Slim, toned arms gripping a glass of nearly clear liquid. Hair black as a midnight sky sweeping halfway down her back. Eyes lined with coal, shining in the dim light of the bar.

Samantha is practically edible, and here I am, making some lame-ass apology.

“Oh, Jake, it’s not a big deal, really.” She flips an errant strand of silky dark hair over her shoulder.

I move in closer when the couple next to us pushes me, my body coming dangerously close to hers. “I feel like an ass, so let me apologize. It wasn’t cool of me to make you think that I was completely comfortable and calm with kids, even if Lennon is an awesome little girl. To be honest, I know nothing about kids, I’m basically the Simon Cowell of child rearing. And it wasn’t cool not to call you after, even if it did go poorly. Which we both know it did.”

I hoped my honesty was okay for her, because I couldn't be someone I wasn't. I couldn't stand here the entire night while Bryan macked on her girlfriend, pretending that we hadn't had a shitty date.

A smile peeks out from the corner of Samantha's mouth, and she takes the last sip of her white wine. "Jake ... thank you for the apology. It's nice to get some closure on it, but seriously, don't worry about it. We had one date, we never agreed to get married. I'm not looking for a father for Lennon. I'm not even looking for a boyfriend if it doesn't work out in my life right now. Seriously, you're off the hook."

Her amicable nature makes me release the breath I'm holding, and move the hands that were positioned in front of my nuts, just in case she decided to kick them. Believe me, I'd had it happen before when I was unnecessarily honest with a girl. Why was it that honesty got you a smack in the junk, while lying to some women kept them coming back for more?

"All right, good. So ... friends?" I shrug, holding out my hand.

"Such a lame peace treaty, but sure, why not?" Her mocha eyes sparkle.

"And since our friends seem to be minutes away from humping each other in the bathroom, how about I buy you a drink? I have a feeling you don't get the opportunity to come out by yourself much."

She scoots up on her stool, snorting as Jenna and Bryan get closer and closer to each other. "I rarely get time to shower by myself, so yeah, this is a total fluke. I'll take another glass of chardonnay, since you're offering."

And dammit, now I was picturing her in the shower. Long, slim body, water sluicing over that beauty mark on her face. I wonder if she had any other hidden beauty marks to find ...

Fuck. Get a hold of yourself, man.

I order her drink and try to keep a safe space between us, since my dick apparently loved the word friends and perked up even more when it was used in association with Samantha.

“So, did you have any ranger emergencies this week?” I smirk.

During our trip to the zoo, Samantha had filled me in a little more on what she does. And I’d teased her, like a typical guy trying to flirt, about how there definitely couldn’t be anything more tame than being a park ranger in a national park.

“Actually, ya jerk, I did. We had a missing hiker in California, and I had to be in contact with the rangers there for forty-eight hours until we found her. Safely, thank God.”

I nodded. “That’s great, Samantha. I’m sure you’re a force of nature in your job.”

She giggled, sipping on her wine. “Was that a national park joke, Jake? So lame! Almost as lame as a fully grown man driving an ice cream truck around.”

I put my hands over my heart like she’d shot me. “You wound me! My humor is almost as cold as my freezers though, it’s true.”

I ordered another beer, downing the third I’d been holding in my hand. McFlannery’s felt different tonight, more on than it ever had been before. Or maybe it was just because I was sitting next to her.

“They aren’t fucking in the bathroom yet, by the way. Should we separate them?” Samantha leans into me conspiratorially, and I almost swallow my tongue when she says the word fuck.

The word off her cherry lips makes my balls draw up tight, blood surging below my waist.

“Let the kids be kids.” I wink, gulping down the new beer the bartender hands me.

“I haven’t been here since college. Seems like ages ago …” She swivels her head, trying to look at memories I can’t see with my own eyes.

“I had some fun nights in this bar as a college kid. And a few drunken nights spent on the steps of the monuments that are a tad blurry.” I laugh, remembering my own glory days.

“It’s funny, I don’t remember you from the fitness center. Did we ever talk?” Her wine glass is almost empty now.

It might be the beer, or the fact that she isn’t looking at me with that “you spilled my daughter’s milk” expression anymore … but my tongue loosens.

“Well, I remember you. Always coming in wearing those spandex Madison shorts on, all legs and long hair. I think I said hi to you once as you came out of the locker room, and you gave me some fuck off smile.”

Her mouth gapes. “You were checking me out, huh? Now I know you for the real stalker you are. Are you sure you didn’t GPS my mom’s address?”

“Cross my heart, hope to die. I’m just a gentle stalker.”

She gives me a light-hearted side eye. “Yeah, okay, I’ll buy it, but just this once. Don’t worry about the fuck off smile, I was probably just pumping some Rick Ross in my headphones and it was getting me jacked up.”

“He is the biggest boss, so I don’t blame you.”

We both smile, one of those moments where you were having a fun, bantering conversation but then neither person knew how to continue it.

“Should we all get out of here?” Samantha’s blond friend, Jenna, I think, turns towards us for the first time in forty minutes.

I look at Samantha, her eyes unsure but confident at the same time. I’m not cocky enough to think she’ll go anywhere with me, and I for once don’t want to push my charm.

“We’re actually going to stay here for another drink. But you two go ahead.” I nod at Bryan, who winks over Jenna’s head.

Why do I feel like I’m going to hear animal noises from the apartment next door tonight?

“You sure, Sam? I don’t have to leave.”

She places a hand on her friend’s arm, and holds up two fingers on the other. “Wing woman’s honor, I must not cock block. Go, I’ll be fine. I’ll Uber home and call you in the morning.”

The two horny blonds leave, Bryan’s hand practically down the back of her jeans before they’re even out of the bar.

“Gosh, I miss that.” Samantha sighs as she watches them go.

“What? Drunken hookups?” I snort, knowing Bryan’s MO.

She hit my arm. “No! I guess, just the possibility of something new. The mysterious excitement. The newness of experiencing someone the first time.”

The words out of her mouth made it sound fucking poetic, and suddenly I missed those things too. Even though I was sure I’d never felt them.

“Well, if you’re looking for it, there is a rather decent piece of man meat right in front of you.” I cheesily pointed to myself.

Her eyes squinted, like she was considering me, and her mouth puckered up.

“Hmm, okay. Yeah. Let’s do this.”

I swear, I almost choked. “Wha … what?”

“It’s my single night out, and I feel like doing something a little crazy. I know you’re only a gentle stalker, which is okay on my list, and you are pretty nice to look at. So, are you going to take me home?”

I don’t know what God I had to get down on my knees for and thank, but I promised myself I’d do it tomorrow. I’d cut off my right hand in some Pagan sacrifice if that’s what it took to be rewarded with this one night, this one moment, right here.

Grabbing her hand, I started running from the bar with her in tow. Samantha’s tinkling laugh filled my ears.

“Quick, let’s get you upstairs before I turn back into a pumpkin, or however that Disney movie goes.”

“First he drives an ice cream truck, and now he’s quoting Disney movies. You sure you’re not just a big kid yourself?”

Flinging open the door to my building, I turn for a split-second and face her. “Oh, you’ll see just how big I am.”

Giggles fall on my ears as I impatiently jam the buttons for the elevator.