When Sparks Fly (Sexy Secrets Book 2) (3 page)

Olivia - Mid-March

I pull into the parking lot of my new (ish) gym, glad to see
only a few vehicles in the parking lot.  I joined this particular gym back in
January, deciding that my twice a week yoga classes were not enough if I wanted
to stay in shape.  For the first month, I came for my workout at various times,
trying to gauge when the gym was the least crowded.  I am not big on crowds so
that is important to me.

I discovered that the time between 9am and 11am, the gym is
the least crowded.  The hardcore morning people have all cleared out and the
stay-at-home moms (and dads) haven’t invaded the gym yet. 

It is almost 10am and I am starting my workout.  I was
assigned a complimentary trainer when I signed up at the gym and I am following
his program of strength-training first.  It takes me almost twenty minutes to
check off the exercises from his list.  I make my way upstairs from the weight
room to the cardio room and walk to the treadmill at the end of the row and
against the wall. 

The cardio room overlooks the weight room and I have a good
view of the room below as I start my treadmill workout.  I put my earbuds in my
ear, open my iPad and find a playlist before opening up a book to read.  I lose
myself in music and words as I do my interval training on the treadmill.

I have been on the treadmill for almost ten minutes when I
hear raucous laughter bleed through my ear buds.  It is coming up from the
weight room below.  I look and see four guys - three black and one white.  From
what I can tell from this distance, they are all quite attractive.  The more I
let my look linger, I see that two are twins. 

Double the fun.

I am caught off guard when one of the twins looks up and
looks right at me.  I stumble and grab the treadmill rails so that I don’t fall
and embarrass myself.  I quickly look away, my face heating up that I have been
caught looking.  I go back to my book and forget about the handsome men below.

I have five minutes to go in my treadmill work out when I
sense someone stepping on the treadmill next to me.  I glance over briefly and
see one of the twins.  I stumble briefly before I gather my composure.  He
gives me a smile and he has dimples that make my tummy do flip-flops. 

I will tell you now, when it comes to guys and flirting – I
seriously suck at it.  I have no idea how to be flirty, witty and alluring.  I
am painfully awkward.  I try my best to ignore him, but I can sense him looking
at me and that makes me curious.  I power down my treadmill and when it comes
to a complete stop, I turn my attention to him.  I give him a shy smile as I
remove my earbuds and he gives me that dimpled smile again, making my insides
all jittery.

“Hi,” he says.  His voice is very deep and it vibrates
through me.

“Hi,” I reply shyly.  I can feel my face heat up. 

“I’m Isaac.”

“Olivia.”  I quickly wipe down the treadmill with the
disinfectant wipe from the dispenser mounted on the wall.  I gather my things
and step off the treadmill, making my way to the door.  His very deep voice
stops me.

“So – that’s it Baby Girl?  Are you gonna leave me hanging?”

I stop and turn around.  I am so out of my element and
comfort zone.  This man is gorgeous and I have no idea why he is talking to me. 
He is tall – well over six-feet.  His coloring reminds me of melted dark
chocolate.  His head is bald.  His deep brown eyes have a boyish innocence
about them while also conveying a sense of mischief.  His mouth and jaw line
have me almost transfixed.  His jaw is square and sharp with hint of stubble
and his lips look oh so kissable.  His mouth is wide – the top lip is only
slightly thinner than his full and plump bottom lip and he has the cutest ears
that stick out a bit.

Whereas his face is gorgeous, his body is just downright
sinful.  He is muscular, but not in a beefy weight lifter way.  He looks like
he could be on one of those male fitness models with his fit and lean build. 
He is wearing a gray sleeveless t-shirt with a pair of black basketball
shorts. 

“No, I am not leaving you hanging.  I am just done with my
workout and now I am leaving,” I answer honestly. 

He walks closer to me and I can smell him.  He smells
sweaty, but I also smell a hint of something spicy.

“Well Olivia,” he says.  I love how his voice sounds when he
says my name.  “Would you do me the honor and meet me for coffee later?”

I am perplexed; he wants to meet me for coffee.  Why?  He
can’t be interested, can he?  I am looking a hot and sweaty mess right now.  So
I ask him.

“Why?”

He lets out a laugh in that same deep timbre as his voice.

“Because I want to get to know you.”  He crosses him arms
across his chest, tucking his hands under his armpits.  The move makes the
muscles in his arms bulge. 

Oh – OH! 

See – clueless here. 

Jacqueline and Taylor are always accusing me of being
oblivious.

“Oh – okay – sure,” I stammer out.  “Um, when and where? 

“How about the Starbucks at the end of this block?  Let’s
say – 4pm?”  He flashes that dimpled smile at me again and I have the urge to
fan my face – because I’m hot all of a sudden.

I nod my head up and down.  I need to get away from him
because he is making me nervous and I don’t want to say something stupid. 

“Ok – the Starbucks down the block –at 4pm.  I will be
there.”  And because my mama taught me manners, I tack on, “It was nice meeting
you Isaac.” 

I even manage to give him a smile before I quickly turn and
walk right into a padded pole.  I slam into it so hard, that I bounce off and
land on my ass.  I somehow manage to hang onto my water bottle and iPad though.

I hear “oh shit” before Isaac is kneeling in front of me. 

“Hey, are you okay?” he asks me in a concerned voice.

If I thought my face was warm earlier, it is on fire now. 
He has a big hand on my knee and another on my shoulder. 

“Olivia?” he asks me again.

I finally snap out of my embarrassed stupor and respond. 

“Yeah, I am okay – just completely mortified.  I’m kind of
hoping the ground will open up and swallow me whole though,” I say as I peek up
at him. 

He gives me a smile that makes me feel light-headed as he
helps me stand.  He still has his hands on me – they are lightly gripping my
upper arms as he looks down at me. 

“So, I will see you at 4pm right?”  His eyes are serious as
he looks at me.  “Don’t think that this little episode will get you out of
meeting me later.”  He gives my arms a little squeeze.

               I nod my head because I don’t trust myself to
speak.  Instead of letting me go, he keeps his hands on me and turns me around
– walking me
around
the padded pole and to the front door.  Once at the
door, he releases his slight grip on me.

“Be safe Olivia.” And with that, he is gone.  I blink a few
times, looking around, wondering if this really just happened.

__________________________

At 3:40 pm, I am sitting in my car.  I managed to get a
parking spot across the street from Starbucks.  When I left the gym, I had all
but made up my mind to cancel my membership and find another gym.  By the time
I arrived at home, I had talked myself out cancelling my membership – instead,
I had decided to not meet Isaac.  Obviously, I’ve changed my mind because I am
in my car across from Starbucks.  Before I lose my nerve, I exit my car. 

I have on my favorite dark-washed jeans that are tucked into
my black riding boots.  I opted for my gray cable knit, long hooded cardigan
sweater over a simple white oxford shirt.  As I cross the street, I feel
confident and dare I say - sexy.  

I quickly do a scan of the shop, making sure Isaac is not an
early arriver like me.  When I am sure he is not on the premises, I fully enter
and go to stand in line.  I am the fourth person in line.  I look over the menu
that is on the wall behind the counter.  I’m not a coffee drinker – I can’t
stand the stuff.  However, I do love hot chocolate.  When there is only one
person ahead of me in line, I feel someone sidle up beside me.

“I’m glad you came,” a deep voice says in my ear.  I feel a
shiver run up my spine.  I slowly turn my head to the right, look up and there
is Mr. Dimples.  He is smiling down at me with that dimpled smile and it feels
like I have just gone down a steep hill on a bicycle with no brakes.  His
square and sharp jaw is no longer shadowed by stubble – he has shaved.  I think
I like him better clean-shaven.  He has on a simple light blue button-down
shirt and jeans, but on him, it looks like a million bucks.

“Hi,” I say shyly.  I will myself not to fidget, but it is
unsuccessful, I am fidgety.  So, I tuck my hands into the pockets of my
cardigan and try to stand as still as possible as I continue to look up at
him.  I might even bite my bottom lip like an idiot.

“Hi,” Isaac replies. 

The barista then asks me what I would like to order.  I turn
my attention to her, trying to appear calm, cool and collected as I tell her my
order.

“I would like a tall, salted caramel hot chocolate with two
percent milk and a chocolate caramel muffin.” 

I skipped lunch so I am okay with the extra calories.

“Are you two together?” the barista asks.  Before I can
answer, Isaac speaks up.

“Yes, we are.  I would like a venti iced caffé mocha with an
extra shot of espresso. 

When she tells us the total, I pull my wallet from my purse,
but Isaac stops me.  As he hands a twenty-dollar bill to the barista, he leans
close and his gravelly voice fills my ear.

“Since I asked you out on this date – I pay.”

I look up at him and I must look shocked and/or confused
because he says, “Yes, this is a date.”

Oh – OH!

See – still clueless!

I give him what I hope is smile as we move down to the
counter to wait for our order.  He is so close that I can smell his cologne and
feel the heat radiating from his body.  I get fidgety again.  

“So, did you work today?” he asks. 

I look at up him and nod before I speak. 

“I have a job where I work from home and my hours are
flexible.  I will probably do some more work tonight.  But I don’t mind because
I love what I do,” I all but gush out.  I tried to sound calm, but I don’t
think I did.  I really do love what I do.

“Oh yeah,” he replies in that deep voice of his.  I swear I
am going to spontaneously combust/cum from his voice alone.  “What do you do?”

“I’m a jewelry designer.  I work for one of the bigger
jewelry store chains and I have an on-line storefront where I sell my own
jewelry line.” 

“So you’re an artist.”

I am surprised.  Most people view my work as a hobby and not
as being an artist.

I give him a beaming smile. 

“Yeah, I am.”

Before he can respond, another barista announces that our
order is ready.  We gather our items and he ushers me to a cozy corner of the
coffee shop.  I am very conscious of his big hand on my lower back.

I tuck myself into the corner of the comfy high backed sofa,
setting my muffin on the small table in front of the sofa before taking a sip
from my hot chocolate.  Isaac sits down next to me; very close, turning his
body towards me and takes a sip from his drink. 

I can already feel myself falling for this man.  He is
looking at me as if I am the most interesting thing in his world and that makes
me feel special.

“So, how about you – did you work today?” I ask him.

He nods. 

“Yeah, I did.  I am actually taking a break right now. 
Before I go home, I am going to head back to the studio to finish up a few
things.”

He takes another sip from his drink – leaving a little dab
of moisture on his bottom lip.  I find myself getting aroused when his tongue
slowly swipes it away.

“Oh,” I say in a breathy voice.  I clear my throat before
speaking again.  “What is it that you do?”

He flashes that dimpled grin at me as if he knows that he is
turning me on. 

“I own a video production company with my brother.”

Impressive.

“And what does your video production company do?” 

“Right now, we are involved with quite a few reality shows
that are filming in the Southeast.  We provide camera crews and production
personnel for the various shows.  We also do the post-production activities
which can involve the editing, sound, graphics and things of that nature.”

I am very impressed.  It sounds like he has a great job and
I tell him so.  I lean forward, breaking off a piece of my muffin with my
fingers before settling back into the cushion, turning my body towards Isaac while
tucking my left leg under me.  I taste the bit of muffin and moan softly to
myself.  

When I look up, Isaac is staring at me.  Without thinking, I
lean over and break off another piece of my muffin, offering it to him. 
Instead of him taking it from my fingers, he wraps his big hand around my
wrist, holding it steady and leans forward.  When his mouth closes around my
fingers, I shudder and squeeze my kegel muscles.

Sweet Jesus!

I can’t look away as he continues to stare at me intently. 
I squeeze my kegel muscles even tighter when I feel his tongue lick my fingers
as he takes the bit of muffin from my fingers.  I watch him chew, his strong
jaw working slowly.

“It’s good,” he says gruffly. 

I nod and lower my hand.  My fingers feel tingly.  We both take
sips from our drinks, not taking our eyes off each other. 

I may have been oblivious at first that Isaac was flirting
with me, but give me a break; I haven’t had a date in four years, so my radar
is a little wonky.  However, this sexual tension between us is hard to ignore. 
We are silent for a few more moments before he asks me if I am originally from
Richmond and just like that, we get to know each other.