and I couldn’t help but notice.
“Nothing in particular.” He looked over at me and smiled. “What’s on your mind?”
“That I’m in the car with the talented Luca Romano, headed to an unknown destination. Now what’s on your mind?”
“Honestly?”
I smiled. “Always.”
Without looking at me, he said, “That you’re beautiful.”
My breathing faltered. “Oh!”
“And I’m trying not to think about work, but seeing you without makeup…” Glancing at me, he nodded. “You’re actually incredibly beautiful. You don’t need makeup or editing to make you beautiful.”
“Thank you.” My face flushed at his compliment, but I noticed that he wasn’t speaking from a place of attraction. He was just making an observation. He was working. “Just for the record, I’m also beautiful with makeup and editing.”
He chuckled. “Got it.” He turned the music up a little. “Do you like this song?”
I leaned toward him. “Do I?”
I launched into the lyrics of the rap and he joined in. Loudly, we rapped the entire song. We managed to sing the chorus and do all adlibs and backup vocals, too. When we finished, we laughed, and I gave us a round of applause.
“We killed that!” he joked.
“We should put together a mixtape.”
“If we were a group, what would our name be?”
“Something that encompasses what we do.” I tapped my chin. “Double…?”
“Double Exposure?”
I giggled. “Double Sided Tape?”
We laughed at the horrible names we came up with as Luca got on the interstate. Between singing and rapping random songs, we tried to figure out a name of our singing group that would encompass both of our careers. By the time he’d taken the exit, we’d decided on the name Beholder.
“This is legit now,” I declared, wiping the tear from my eye. “Now that we’ve put a name to it, this is real.”
“From this point forward, I’m introducing myself as the lead singer of Beholder,” Luca announced ceremoniously.
I put my hands up. “Hold up! What do you mean lead singer?”
“Did you not hear the runs I just did?” He made a face that cracked me up. “Did you not hear those notes I hit?”
My jaw dropped. “You are not the lead singer! I carried us. You didn’t even know the lyrics to the last song. You were straight mumbling.”
“Come on, Serena. Don’t do that. You know I killed it.”
I howled, clutching my side. I hadn’t laughed so much in a long time. “You killed this group. That’s the only thing you killed.”
“I’m done! My solo career was just about to take off anyway.” He pulled down a road that lead to a mostly empty, gravel parking area.
“Where are we?” I wondered, looking around.
“This is where they are building a drive-in movie theatre.”
“Oh, cool!”
“And that’s Dowdy Lake,” he answered, parking so that we were facing the lake.
All the spots that would’ve been ideal for looking at the lake were taken, so we got out of the car. Grabbing my jacket, I followed behind Luca. The chain separated the gravel parking area from the grass and rock bank of the lake.
“Here,” Luca said, offering his arm.
I took it, and he helped me step over the chain and then continued assisting me until we made it to the flat surface.
“Wow.” I took in the way the moon cast light over the lake. The mix of yellow, orange, and green leaves seemed to glitter from both the moonlight and the street lights. “This is beautiful.”
“Yeah. There’s only a short period of time where it looks like this. Every fall, I try to catch it at least once during the day and once at night.”
There were a handful of people, mostly couples, scattered along the bank, so I kept my voice low. “Have you seen it during the day yet?”
“Not this year. Saturday will be when I see this”—he gestured in front of us—“in the daylight.” A small smile played on his lips as he took in the scenery. “There’s nothing like natural beauty. There’s no filter necessary. It just is.”
I stared at him. The awe in his voice spoke to who he was as a person and who he was as an artist.
We stood side-by-side in silence for a few minutes. It wasn’t awkward at all. I felt comfortable and serene. My mind was blank for a while, and then I started thinking about my parents and how thankful I am for them.
“What are you thinking about?” Luca asked, interrupting our tranquil moment.
“How blessed I am. You?”
“The same.” He nodded. “That’s the power of this place. I usually have a lot going on in my head at one time and nothing can slow it down. I’ve tried working out, food, sex, music, and nothing works. But I come to Dowdy Lake to take in the beauty, and it slows everything down, clears my head, and gives me clarity. And when I feel that, it’s a blessing.” He pointed to a bench that was being vacated at that very moment. “Come on. Quick. But play it cool.”
We started walking leisurely toward it at first, looking around. He started whistling and sped up. I bumped him and then started jogging. Laughing, he grabbed me just before we fell onto the wooden bench.
“I said play it cool,” he playfully admonished me.
“That’s what you said, but that’s not what you did! That whole plan went to hell. When you started whistling and walking like you were going to see The Wizard, I knew that we didn’t have much time before someone snatched our spot.”
He chuckled. “Who was coming?” He gestured to the other people around. Two of them were sitting on separate stone structures, three of them were sitting on blankets, and one person was there taking pictures. “Who, Serena?”
We tried to laugh quietly, but that only made us laugh harder. When the amusement left the moment, we sat contently.
“Don’t take this the wrong way,” I started, knowing that the statement already started off rough once it left my mouth.
His brows furrowed, but he said nothing.
“You are really good looking. You are funny and smart and talented—”
“Thanks. I’m not going to lie, it started off questionable, but I can’t say I hate where this is going.”
Amusement altered my speech as I continued, “But when you were telling me about the profile that’s being done on you, you seemed uncomfortable.”
He chuckled. “I am.”
“Is it the interview or the photos that make you uncomfortable?”
“The photos.”
I waited for him to elaborate, but he didn’t. I didn’t want to push or pry, but I knew if I c
omplimented him anymore, it would look like I was throwing myself at him.
I opened my mouth to ask another question, but he beat me to it.
“You said you were thinking about how blessed you are.” He seemed to be choosing his words carefully, timidly. “What would you say is your biggest blessing?”
“My parents. Hands down. They’ve helped me so much. I worked at a fabric store part-time and even with my discount, the fabrics I wanted for my designs were pricey. They helped me get what I needed to get started. When they saw that I was able to pay them back within a week, for loan purposes, they became my bank. Their financial support has been the biggest blessing, but their emotional support has been a gift from God.” I smiled, thinking about Mom and Dad. “What’s your biggest blessing?”
With his focus on the picturesque landscape before us, he took a moment before he answered. “The people I meet along the way.”
I thought about what he’d said and again, we fell into a comfortable silence.
“This is really beautiful.” I looked over at the others. “Oh! They are taking this romantic spot to a whole other level,” I whispered, gesturing with my head. One of the couples on one of the blankets seemed to be having sex. “I should look away, but it’s compelling.”
“Ahh… So, you’re a voyeur, I see.”
I turned to look at him. “I wouldn’t call myself a voyeur, but I enjoy being entertained.”
He smirked. “You keep surprising me at every turn.”
I quirked an eyebrow. “Because you don’t think women watch porn?”
He put his arm on the back of the bench. “No, I know they do. Just not many admit it freely.” He glanced over my head and his eyebrows shot up. “I don’t think they’re even trying to hide it anymore.”
I looked over and saw one body on top of the other body and shook my head. “They better hope the police don’t show up.”
Cuffing Season Page 5
