He led me inside and gave the host our names. She led us to a private corner table, lit by candlelight.

I wasn’t sure I had ever seen a place like this in my hometown before, all dark polished wood, deep reds, and gold accents. I took my seat opposite him and grinned as I looked around. “Thank you for taking me out tonight.” I glanced at him, fluttering my lashes playfully. “It’s nice to get out of the house for a while.”

“Most people would never want to leave if they had your house,” he replied.

“And if they had my parents, they’d get where I was coming from,” I countered.

The waiter arrived with a couple of menus.

Soon, we were choosing food and talking about high school, going over the dramas, the dates, and tears. Everything that seemed so ridiculous in retrospect, but had carried the weight of a full-blown Shakespearean tragedy at the time.

“Hey, remember that time Miss. Greenwald went brick red when she found that giant dildo in her drawer?” I asked.

“I’ll always remember the way she sprang back as if it was going to sit up and bite her for the rest of her life.”

I started to giggle. “Poor woman. I bet she had never seen a real life one before that.”

“That’s exactly why I did it. She looked like she’d never had a day of fun her entire life.”

My jaw dropped. “You did that?”

He grinned. “That was my retirement present to her. I didn’t know she was going to have a nervous breakdown over it.”

I began to really laugh. “So you thought you were doing her a favor?”

“Something like that,” he conceded sheepishly.

We were still laughing when the waiter came. We ordered two steaks, salad, and a good bottle of red wine.

As I sipped, the wine and conversation flowed easily between us. “So, how long have you owned the garage?”

He shrugged. “I got the place a couple years ago. Thought I should put down some real roots, you know? Stop just drifting around, and actually do something with my life.”

“Despite what my parents think, in my opinion you’re doing better than most of the guys I know our age,” I pointed out.

He grinned and eyed me, letting his gaze linger on my mouth for a moment. “Sure am,” he replied.

I knew at once that he wasn’t talking about the garage.

I felt heat and chemistry crackling through the air between us, just like it had on that first day we had met at the garage. I shifted nervously in my seat. I wasn’t sure how to play this game, but I knew I wanted to win, if winning meant I got to feel the way I felt last night again. I took another sip of wine, letting the complicated flavor mellow over my tongue. The feel of it in my mouth made me braver. I would never again, do what I did with Mark…play the submissive female role. Always saying yes, always trying to please. Always waiting for him to initiate the sex. No, this time I would be the strong one. I intended to take my pleasure where I found it. Just as I opened my mouth to flirt with him, I spotted someone making their way toward us.

Two someone, actually.

“Julie!” I exclaimed, beaming as she weaved through the tables toward me.

Stan, her fiancé, was following her, but he had an expression on his face I couldn’t get a read on.

I stood up and smiled at Stan then gave Julie a quick hug. “Hey you,” I greeted.

“I didn’t realize you would be here tonight,” she remarked, and her eyes slid over to Jesse. She paused for a moment when she saw who I was with.

Jesse stared back at her, his expression unreadable.

Her expression also remained equally unreadable. “You guys should join us,” she suggested, but so coldly, it was clear that the offer was only on the table because she knew it would have been rude not to make it.

“No, it’s fine,” Jesse answered. “You guys enjoy your evening, though.”

“You sure?” Julie pressed.

“Certain,” he replied firmly.

A brief moment of awkwardness set in before Julie shrugged and turned to her fiancé. “Well, see you later,” she stated, her voice a little hard. “Can I borrow you in the bathroom for a second, Mia?”

“Yeah, of course.” I nodded, furrowing my brow.

She led me out of the main part of the restaurant and into the ladies. She made sure the door was shut behind us before she turned to me, and the sweetness that had been present in her voice before dropped away suddenly. “You’re on a date with Jesse?” she asked incredulously.

I nodded. “Yeah, it’s not a big deal, is it?”

“You want to be careful around him,” she warned. “I know you’ve been out of town for a while, so you don’t know how it is, but trust me, he’s not someone you want to get caught up with, Mia.”

“Oh, no?” I wrinkled my nose.

“I told you last night. That man has been through every woman in town and then some,” she went on, repeating what she had said last night. “He’s probably just looking for some fresh meat with you. He’s just going to use you and then throw you away, just like he has with every other woman he’s been with.”

“Alright,” I replied casually. To be honest, her assessment of Jesse didn’t bother me at all. I wasn’t in town for long, after all, and I wasn’t looking for anything deadly serious with somebody. I just wanted a little fun, to blow off the steam I had been holding in this whole time with Mark. And what better way to do that than with a man who never seemed to take things seriously?

“I mean, he even tried to hit on me.” She shuddered, as though she couldn’t believe she was coming out and saying it. “I turned him down, obviously, but he’s just…he’s gross, Mia, and I don’t want you getting all caught up in that.”

“I appreciate it, but I’m a big girl now,” I replied patiently. Jesus, I’d forgotten how fucking stupid small-town politics could be; I was just out for a good time, and Julie felt the need to take me aside with this portent of doom shit as though I had no idea what kind of guy Jesse was. “I’m just having a little fun, that’s all,” I assured her. “I know how to take care of myself. Trust me, after Mark, I’ve earned this.”

She eyed me warily. “But that is exactly why I’m warning you. Mark couldn’t be the kind of man to affect you like Jesse could. He didn’t hurt you, but trust me Jesse will.”

I smiled tightly. “What makes you think I won’t hurt him?”

“Hurt him? You?” She shook her head in disbelief. “Mia, stop kidding yourself. He’s the town slut. “

I smiled tightly. Somehow, this conversation felt like it had just taken a turn for the worse. “Alright. Thanks for the warning, but I think I still want to have some fun with this.”

“I suppose I can’t stop you, but just…use some protection, and look after yourself, all right?”

“I will,” I promised her, more than a little pissed at the way she was talking to me. Like I was some brainless city girl who was just going to walk into this town and fall in love with the first guy who took her out to dinner. I knew what I was doing, and I knew precisely what to expect from a man like Jesse, Why wasn’t it all right that I just wanted something a little fun for a change?

“Well then, you have a good night.” She frowned, paused for another moment, and then ducked out of the room to join her fiancé.

I looked at myself in the mirror; my eyes were shining with excitement, despite the conversation. The truth was I couldn’t wait to see where the rest of this night would take me.

Sure, it was far removed from the real world, but what I needed more than anything was a hot fling. Something fun, irresponsible and sexy to get my mind off all the shit that had happened back home. I had a life back in the city, a real life that I would have to return to, and it didn’t involve someone like Jesse, so why not enjoy what I had right in front of me?

I grinned at myself in the mirror, fixed my hair, and then headed back outside to finish my hot date.