“That could work.”
“I might put that up on Twitch,” she said.
“When is your next gaming session?”
“Tomorrow. I’m tired today, so I’ll probably just do that tomorrow and have an extra-long session.”
“Ok,” I said. “I’m starving. Do we have anything to eat?”
“Um, I think there is some leftover pizza in the fridge, but I’m not sure how old it is.”
I checked the fridge and found the old pizza, decided to toss it. Then after a few minutes of searching I found nothing really palatable to stuff in my mouth. My stomach continued to rumble. It was odd how becoming infatuated with a man always brought out my appetite.
Infatuated? I was infatuated now? Was that even safe to really say? I didn’t think I was quite at that point, but I was very intrigued by Darren and I knew that I was very attracted to him. That was all I could say at this point. I
didn’t really know him. All I had was a first impression. And that was usually enough to start things off, but I hoped that there was a lot more to him I would soon learn and that it would be equally as amazing.
“Fuck it,” I said. “I’m ordering pizza.”
“Great. No mushrooms,” Ida said.
I went online and ordered. “I’m taking a quick shower. Let me know when the pizza gets here,” I said. “I paid this time, but you do tip.”
“Gotcha.”
I went into the bathroom down the hall and began removing my clothes. As I did so, I took a look at my body in the mirror. I was still holding pretty well. I knew I’ve always been considered attractive, but I did wish I was slimmer. I’m built kind of athletic and I wished it was more toward a slim build, more like a supermodel, but my body is what it is. I’ve learned to accept it long ago.
Besides, I’ve never had any complaints from men. Even though the past six months I’d been ignoring men, that didn’t mean the offers for dates had stopped. It was a bit annoying at times when I was hanging with friends or just out for a good time that I suddenly found myself in a conversation with a complete stranger who had come up to me just to hit on me and pretend to be interested in anything I was about just to get my phone number on the off chance that it would somehow eventually lead to sex.
It was a waste of my time. I wanted to be left alone.
But if Darren had come to me out of the blue, I wouldn’t have been able to help myself. No, I wouldn’t have been able to say no. There was something about his animal magnetism that just had me right in the palm of his hands. I knew he had me. Even after that brief meeting earlier, if he was there right now and wanted to kiss me, I would melt at his touch and things would lead where they would lead.
I had to get a grip on my feelings though. I had to maintain that professionalism and just pretend that those feelings didn’t exist. I definitely wasn’t going to make the first move.
But if Darren made a move, would I go with it? Would I give into my carnal desires as well and just let things go? I wasn’t sure. The way I felt right then I would have to say that yes, I would definitely give in. Fuck. I wanted him. It had been a while since I’d truly lusted after a man.
I turned on the shower and stepped inside closing the door behind me. The water felt amazing on my skin. It was hot and the steam was rising. It was almost too hot at first, but that was the way I liked it. It took a few minutes, but eventually my skin would warm up and get used to it. It had been a long day, a tense day and I had a lot of studying to do later. I would be up late as usual. And tomorrow I would be dragging ass tired all day. But hopefully working as a nanny for Bobby would put me in a better mood. I love kids. They are so energetic and full of life. It takes me back to a simpler time.
I could see that Darren loved Bobby dearly. He was a good father. And this just made him all the more attractive.
Oh, I had it bad for him, didn’t I? “Girl, you need to get a grip. This is just the beginning. You have to hold it back.”
I spoke to my reflection in the mirror as I dried myself off. Yeah. I had to learn to deal with my feelings in a healthy way. For now, I would pretend that I didn’t lust after Darren every single time I looked at him. I’d never considered myself an actress, but if I didn’t want things to get weird in this job really quickly then I was going to have to put on quite the performance.
Chapter 3
Darren
The ranch always calmed me down after a long day of work.
I pulled up to the ranch in my BMW, got out with my bag, and went into my dressing room I’d had built by the stables to change. I put on my roping gear and I was ready to go.
I’d bought the ranch about six years before as an impulse buy. My grandfather owned a farm and I used to spend every single Sunday out there. It was always a blast watching him calf rope and practice for the rodeos that he loved to enter. He had so much fun with it and the passion of laying it all on the line really spoke to me. It was man versus beast. And I loved to be the man that came out on top.
When I first hopped on the bucking bull at the age of fourteen, I knew that I had found a lifelong passion for something I would never stop. My thighs were bruised and sore for days after that first ride, but it did not deter me. I loved it. That was the thing that really spoke to me and I started doing it every single chance I got. I’d even won a few amateur rodeos and tournaments when I was in my late teens, but I was never quite good enough to go pro with it. That was a disappointment to me, and I started channeling my energies elsewhere, but I still had my bull riding. Closely behind that was calf roping and horseback riding.
When I arrived, my best friend Nathan was already out there riding Blackie, the toughest damn bull I had on the ranch. That bull bucked almost everybody completely off of them and then charged ahead to rip you to shreds with the horns.