Mr. Dangerous (4 page)

Jasmine exited the apartment without saying “goodbye,” to Calvin. When she entered The Morning Bell, she was greeted by Mason, who offered her a crooked smile and waited to take her to his apartment. He was also dressed casually, perhaps with a hidden secret underneath like she had. She raised an eyebrow as she mentally wondered what surprise he could be hiding in his pants, then giggled at her internal joke.

“You clean up well,” she said sarcastically.

“As do you,” he shot back.

The tension between the two was thick, and it took all of her willpower not to kiss him. He leaned in closer to her, leading her to believe that he was about to satisfy her wish. Instead, he gently grabbed her hand and intertwined his fingers with hers, then led her out to his vehicle.

Still a believer in cars that speak for their owners, she searched the lot for some model of Mustang, as she tagged Mason as a muscle car guy. After passing several cars of various makes and models, she suddenly saw it, the vehicle that spoke to Mason’s character: a huge, bulky motorcycle. He handed her a helmet and climbed onto the back of the dangerous vehicle.

“Seriously?” she asked, hesitantly taking the helmet and placing it on her head.

“Are you going to get on, or what?”

“I’ve never been on a motorcycle,” she admitted.

Motorcycles were extremely dangerous and obnoxious. Barely anyone in the quiet town of Rootsville had a motorcycle, let alone be happy with the loud sounds they made.  She bit her lip and very slowly sat on the back – biding her time. Her heart began racing as she wrapped her arms around his chest and buried her face in his back to shield her eyes.

“I’ll never let anything happen to you,” he said in serious tone, then quickly lightened the mood with a joke. “C’mon, live a little.”

Despite his joke, she replied meaningfully, “I trust you.”

“Good,” he nodded, then with a loud bang, he started the engine and sped out of the parking spot.

As he raced through the streets of the quaint town, she found herself breathless from the thrill of the ride. Suddenly, her fear was replaced by excitement as adrenaline coursed through her veins. She opened her eyes and watched the stunning scene unfold.

The wind caressed her cheeks and caused her eyes to open wider, taking in every vision. The series of small shops and brick homes turned into a blur of colors much like a painting by Vincent van Gogh. She enjoyed basking in the stunning scenery that zoomed past her eyes up until the point where he began to slow down, turning into a small, run-down apartment complex.

The complex was definitely not pretty, to say the very least. Air conditioning units adorned each window and long, dark rust stains ran down the edges of the previously-white gutters. Small patios held multiple residents who were smoking and drinking beer. The smell of tobacco reeked through the air, burning her nostrils. Loud bass music thumped viciously, blasting from a nearby window. Dogs, disturbed by the music, barked and howled.

Jasmine looked up at Mason, using her eyes to ask him where to go within the complex. He wrapped an arm protectively around her waist and guided her up the metal stairs that creaked with each step. Climbing up two levels and walking through a small hallway of doors, the two eventually stopped at apartment number 232. He unlocked the door and opened it, signaling for Jasmine to enter first.

Jasmine was utterly shocked by the scene before her. She had assumed that the date would be very casual and unromantic, especially after having seen the state of the complex. However, what she found inside his clean studio apartment was the exact opposite. Rose petals scattered around the floor, leading to the large queen-sized bed. Resting on the comforter was a bouquet of fully-bloomed roses wrapped in pink tissue paper. Two plates, along with forks, napkins, and wine glasses, sat elegantly on the small table next to the kitchen. Mason strode past her and lit several candles, allowing a warm glow to spread light throughout the romantic scene.

Tears formed in her eyes. No one before him had ever gone through the trouble to provide such a loving atmosphere for a date. Turning away, she quickly wiped away her emotions so as not to scare him away. Suddenly, a gentle caress crawled up her arm and rested on her shoulder. She melted beneath his fingertips as he turned her around and faced her directly. When she lifted her face to his, she was struck by the passion that met her gaze.

He no longer looked at her behind the comfort of his tough, mysterious exterior. When her leaking eyes met his, she saw something she had not yet seen within him: vulnerability. His palm crept its way along her neck and rested on the side of her face, with his thumb encircling her cheekbone. Her breath quickened as he brushed his lips ever-so-slightly against hers.

“Kiss me,” she whispered – and he did.

Chapter Four

It seemed like an eternity since she first locked her lips against his – a soft, warm feeling that enveloped her body like smooth velvet. Once Mason stopped to look back into Jasmine’s eyes, she realized it had only been a kiss that lasted several seconds. She yearned for the taste of his mouth again, to slip back deeper into eternity. Yet, something told her that he had other plans to elongate the evening. He pressed his lips against her forehead, which made her cheeks blush with the simple sentiment.

“Hey, now,” he said, his voice softer than usual. “Before we get to the best part of the evening, we have to eat first, right? What kind of a gentleman would I be if I didn’t offer you dinner first?”

“Oh?” she teased. “I didn’t realize I was in the presence of a gentleman.”

“Oh, you definitely are not.” He quickly reached his arm around her and grabbed her bottom tight, pushing her against his body. She felt breathless. As quickly as he brought her near, he also suddenly let her go and went straight for the refrigerator. He pulled out a series of vegetables, along with knives and cutting boards, and motioned to her to begin chopping.

Although she made a joke about being forced to cook as a guest, she felt oddly close to him in that moment. As he prepared and seasoned the protein, she chopped the onions. When she began tearing up from the strength of the onions, he made a joke about her being emotional and began playfully kissing her tears away in a frantic motion that made her giggle uncontrollably.

“You are crazy!” she exclaimed, trying to regain her composure and begin chopping again.

“Maybe I am.” He winked.

The two spent the evening cooking, eating delicious food, and drinking sweet dessert wine. After dinner, Jasmine rested in his arms on the couch near the table with half a glass of wine. Suddenly, she had the burning desire to ask him a question.

“Why did you ask me out on a date tonight?”

He raised an eyebrow and squeezed her thigh. “Why else? I like you.”

“I mean, why do you like me?” she asked, unsure why she cared so much. For some unknown reason, she wanted to know exactly what he saw in her. The two were so different in many ways, which meant that he had to like something in particular about her varying personality.

She still had such trouble reading him. Unlike any man – or any person – she had ever encountered, she simply could not understand what was going on inside of his head. Jasmine suddenly felt a dizzying feeling of déjà vu as she recalled a past dating experience from a couple years ago.

“So, Devon.” Jasmine looked up at the handsome man with dark hair and thick eyebrows. He grunted in response while he was finishing typing a text message. “Do you like me?”

“Huh? Why would I not?” He didn’t look up at her when he asked the question, which made her purse her lips slightly.

The two had gone on several dates and, to Jasmine, it seemed appropriate to see where the relationship was headed. She liked him, but he only seemed to pay a lot of attention to her when they were actually on a date, rather than simply hanging out.

“I don’t know,” she shrugged, waiting for a response. When he didn’t respond, she continued. “I just want to see where things are heading, you know?”

This caused him to look up, a slightly panicked look in his eyes as he said, “Whoa, there, we just started dating. Why are we talking about this right now?”

“No, no,” she assured, backtracking. “I’m not asking to progress. I’m only asking if you like me.”

“Okay, but why is this even a subject yet? We’ve only been on like, one date,” he said, as if concerned that she was playing the sound of wedding bells.

“Actually,” she corrected. “We have been on four dates over the last month and today we are hanging out. Or are we? What is going on in your head?”

“Oh,” his eyes suddenly cleared from the flash of panic and changed to something strange. He pecked her on the lips and said, “I’m sorry, baby. I guess time really does fly, you know?”

“Uh-huh,” she nodded suspiciously. His cell phone notification tone rang to alert him of a new message. He wiped his sweaty palms on his pants, his nervous habit she noticed on the first date over a month ago. “Who is that text from?”

“Eh,” he grunted dismissively, wiping his palms again. “No one important. It’s probably just my brother.”

“Okay,” she said flatly.

Then, he picked up his phone, opened his texts, and showed her a message from his brother. He was telling the truth. She sighed, cursing herself for being so paranoid.

Devon wasn’t the type to share many of his feelings. Maybe he honestly just forgot how long they had been dating, as time does go by fast when you like someone. Even if she didn’t yet have the answer as to whether or not he liked her, she was momentarily relieved that she didn’t have to worry about another woman, at least. Although the two had never discussed if they were mutually-exclusive, she usually assumed that people only dated one at a time.

Later that evening, Devon ordered take-out pizza and they sat eating slices together and talking. Suddenly, he began acting strange again. He stopped eating the pizza. Although he looked straight at her while she talked, she did not feel as if he was truly listening.

“Earth to Devon. What’s up?” she teased him.

“I have a question,” he said, his face turning serious.

“Okay.” She dropped her pizza to the plate and tried to ignore the lump of fear that formed in her throat. Her stomach twisted, feeling heavy and brooding.

“It’s hypothetical, but if I were cheating on you, what would you do?”

She paused, raising an eyebrow, “Well, did you?”

“Well,” he also paused. “Yes.”

With that, she angrily stood up and dumped the box of food on the floor, splattering pizza all over his white carpet. This had been the third failed relationship in the last two years, and she was tired. It’s easy to date; it’s difficult to love.  While she was not in love with Devon under any circumstances, she had felt the possibility for love.

Lost chances always made her sad, regardless if they would have been in her best interest. She wiped away her tears and walked home alone, telling herself that she would never again trust a man unless he made his intentions clear.

“Why do I like you?” Mason started, breaking Jasmine from her memory-induced haze. “I like you because you’re sweet and stubborn. You run a business all by yourself. You care about every person in this town as if they were your own family. You have beautiful skin that begs to be caressed and I want to wrap myself in your curly hair. Jasmine, you are utterly intoxicating and I can barely restrain myself from kissing you at every moment.”

She blinked at him, surprised by his answer, and said, “I didn’t expect you to say that. In fact, I never quite know what to expect from you, Mason. You see, I do love every person in this town and I know each of them very well. However, I have not been able to read you. I don’t understand you, and you’re full of surprises.”

“I suppose you’ll just have to stay around and find out all of my surprises, right?” He winked at her and kissed her cheek.

“I do have one question, though, and I want complete honesty.”

“All right,” he said.

She watched as his eyes flickered slightly. Success, she had found his – very small – nervous habit. Her mouth lifted at the revelation.

“Are you in a gang? When you scared away that thief, it sure sounded like you were in a gang.” She raised an eyebrow.

“No,” he said smiling, as if she had made a joke. “I am not in a gang.”

“Okay, then. I trust you.” She smiled back and kissed his cheek just as he had done to her a moment earlier. 

Except this time, he moved his face to meet hers and softly kissed her lips. In silence, both of them lingered, not wanting to part from their slightly parted lips. Frozen, almost like a spell, everything became distant, blurred, and slowed to a crawl.

It seemed like even time was waiting for them to catch up. In a moment with no exact place of measure, but with perfect rhythm, they immersed themselves with each other as time finally caught up quickly. Slowly, their hands grazed, held, and pulled with a fervor of desire that spun time senseless and unable to read itself.

Hands tangled in hair, they walked backwards until they dropped onto the bed, unaware of anything else besides the tugging of lips and clothes. His eyes feasted on her naked body with the hunger of a man starving in lust. Mason was practically drooling as he traced his lips up her neck until he found her lips again. He looked at Jasmine with his eyes suddenly filled with desire and concern as he began to ask if she wanted to continue.

Before he was able to barely finish his last word, Jasmine ravenously kissed him. She pulled him closer and closer, trying to diminish a distance that wasn’t even there. They explored each other’s essences and shared their beings, reaching climax after climax while blissfully ruffling up the blankets as the moon slowly tired of the night.

After hours of incredible, passionate sex in an array of various positions, Jasmine finally collapsed next to Mason, who was breathing heavily in awe and relief. She curled up next to him and looked up at his face, studying his features. She wondered if it would be strange of her to cuddle close to him, as she felt a well of emotions building in her heart.

However, she was unsure if it would be appropriate to rest lovingly. She found it odd that she felt so uncomfortable cuddling with him, as she had just been as close as one could be to another human. Still, she was hesitant to be near him afterwards, since many men tended to be rather hands-off. She did not have long to ponder this puzzle though, as he quickly wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. Resting her head against his chest, she smiled.

“What?” he teased, with a smile back at her. “I don’t get post-sex cuddles from you?”

“I wasn’t sure if you wanted to cuddle with me.”

“Hey.” He lifted her face gently with his hands and met her eyes with his own. She was surprised to see that a sense of love swam through his ocean-colored eyes. “You are the most remarkable woman I have ever met in all my life. In such a short period of time, you’ve already captured my heart. I feel like I’m in a trance or a dream of sorts. I’m terrified that, in any moment, I’ll wake up from this incredible dream to go back to my bland life with you ripped from my arms. So, yes, Jasmine. I want to cuddle with you.”

She darted her eyes slowly back and forth between his. She always wondered about those who were satisfied with only looking into one eye while talking. Instead, she found that searching both eyes often gave a more complete view of one’s love. In his eyes, she discovered that he had fallen madly in love with her – a truth that cannot be faked or manipulated as long as one looks hard enough.

Between the love and honesty, she also saw a glitter of something else – something she could not describe. She definitely did not know the entire story of his life. In that particular moment, as they lay face-to-face, bodies intertwined, she did not care. In fact, she was excited for the opportunities for revelations that awaited.

In sudden curiosity, she blurted, “Tell me something.” To his quizzical look, she continued, “Tell me anything. I just want to know something about you.”

“Well,” he pondered then smiled, giving her deep kiss on the mouth. “I like you.”

Giggling, she pushed at him gently, “No, I mean, tell me something about you that I don’t already know – something that has nothing to do with me. For example, you know I’ve grown up in Rootsville and lived here my whole life. I’ve never left, to even vacation anywhere. So, where did you grow up?”

A strange emotion flashed through his eyes. She could not decipher whether it was fear or anger, but she definitely did not enjoy what she saw. As quick as the emotion flashed, it was gone. Disappearing faster than lightning. She made note that his past must not have been as cheerful as her own, making her frown slightly.