He took a few steps closer, and I could smell the woodsy scent that I came to know as Tristan. It was subtle, but my body had developed an instant reaction to it.
“Let’s just give it a try,” he said. “We can reassess in a month, or even a week. If it doesn’t feel like it’s working for you, we’ll go back to normal. No harm, no foul.”
“Do you already have a lead on someone who could help?” I asked.
“Yes, I know someone who can start tomorrow. They would be okay with a trial run, too.”
I took a deep breath and slowly blew it out. For once, I’d be able to live my life and have some fun without my day being packed with too many responsibilities. I could even actually take time to daydream and envision my next steps. That’s what this job had initially been–a first step. A paycheck while I was waiting to figure out something more long term. This arrangement would give me back that possibility.
“Okay, let’s try it,” I finally agreed.
He smiled, and it was clear he was glad that we were doing this.
“Great, I’ll give my contact a shout this afternoon and let them know we’re interested.”
“Thanks for doing this. I don’t even know how to actually thank you.”
“I know exactly how you can thank me,” he said, his voice suddenly rougher, deeper. His eyes were glittering with desire.
Oh boy.
“Oh yeah?” I challenged. I tried to sound cool, but my voice was a bit light. Too much of my body’s energy was being used to keep me standing upright when all my knees wanted to do was buckle.
“Have a drink with me tonight.” His voice sounded confident, but his brown eyes were pleading.
“Like, a date?”
“More like two old friends catching up.”
Well, that cooled my heated skin. I wished I could stop embarrassing myself in front of this guy.
He waited for me to respond with the same appreciative gaze I had seen on him many times now in the short time he’d been back. I hadn’t been jumping to conclusions. Whatever he called it, this would be a date.
“I’d love that. Let’s have a drink.”
“Great. I’ll come by and pick you up later.” He winked at me and walked away, leaving me in the laundry room.
The butterflies that took up residence in my stomach since he’d been back were fluttering and I sat down in the chair, smiling to myself. The possibilities of what could happen tonight were endless. I cataloged my meager wardrobe in my head, thinking about what to wear. It, of course, had to include my nicest lingerie. I wasn’t going to hold anything back. I’d do anything with Tristan and I was more than ready for this fling to start. It seemed inevitable at this point. If I had anything to do with it, Tristan and I were going to end up naked tonight.
It looked like my summer was taking a very fun turn.
Tristan
Arya was beyond sexy in her tight, light blue jeans and a white cropped t-shirt that showed a couple of inches of her tanned stomach. She wore white sneakers on her feet and her hair exactly how I liked it–loose and flowing, ready for me to run my fingers through.
I realized I had only seen her at work since I’d been home. And while she certainly could dress casually working for my grandparents, she never dressed quite like this.
But hands-down, the sexiest thing about her was how she was holding her hot wing. I could watch her eat wings all day. She was clearly trying to be neat, but also very much enjoying the food.
“Can I get y’all anything else?” the waitress drawled.
I looked at Arya, letting her answer first.
“Sure, I’ll have one more.”
“Me, too,” I told the waitress. I was glad that Arya wasn't afraid to speak her mind.
Arya smiled at me and before I could say anything further, the service was magically fast and the waitress was already setting our beers in front of us.