Sara

 

It was five minutes to nine when I finished getting ready. I’d thrown on some jeans, boots, and a pretty embroidered white camisole, covered by a royal blue cardigan. A decorative scarf completed the look, plus it would come in handy if the weather was a bit chillier than predicted.

“Sara, Alek is here for you!” Alexa yelled from the doorway of her bedroom. She must have heard him knock and let him in. I wasn’t sure why she was up so early on a Sunday. She should’ve still been knocked out for at least another two hours.

“Be right there.” I took another glance in the mirror to make sure I looked presentable enough to be seen in public with the God-like creature who was waiting for me.

I finally made my entrance, trying my best not to keep him waiting. I stopped abruptly when he came into my direct line of vision. He was so damn sexy. It really should be against some law to be out in public looking like that. Exuding limitless amounts of confidence, he was leaning against the island in the kitchen, looking very casual. His hair was behaving in a perfectly unruly yet classic way which suited him to a tee. Something was different about him, though, and it took me but a few seconds to decipher what it was. Moving closer to him, I noticed he was sporting a fresh, one-day-stubble look. That, of course, merely added to his virility. He really was a man’s man but with the edge of undeniable elegance. He was both rugged and classy all wrapped in one.

Dark-washed jeans hung low on his hips, more so than should’ve been decent. His long-sleeve, dark red shirt was fitted to him perfectly—not too tight, but snug in all the right places. There was no missing the fine physique which lay hidden underneath. His look was finished off with dark brown, purposely weathered boots.

I actually felt underdressed, even though his attire was just as casual as mine.

“Wow, you look beautiful,” he said, bringing me out of my wandering thoughts.

“Thanks, so do you.” Did I just say that?

“I look beautiful?” he asked as he cocked his head to the side and laughed. I hadn’t noticed until then, but he had a small dimple which adorned his right cheek when he smiled, adding to his amazing good looks.

“You know what I meant.” I always became so flustered around him. I had to get better control of myself or I would be in big trouble.

After casually perusing my body, he pushed off the counter and walked toward me.

“Shall we?” He grabbed my hand without waiting for my response and led me out the door.

~~~~

I was thankful I’d worn my scarf because it was a little brisk once we walked outside. But what else should I have expected, being late September in Seattle?

 “Where is your car?” I asked as I looked all around.

“It’s right over there.”

“Where?”

“Right there, Sara”. He directed me toward a beautiful pearl-white Audi. A spectacular vehicle indeed. I might’ve actually liked it better than his Ashton Marvin. Or whatever the name of his car was.

“How many cars do you own?” I asked, lightly running my finger along the side of the beautiful metal. I couldn’t even afford to buy one. Well, not yet, anyway.

I’d owned one vehicle in my life, a 1982 Chevy Malibu. I loved that car because I’d bought it with the money I’d earned working many hours at a local bookstore where I used to live. Lasting almost eight years, I’d undeniably received my money’s worth.

“I have a few of them. Why, do you like this one?” He was searching my face for a reaction. He didn’t have to look too hard, though, seeing as how I was practically drooling over the damn thing.

“It’s all right, if you like that sort of thing.” I knew I wasn’t pulling off aloof very well, but I gave it my best shot anyway.

He wasn’t buying it, either. “Uh-huh,” he said before opening the passenger door for me.

I had to give it to him, he did gentlemanly very well. When he wasn’t manhandling me or teasing me with his mouth, he brought out the big guns with those manners. Someone definitely taught him well.

 “I was thinking about going to a quaint little diner off I-90. Are you okay with that?”

“Sure, sounds good to me,” I said as I glanced out the window. “I sure hope they make a good cup of coffee. It’s the only thing that’ll help me function halfway normal this time of morning.” Turning my head to face him, I asked, “Seriously, are you always up this early?”

He laughed, as if I was the ridiculous one for not rising at the crack of dawn. “I never want to waste any day, so yeah, I’m usually up this early; earlier, in fact. I actually waited a couple hours before I called you.”

Not even knowing how to respond to his crazy statement, I fixated on the world outside again as he drove us to our destination.

We arrived at the diner just after nine-thirty. It was a smaller eatery with only a dozen or so parking spaces surrounding the building. He was right; it was quaint and cozy.

“They have the best veggie omelets here. Do you want to try one?” he inquired as he glanced at me over his menu.

“Sure, as long as they bring the coffee over pronto.” I didn’t usually eat breakfast, which was a bad habit, I knew. Usually coffee and a quick piece of fruit was all I needed to get me going. But for some reason, my body was requesting I up the ante right then.

After the waitress took our order, we sat there looking at each other. I was by no means complaining, though. I could stare at him forever, but we should probably talk about something.

“How old are you?” It was the first question which came to mind, my curiosity shutting down my brain-to-mouth filter.

“Thirty-two. Why, how old are you? Wait, let me guess.” He sized me up for what seemed like forever, making me feel a little self-conscious. But the longer he looked at me, the more I had to admit I didn’t mind his eyes drinking me in that way. It was as if he was having thoughts which were inappropriate for public.

“Twenty-six,” he finally answered.

“Yeah, good guess.” I was impressed with his accuracy.

“When is your birthday?” I couldn’t stop myself from probing him for more information.

“What is this, twenty questions?” He wasn’t offended or irritated by my relentlessness, smiling as if he enjoyed my interest.

“Sorry. It’s just I don’t know too much about you. Actually, I don’t know anything about you except your name, and now your age. Oh, and that you have remarkable taste in vehicles.” I really needed to get my hands on his Audi. I wonder if he would let me drive back to my apartment. He struck me as someone who liked to be in charge, so I couldn’t really picture him in the passenger seat of any car.

The backseat maybe, but not the passenger seat.

“Fair enough, I guess. My birthday is in October.” Deciding it was an informative back and forth, he asked, “When is your birthday?”

I learned long ago not to give out too much personal information about myself to people I didn’t know, but for some reason, I had an innate feeling of security toward him.

Before I could utter the words, he caught me off-guard when he uttered, “September.”

“What?”

“I’m guessing the month you were born. September.” Wow, this guy is good.

“You guessed right again. You must have a gift.”

Before he could respond, the waitress brought our plates over, interrupting any further conversation we were about to have.

I didn’t realize how hungry I was until she put the hot food down in front of me. Diving right in, I had to control myself so I didn’t appear like a homeless person eating for the first time in a week.

“Anything else you want to know?” he asked between bites of his omelet. If possible, I think he was even hungrier than I was. But then again, I was sure he needed plenty of nourishment to keep his glorious body in working condition.

I pondered my next few questions. He’d given me the perfect opportunity to find out more about him and I made sure to take it.

“Have you always lived in Seattle?”

“Born and raised,” he answered, a dreamlike look on his face as he continued talking. “Most people hate the weather here. They just can’t get used to the rain. But I don’t mind it. Not at all.” He took a sip of his water before speaking again. “I guess I’m used to it. Frankly, I can’t see myself living anywhere else.” His smile was huge, his fondness for his city was apparent. “What about you?”

“What about me?”

“What made you move to Seattle?” he asked, shifting in his seat as if he’d known he’d asked a sensitive question.

‘What makes you think I wasn’t born and raised her as well?” My eagerness to end our line of questioning was starting to weigh heavy on me. I knew I’d started it but I wanted to be the one to end it. Soon.

‘Trust me, I would have known if you grew up around here.” He leaned forward and reached across the table, brushing his hand over mine. The contact only lasted for a split second but it was enough. “I would have met you a long time ago.”

His words struck me like lightning. I’d known the man was interested in me but the look he gave me made my body light up from the inside. It was as if he was peering directly into my soul.

A shiver ran through me, making me jerk back and garnering a startled look from him. “Sorry, I must have gotten the chills.”

“Would you like a jacket? I have one in my car.” He had no idea those weren’t the type of chills I’d been referring to. But I wasn’t going to elaborate. My body twitching uncontrollably, if only for a second, was not something I wished to explain over breakfast.

When silence pressed the space between us, I knew he was going to ask his question again.

“So, what made you move here?” he repeated.

I wasn’t sure how much information to reveal so I kept it short and sweet. Well it started that way, at least, morphing into a full-blown point-by-point as the minutes ticked by.

 “One day I decided I wanted a fresh start. Thankfully I wasn’t alone, Alexa promising to follow me anywhere. Wherever it was I wished to move. So one day she pulled out a map, told me to close my eyes and point.” His eyes widened the more I’d spoken. “As you can see…I pointed to Seattle.”

I’d tried not to read into his expression too much. I chalked up his astonishment to having a hard time believing I’d thrown caution to the wind, uprooted my life and relocated across the country. All from a dare to blindly point at a map, my future depending on luck of the draw. What if I’d chosen Alaska? I wouldn’t have done so well with the extreme cold.

“Can I ask you another question?”

He nodded. A simple gesture giving me the opportunity to find out even more about the man sitting across for me.

“What do you do for a living?”

I caught him right as he put a forkful of food in his mouth so he raised a finger, signaling for me to hold on so he wouldn’t answer with his mouth full. I nodded and continued to gracefully devour my meal.

“I own a few businesses here and there.” He continued to eat his omelet as if his answer was going to placate my curiosity.

When he didn’t elaborate further, I continued to press him. “Really? That’s all you’re going to give me? It doesn’t tell me anything.”

He shrugged and bit his lower lip. He was acting like he didn’t want to divulge too much information about these businesses, and I wasn’t quite sure why.

As I parted my lips, he gave me something. “My grandfather left me an inheritance when he died. He actually left it to both me and my sister, but in the end, I received it all.” He trailed off toward the end of his story, looking past me as if he was lost in thought.

“So, you have a sister?” Why do I get the impression I shouldn’t push this topic?

“No, not anymore. And I don’t want to talk about it.” A glaze had washed over his features, as if he was containing the urge to shut down completely. There was no mistaking his demeanor had changed to one which was standoffish.

“Ok, you don’t have to talk about anything you don’t want to. I was only trying to get to know you a bit more, that’s all.” I was really okay with whatever information he wanted to share with me.

“You’ll have to forgive me. There are certain things I refuse to discuss with anyone. Please don’t take it personally, Sara.” He gave me that dazzling smile of his, immediately putting me at ease.

I was never quite sure how to act around him, different emotions bombarding me all the time. One minute, I felt as if I was walking on eggshells, and the next, I was trying to curb an emotional outburst of his. Then I was rendered breathless and begging for his touch. I’d never felt like that with anyone before in my entire life. Not even close.

“So, as I was saying, I received an inheritance from my grandfather when he passed away. I used some of the money to buy a hotel, which I later turned into two, and so on and so forth. In less than a decade, I was able to turn them into the largest chain of hotels on the West Coast.” He took a bite of his toast before blurting out, “Oh, and I also own a few nightclubs, Throttle being one of them.”

I almost choked on my food, what with all the information being spewed at me in the matter of thirty seconds.

“Anything else?” I was merely being sarcastic at that point.

“Nope.” He smiled. “I think that’s it.” He continued eating as if what he’d revealed to me was no big deal. And to him, I was sure it wasn’t. But to me…it was a little overwhelming.

He was in mid-chew when he glanced at me. I must have looked a certain way because after he swallowed his food, he put his fork down and interlocked his fingers, resting them casually on top of the table.

“Are you okay? Does any of that bother you?” His question was genuine.

“No, it doesn’t bother me, per se. I’m a little surprised is all.” My face reddened after a simple thought crossed my mind. “There I was going on about my excitement over a little flower shop and here you own everything.”

I was intimidated. I could admit it.

“You had a goal of owning the shop, Sara, and you saw it come to fruition. It’s a great accomplishment; don’t ever forget that. And hey, at one time, I only owned one hotel.” He winked as he polished off the last of his meal.

After a few more intense, quiet moments, he shuffled around in his chair, settling in and getting more comfortable. Taking a sip of his water, I could do nothing but watch the way his throat worked at swallowing the cold liquid, his tongue tempting me as it slid over his lips.

“Sara? Did you hear me?” he asked as I finally raised my eyes from his delicious mouth to his dark green eyes.

Oh, shit! I totally didn’t hear a word he said.

“I’m sorry, what did you say?” A low groan of embarrassment erupted, spurred on further by his faint laughter.

“I asked you about your family. Are you close with them? Do you have any siblings?” He raised the glass to his mouth once more, and I had to restrain myself from getting lost in the pure sight of him again.

“Sorry. Um…I…don’t have any family,” I stuttered. Blowing out a quick breath of air, I continued divulging my story. I was going to do it quickly, however, because just as he didn’t want to talk about his sister, I really didn’t want to talk about my family, or lack thereof.

“My father died when I was very young, still a baby. My mother called it ‘an unfortunate accident.’ He was an abusive drunk who came home one night, starting up with my mom about something insignificant and stupid as usual, and tripped over his feet, hitting his head on the edge of the coffee table. He died instantly.” I can’t believe I just blurted all of that out. I was usually very protective about my past, but with him it was as if I had no worries.

I kept going. “I only have a few memories of my mom growing up, but the one which really sticks out is my fifth birthday party. It wasn’t anything fancy, only my mom and a few of my friends, but I remember being so happy that day, my mother’s smile etched forever in my brain.” Looking away to regain some of my fleeting strength, I turned toward him again. “I only have a few memories because she passed away when I was eight years old. She was coming home from work one night and was involved in a head-on collision with a man who had suffered a heart attack, killing them both instantly.”

Hearing him suck in a breath almost undid me. Tears had been building and threatened to spill over if he did or said anything overly sentimental.

“Who did you live with afterwards?”

Relieved he didn’t delve into anything too deep, my emotions started to retreat enough for me to finish. “I lived with my grandmother, Rose. She became like my second mother. I think we helped to heal each other to get through the tragedy. After all, I’d lost my mother and she’d lost her daughter.” I vanished in my own thoughts for a minute, tearing my eyes away from him and staring at my trembling hands. Finding one more ounce of strength, I pushed through, wanting to finish this and move on. “She passed away a little over a year ago, and I still miss her like crazy every single day.” My retreating tears were back in full force, ready to make an appearance any second. “Can we talk about something else, please?” I begged, hoping he would change the topic as I’d done for him earlier.

 “Sure thing, and thank you for sharing with me, Sara.” He didn’t say much more, smiling as I gazed over at him. I weirdly felt closer to him, as if my story was building a stronger bond between us. I always felt physically safe when I was around Alek and at that point, I was starting to feel emotionally safe, as well.

As we were preparing to leave, I picked up the check to see what my half came to. Withdrawing money from my wallet proved to be the wrong thing to do, a disgruntled look appearing on his face as he ripped the bill out of my hand.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” he asked, a semi-scowl still set in place.

“I was seeing how much I owed for my breakfast. Why? What’s the problem?”

I didn’t think he knew the proper reaction one should have had to my simple gesture. Was he accustomed to people using him for his money, always expecting him to pay for everything? Because that wasn’t me. I always paid my own way. Always.

“Put your money away.” Is he insulted? “I think I can cover breakfast, for Christ’s sake.”

“Are you angry I offered to pay for my half of the bill?” I was going to make him explain his outburst.

“No, of course I’m not angry. Sorry, I just don’t want your money, ever. I’ll always take care of things when we’re out together, even when we’re not. If I feel you need or want something, I’ll make sure you have it.”

Wow, where the hell is this coming from? I loved the fact he envisioned us out together in the future, but I didn’t want him to feel as if he had to take care of me.

“I won’t give you a hard time about buying me breakfast, but that’s it, Alek. You are not buying me anything else or paying for me when or if we go out anywhere else. I can pay my own way, thank you very much. Plus, it’s insulting if you think I can’t take care of myself. I’ve been doing it for quite some time.”

I was the one who was becoming miffed by the second.

“I didn’t mean to insult you, Sara. It wasn’t my intention.” He reached across the table and touched my hand. “But I won’t waver on this.”

I wasn’t going to argue with him anymore. It wasn’t the time or place. “Can I at least leave the tip?” Wrong question. He gave me an even more annoyed look, furrowing his brows and huffing out an aggravated breath.

Holding up my hands in submission, I said, “Okay, okay. Sorry I asked.”

He paid the bill and we left the diner, his hand resting low on the small of my back. It never failed; every time he touched me, even in the most innocent of ways, I started to feel all woozy and warm, even in the early Sunday morning hours.

As we walked toward his car, I blurted out my approval again over his mode of transportation. “I really love this car. It’s so beautiful.”

He gave me a look as if he was the cat who ate the canary. Oh, no, what is he thinking? Wait, I know what he’s thinking. “Don’t even think about it, mister!”

“What? I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Grinning, he opened my car door for me, not elaborating or continuing our short conversation.