Chapter Two

 

Brian Carter had a significant bounce in his step that evening. Walking into the restaurant to meet his date, Jamie, he was trying his best to remain cool and collected even though he was anything but.

Ever since he’d gotten the call from Gerri earlier that day, he’d been excited to meet the woman that she had referred to as his perfect match.

He’d hated to admit it, and probably would never do so with Gerri but, she’d been right to cut him off from dating. His heart hadn’t been in it. He’d used sex and countless women to fulfill a need he wasn’t aware he even had.

“Hello, Sir.” The hostess greeted him. “Dining alone this evening?”

“No, actually I’m here to meet someone. Jamie Dell.”

“Oh, yes. Miss Dell is sitting over by the fireplace. Come right this way, please.”

Brian followed the woman to the back of the restaurant where the large windows looked out over the city lights. He had to force himself from hiding his stunned reaction when he first caught a glimpse of his date.

Gerri had described her as a natural beauty who didn’t wear too much makeup and had long hair. Looking at her now though, it was obvious his matchmaker hadn’t done Jamie justice.

She was gorgeous. From her long hair and striking chocolate colored eyes, he knew that this would be one date he was definitely going to enjoy.

“Here we are, sir.”

“Hi.” Jamie stood up from her chair and reached out her hand.

“Oh, please.” Brian took her hand for a brief moment but then quickly stepped behind her to offer her a hand into her chair.

Once he’d pushed her seat in, he’d taken his own directly across from her. “Hi, it’s great to meet you, Jamie.”

“You as well.”

They both smiled politely at one another for a moment before he realized a waiter had been standing beside them, obviously not trying to interrupt their conversation.

“Sorry, I didn’t see you standing there.”

“No worries, sir. Can I interest you in our wine list?”

“Oh yeah, sorry. He’d asked me but, I wasn’t sure if you were a wine drinker or not.” she smiled politely.

“I enjoy a nice Merlot every so often. How about yourself?”

“I’m not much a fan of reds.” she turned her attention to the waiter. “Do you have any Rieslings?”

“Yes, as a matter of fact, we have a nice local winery who has a lovely blend.”

“Alright then, it’s settled. The beautiful lady here will have a glass of your Riesling and I’ll take a Merlot, any kind is fine.”

“Very well, sir.”

“Thank you,” Jamie said.

“No, thank you.” He replied.

“Thank me? For what?”

“Agreeing to go on this date with me. I have to say, Gerri said you were beautiful but, you really are.”

She blushed a little and laced her fingers together. “Well, thank you. You’re quite handsome yourself.”

“I try.” He winked at her. “So, tell me a little bit about yourself.”

“Hmm… something about myself. Let’s see… I’m twenty-nine.” she made a wincing face. “You know, nothing major, just facing my own mortality at the idea of turning the big three zero.”

He laughed. “Well, coming from a thirty-five-year-old, I’m here to tell you that it doesn’t get much more exciting. It’s like once you turn thirty, it’s all downhill from that point on.”

“Yikes. I thought that was what they said about forty?”

“Pardon me, I have your wines.” The waiter interrupted briefly to set their glasses on the table and pour each of their selections.

They each took a sip, nodding in agreement before the waiter continued to pour. “I’ll be back in just a moment to take your order.”

“So, where were we?” Brian asked.

“I think we were discussing our demise due to old age.”

He couldn’t help but chuckle. Not only was Jamie easy on the eyes but, she had a certain wit about her. She wasn’t overtly trying to impress him, quite the opposite in fact. It appeared as though she was just being herself. He had to admit that the change was certainly refreshing.

“What do you do for work?” he asked.

“I’m a chef actually. Well, a cook really. I’ve never had any formal training or gone to culinary school. I just have been working in kitchens ever since I was old enough to work. So, I’ve been lucky in my opportunities that have come my way.”

“Oh?”

“Yes, that’s actually what brought me here. I’ll be one of the chefs working at the new country club that’s opening up just on the edge of town.”

“I think I’ve seen billboards for it. Desert… palm?”

“No. Close though. Desert Oasis. It’s supposed to be a getaway for people tired of the casinos and still want some luxury without the constant noise of slot machines.”

“I see. Well,” he raised his glass. “allow me to congratulate you on your new job.”

“Thank you.”

“What about you? What do you do?” she asked.

“Pardon me, again. Are you ready to order?” the waiter inquired.

“Saved by the bell.” she smiled.

He returned her gesture but, was doing it to mask his guttural reaction of wanting to stare at her like a delicious piece of cake in the bakery window. She was beautiful, sweet, charming he was certain she could turn heads wherever she went.

Looking over the menu he silently thanked Gerri Wilder for giving him another chance. It was a chance he had no intention of taking for granted.

 

 

****

 

Jamie walked along the garden path outside the restaurant. For over an hour she’d sat across from her date, getting to know him, enjoying a conversation and coming to the realization that he was just a normal man.

Sure, he was a shifter. But, he was still a person. He walked, talked and ate just like any other man she’d dated before him. The only difference was, he was much more interesting than her previous dates. And a hell of a lot sexier too.

“Penny for your thoughts?”

She looked up to find Brian looking down at her with a handsome smile.

“Sorry, I was just thinking.”

“I gathered that. Do you care to share what about?”

“Nothing.” she stopped and bent down to smell a pink rose. “These have always been my favorite.”

“Pink roses? I’ll make a note of that for future reference.”

“I didn’t mean it as a hint.”

“I didn’t take it as one. I’m just saying. I’m filing it away. Knowledge is power after all.” He said with a wink.

“True. And speaking of knowledge. You still haven’t told me what it is you do.”

“Didn’t I?”

She sat down on a bench. “No, but you did manage to successfully sidestep the question twice.”

“Ah.” He sat beside her. “You caught onto that, huh?”

“I did.” she smiled.

“Well, it’s not the most glamorous job.”

“And mine is?”

“Well, in a way. You’re a chef going on to work at an exclusive country club.”

“Trust me, being a chef isn’t all that glamorous. And it’s certainly not like you see on the television shows. It’s a hot, sweaty, and sometimes a very unthankful job. Especially when dealing with rich clientele who have high expectations.”

He nodded. “Yeah, I guess I can see that. Still, it’s more exciting than my career path.”

“Maybe you should let me be the judge of that.”

“Alright.” He turned on the bench, lifting his leg and resting his ankle on his knee. “I’m a teacher.”

“I think that’s great.”

“It is. At least, I enjoy it. When I was younger it was hard for me to differentiate the dissimilarities between us shifters and humans. So, as a young boy, I’d often get in trouble for not controlling my shifter ways and using my abilities at the wrong time and for the wrong reasons.”

“That sounds unfair. It must have been very hard for you.”

“Yeah, well, apparently shifting into a tiger during district track meets didn’t sit too well with the judges. Neither did falling asleep during study hall and purring so loud it distracted everyone within an earshot.”

“Purring while sleeping?” she laughed, knowing she shouldn’t but, unable to help herself.

“Yeah. Us shifters have a lot of weird quirks. At least until we get older and are able to control situations better.”

“Well, it still sounds unfair. I mean, you are who you are, right? You can’t help being a shifter anymore than I can help being a human.”

“Very true.” He grinned and leaned in a little closer. “You’re a very smart woman, Miss Dell.”

“I try.”

“Well, as I got older, I realized that out of all the skills that I had, the one thing I found most rewarding was helping other kids who struggle with the whole blending in process like I did.”

“That’s so sweet.”

“Sweet?” he chuckled. “I don’t know about that. I just know how it feels to be confused about who you are and what it means.”

“It is very sweet. And admirable. Where do you teach?”

“Over in Hinkley. A place called Becoming You. It’s an alternative school for those who have a hard time adjusting to the public schools.”

“That’s wonderful. Do you teach in a certain subject?”

“No. I have a group of ten kids who are with me for about seven hours a day. I cover all of the basic studies they’ll need in case they decide to go to college or a trade school. Then about an hour a day, we work on self-awareness. Learning who we are, what makes us different, and how that’s not necessarily a bad thing. It’s not like young shifters mean to break the rules. Their bodies just react differently than humans do. Instinctively, primely and on many different levels, our genetic makeup works differently than that of a human. And…” he stopped and took a breath. “I just realized I am rambling. You didn’t ask to hear all of that.”

“No, it’s okay. I wanted to hear about it. I enjoy hearing you talk. And getting to know you better is something I’m very interested in.”

“I’m just not used to talking about myself, I guess.”

“Well, I don’t know why. You’re a great guy. I imagine women would be lined up at the door to spend time with you.”

“Yeah, I don’t know about that. I haven’t been dating much these past months.”

“Oh? I would’ve thought that with being a client of Gerri’s that you’d have several dates.”

“I could say the same about you. But, the truth is, I have just been on a dating hiatus. The dates I was going on weren’t exactly going in the direction that was… beneficial, to me or them.”

“I see.”

“But, that was then.” he leaned in a little closer, bringing the two of them within mere inches of one another.

She could almost smell the animal in him, the closer that he got. For years she’d wanted this experience, to know what it was like to be on a date with someone like Brian. Spending time with him had been more enjoyable than she’d anticipated, though.

He was gorgeous of course. Tall, dark and so many degrees of handsome. More than that, though he was charming and funny.

Reaching his hand out, he gently traced the outline of her knuckles. “I’ve had a really nice time tonight.”

“I have as well.”

“Do you think you’d want to do it again?”

“Go on another date with you? Hmm…” she pretended to ponder the idea, despite being giddy as a school girl. “I don’t know. I mean… you are only a teacher.”

“That is true.” He smirked, “But, I like you. So, maybe you could give me a chance anyway? Maybe tomorrow night even?”

She may be playing coy with him but, there was no way she’d turn down a second date with one of the most interesting men she’d come across in a very long time. If ever.

“I think that could be arranged.”

“Then it’s a date?”

“I think it is.”