Jasmine

Sunday morning, I awoke jam-packed with nervous energy. Alamo had said he’d make my canceled date worth my while, and even though I had no idea what that meant, I was excited. For about twenty minutes... then I was nervous. I had several minutes of insecurity about whether or not I’d heard him right.

He’d walked me to my car last night, kissed me again (he’d kissed me a lot last night which was awesome), then watched me drive away, but he’d never said when we’d get together... I’d just assumed it was going to be today, but given his track record with follow-up communication, I was still a bit anxious.

I climbed out of bed, fed Scruffy, then went about my normal Sunday morning routine, all the while trying to stop obsessing about whether or not Alamo and I were going to see each other today. One problem, though. I was a gold medal champion of all things obsessing related.

I’d poured my second cup of coffee when my phone rang, and my stomach fluttered when I saw Alamo’s name pop up on the screen. I gave it one more ring before I answered, “Hey, Mo.”

“Hey, Firefly. You good?”

I smiled. “I’m great. How about you?”

“I’m good. You up for an adventure?”

“Depends on the adventure.”

He chuckled. “You’ll love it, I promise.”

“Okay,” I said. “I trust you.”

“Like that, Jasmine.”

I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from sighing. God, my name on his lips was sexy as hell.

“I’ll pick you up at three.”

“Um, okay. What should I wear?”

“You wanna answer the door naked, I won’t object.”

I chuckled. “Well, I don’t think going out without clothes is a good idea. It might scare people.”

“Can’t imagine you bein’ naked would scare anyone, Firefly, but if you insist on wearing clothes, jeans’ll work. Be comfortable.”

“You’re not going to give me a clue?”

“Nope.”

I wrinkled my nose. “I don’t like surprises, Alamo.”

“I’ve heard that about you.”

“You have?” I asked.

“Yeah, baby, but trust me. You’ll love this.”

“Okay.”

“See you in a bit.”

“Okay, Mo.”

He hung up and I stared down at my cat who was currently sitting on his butt, his tail twitching in irritation as he stared up at me. “What?” I challenged, and he got on his hind legs and dug his claws into my yoga pants. “Ouch! Seriously? Can you please not be a turd today?”

“Meow.”

I glared down at him. “Willow might be right about you.”

“Meow.” He retracted his claws, turned his back on me, and walked away.

“That’s right, buddy, walk away.”

“Meow.” He flicked his tail and looked back at me, but let’s be honest, he didn’t care. If he was a demon, he was a very lazy one. Maybe that’s why he was kicked out of hell. It was all starting to make sense.

I went back to my coffee, and then decided it was time to think less about Scruffy’s origin story, and figure out what I was going to wear.

* * *

Alamo arrived at three o’clock on the dot, and I pulled open the door to find my body pushed up against my foyer wall and my mouth kissed thoroughly and deliciously. I slid my hands into Alamo’s hair and gripped... hard... my tongue pressing against his as our kiss became frantic and almost impossible to stop.

Almost.

Alamo dropped his forehead to mine and smiled. “Hey, Firefly.”

I licked my lips. “Hi.”

“You look gorgeous.”

“So do you.” I raised an eyebrow. “Did little birdies tell you where I lived?”

I knew I hadn’t given him my address, so I assumed Willow or Parker filled him in.

“Not sure I should answer this one.”

“What? Why?”

“I had a recruit on you.”

I frowned. “Like, someone followed me home?”

He nodded.

“Who?”

“Boomer.”

“Why?”

“Fuckin’ serial killer on the loose, baby. I woulda followed you myself, but got pulled into somethin’ last night, so Boomer made sure you got in okay.” He ran his nose against mine. “You mad?”

“No.” I sighed. “I probably should be, you know, the fine line between protection and stalking, but no, I actually think it’s sweet.”

He grinned. “You ready to have some fun?”

I nodded.

“You got roller skates?”

I gasped. “We’re going roller skating?”

He stroked my cheek. “You wanna go roller skating?”

“Do you want to go roller skating?”

Alamo chuckled. “Today’s not about me, Firefly. So, you got skates?”

“Hells, yes, I have skates.”

“Go get ’em.”

I gripped his cut. “Are you really taking me roller skating?”

“Yeah, baby, I’m really taking you roller skating.”

I threw my arms around his neck and kissed him again, only this time quickly. “No one ever wants to go skating with me.”

“I heard that somewhere.”

“Parker?”

“Willow.”

“Same diff,” I said, and rushed to my room to find my skates.

Grabbing them from the shelf in my closet, I returned to the living room to find my cat practically making out with Alamo. Scruffy’s head was under Alamo’s chin and he was purring loud enough for the neighbors to hear.

“You’ve made a love connection.” I smiled. “Congratulations.”

“Love animals, they tend to love me back.”

“Apparently.”

Alamo set Scruffy on the ground (and my cat was not happy about it... at all). He promptly dug his claws into Alamo’s jeans and meowed the house down.

“Oh, my god, Scruffy,” I admonished. “Have some dignity. You’re virtually humping the man’s leg.”

Alamo laughed before prying my cat from his leg and setting him on the sofa. “You ready?”

“Me or Scruffy?”

He grinned. “Cute.”

I held up my skates.

“Shit, Firefly, those look serious.”

My skates rocked. They had a white boot with pink wheels and a pink stopper, and even though they were well-worn, making them super comfortable, I cleaned and polished them regularly, so they looked almost new.

“I’m very serious about roller skating.”

He grinned and led me out of my condo. Taking my skates from me, Alamo waited for me to lock up and then we walked to his truck. It was a monster of a thing and I stared up at it with my mouth slightly agape. “Do you have a ladder?”

Alamo set my skates inside and held his hand out to me. “You want a boost?”

“I think I’m good,” I said, and hoisted myself up and into the cab.

Alamo climbed into the driver’s side and started the engine and I chuckled.

“What?” he asked as we drove out of the parking lot.

“Your truck sounds like a Harley.”

He grinned. “It’s a great sound, huh?”

I didn’t answer. Partly because he revved the engine and there would have been no way he’d hear me. I rolled my eyes. Boys and their toys.

Arriving at the skating rink, I could barely contain my excitement as we headed inside. “Do you have skates?”

He shook his head. “Gotta grab some.”

I took his arm. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

“It’s all good, Firefly.”

“That wasn’t really an answer.”

He grinned, leaning down to kiss me quickly. “Yes, I wanna do this.”

“I can’t believe this is actually happening,” I said as we waited in line to grab skates for him.

“Why?”

“Oh, I don’t know. Maybe because you’re a badass biker and I don’t think I’ve ever seen a badass biker roller skating,” I admitted.

“Told ya I was gonna make this worth your while.”

“Yes, you did. This kind of goes above and beyond, though.”

His eyes got soft as he wrapped an arm around my waist. “It does?”

I leaned into him. “Yeah, Mo, it really, really does.”

He kissed my temple and we stood without words for a few seconds until the kid behind the counter was ready to give Alamo his skates. He picked in-line skates and I smirked.

“What?” he asked.

“I feel like you’re gonna show me some moves I haven’t seen before.”

He laughed. “I’m savin’ those for later.”

I shivered as I felt heat creep up my neck and I had to look away for a second to compose myself. Luckily, I could focus on tying my skates, letting my hair fall forward to hide my emotions. While I finished adjusting my laces, Alamo shoved our shoes and my purse into a locker, then took my hand and led me onto the hard wood.

Because my friends didn’t love me enough and refused to go with me, I hadn’t skated in almost two months. Due to this very sad fact, it took me a minute to get the feel for the wheels again, but Alamo didn’t seem to have that problem. He skated like he’d been doing it all day, every day since he was born.

God, the man was sexy, and I was pretty sure there wasn’t anything he couldn’t do.

“Ladies and gentlemen, grab your lover, it’s time for couples’ skate!”

I laughed out loud when “I Can’t Fight This Feeling” from REO Speedwagon echoed through the speakers, but Alamo was a great sport and took my hand as we rolled and swayed to the music. Despite the fact Alamo hated the music (he was extraordinarily vocal about that), our skate date couldn’t have been more perfect. I was bummed when it was time to leave the rink.

Alamo grabbed our stuff and we headed out to his truck, but he surprised me by informing me the date wasn’t over.

“It’s not?”

“Nope. Not unless you want it to be.”

I grinned. “End the best day of my life to date? Not a chance.”

He slid his hand to my hip. “Made it worth your while?”

I bit my lip and nodded. “More than I could have imagined. Thank you.”

“You’re killin’ me, Jasmine.”

“Why?”

“Because you’re so beautiful, and it would be frowned upon in this society to fuck you up against the side of my truck right here and now.”

I wrinkled my nose. “Society sucks.”

Alamo smiled, then leaned down and kissed me quickly before waiting for me to climb up into the truck. Reaching over the console, he took my hand and linked his fingers with mine and I grinned, giving his hand a gentle squeeze.

“You want fancy?” he asked.

“Not even a little bit.”

“Café?”

I sighed in relief. “The café would be perfect.”

“Wanna eat then walk the park?”

“You’re not worried?” I asked.

He shook his head. “I’m carrying.”

Of course he was. This was the south, and even if he wasn’t part of a motorcycle club, most men I knew carried guns, so the fact he had one on him didn’t surprise me. “Oh. Um, sure.”

“You always this easy?” he asked.

I raised an eyebrow. “That would be telling.”

Alamo laughed. “Well, you got me there.”

He found a parking space right outside the café, so we ate first, then left his truck and walked down to the park. It was a sunny day, but cool, and I hadn’t fully prepared for the weather, but I didn’t really care. Standing next to Alamo was all the heat I needed.

Well, it would have been if we hadn’t grabbed milkshakes to go. I had seriously misjudged this plan.

Before I could ask Alamo if we could go back to the truck, he shrugged out of his leather jacket and settled it over my shoulders. “Ohmigod, are you for real?”

He raised an eyebrow. “Are you cold?”

“Freezing,” I rasped. “Sorry, I thought I hid that better.”

He chuckled. “You’ve got goosebumps all over your arms, Firefly. Can’t hide your body’s reaction.”

I grinned. “Are you going to pin me next?”

“Name the place and the time, baby, and I’ll do whatever the fuck you want me to.”

I shivered, my body desperately wanting him to do things to me, but instead of admitting that out loud, I handed him my milkshake, so I could slide my hands into the warmth of his jacket, then took my dessert back. “You think you’re breaking me down, huh?”

His hand went to my neck and he grinned. “Not even a doubt in my mind.”

I stood on my tiptoes and kissed him. “You keep thinking that, buddy.”

“Finish your shake.”

I wrapped my mouth around the straw and stared him down. A little thrill went up my spine when I saw his eyes blaze with desire, and I was kind of bummed when the empty slurp sound indicated I was, in fact, done with my shake.

And that was when he kissed me. Gently at first, but it quickly grew a little frantic and he broke our connection, dropping his forehead to mine. “Fuck.”

I licked my lips and let out a deep breath. “Wow.”

“It’s good we’re in public,” he said.

I smiled. “Indeed.”

He took my empty cup and threw it (along with his) into the trash before taking my hand and lifting it to his lips. He kissed my palm and then we walked toward the fountain. “You got a busy week?”

I nodded. “Yes. I have a full client load and I’m doing a final walkthrough for the new space.”

“New space?”

“I’m opening a second salon.”

“No shit?”

“No shit. I think it might be the biggest mistake I’ve ever made, but I’ve signed all the paperwork.” I bit the inside of my cheek, surprised I’d just shared that with him.

“Why do you think it’s the biggest mistake of your life?”

“Because I shouldn’t push my luck. My salon’s in the black, I have great stylists working for me, so it probably isn’t wise to expand until I’ve been profitable for more than a year. I’m trying to develop a skincare and hair care line, and I’m risking a lot to do all of it.”

“Is this you sayin’ that or someone else?”

“Never mind.” I sighed. “Ignore me.”

He stopped walking and met my eyes. “Don’t do that, Jasmine. Don’t shut down.”

“We’re having the best date and I don’t want to drag down the mood with my worries about my businesses succeeding or failing. Those would fall under classic first world problems.”

“I wanna hear about ’em, baby.”

“They’re boring.”

“Nothing about you’s borin’, Firefly.”

I chewed on my lower lip for a few seconds, before meeting his eyes again. “My dad thinks I’m being reckless, but I feel like now is the time to take a chance. I got the space for fifty dollars a square foot less than what was advertised, and I have a lot more room than the place I’m in right now.”

“You got the money to lose if it doesn’t work out?”

“Technically, yes. It’ll take most of my savings, but it won’t put me in the red. My biggest risk is the new skincare line. It costs over a hundred-grand to create and market just one product.”

“If you lose all that money, how will you feel?”

I wasn’t expecting this question. I mean, I’d thought about it, but no one had ever asked. “Frustrated and disappointed.”

“Can you live with that?”

I nodded. “Yes. Because it would mean I tried something. My grandmother left me the money to do something ‘risky and fabulous.’ She didn’t want me to be safe, so I’d rather try and fail than never try at all.”

His eyes got soft and I realized in that moment that I loved when his eyes got soft. I was learning pretty quickly that it meant he thought I was beautiful, or amazing, or something very, very good. Instead of saying anything, however, he kissed me. Softly, but thoroughly, and I wanted him like I’d never wanted anyone before.

I gripped his cut. “You need to stop doing that to me.”

“Not a chance.”

“You’re killing me,” I rasped, dropping my head to his chest, and he chuckled.

“Good.”

I raised my head again and sighed. “Where is this going, Mo?”

“Wherever the hell we want it to.”

“Which is where... for you?”

He stroked my cheek. “You lookin’ to define the relationship, Firefly?”

“Is it too soon?”

Alamo shook his head. “What do you want, Jasmine?”

“I don’t want to say it out loud, to be honest.”

“Okay, you wanna know what I want, then?”

I nodded.

“Everything.”

“What does everything mean?”

“I want to know everything about you.” He stroked my cheek. “I want to know what your face looks like when you come and when you laugh. I want to know all your secrets and all your fears. I want to fight with you, love with you, and fuck like rabbits, but most of all, I want you. I get that we haven’t known each other for long, but I want to change that.”

“What if it doesn’t work?”

“Then we walk away. But first, I wanna try.”

I licked my lips. “Me too.”

“You do, huh?”

I nodded, and he grinned, leaning down to kiss me again. I gripped his cut again. “So, we’re exclusive, then?”

“Already told you I don’t share, baby.”

“Neither do I.”

“Then I think we’re on the same page.”

I rolled my eyes. “This is weird.”

“Yeah?”

“Yes. For me, anyway. I’ve never done anything like this.”

“Neither have I, Jasmine. Kind of makes us even, huh?”

“Sure, we’ll go with that.” I bit my lip. “How old are you?”

“Thirty-four.”

“Oh, wow. You’re younger than I thought.”

“I am?”

I nodded. “You’ve accomplished a lot, so I just assumed you were older.”

“You’re twenty-seven—”

“You know how old I am?” I asked.

“Does that surprise you?”

“A little. I knew you talked to Parker about me, I just didn’t realize you got that far down the rabbit hole.”

He chuckled, kissing me again. “Come on. I’ll take you home.”

“Our perfect day is over?” I asked, my stomach dropping.

He took my hand. “Not unless you want it to be, but it’s too cold to be out here.”

Leading me back to his truck, we headed to my condo.