Dream Date (34 page)

“Love is mutual. What you have is an obsession. I’ve told you countless times.”

Hilbert looked around, and then stopped on a photo of Amanda that she had put on her coffee table.

“What can I do to win your heart?”

“If you
really
want my answer, then…you should think about turning into someone else.”

Hilbert gave Amanda an exasperated look.

“You know that if I could do that, I would.”

Amanda looked at Hilbert, watching his eyes. She didn’t know whether she should believe him or not.

 “You have such an iron fist,” Hilbert said, rising up. Amanda did the same. “No one’s going to love you the way I do. I’ll wait for you forever, if I need to.”

Amanda said nothing. She watched Hilbert walk back to the entrance, showing himself off the door. Amanda shot Kellan a quizzical look. He did the facial equivalent of a shrug. Amanda didn’t know what to think.

“Hilbert seems genuine,” she said. “But I don’t know if I can trust him. And I can’t jump ship from Nathan. He’ll think I’m a slut. I better plan our date for tomorrow.”

Tuesday afternoon arrived. Nathan was catching up on schoolwork after returning from his job. He was waiting for Amanda to call him. Nathan had only seen her once that day. He suspected she was planning to surprise him, which felt a little odd. He wanted to surprise her.

As for Kayla, Nathan definitely hadn’t seen a single hair of hers…except in class. That didn’t count much, as he was invisible to her. Nathan had tried to catch Kayla after class, but she always left so quickly that she could well try out for the track team.

When Nathan went to check his smartphone (he’d left it on the coffee table), there was a knock on the door. Nathan went to answer it, leaving his phone where it was. He frowned.

“Hello?” Nathan called, looking out at both sides of the hallway. There was no one. He was about to close the door when he noticed a note on the floor. Nathan picked it up. It was a small piece of paper. He read it.

Let’s give us a chance. Meet me.

Nathan flipped the note over and saw an address. He scanned the area again before getting back inside his apartment and closing the door.

This must be Amanda’s surprise. With Kayla mad at me, who else could this be from? I’d be mad to miss this chance.

Nathan went to the restroom to comb his hair and check for any flaws before meeting Amanda. Then he walked out and grabbed his car keys from a small pegboard he’d hung on the wall. With that, Nathan left the apartment.

The GPS on his smartphone led Nathan to a place near the university. He pulled up on the curb in front of a hotel. His eyebrows furrowed.

Did I get the address right?

Nathan looked at the note. It only had two lines, the sentence and the address. He flipped the card over and saw more writing: the number 512.

Why would Amanda request to meet me at a hotel?

After finding proper parking, Nathan entered the hotel. He walked up to the receptionist.

“Good evening,” Nathan said to the lady, smiling. “Room 512, please.”

“Name?”

“Nathan Ferland.”

The woman typed something into her computer, and then nodded. She bent down to open a cabinet and grab something from inside it.

“Here’s your key, Mr. Ferland,” said the lady, handing Nathan a brass key. He took it. “Enjoy your stay.”

“Thanks.”

Nathan walked to the elevators. He got into one and then pushed the button for the fifth floor once inside.

About a minute later, Nathan emerged into a narrow hallway. He walked forward, finding himself at another hallway. Nathan checked the numbers on the doors, and turned to the right. The room he was looking for was close down the path.

Facing the door, Nathan wondered whether he should knock. He did it anyway out of courtesy. No one answered.

“Okay,” Nathan said, inserting the key into the lock. The door opened, and he let himself in.

The lights were turned off, leaving the room in semi-darkness. Nathan faced what appeared to be the living room. A blue velvet sofa was in the middle of the room. In front of it was a flat-screen TV.

Nathan’s attention then turned to the rose petals that were lying on the floor, marking a path.

Wait a moment. Would Amanda really do this? We’ve only kissed twice.

Nathan followed the roses behind the sofa and to a door that he assumed led to the bedroom. He stopped at the door and opened it.

The bedroom was also dark. Besides the bed, Nathan noticed a chair propped in the middle of the largest unoccupied area of the room. The trail of rose petals ended at its feet.

Nathan stopped in front of the chair, wondering what it was for. Just then, he felt someone walking towards him. He turned around, finding himself facing Kayla herself. She had walked in from the bathroom.

“Hi, my love.”

Nathan was rendered speechless. Kayla was only wearing a pale, butter-yellow satin nightgown, strapped at the waist by its belt. On her feet, she had red high-heels that looked like Sergio Rossis. Yeah, Nathan was familiar with brands of top women’s shoes. It was the side effect of being best friends with a Don John and a fashion designer.

Kayla stood there, watching Nathan admiring her. He looked up and saw that she’d also worn makeup. Her lips were bright red, and her gray eyes stood out with the light application of black eye shadow.

“What is this, Kayla?”

She started walking towards him, stopping when she was only a foot away.

“Did you think I would give you up without a fight? You hurt me a lot, Nathan, but the truth is that I still love you like no one else. I’m not about to stand by with my arms crossed. I want you to pick me.”

Before Nathan could say another word, Kayla opened her nightgown. His jaw dropped when he took in the sight of her. Kayla was wearing nothing but what seemed to be costly red lingerie. The lacy bra had the effect of pushing her breasts up high, making them appear bigger. Along with her white skin and her deep black hair, the effect made a huge impact.

“Do you like it?” Kayla asked, taking steps towards him. She then pushed him onto the chair. Nathan looked up at her, mesmerized.

“No offense, but is this…outfit within your budget?”

“Anything is within my budget if it’s what it takes for you to stay with me,” Kayla told him, leaning so close that Nathan could feel her breath. “What? You don’t think a successful novelist can afford these scraps of fabric?”

“You didn’t have to do this.”

“I would do anything for you, my love. You must not push aside all the moments we shared together as if they never happened,” Kayla said, almost pleading. “We were together for a reason: because we’re soulmates.”

Nathan flinched, remembering what Claire had told him about his being Kayla’s soulmate. He wondered if Claire had told her as much.

“Kayla, you know I love—”

“Do you know why the divorce rate is so high?”

Nathan’s eyebrows furrowed.

“Because men fall in love with the woman with whom they cheat on their wife. You’re not cheating on Amanda here with me, but the same concept applies. I’ll make you desire me so much you’ll forget her.”

“You sound very confident.”

“This is a battle I’m not about to lose without a fight. Now, let’s get to business.”

Kayla walked to the dresser. A CD/radio player with iPod compatibility sat on top of it. She pressed some buttons, and seductive music began playing. Kayla returned to stand in front of Nathan. She started dancing slowly in front of him. He immediately realized what she was doing.

“No way. Are you doing a striptease?”

“Of course, love. Don’t be so surprised. You’ve seen me naked hundreds of times already.”

“But this is different! You don’t have to go this far.”

“A girl’s got to pull out all the stops,” said Kayla, and she continued her dance. Nathan didn’t know she could be so seductive. It’s as if Kayla had flipped a switch and gone into full-on bombshell mode.

Kayla turned her back on Nathan, still dancing. Now that she was closer, he noticed she had also put on some irresistible perfume.

This girl definitely pulled out all the stops.

Nathan couldn’t help but reach forward to touch the skin of Kayla’s back. She was much more attractive tonight than ever before.

Does Kayla really love me this much?

Kayla turned around again, brushing teasingly against Nathan. She ran her hands down to her waist.

Just then, in the dark, Nathan blinked and saw a different girl in front of him. Amanda.

Nathan’s eyes widened. Was he imagining things?

The red lingerie made Amanda look stunning…but Nathan didn’t think it would be her look of choice. She seemed too sweet to pick such a color as blazing red.

Nathan blinked again, and saw Kayla. She was messing with his head.

“Kayla—”

“Shhh. Now’s not the time for words, my love.”

Nathan continued looking at Kayla as she danced for him. She kept teasing him, brushing her body or her hair against him. She then sat in his lap, extending her right leg upward and tantalizing Nathan with it. When Nathan’s hand rose to caress her thigh, Kayla stood up and clicked her tongue. With Nathan’s attention on it, she then proceeded to lick her upper lip.

Damn, that’s hot.

Kayla smiled, placing her index finger against her lips. She then reached behind her back. Nathan’s eyes widened at the realization of what she was about to do.

The bra fell loose. Kayla held it in her hands, twirling it in the air. She then threw it at random and leaned close to Nathan, looking up to expose her neck to him.

“Breathless yet?”

Nathan didn’t answer the question. He didn’t want to admit that he was indeed breathless.

“I’m only getting started,” Kayla said, leaning back and carrying on with her slow dance. After another minute, she took off the high-heels, sweeping them aside as if she had bought them at Walmart. Nathan didn’t care much about them, though. He was just concerned with what Kayla was doing. This wasn’t like her.

When Kayla’s fingers started to yank down on her panties, Nathan grabbed her wrists.

“Kayla, stop. You don’t have to do this.”

“You won’t give me a chance otherwise.”

“Please, Kayla. What is it you’re after? Making me fall in love with
you
, or with your body?”

“You can’t fall in love with someone without being physically attracted to them,” Kayla said. “I want to be irresistible for you.”

Kayla then bent down to plant a kiss on Nathan’s lips. She simultaneously undid the buttons of his shirt. He grabbed her wrists again.

“Please understand I’m in love with Amanda.”

“There’s no way you could have fallen out of love with me overnight. The sparks are still there. I’m just working to keep them alive.”