Fiendish: A Twisted Fairytale (20 page)

“Hiya, Seth,” Macy said as she walked into the living room.

“Good morning, Macy,” I replied, taking notice of her strange attire, leather pants with a Victoria’s Secret t-shirt.

“So where
are you two headed today?” she asked.

“Horseback riding,” I replied. “Have you ever been?” I asked Calida.

“No,” she replied, shaking her head. “Maybe I should change. You said casual, but I tried to do nice casual. Give me five minutes,” she said turning to leave.

Grabbing her arm lightly, I stopped her progress, pulling her closer to me. She smelled soft and feminine, like roses. I
’d enjoyed her scent before, but the stuff she got in New York fit her better. I’d have to get her more. 

“What you have on is perfect. There
’s just one small thing,” I said, reaching up to loosen her hair. “I thought I made myself clear on this issue.”

“Yes,” she said softly, taking the hairband from my hands. “I forgot.”

When I looked up, I saw Macy giving me a disapproving look. “Have a good day, Macy,” I said, placing my hand on the small of Calida’s back, ushering her out of the door.

She gave Macy a quick wave before grabbing her jacket off the coat rack.

“You get a new car?” she asked when she saw my truck parked outside.

“No, it
’s not new. I have more than one vehicle,” I replied, opening the door for her.

Calida simply nodded her head and said nothing as she climbed into my F-150.

“I’m excited about going horseback riding,” she said once we were on the road. “Thank you for taking me.” She looked over and smiled at me, the excitement showed on her face. It was contagious.

Forty-five minutes later, we were pulling onto the long gravel drive at the horse ranch. The caretaker, Rick, came out of the barn to greet us.

“Seth, good to see you again. It’s been a while,” he said.

“Good to see you as well, Rick. Let me introduce you to Calida.”

He reached out to shake her hand. “Nice to meet you. And this lovely woman is my wife Vanessa,” he said as a pretty woman with short black hair walked out of the barn.

“It
’s a pleasure to meet you both,” Calida replied.

“We have Snow Dust and Night
’s Dream out for you,” Rick said, walking back towards the barn.

Taking Calida
’s hand, I followed behind them. “This is Snow Dust,” I said, coming to stop in front of the mostly black mare with sprinklings of white throughout her coat. “I thought she would be a good fit for you. She’s docile and easy to handle, perfect for a first time rider.” 

Calida walked over to rub the horse
’s neck. “Aren’t you a pretty girl?” she cooed. The horse stomped her front hoof and bobbed her head in response. 

Once we got the horses saddled, I stood back watching Calida as she attempted to mount Snow Dust
.
After a few moments, I went over to offer her assistance. It wasn’t necessary to touch her. I could have easily gotten out the step stool, but I found my hands circling her slender waist when I stepped up behind her.

“Put your left foot in the stirrup and hold onto the horn of the saddle with your right hand to give yourself leverage to pull up.” She turned and gave me a half smile.
 “Or, I could have them bring you a step stool if that would be easier.” 

Defiance flashed in her eyes before she playfully shoved me in the chest to move me away.

 “That won’t be necessary. I can manage.”

After two additional attempts, she successfully mounted her horse.
 I swung up onto my own horse with ease then led her down the trail.

“This is beautiful, so peaceful,” she commented as we rode down the trail.

Calida had a look of total contentment on her face as she took in a deep breath. 

“It is a beautiful ride, even more so when the leaves are on the trees,” I commented in return.

Off in the distance, we heard the babbling of the stream that ran through the woods. The only other sounds were the crunching of the leaves under the horses’ feet and birds singing.

“I wish there was a place like this to go running at home.
 I bet it’s even more amazing first thing in the morning.”

“You really shouldn
’t go running alone so early, and especially not in the woods.”

“Alone and early are my only options.
 Even if I went after work, it would be still close to dark right now because of the time change. Besides I enjoy the brisk morning air. It clears my head.”

“It
’s not safe.”

“I
’ve been running for years, nothing’s ever happened, and I pay attention to my surroundings.”

That last part was a lie because if she had she would have seen me, but she never did.

“You need a treadmill.”

“It
’s not the same. I don’t want to run in place staring at a wall.”

We rode the rest of the way in silence. When we arrived at the clearing, I dismounted then went to assist her.
 She shot me that same look of defiance, causing me to laugh again.

“You aren
’t used to having a powerful animal between your legs; they may be a little shaky.”

Color rushed to her face as she accepted my help in dismounting.
 She had to lean against me to steady herself and on reflex, my arms tightened around her waist.

“Do you pre-plan for everything?” she asked once she noticed the picnic basket.

“Whenever I can.”

I led her over to the blanket before unpacking the items. She took in the scenery while quietly eating her lunch.
 I was glad today was one of the warmer days; it meant we could be out longer.

The sound created of the water cascading down the rocks from the small waterfall in the distance filled the silence between us. This place was beautiful and serene, one of my favorite places when I felt the need to get lost.
 It was secluded, private property, so I knew there was no chance of us being stumbled upon. 

Calida nibbled on her sandwich, occasionally stealing glances at me. “Why are you doing this?”
 She didn’t look at me when she asked the question; instead she looked past me out towards the lake.

“Doing what exactly?”

“This,” she said, gesturing to our surroundings. “The horses, the picnic. You’ve obviously been here before; otherwise, how would you know about this place? Is this like part of your playbook or something? You know date one: over the top.  Date two: intimate and cozy.  Date three: get her into bed before dumping her and moving on to the next.”

That insecurity that seemed to be so deeply imbedded in who she was came bubbling to the surface again.
 It was very easy to make her doubt herself, and the more she did that, the more I remained the one in control.

“I think I
’m insulted by your implications,” I replied, propping up on my elbow. “This is the second time you’ve accused me of trying to get you into bed.
If
that was what I wanted, I don’t think I’d have to go through so much effort.”

A look of hurt flashed across Calida
’s face before she got up and walked towards the embankment.

“So, you
don’t
want to sleep with me?” she stated, and I wasn’t sure if it was a rhetorical question or one she wanted me to clarify. “So then what’s the deal? If bedding me
isn’t
your end game, what is?”

I walked over and took her hand, rubbing my thumb across her soft knuckles. She wouldn
’t look at me, instead choosing to keep her gaze focused on the calm surroundings before her.

“I don
’t want to find myself in a situation like I was in before,” she said quietly. “And I don’t want to put anyone else in
that
situation either.”

Lifting her chin, I made her look at me. “I don
’t have a ‘playbook,’ as you call it. I met you, and I found you to be a very intriguing woman. I simply want to spend time getting to know you. I was an only child. I’ve never had any close friends, but I’d like to change that.” 

Calida pulled her hand free, wrapping her arms protectively around her body.

“You…um…you just want to be my friend?” she asked, unable to keep the disappointment from her voice.

“I thought I already was, but you apparently are under the impression I have ulterior motives.”

“No, I don’t, I…I guess I was just confused. I mean do you treat all of your
friends
to such romantic outings?”

I suppressed a smile, hearing the icy way she said the word friend.

“No, only the special ones.”

“And how many…
special
…ones do you have?” she asked tensely.

“Currently?
 Only one.”

Some of the tension that had built up in Calida
’s body started to relax. I leaned close to her and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, letting my hand caress her cheek. Our faces were nearly nose to nose.

“She must be a lucky girl.”

My lips hovered inches from hers. She was putty in my hands. I could have told her to strip naked and jump into the freezing waters, and she would have obeyed me with little protest. The longing and anticipation for what she hoped would come next showed brightly in her eyes. I didn’t like the fact that I wanted to kiss her as much as she wanted me to.  That reality left me unclear as to who was being punished more. I had never denied myself something I wanted, yet if I gave in to that desire it would be admitting that this was no longer my game. I lived by my own set of rules, rules that put me above all others, rules that would be changed. A kiss was not just a kiss. Instead of being a pawn, with a simple kiss she could transform herself into an equal opponent or worse.

“I
’d like to think so,” I whispered before planting a soft kiss on her cheek.

Chapter 19

“Why am I your friend again?” Macy groaned as we pulled into the parking lot.

“Come on; it
’ll be fun. And the class is free, so what’s the harm?” I replied.

Macy had been complaining about the class since the moment I told her the time, I wasn
’t thrilled about it either, especially since it was closer to my job which meant we had to get up even earlier.

“It
’s free because it’s so early in the damn morning,” she continued, slamming her car door shut. “How did you hear about this torture again?”

“I told you, a person dropped off coupons at the office the other day. Now quit complaining. You drag me shopping I
’m dragging you to yoga.”

“Yes, but shopping doesn
’t require me to contort my body in unnatural ways,” she countered.

“It won
’t be any more unnatural than those Karma Sutra poses you said you wanted to try. This might even help.”

That brought a devilish smile to Macy
’s face. “Okay, fine, but you have to agree to go to the art show.”

“What?
 No! I’m not going to that. I wouldn’t survive the night.”

“You are and you will. I already bought the tickets.”

“You’re such a bitch,” I muttered.

“You wouldn
’t have me any other way,” she said with a smile.

Linking her arm in mine, we walked towards the building.

“Good morning. Welcome to Namaste Yoga Studios. Are you ladies here for our introductory class?” asked one of the attendants at the front desk. She was a little too chipper even for me at this hour.

“Yes we are,” Macy answered, sounding a lot more cheerful than she had in the car.

“Great. The class starts in about fifteen minutes. Would you like a tour of the facility?”

“Yes, please,” I replied.
 

The other attendant stepped from behind the counter to show us around. “Here is the indoor pool area. Next door is the café. There is additional seating outside for when the weather is warmer. If you are into meditation, there is a Zen garden out there at the end.”

Macy and I followed behind her, taking in everything. Downstairs held the locker rooms and bathroom area as well as the sauna. It was a very nice facility and I could see myself spending a lot of time here, especially with the discounted membership that came with the coupon. If yoga proved to be as relaxing as running, then it could be the perfect answer to those safety concerns Seth raised on our last date.

“Enjoy the class ladies,” the attendant said, ending our tour outside of the classroom.

We walked through the double doors and immediately noticed the soft lemongrass scent that filled the room. Relaxing music played from the speakers. It was the sound of water and flutes, things that could only be described as ‘spa music.’ The atmosphere was relaxing enough before we even began the class. Our instructor’s name was Yogi. Macy and I both held back giggles on that one. We did basic poses to introduce us to the art of yoga. If we continued the program, then the poses would become more advanced.