Pandemic Passion

by Amanda Kimberly

  “Good idea!” He said before his voice cut short and he swallowed hard. “I mean—”

  “Lorring, just do me a solid and tap that tonight. You’re killing me!”

  “Annabel!”

  “What? Like you haven’t been thinking it since the minute she walked in this room? Please! You can’t fool an empath, Lorring.”

  “I don’t even know if I have a shot anymore. It’s been so long.”

  “Well, you won’t know anything until you try to fix what got messed up. Tell her the truth! I’m sure she will understand.”

  “I can’t tell her I’m a shifter! She’s human! There are rules about that sort of thing. You know that as well as I do.”

  Annabel shrugged her shoulders.

  “There are ways around that sort of thing.”

  6

  Lorring started to stare at his attire he picked for the evening that he’d carefully placed out on the hotel bed an hour ago. He opted for a more conservative style, picking the charcoal grey suit to pack for this trip, as opposed to his Cambridge medium grey suit. No one at the reunion would be able to tell the difference—a grey suit was a grey suit to most people. But the slightly darker tone signified he would be going to this thing in very formal attire.

  A well of regret made him assume he may have overshot his wad by choosing something too dressy for an event like this. He didn’t want to appear as if he tried too hard, especially now that Dixie would be there. But since Chance and Annabel liked to frequent the more upscale restaurants, he didn’t want to be caught with an unacceptable suit on this trip.

  Nor did he want to over-pack. He always hated to travel with anything more than that one suitcase that doubled as his carry-on. He hated to fuss with anything more than that at the airports, especially since he tended to wear out his frequent flyer miles traveling back and forth to Tokyo as well as Paris for a lot of business.

  His finger grazed over his shirt. He chose the teal for tonight instead of the normal white button-down. His white seemed too stark, too professional for an occasion like this.

  Plus? He wanted to wear the teal because that color always seemed to compliment Dixie’s style. She always dressed in neutral colors back when he knew her; she wasn’t all that bold, barely came out of her skin while in high school. The neutral champagne dress she’d worn for prom had been understated, yet elegant on her. And when he wore a teal-colored tie and cumberbund with his tan-colored tux, it made a statement. He could have gone with a champagne tie and vest to match her floor-length ballgown, but that seemed too plain. She wasn’t a plain girl, and he wanted their pictures to be stunning. So, he asked her what her favorite color was, and when she said teal, the decision became final in his mind. He even ordered some Tiffany Blue roses for her wristlet to match. They stood out that night, and he hoped to achieve the same thing now.

  He hopped into the shower and jumped out within a few short minutes. He had finished shaving when he got a text from Ciro.

  “I hear that you will be protecting the mortals at the reunion. Got some backup for you. Mimi and Ingram are at a hotel in Belgium. Brussels isn’t from you and I persuaded them to take a slight detour on their honeymoon and they can meet up with you at your hotel in about an hour.”

  The text read.

  Lorring responded.

  “Ciro, Brussels is more like 3 and a half hours away. What are you talking about?”

  “Dude! They obviously don’t need to drive there since they can travel faster in wolf form.”

  “Oh, right? Okay, that’s fine. Unless you think that Annabel needs the help.”

  “Nah! She’s got Chance. Two vamps can handle the perimeter. Have fun tonight.”

  Lorring put down his phone and started to tie his tie. It hadn’t been that long since he had to tie a bowtie, but long enough where he began fumbling a bit before getting it perfect. He put on his cufflinks and shrugged on his jacket before he left the bathroom and collected his wallet, room key, and phone. As he got to the doorknob, he glanced into the full-length mirror once more before leaving, making sure that not a hair of his thickly gelled locks stuck out of place.

  He quickly exited his room and pressed the elevator button to get down to the lobby.

  “Shit! My mask!”

  He went back into his room to grab the damned thing and put it on. He had been glad that he found black. Too many of the markets had fancy designed ones that looked better on a woman than a man. He didn’t need Bedazzled—he just needed to cover his mouth and nose, and a black one suited him just fine. Not to mention the fact that he’d be color coordinated, which was something always on his mind these days.

  Dressing up hadn’t been something that crossed his mind in college. Most of the time he just wore something clean in his closet—which at that time had been anything that didn’t have a stain on it. But now that he was at a lot of galas and other elite events with clients that had bank accounts bigger than his student loan debt, he needed to dress the part. Ciro always said that you can earn their trust by dressing the part. Lorring learned quickly about the ‘fake it till you make it’ mantra when he went with Ciro to get his first suit. The thing probably cost more than his first car, and Lorring really didn’t want Ciro to be purchasing it for him.

  “Dude, I did this for all the guys when I first hired them. But tell you what? If it bothers you this much, then don’t consider this charity. Consider it a loan. All I ask is that you pay it forward.”

  “You mean it?”

  “No guy will ever admit this to your face, but they all like to look the part. So once you land your first client, I’ll send a new hire your way and you can help them pick out their first suit. Sound fair?”

  “Yes, it does.”

  That had only been a couple of short years ago, and Lorring had already managed to snag some pretty high-end clients from the competition. So many that Ciro offered him a management position of his own. But all of that really didn’t mean all that much to him right now.

  All that mattered to him was winning back the one and only girl he let slip away. Not a day had gone by that he didn’t regret the fact that he did let her get away either.

  And now, as the elevator door opened to the main lobby, his stomach did a somersault and twisted in more than a few knots before he stepped over the threshold. His breath caught in his throat as he saw her in the lobby signing in at one of the designated tables with Cherry. She was in neutral tones, as she always had been, but something this time made her skin more iridescent. Her eyes sparkled each time Cherry or the woman at the sign-up table engaged her. Her smile lit up the entire room and was quickly warming his heart.

  He had pangs of lukewarm feelings well within his chest when they were talking at breakfast. He tried to suppress as much of his old torch for her as possible while they sat and reminisced this morning. There was no need to get excited about the idea of being with her again. No matter how much he wanted it, she didn’t seem to be feeling the same way.

  He let out a sigh. The only thing he ever wanted in the world was to have her. His wolf wanted her too. Something he never figured possible. He witnessed the pull she had on him, which made his feet gravitate closer to her.

  “Lorring Laurent! My God, you haven’t changed a bit! Of course, it’s only been 10 years though.” Said the dark-haired woman at one of the tables in front of the room they set up for the reunion.

  Lorring smiled faintly as the woman signed him in and handed him a nametag that she wrote his name on.

  “Thanks, Cecile,” Lorring said as he glanced at the nametag she was wearing. He didn’t remember her at all.

  “We had chem class together in junior year and I was also our class president both junior and senior year.”

  Lorring gave her another weak smile.

  “Sure, I remember.” He said to her as his eyes glanced in the direction of Dixie’s.

  “Well, you go and have some fun! I’ll catch up with you later.” Cecile said as she patted his
hand gently.

  “Sure.” He said as he walked off in the direction of Dixie.

  His skin tingled as the heat from her body radiated into him. She smiled brightly at him, which sent a rush to his lower region.

  “Hey, you!” Dixie said as she put her hand on his shoulder.

  Heat poured over his cheeks as she pecked him on each one. His wolf howled within him.

  “Lorring, you remember Cherry—right?”

  “Of course, yes!” Lorring said as he put out his hand to Cherry.

  She reached for it and pulled him towards her as she whispered softly in his ear.

  “I get what’s going on, so don’t fuck this up a second time. You hear me? Because I’ll kill you if you do and no one will find your body.”

  Lorring swallowed hard and smiled weakly as he pulled away from Cherry.

  “Cherry is just being a little overprotective,” Dixie said as she playfully punched Cherry in the shoulder.

  “You heard that?” Lorring asked.

  “Course she did! I wasn’t being the slightest bit discreet.” Cherry said with a smile. “I’ll leave you two lovebirds alone to reconnect for a bit. Dixie, I’ll be at the bar if you need me. It’s time for this woman to try to find the single men at this reunion.” She turned on her heel and headed for the bar.

  “Well, I guess this means that we have a little time to ourselves to reconnect again? Unless you’d like to hang out with Cherry instead?” Lorring asked.

  Dixie bit her lip, and it sent a flood of memories back to Lorring. She used to only do that when she wanted something from him. Back then she bit her lip every time she wanted to ask him to make love to her, and that drove him nuts.

  “This may not be an appropriate conversion right now, but my head is spinning since we had coffee, and before I lose my nerve, I need to tell you where my head is at. I owe you that much—at least I’m certain I do?”

  Lorring swallowed hard again.

  Could she really feel the same way as me?

  He smelled the sweat forming on her palms and heard her heart beating faster than normal.

  “Look, this might be obvious, but I still like you. Like, like, like you. After all of these years, I thought that I wouldn’t. In fact, for the past 10 years, I’ve wanted to hate you. But after seeing you this morning, I can’t deny that I still carry a torch for you.” She said in one breath. She sucked in another breath before continuing, “Look, you don’t have to say anything because I think I’m probably the only one that still pines for something between us. But I thought you should know.”

  “No.” His voice surprised him, and his eyes widened from his lips betraying his thoughts in an audible form.

  She lowered her gaze.

  “I thought so. Look, let’s just forget I said anything and have some fun.”

  “No. Damn it!” He said as he raised her chin with his index finger.

  “I’m still carrying a torch for you too. Please, let’s not shut each other out.”

  She smiled weakly.

  “I’m not sure where this can go, though, Lorring. I have a life in California.”

  “And I have one in New York—I get that, but at least an ocean isn’t separating us any longer.” He said with a half-smile. “How about we just start with having fun for tonight? Okay?”

  She smiled and placed her hands in his.

  “I’d like that.”

  “Shall we get a drink and mingle?”

  “I’m up for getting a drink but I’d rather be doing my mingling with just you and Cherry if that’s okay with you.”

  Lorring smiled.

  “It’s more than okay.”

  They head on over to the bar and see Cherry there. She smiles when they approach.

  “Hey, you two! I see things seem to be going well with the both of you. Just remember, I’m going to be keeping my eye on you two all night. But from a safe distance over there. I met a guy and we seem to be hitting it off so don’t wait up for me Dixie.” She said with a wink.

  “Aren’t you at least going to tell me who it is?”

  Cherry playfully slapped Dixie’s arm.

  “Um, I think he said his name was Dustin. Once I get his name again, I will tell you. He didn’t graduate with us. He said he was here as someone’s escort and that was all. But honestly, if things go well, the only thing I’m going to ask him is for his room number. I don’t need his name. Screaming it just gives the guys inflated egos when we are doing the deed.” She said with another playful wink.

  Dixie let out a giggle.

  “You vixen, you! Well, far be it from me to keep your inner goddess waiting. You go get your man!”

  “Yeah, us old folk won’t wait up for you. Especially since that’s an image I don’t want inside my head.” Lorring said with a shudder.

  Cherry smiled and then headed over to a man whose back was facing Dixie. He had short, but unruly platinum-colored hair. His shoulders were very broad, more so than any of the guys from the football team that were huddled opposite him. She briefly glanced at Lorring and found that Lorring was also more filled out too. She smiled inwardly at the fact that she still had it in her to catch the most fit men, even as she was nearing her thirties.

  She never liked her body all that much growing up and also hated it now. Her chest wasn’t particularly large and her figure looked more like a twig rather than the gorgeous hourglass that her mother always told her she had. She really hated the fact that her girls didn’t fill a bikini properly. But her mother always told her to enjoy herself in her twenties because once she hit her thirties everything gets bigger and heads south.

  Dixie always laughed when her mother said that because if she ever planned on having kids, her breasts would, of course, get bigger. But now that her parents were gone, she was finding it hard to think about things like that.

  Who would she call to ask for advice with a cold, a sprain? It wasn’t like she had a lot of options there. Not when they were her whole family.

  And now? What was she even thinking! She promised herself that she would swear off of Lorring, and frankly, she did that with every man since he had ghosted her. Sure, she was lonely, but it was better to be purposefully making herself lonely than it was to gamble at having her heart broken again. She really didn’t think she’d be able to take that kind of blow again. Not when her heart was already hollowed out.

  “You okay, babe? What’s wrong?”

  Dixie caught her breath. She didn’t realize that she had drifted so far off in thought.

  He palmed her cheek.

  “Look, Dix, if this is too much we can take things a little slower. You don’t have to be obligated to stay with me for the whole evening.”

  She gave him a half-smile. It was the best she could muster at the moment.

  “Hey, Dixie, talk to me? Please? I may have really sucked when it came to being there for you when you lost your parents, but I’d like to make up for that now if you’ll let me.”

  Dixie tried to give him a full smile, but the only thing coming out were tears that welled into the corners of her eyes. She tried to pull away from him, but he held on and pulled her close to him. His lips were a breath apart from her ear and as he whispered into it, a tingle rushed from her ear down her spine. She found herself falling further into his arms as he embraced her. She needed that comfort, that sense of belonging she missed for all of those years they were apart.

  “Is this the first time you’ve been out with someone, like on a date since your parents passed?” The tone of his voice was soft in the beginning and then weakened the minute the word “passed” had escaped his lips.

  He drew her head up with his index finger to meet his gaze. She forced herself to try to meet his eyes. She knew it wasn’t fair to keep him in the dark. Plus, she had to tell him that she had every intention to avoid him during this trip she was taking down memory lane. “Wait…” His voice trailed only for a brief moment. “Is this the first time you’ve been back home since?
Well, since?” She saw his Adam’s apple work a little extra as he swallowed out the words.

  “It is the first time that I’ve been home since the memorial. I actually shut up the house and didn’t bother with packing much of my own stuff up. I just didn’t have the heart after packing up so much of theirs. Cherry’s been kind enough to look after the place for me so I wouldn’t have to think about it. But now, being here with you. It’s all just hitting me.” His lips were mere inches from hers and she wanted to taste them again. She would have given anything to take refuge in their solace and comfort, even if it was for just one more time.

  And again? What was she thinking? They lived on different coasts. There was just 86 miles shy of three thousand between them.

  And even though there wasn’t an ocean, she still couldn’t see how any of this would work, where she wouldn’t be heartsick for the rest of her natural life. Or worse! Be asked to uproot the feeble life she attempted to make for herself in California. She would admit to herself, and not him, that it wasn’t much of a life, but it was hers and she intended to keep as much of herself intact as she could at this point in her hollowed-out life.

  “Hey,” he said as he pulled her closer to him. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know. How about we dance? That always seemed to cheer you up.”

  She never once thought that he’d have all the answers for her finding her happiness in life. After all, her friends at college who were in perpetual counseling always told her that she was the sole person in charge of her own happiness. The thing was, happiness to her was being WITH people. So, to her, the advice they gave her was a bunch of bullshit.

  Dixie refused therapy when everything first happened, and it was for two reasons and two reasons only. One, she had a double memorial to plan and a lot of probate to handle. Because she was in a coma for so long, all of it seemed to take far longer than she thought it should. She couldn’t commit to a weekly therapy session just based on that alone, and yet, her counselor at school did everything in her power to force Dixie to at least go to an appointment she had scheduled.