‘Okay, bye,’ she muttered, and then they continued on their separate ways. The only time she had ever encountered him in the Trinity Rock halls, and quite possibly the last.
Chapter 4
Willow came over that evening. She brought Chinese takeout and news of all the scandals from the party. Sophia was pleased to be able to contribute the Wendy rumor to Willow’s overflowing supply of stories, but overall, her heart wasn’t in the conversation.
‘I know you’re not one to get overly excited about salacious gossip, but you seem particularly subdued tonight,’ Willow commented after news of a threesome in a company car barely raised Sophia’s eyebrows. ‘What’s up?’
Sophia heaved a mighty sigh. ‘I’m a classic fool. I’m afraid that my vanity has caused me to let something special slip through my fingers.’ She explained the chemistry with Van at the party, and then her cringe-worthy performance in the Trinity Hall corridor that morning.
‘Poor darling,’ Willow sympathized. ‘It’s particularly disappointing if it’s over before it even began because I know how much you’ve been holding out for Mr. Right.’ She hesitated. ‘Can I be honest?’
‘Of course; I’d expect nothing less.’
‘It’s just… I’m really surprised that you had such fireworks with him. He seems so weird. He’s never been seen with a woman, and I’ve honestly never known of anyone who’d want to take him on.’
‘Eccentricity is different to weirdness. I like that he’s not a cookie cutter man. He’s certainly not a cookie cutter billionaire, either.’
Willow conceded the point. ‘I’m actually amazed he was in the building today at all,’ she said. ‘I’ve never seen him on the top floor. As far as I know, he’s got nothing to do with the running of the business at all. Hey, do you think he came in specially to look for you?’
A fresh wave of sorrow rolled over Sophia. ‘I don’t know,’ she wailed. ‘Maybe? Probably? If that’s the case, when he found me he wasn’t exactly gagging to whisk me away for a romantic lunch. But then I wasn’t putting out the vibe that I wanted him to, either. He was definitely shocked to see me “au natural”.’
Willow waved the notion away. ‘Men who are worth anything know that how a woman looks at a cocktail party has nothing to do with reality. It’s all smoke and mirrors.’
‘Which is why it’s even more tragic that I reacted the way that I did. I should have more confidence. I wish I was one of those women who don’t give a toss what other people think of them. This is how I look; take it or leave it.’
‘Listen,’ Willow said firmly. ‘I’ve got a suggestion. Stop wallowing and do something about it. Make it better.’
‘You sound like Jane.’
‘She’s a clever woman so I’ll take that as a compliment.’
Sophia grinned. ‘Do you really think I should chase after him? It’s so not my usual style.’
‘Hope you don’t mind me saying it, but your usual style hasn’t exactly achieved great results so far.’
‘True.’
‘Are you still interested in getting to know him better?’
‘Oh, yes,’ she said firmly. ‘Most definitely.’
‘And do you think after this morning that he knows you’re so keen?’
‘No.’
‘Then you’d better get your running shoes on, babe. You’ve got some chasing to do.’
Perhaps it was Willow’s metaphor that put her off – Sophia believed she was genetically predisposed to reject any form of exercise that required special shoes or clothing – but by late morning the next day, she still hadn’t done anything regarding her Van mission. She threw herself into her work instead, and by eleven o’clock was very pleased with her progress. She pondered on the fact that at least one area of her life was progressing smoothly.
Sophia had always felt that she’d work with children in some capacity, and since she’d displayed a talent with words from an early age, it seemed a natural progression to become a children’s author. She was thirteen when she designed her first children’s book. It was for toddlers and featured a range of first words like ‘apple’, ‘house’, and ‘truck’. Each word had its own page and Sophia created ‘touch and feel’ elements out of things she could find around the house. The shiny apple was a piece of leather cut from Mom’s old handbag and polished to perfection. The roof of the house was a scrap of scratchy sandpaper from Dad’s garage. The wheels of the truck were the bottoms of tiny plastic medicine bottles. It was in the days before such multisensory books were the norm, and everyone had made such a fuss of the book – her parents had even showed it to the school principal – that Sophia was forever left with a feeling of warm accomplishment each time she completed a new book. Her Mom still made a fuss of her daughter with each Trinity Rock publication, something that never grew old for Sophia. Even when she’s fifty, she reckoned she’d still love her Mom telling her she’s such a clever girl.
When the phone rang and Willow’s eager voice greeted her, Sophia felt a pang of guilt. She was bound to be calling for an update on the plan.
Instead, she hissed, ‘You’ll never guess who’s graced us with his presence on the top floor this morning.’
‘Who?’ Even though she’d asked, Sophia had a good idea. Her heart began to thunder straight away.
‘Guess!’
‘Van?’
‘Yes! And can you guess why he was here?’ Her enthusiasm burst out of the phone.
‘Um, me?’
‘YES! I don’t know if he knew we were friends or he just thought I was the right person to ask about any person in this building – which I am, by the way – but yes, he wanted to know all about little Miss. Sophia Fawkes, children’s author extraordinaire. That’s two trips he’s made into the city from his forest sanctuary in two days. Unheard of! And all for you!’
Sophia quickly caught onto Willow’s fervor. ‘Oh my God; what kind of things did he want to know?’
‘Only everything! If you’re single, your personality, your favorite restaurant. He even asked to see your books from the library of publications. He followed me the whole way to the basement, then took them away with him.’
‘Wow. I wonder what he’ll think of them. They’re very girly! Can’t imagine he’s the type of person to enjoy elves and fairies.’
‘He’s reading them to get a sense of who you are, not because he’s looking to expand his literary repertoire,’ she laughed.
Sophia laughed along with her. ‘Of course. Is it creepy that he wants to know all this background, though?’
‘If he was a regular guy, maybe. But we’ve already established that he’s a little… different. Maybe he’s nervous and some sleuthing makes him feel more confident? Oh, there’s one more thing.’ All of a sudden she sounded guilty. ‘He asked me for your address.’
‘Did you give it to him?’
‘Yes,’ she moaned. ‘I’m sorry, Soph. I shouldn’t have – it’s against company policy for one thing, and I should have checked with you first. But I was caught up in the moment and so excited for you.’
‘When did this happen?’ Sophia’s pulse immediately quickened. She wasn’t sure if she was excited or scared at the prospect of Van knowing where she lived. She didn’t usually like to get so personal right away. But then, these were not normal circumstances. ‘I’m not mad; I just want to know in case he’s coming over now. I’m not getting caught out unprepared again!’
‘He was here around an hour ago, maybe a little longer. I would’ve called immediately, but I had to sit in on an important meeting. Which means…’
‘If he left for my place straight away, he’d be here any minute.’
Just then the buzzer rang. Sophia nearly jumped off her chair.
‘Holy crap! That’s him. He’s here! I’ve got to go!’
‘Oh my God! Go, go! Good luck!’
Sophia hung up, taking three attempts to find the correct button with her shaking fingers. She dashed over to the intercom and took a
deep, calming breath.
‘Hello?’ Voice smooth. That’s good.
‘Hello,’ a deliciously deep voice replied.
‘Who’s this?’ she asked innocently.
‘Van Longshadow. I hope you don’t mind me dropping by.’
‘Not at all. What a lovely surprise.’ Sophia bit the ends of her fingers and tried to stop the laughter that suddenly wanted to bubble up from inside. ‘I’ll buzz you up.’ She looked fearfully around the apartment. It wasn’t messy, but not entirely visitor friendly either.
‘I actually wondered if you’d like to come for a walk in the park,’ he replied. ‘Feel the sun on our backs.’
‘Sounds perfect. I’ll be down in a minute.’
She sprang into action, flying to the bedroom to change into a fitted white blouse and dark denim skirt – thank goodness her legs were freshly shaven – then into the bathroom for a quick dash of eyeliner and lip gloss. Mirror check: casual but groomed. Check. Simple beauty. Check. She threw her bag over her shoulder and clattered down the stairs.
Outside, she looked left and right, and for an awful moment thought that he’d gone. Then she saw him, leaning against a large black motorcycle, hair shining in the midday sun. A black leather jacket dangled from one handlebar and a black helmet from the other. He was wearing jeans and a black t shirt. His muscular arms were folded and he regarded her with a look on his face that suggested he’d like to eat her alive.
You’re kidding me. A motorcycle? He’s too perfect.
Sophia found herself breathless and totally out of her depth. It was one thing, facing him in formal attire at a fancy party, but this bad boy motorcycle rider was the type of man she usually avoided at all costs. Too dangerous, too risky. Not the sweet type to stick by her side through the hard times. That was all true, but the pounding of her heart and her tingling pussy left no doubt that she was interested in this particular motorcycle rider.
‘Wow,’ she said. ‘You look great on that.’
‘I’ve always owned a motorcycle. It’s an addiction.’ He stood up, his height and broad chest as impressive as ever, and then surprised her by taking her face in both of his hands. She gazed up at him.
‘Motorcycles aren’t my only addiction. I think you’re about to become another one. I had to see you again. Something’s going on between us. Do you feel it?’
‘Yes,’ she whispered, instantly caught up in the moment. ‘I’m sorry about yesterday, I…’ Her voice trailed off; yesterday seemed insignificant all of a sudden.
‘Yesterday’s not important, only right now,’ he said, mirroring her thoughts. ‘And right now, I need to do this.’ With that, he kissed her, right there on the street. It wasn’t the light peck of hesitant strangers, but the passionate embrace of two people who felt that, on a level beyond rational thinking, this was meant to be.
The kiss in itself was breathtaking enough, but the sensations that exploded through Sophia’s body could only be described as extraordinary. It was as if his kiss lit a flame in her mouth that coursed through her veins, sending fire down to every fingertip and toe. She closed her eyes and images of a forest in flame flashed behind her closed lids. The heat gathered at the central point between her legs. It built and built with each brush of his lips, until she exploded in a most unexpected but sensational orgasm. She moaned into his mouth, demure pink cotton underwear soaking wet and legs quivering.
Once it was over, she made her way unsteadily to a nearby bench and plopped down, shaking her head incomprehensibly and wiping her brow.
‘What the hell just happened?’ He sat down beside her and she shrank away from him a little, as if the mere touch of his arm against hers could send her into further convulsions. ‘That was not normal. It was absolutely incredible. Does this happen to every girl you kiss?’
‘I wouldn’t know; I’ve never kissed anyone before.’
Sophia’s mouth hung open.
‘Never kissed anyone? Never?’
‘Well, once a very, very long time ago. So long ago it’s barely even a memory anymore.’
Sophia frowned. How long ago could it be? Despite that silver streak of hair, he could only be thirty-five, tops.
‘How can it be possible that you’re a kissing virgin, when you look like you do?’ she asked in genuine wonder. ‘Girls must be lining up to lock lips with you every time you leave the house.’
He shrugged. ‘I’ve never wanted to kiss anyone before I met you.’
Sophia frowned at him, flattered but bewildered. ‘You really are quite strange, aren’t you?’
He shot her a little grin. ‘So they tell me.’
‘I mean; I’m the one who believes in the whole ‘one true love’ fairy story, and even I’ve kissed more men than I’d like to remember. All of them frogs, by the way.’ She looked into his eyes. They were ringed with dense, dark lashes that made the intense blue even more powerful. Surely those are contacts. No one has eyes that blue. Funny; he doesn’t seem the type to purchase colored lenses. ‘I have this really strong feeling that you, however, are going to turn out to be the real deal.’
If she were Jane, she’d make a joke about the orgasm she’d just had. “If that was what a kiss can do, imagine once you head downstairs!” But, she was Sophia, not Jane, and she didn’t want to sully this beautiful moment with crude jokes.
‘Do you believe in the supernatural?’ he suddenly asked. ‘That things aren’t always as they seem?’
‘I’ve always wanted to believe that there’s mystery in the world,’ replied Sophia, a little taken aback by the question. ‘But I’ve never had any solid proof of the fact. Until now. What about you? What are you?’
‘There’s no simple way to answer that question. I do know that the world is full of secrets and that some of them can only have a supernatural explanation.’
‘What kind of things? What do you mean?'
All of a sudden, he turned away. His shoulders rolled over, instantly tight with tension.
‘What’s the matter? Did I say something?’ Sophia put her hand on his elbow and felt a shiver run through his body in response.
‘It’s not you, it’s just…’ He stood up and started to stride back towards his motorcycle. He was already throwing on his jacket by the time Sophia reached his side.
‘You’re going? I thought we were going to take a walk?’
‘I’m sorry. I’ve just got to go.’
‘Please, Van. What’s the matter?’
He gunned the motorcycle into life and kicked back the stand. Just before he left, he turned to Sophia, who stood despondently beside him. He seemed to want to say something.
‘What’s your email address?’ Sophia asked, taking the opportunity. ‘We could email, seeing as you don’t have a phone.’
‘I don’t have a computer either. I’ll see you soon.’
And with that, he lowered his tinted visor and roared away. As she stared after him, Sophia couldn’t help but wonder if it was really wise to trust your gut at all. It seemed like her head would be a better option this time. Perhaps Willow was right. Perhaps Van Longshadow was just too strange. She trudged back up the stairs to her apartment and lay down on the couch.
I thought Prince Charming was supposed to be perfect? All of a sudden, she grinned to herself as the effect of his kiss came to mind. Despite her glum state of mind, one thing was for sure. That orgasm had been damn near perfect. Surely that made up for his abrupt exit and odd resistance to modern communications?
Chapter 5
That night Sophia’s dreams were so vivid they were disturbing. She found herself running through a forest on a dark night – endless running – chasing something that she could never reach. Her vision was laser-sharp; she never tripped or stumbled despite the darkness and the terrain. Potent scents grabbed her attention from all around, even while she was on the move; things she had never noticed before, like the scent of a speckled frog, which hid under a log beside a tiny stream, and something else very familiar… cl
ose now. Must keep running. There was another smell, too, one that was rapidly consuming all of the others. Smoke.
Flames leapt up behind her, and it was clear that she wasn’t only chasing something, but running for her life as well. A massive fire leapt and roared behind her, sending showers of sparks high in the air as it consumed everything in its path. She was fast, easily keeping pace with deer and birds that escaped alongside her. Then it all fell into place; she was an animal, too, with four legs and thick black fur. A dog? No, a wolf. She saw a figure ahead, in a flowing white gown, standing dead still as if in a trance. With a start, she recognized herself. She stopped in front of this dream self, trying to tell her to run, hurry, there’s a fire coming. But all that came out was an agonized howl. The flames drew ever closer. The heat singed her fur but still her dream self didn’t move.
Curves & Alphas: A Paranormal Box Set: (BBW Paranormal Shape Shifter Romance) Page 15