by Dee J. Stone
“Have fun,” I say.
“Thanks. Are you absolutely sure you’re okay?”
I force a smile. “Totally.”
We hug before I leave the restaurant and walk through the July heat to my apartment. I live in Brooklyn, five blocks away from work. The people passing by don’t seem to notice anything wrong with my hand. Do they not see the lamp, either? I give it a tug to check if it’s real. It is. What the hell is wrong with me?
After throwing my front door open, I go straight to my room for Vaseline. I put some on and try to yank my fingers off the lamp. They won’t budge. This is crazy. I’ll have no choice but to try to smash the thing. In the kitchen, I’m about to slam it down on the granite countertop, when it suddenly flies off my hand and drops to the floor. It rolls around like it has a mind of its own. A second later, smoke starts to shoot out of it. It’s so thick that it fills up my entire kitchen. It has a strong smell of exotic spices.
The smoke enters my lungs and I fall to my knees, clutching my chest and coughing.
“State your wish,” a voice says.
The smoke disappears from my lungs and I can breathe again. When I look up, I see a tall guy standing above me with his arms crossed over his chest. I scramble back. He looks about my age, has long dark hair that falls into his blue eyes and an expression of annoyance, yet respect at the same time. He has golden skin. My gaze dips to his chest. His naked golden chest. He has nothing on except for long, black pants. No shoes, either. My eyes spring back to his chest and my breath gets caught in my throat. He’s beautiful. Exotic looking.
“I said, state your wish.”
I tear my gaze off his chest, my cheeks warming up. “W…what?”
The smoke is completely gone from the kitchen. The lamp is still on the floor, but it’s no longer moving. Did this guy come from it?
“State your wish so I can get out of here.”
I get up. “Wish? What are you talking about?”
He makes a face like he’s done this a million times and is bored out of his mind. “You rubbed the lamp. I’m here to grant you three wishes.”
I back up into the counter behind me. I won’t believe this. I can’t. My head spins. “You’re a…genie?” That’s impossible. Genies don’t exist.
“Uh huh. Here to grant you three wishes. So let’s get this over with, Master.”
His chest gleams under the strong kitchen light. As he crosses and uncrosses his arms, his muscles flex.
He sighs loudly. “When you make up your mind, give the lamp a rub.” Smoke appears once again, surrounding him.
“Wait!”
But it’s too late. He’s gone.
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About the Author
Dee J. Stone is the pseudonym of two sisters who write young adult and adult novels. The Keepers of Justice series, The Cruiser & Lex series, The Merman’s Kiss series, The Genie’s Love series, Emily’s Curse, and Chasing Sam are now available on Amazon. You can check out Dee J. Stone here: https://deejstone.wordpress.com, email them at [email protected], or follow them on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Stay tuned for more titles, coming soon.