by Sky Winters
“Not human? What does that mean?”
“I mean, he’s human, but he’s not human-human. You know?”
I blinked at her while I processed what she was saying. Human-human? What was he then, half duck? “No I don’t know. And please explain this to me as if you were talking to a five-year-old.”
“Fine. ComeShift is a dating app for those who want to meet shifters. You know, people who can change their form at will. Have you ever been with one, Nicole?”
I understood the words she was saying, but my brain still couldn’t rationalize the information. “Like a shapeshifter? I’m not sure. I never thought to ask because then I’d look like a crazy person!”
Mia grinned. “So says you. Don’t knock it ‘til you try it, honey. Since the first time Jason and I boned I haven’t been able to keep my hands off of him. He’s the best I’ve ever had and I’ll never go back to a full-blooded human.”
“You’re fucking with me aren’t you?” She had to be. There was no such thing as shape shifters. She seemed so sure though and I couldn’t tell if maybe she did know something I didn’t.
Her face grew serious. “Nicole, I’m not kidding. There are people out there that look just like us, but have evolved so far beyond where we are that I’m not surprised you don’t believe. Jason will be here in about ten minutes and you’ll see for yourself. I think you should give the app a shot and see what happens. I promise you that you at least won’t be disappointed in the sack.”
Wow! So Mia was telling the truth. “Is Jason the first one you’ve been with?”
“Nope. I had a one-night stand with a bear shifter before I met Jason. The bear-shifter was the one that got me hooked on the supernatural.”
Okay, she convinced me to at least look into it. I whipped out my phone and downloaded the app right away. I was intrigued at the idea of meeting someone who was that different from me and I wondered if the extra ability would make them different in terms of personality too. All the straight up human men I’ve dated were assholes and users so what’s the worst that could happen?
Chapter 2
The bar was packed and the concert ended up being standing room only. After Mia’s little bombshell I couldn’t help but examine every single face I saw. Were any of these people shifters like Jason?
Jason looked perfectly normal. Granted, he was a little more Abercrombie model than your average dude, but nothing about him screamed that he was anything different than what the world could see.
I wanted to ask him a million and one questions, but how to do that without being rude? What was the social protocol on handling preternatural relations? If I had anxiety just thinking about it, then what would happen to me when I attempted to get between the sheets with one.
The whole notion should be incredibly stupid to me, but it wasn’t. Seeing how well Mia and Jason went together may be think that maybe trying something new would be good for me. Lord knew what I’d been doing was so not working for me.
“Are you having fun?” Mia shouted over the music.
“I am. I’ve heard so much about these guys around town and they do live up to the hype. I am glad you talked me in to coming out tonight. I needed this.”
Mia rubbed my arm. The smile she flashed me was one of sympathy not joy. She knows how long I’ve been struggling emotionally even though I tried not to talk about things too much.
Mia nodded at the stage. “Did you check out the bass player?”
I had been so preoccupied and in my own head that, while I’d heard the music, I paid virtually no attention to the band.
She pointed to the musician at the far left of the stage. “Check him out. He’s a hottie.”
And he stood out. The music bordered on heavy metal and the band certainly looked the part, except for their bass player. Every man on that stage had long hair, a long beard, or both. The man Mia pointed out to me was practically clean cut to the rest of his band. His dark hair was close cropped and tousled, He was taller and leaner than the others, but still had the strong, wiry arms of a guitar player. What drew my gaze was his unusually full mouth framed by the perfect amount of five o’clock shadow. It’s not everyday you see a guy with a mouth that begs to be kissed.
“He’s a good looking guy, Mia. A little musical eye candy is always nice.”
“You should try to meet him.” Mia suggested.
“Yeah, okay.” Guys with instruments didn’t go for girls like me. They went for the willowy, model-type groupies. Not a chubby girl with “a great personality.” Or so I’ve been told.
But he kept looking over in our direction. Maybe I was wrong.
Bear Knuckle Brawlers did not disappoint. Their set lasted until midnight, but Mia wanted to continue the party at another bar. After the second encore the effects of my day had finally slammed down on my shoulders. I was exhausted.
Leaving the bar, Mia was vibrating with excitement. “That was so good! I’m so amped right now I won’t be able to sleep. Let’s go do the after party!”
“You guys go have fun without me. I’m beat.”
“Awe, come on! Don’t poop out on me now. You don’t come out with me anymore.” Mia whined. She put on her best sad puppy face, but I wasn’t biting. I needed to get home ASAP.
“You’ve got Jason with you,” I checked to make sure he was out of earshot, “and wouldn’t you like to, you know.” I said with a wink.
Mia glanced over her shoulder at the blond hunk that was her date. He was chatting up one of the roadies. Judging by all the laughing and carrying on, I assumed they knew each other.
“Okay. You twisted my arm. Sleep tight, Nicole.” I got a hug and a kiss on the cheek before she scampered off to her date.
I called a car service to take me home and while I waited, went ahead and browsed ComeShift. And I wasn’t disappointed. Most of the men on there were stunning, good looking to the point of intimidation. As I swiped through profile after profile, each smiling face reminded me that I was way out of my depth.
The entire fifteen-minute ride home was spent on that damn dating app. The problem with choice is, when presented with too many, making a decision is impossible. I came down with the worst case of FOMO ever and had to put my phone down.
I tossed the damn thing on the kitchen counter and decided to take a shower.
The hot water helped me think and it didn’t take long for me to realize that I didn’t have to pick anyone tonight or even a week from now. There wasn’t a rush for me to choose anyone from ComeShift or at all for that matter. I had to wonder about why I put that sort of pressure on myself.
The answer to that was simple: I hated being alone. Based on my track record of serial monogamy, I’d go so far as to say I was totally allergic to being on my own. The only cure to that was to glob on to the first asshole who paid attention to me and hold on tight. The relationship would be rocky, angry, and temporarily ruin my life, but I was never alone. Going more than two weeks between relationships was verboten in my world.
As I scrubbed the scent of skunky beer and cigarette smoke out of my hair, I threw down the gauntlet on myself. Don’t date. I needed to take the time to date and get to know myself, and maybe take care of myself a little better. All the emotional highs and lows of being caught in the relationship revolving door couldn’t be good for my mental health.
I finished my shower and stepped out into the crisp air. Chicago didn’t have a very long fall before transitioning into winter and with the end of October fast approaching, even the most well insulated house felt the dropping temperatures.
With my day having gone as shitty as it had, I took my time and luxuriated in getting ready for bed. I massaged a rose scented oil into my skin and took the time to comb and blow dry my hair. When I got dressed, I slipped into my silky pink pajama shirt. The men’s style button down never failed to make me feel both sexy and comfortable. By the time I was done, my mind was calm, I had found my happy place, and I was the kind of tired that would quickly lead to th
e best sleep of my life as soon as my head hit the pillow.
For an extra special treat, I was going to turn my alarm off. I wanted to sleep until my body told me to stop. I didn’t want the shrill call of my phone’s alarm to startle me awake and remind me that I was currently unemployed. As an extra measure, I was going to leave it in the kitchen tonight as my own personal do not disturb.
I had just tapped the off button on the alarm and was getting ready to power down when an alert popped up.
“Holy shit!” The alert was from ComeShift. Someone was interested in me, but I hesitated. Should I look? I had just spent the last hour convincing and empowering myself to be on my own for awhile and I had to wrestle with whether or not peeking was a good idea.
I wasn’t going to look. I plugged my phone in to charge and left it on the kitchen counter. If I still wanted to know in the morning, I‘d look then. In the meantime, I was going to sleep the sleep that the overworked dreamed about and not think about it.
Chapter 3
4:58 turned to 4:59, each minute that ticked by was so much longer than the last. I had laid in bed for the last three hours praying for that sleep I so arrogantly thought I was guaranteed. I got hosed.
Curiosity took over my night and sent my brain into a miserable, swirling vortex of what ifs and self-doubt. I knew I wasn’t going to get any sleep until I checked out my match. So, I tossed back the covers and padded into the kitchen. I could promise myself whatever I wanted, but first I had to know what I was avoiding.
I gasped and nearly dropped my phone on the tile floor. The man of interest was the bass player from Bear Knuckle Brawlers. “No. No that can’t be right.” I checked my profile photo to make sure it wasn’t me from thirty pounds ago. It wasn’t. It was still the selfie I had taken last weekend while on a hay ride with Mia. I just cropped her half off to post. I knew I looked pretty good in the photo, but I didn’t think I looked rock star worthy. The fact that he was local made no difference. I counted at least a half dozen bras flung at the stage during Bear Knuckle Brawlers set.
The profile photo of Nicholas Berry stared back at me with a pair of soulful brown eyes with just the right amount of come hither in them. He’s a twenty-eight-year-old musician and writer from the Chicago area who was interested in hookups only. I read through the rest of his profile and was shocked by how Spartan the whole thing was. Every description was succinct and he answered each profile question with just enough information to be an answer and nothing more.
A random hookup with Mr. Hot Bass Player? I shook my head and powered my phone back down. I had to hold to my promise to myself no matter how panty dropping his smile was. No good could come of me getting tangled up with another guy and getting hurt.
………..
“It’s so nice to see that you’re still alive, Mia. Would it kill you to answer a call or text once in awhile?” After almost ten days of no contact, I finally managed to nail my so-called best friend down for lunch.
“Sorry, girl. Jason surprised me with a romantic trip to Alaska and there was no signal.”
“Alaska? I’ve never heard anyone describe Alaska as romantic; freezing, harsh, abominable, and barren, but never romantic.”
Mia’s face lit up. It was obvious she wanted to talk about it badly. “It was super cold, but we stayed in his gorgeous log cabin. He has a huge brick fireplace and the sexiest bed ever in the master. We hardly left the room let alone the house.” She sighed and got a dreamy look in her eye.
“Uh oh! You’re in trouble. I think you’re in love.”
Mia blushed and looked down at the tabletop. “I think I might be. Jason is everything I’ve been looking for in a man and so much more I didn’t know I wanted. Would you believe I found a man who can cook? And I mean cook like a chef, not just boil hot dogs.”
“That’s a coup. Congratulations, Mia. You’ve found the chupacabra!” Finding anyone who could cook an edible meal for themselves in this town was impressive.
“I know! To be able to trade off meal duty with someone for a change is going to be so nice.”
I watched the brown depths of my coffee swirl as I stirred my sugar in. I had to bury the fact that I was jealous. Sure, I made a promise to myself that I would stay out of the dating pool for awhile, but seeing my best friend happy drove home how badly I wanted that for myself.
Mia ducked her head to catch my eye. “What about you, Nicole? What have you been up to while I was away?”
I chuckled a little. Somehow a week long love affair with Netflix while wallowing in self-pity didn’t seem to cut it compared to a romantic week in Alaska. “I decided I needed some down time so, I took the time to unwind after being dumped and fired in the same day.” I took a sip of my coffee before continuing. “Oh and someone got in contact with me on ComeShift.”
Mia squealed and clapped her hands. “I’m so excited. Oh, Nicole this will be such a good choice for you. So what did he say? What did you guys talk about?”
“Um,” how to tell her that I was a chicken on a self-imposed celibacy break? “That’s the thing, I didn’t respond.” I was tempted, but I always managed to stop myself before pressing send on a message. There’s a good chance I missed the boat.
“How come?” Mia whined. “You could have so much fun with this guy.”
“I could have fun. Or I could wind up on my face again. Trust me, this dude is way out of my league.”
“Pfft. I don’t buy that for a second. Show me what he looks like.”
I knew better than to resist. Mia would badger me to death if I even tried. I pulled my hone from my purse and opened the app. “It’s this guy.” I handed her my phone and she snatched it from my hand.
She gasped. “You can’t be serious! The bass player? Why have you not responded to him yet? You must be delusional.”
“I’m on sort of a man break for awhile. I’ve been through a string of terrible choices so I need to bow out of the dating scene for a bit.”
Mia nodded, but I had the feeling she was actually agreeing with me. She wasn’t.
“That’s nice, but this guy is looking for an in and out, not a relationship. What harm could come from a one-night stand.” Her fingers whizzed around the screen as she tapped out a message. Before I could protest or get my damn phone back, she pushed send. “There. All done.” She handed me back my phone with a grin.
I stared at her with my mouth in my lap. What had she done? “Mia, what…”
Mia waved her hand to interrupt. “Don’t say anything. I promise you, shifter is the way to go. One night won’t kill you. In fact, I think you’ll be thanking me when all is said and done.” She continued to beam at me as though she just pulled the greatest best friend move ever. That cheeky bitch was so proud of herself.
“Fine. And for the record, if this whole thing blows up, you will be at my house with a pint of ice cream and a Beaches DVD to console my bruised feelings. When my heart gets broken, it will be all your fault.”
“Alright, Negative Nancy, you got yourself a deal.”
I took her outstretched hand and pumped once. I was nervous as hell, but I was going to close my eyes and jump anyway.
Chapter 4
Nothing better than a shopping trip to soothe my Mia frazzled nerves. After lunch I couldn’t just go home and stew, I had to distract myself from how annoyed and anxious I was. Of course I was still unemployed so instead of the mall, it was a visit to my favorite vintage store instead. As I browsed the rack of sunglasses, my phone buzzed.
The ComeShift alert popped up on my screen. Nicholas Berry wanted to meet up with me.
I’d like to meet you tonight. I’ll be playing with my band at Reggie’s. The set starts at 9:30. Please tell me you’ll be there.
Holy shit. Nicholas wants to meet. That shouldn’t be such a big deal, but it sure felt like it! “Okay. Calm down, Nic. You’re just meeting him and that’s it.” I pep talked myself for a few more minutes before finally responding.
9:30 is perfect.
I’ll be there. I’ll be wearing red.
Message sent. No going back now. I’m meeting Nicholas Berry, bass player of Bear Knuckle Brawlers tonight. Now, what to wear?
……..
I pulled up to the club at eight-thirty and was shocked at the crowd of people. For a Wednesday night, Reggie’s was packed. Nicholas’s band must have a bigger following than I thought.
Or it was the fact that they were opening for Halestorm. A huge poster of Lzzy Hale was up at the box office sneering down at me as I bought my ticket.
The clerk pushed my debit card back toward me. “No charge tonight, miss. This ticket was set aside for you.” He held up the flimsy strip of paper and slipped it under the glass to join my card.
“Are you sure?”
“I am, Miss. I have a sticky note with your name on it.”
I took my card and ticket and pushed my way through the crowd. Once inside it was cocktail time. I needed a vodka buzz to take the edge off, stat.
Before long the opening bars of Bear Knuckle Brawlers’ first song began to play. The floor wasn’t packed in yet, so I pushed my way to the front to get right in Nicolas’s sightline. It worked. The red, cleavage bearing maxi dress set off the bright blonde of my hair. I spent a little extra time getting my effortless waves to look just right.
He noticed. I watched Nicholas’s gaze sweep over the crowd one time before settling on me for the rest of the set. Every minute of the forty they played sent more butterflies into flight in my belly. By the time the singer said goodnight, anxiety had been replaced with the tingle of excitement. Especially, when Nicholas waved as he exited the stage. I could feel the blush creep up my neck. I was glad it was too dark for the rest of the concertgoers to see me.
I had to hustle to get out of the pit. Once Halestorm hit the stage, there wouldn’t be any room to maneuver at all.
I spotted Bear Knuckle Brawlers at their merch table schmoozing and signing autographs for anyone willing to drop twenty bucks on a t-shirt. As I approached, I could see Nicholas scanning the faces and half paying attention to the fans trying to engage him in conversation. I couldn’t make out his words, but I could tell his answers were clipped and not entirely friendly.