Secrets (The Secret Series Book 1) (3 page)

I found myself twirling my hair with my finger and then I think my heart stopped. In walked this tall, dark and handsome man carrying a motorcycle helmet underneath his arm. He was definitely dressed to impress with a black shirt that was opened at the top and a pair of black pants that were so tight that they instantly drew my eyes to the package that was outlined down the left side of his leg.

He sat down and waited, picking up the rose and smelling it with his eyes closed to enjoy the fragrance that was now moving into his olfactory senses. I steeled my nerves and gradually made my way over there, standing and looking down at his short black hair that was spiked just the right way to give him the air of a bad boy. The man was clean shaven and I think I might have been staring a little bit too long.

“Drake.” He raised his head to look at me and instantly I saw these dimples that appeared with his smile.

“Larissa, you look even more beautiful than your pictures and I don’t know how I got so lucky to find somebody like you. I’m sorry for being so secretive about my appearance, but I’m not exactly beating them off with a stick. Ever since Mary died, I have been struggling to get back into the dating world. You might say that I was a little gun shy, because frankly I didn’t think anybody could hold a candle to my late wife.” I found myself sinking into the chair and listening to his declaration of love for his wife and it only made me want to reach out and take his hand to comfort him.

His aftershave was amazing and it ignited something inside me that I didn’t know was still there. “I understand being hesitant too. I had my heart broken a few years ago. It left me with a bad taste in my mouth and believing that there were no good ones left.”

“Hey I’m not perfect. But then again who can say that they are? I admit that I have my flaws. I do leave the toilet seat up, but I can cook so that’s something that I have going for me.” My hand easily touched the back of his, as I let out this soft giggle that made me feel flushed. I was just happy that he couldn’t see beyond the buttons of my shirt, because if he had he would’ve known just how aroused I was. I was just hoping that that excitement didn’t show as a deep red shade on my face.

“I need to know what you see in me.” I didn’t want to pick at that band aid in case I was alerting him to the fact that I was damaged goods. Then again, I had already told him that my heart had been broken and even that hadn’t made him go screaming into the night.

“You had a kind smile and if you don’t mind me saying…a rocking body. I’m certainly not going to tell you that I am superficial, but attraction is one of the key elements of a new relationship. I really did think that you were too good to be true and that you were just telling me anything that I wanted to hear. Then I realized that I hadn’t told you of my love of books, not until you had broached the topic.”

We ordered a bottle of red wine to go with dinner and he picked a medium rare steak with all the trimmings and I chose the freshly made pasta with chicken and cheese sauce. “I’m glad that I came tonight and I only wish that I had enough guts to do this sooner. I guess better late than never.”

“Patience is a virtue and I knew that you would be worth the wait.” At that moment, he leaned over and kissed the back of my hand, making my pulse quicken and my heart beat a little faster. I don’t think any man had that effect on me, not even the good for nothing boyfriend that had cost me a lot of sleepless nights. If this was what love at first sight was like, then cupid had certainly done his job with his bow and arrow. I wasn’t going to get caught up in the moment, but I could see that we were more than matched for each other. “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?” He continued to quote Shakespeare, which was melting my resolve and making me want to kiss him.

I uttered breathlessly “I don’t know where you have been all my life.” We continued talking into the wee hours of the morning and I even mentioned to him about the Japanese lady that had been hit by the bus.

“That must’ve been horrific to see and you say that she said something to you that you didn’t understand. I might be able to help with that, because I have a colleague that works with ancient studies and languages. The only reason I mention it is because she is quite fluent in several languages. Perhaps you could tell me what she said and I could relay it back to her and get some information.” I had my mouth opened ready to say the words, at least as far as I could pronounce them anyway, when an alarm outside got my attention.

I didn’t even get a chance to say anything, as we both moved towards the window with everybody from inside the restaurant doing the same thing. What I saw was this man dressed in all black using a crowbar to smash the window out of my vehicle. At first I was terrified, but then this moment of rage came over me, until I steadfastly walked out and confronted this man. It was a foolish thing to do and most likely I wouldn’t have done it under any other circumstance.

“Get away from my car.” The man looked up from the inside of my vehicle, stared at me with these unmoving and cold and dangerous eyes. I felt paralyzed, but my hands were now bunched into fists and I could actually feel my fingernails digging into the palm of my hand. “I said…GET AWAY FROM MY CAR.” I think it was the forcefulness in my voice that made him raise his gloved hands into the air, as if to indicate that he was giving himself up. He got out of my car and walked towards me, until we were standing toe to toe against one another. Neither one of us was moving and we were just looking at each other.

Leaning forward, he whispered into my ear “You have no idea what kind of Pandora’s box you’ve opened. Trust no one, because you are in danger.” He backed away from me, pointing at me with his one lone finger, until he began to recede into the darkness of the shadows.

I felt a presence behind me and this hand touched my shoulder. In any other situation, I most likely would have jumped out of my skin, but all I felt was this eerie calmness. My hands were shaking, but they were still showing my resolve with my fists hanging by my side.

“What the hell did you think that you were doing? He could’ve killed you.” Drake was standing beside me and others from the restaurant and those that were looking on were doing the same thing. “We called the police and they should be here shortly. I’ve never seen something so courageous and I don’t think I would’ve been so brave if that was happening to me. I don’t know where you found the strength to confront him, but I have to commend you. That was the damnedest thing that I’ve ever seen.” His warm hand on my shoulder felt comforting, and I still couldn’t stop looking in the direction of where the man that had just stood in front of me had gone.

“I don’t know what came over me. I just couldn’t stand back and let him take what was mine. It’s not like I am brave or courageous but sometimes you just get to the point where you just can’t take it anymore. I hit that wall and I’m going to be damned if I was going to be a victim.” I still couldn’t get his words out of my head, but I had to admit that the adrenaline rush that was running through my veins at that very moment was like nothing that I felt before. It almost gave me insight into why police officers and firemen put their lives on the line every day or how easily a man straps himself into the seat of our race car and drives out with the possibility of his own demise.

No wonder people gravitate towards extreme sports and dangerous professions, because this type of feeling was almost addictive in nature.

Reveling in that new sensation, I turned and grabbed Drake and kissed him before I even realized what I was doing. It was impulsive and not at all like me, but this experience had shown me that we only have one life to live and you have to take chances while you still can.

At first it was an awkward kiss since I took him by surprise, but then his lips began to move and the tip of his tongue began to play against mine. I felt his arm wrap around me and his fingers began to play down the small of my back. I sighed deeply and put my hands around his neck, while at the same time lifting myself onto my tippy toes.
 

This way I could reach him easier and I actually felt like they felt in the movies and on television shows. I sunk into it like a warm bath, allowing myself to feel something for this man, even though I had just met him in person this evening. Through our correspondence, I got to know him on another level and over these past few weeks I had started to fall for someone that I hadn’t even seen yet.

His kiss was not demanding or insistent, but it was more like he was letting me set the pace. Pulling away, I noticed that I had left this smear of my lipstick on his lips, and I used my thumb to clean it off the best way that I knew how. As we stood there, someone started to clap and then more people joined in until there was a cacophony of people applauding the kiss.

“Larissa, I’ve never had a woman be so forward, but I think I liked it. It’s always the man that has to make the first move. It’s very refreshing and strange at the same time to be on the other end of things. I’m not saying that’s a bad thing, but you are going against the basic rule of dating. In all the times that we have talked on line, I never imagined that you would be so open minded. I suppose for a moment I had already decided on who you were. My assumptions were wrong on so many levels and I have to apologize for my shortsightedness.” He was standing there so close to me that I could reach out and grab onto his belt, but we were in a public place and that wouldn’t be right.

“I’ve never done anything like that before, but it fell right somehow. I can’t explain it, only to say that this entire evening has been one surprise after another.” He took my hand and entwined his fingers into mine, as we waited there until the police arrived to talk to us. It was not the same officer that I’d seen earlier this morning and for the most part he was a little bit more compassionate. He told me that there were a rash of break ins in the area and also told me that I was foolish to try to stop him.

The adrenaline was still running through my body, but having Drake’s hand in mine was somewhat of a calming influence. He was a least a foot taller than me and I hadn’t realized that when we were sitting down at our table.

Escorting me back to the restaurant, we enjoyed an after dinner drink and then began to make small talk about where we came from and what has made us the person that we were today. “Drake, I really didn’t have any expectations tonight, but this is certainly been a day to remember. I can’t believe all these things have happened to me in the span of 24 hours, although meeting you was probably the highlight of my day.”

“I’m glad that you suggested this. I’m not sure how long it would’ve taken me to ask you out. You know about my wife and getting back out there and doing the dating thing again wasn’t something that I was looking forward to. I’ve always been a big believer that a woman should be treated as a princess and that the man should take care of his woman. I can see now that times have changed and that women don’t need a man to take care of them. It’s more about having somebody to spend time with and enjoy being with. I’m not sure if I can get used to that, but I would certainly like to give it a try.” We walked out of the restaurant hand in hand and I think for the first time in my life I was truly head over heels.

He stopped at his motorcycle and straddled the huge machine, until he was revving the motor and then looking at me with those piercing blue eyes that looked right through me. “I’m not sure if I should.” He reached back and passed me a second helmet, which I found myself taking and putting on. Throwing caution to the wind, I got on the back of him and felt the purr of the engine underneath me. I couldn’t exactly take my own car, because it had already been taken away by a tow truck to my local mechanic shop.

I wrapped my hands around his waist and felt the muscles of his well defined abdominal region. It was like tracing train tracks with my fingertips and then he gunned the engine and moved out onto the road. If I thought the adrenaline rush that I was feeling from confronting that man was something else, then feeling the engine underneath my crotch was only enhancing that feeling by tenfold.

I fit to him like a glove and I could feel the momentum of the speed buffeting against me and loving every moment of it. I had never gone into motorcycles before, but now I was seriously rethinking that position and wondering if maybe I should get one of my own. With my educational background and seniority at the university, I was making some good money and had been squirreling it away for a rainy day.

We arrived at his apartment building, where he had to enter a code to get into the building’s underground parking. He parked in a spot that was most likely designated for him. Once again, he got off the bike and stood there with his hand outstretched, giving me one last chance to back away. That was something that I wasn’t going to do. “I think I might have a nice bottle of chardonnay upstairs and I would like you to join me. I’ll understand if you think that this is going too fast, but there are times that you just have to have faith.” The combination of the adrenaline and the feel of that machine underneath my body was more than enough to excite every freaking nerve ending.

Not saying anything at all, I followed him over to the elevator and stood there uneasy and bouncing back and forth on the balls of my feet. “I’m nervous.”

“I’m nervous too, Larissa, but I think that’s perfectly natural. I don’t want you to think that I do this all the time and truly you are the first woman that I’ve ever brought back to my place since my wife died. I haven’t been with the woman since her death.” His confession was met with wide eyed surprise and I felt honored to be the one that he would be with for the first time.

“I’m glad that you told me that and you would be surprised at how many men would hide their feelings. I think it has something to do with testosterone and the fact that a man thinks that he has to be strong and in control all the time. Being vulnerable doesn’t make you weak, Drake…it makes you human.” He was being very open and honest with me and I felt secure in the knowledge that he really meant what he was saying.