Lost In Autumn (2 page)

“Yes, we actually
met earlier today at Suzzalo,” Darren said to Janet without looking away from
me and keeping that damn smirk on his tan face, clearly enjoying my embarrassment.
The stadium noise added enough distraction that I was able to ignore the
reference to our earlier encounter and I feigned interest in watching what was
happening on the field so I could avoid looking in his eyes. A cool sexy vibe
emanated from his whole body and slowly surrounding me. I couldn’t believe he
was getting to me like this and I needed to make it stop. Now.

Chapter Two

We were losing the game and I was losing my cool. Darren’s
knees kept bumping into mine and I couldn’t keep focused. My stomach was
hurting, my face was flushed and I didn’t know what was wrong with me, but I
needed to step away from the crowd and get my mind right.

“Excuse me, I need to use the restroom.” I exited on Janet’s
side of the row this time to avoid ending up in Darren’s lap again and took a
deep breath and felt my head clear as I walked away.
What the hell is wrong with you?
I chided myself. I couldn’t
understand why I was reacting this way over a freaking man, let alone a man
that I had done nothing but embarrass myself in front of all day.

I reached the ladies room and was relieved to find there
wasn’t a line since it was the middle of an inning. A wave of lightheadedness
swept over me and I wanted to splash cold water on my face but all the faucets
were stuck at a scalding temperature.

Great. That’s the last
thing I need. More heat.
I exited the door and had taken two steps before
he was beside me.

“Nala, are you alright?” Darren seemed genuinely concerned.

“I’m fine, I think I just got a bit too much sun,” I tried
to chuckle but it sounded like a whimper as he put his arm around me in a
protective way and led me towards the water fountain. His hand supported me
around my waist as I leaned over to drink and I tried to convince myself that I
didn’t like the way him taking care of me felt and that I didn’t like how his
touch burned through my skin.

“Have you eaten today?”

“I had an eggroll…and some whiskey.”

Darren frowned and steered me back towards our seats. As we
approached Janet, she looked at my face and I could tell I must have looked pretty
bad judging by her reaction.

“Do you need to leave? We can go if you’re not feeling
good,” she asked.

Before I could answer, Darren said “She needs to eat, and
not any of this shitty stadium food. You can stay here; I’ll take her.”

“That’s nice of you Darren, is that ok with you, love?”

I hesitated not sure if it was a good idea for me to leave
with him, but I could tell Janet didn’t really want to leave yet and I knew she
had been looking forward to this game all week.
 

“I suppose so,” I agreed, reluctance seeping into my voice.
I was still not sure I really needed to leave but I could tell neither one of
them would probably agree with that.

I felt his strong arms reach around my waist and direct me
towards the aisle. I wasn’t used to being taken care of. I took care of myself…
in more ways than one.
Darren must
already know that after seeing my pocket vibrator at the library earlier.

“I parked over here, just one more row” Darren directed me,
his hand lingering on my lower back. “Here we are,” he said as he opened the
car door for me.

I was both surprised and confused as I lowered myself into
the passenger seat. I always did my very best to not judge people by their
possessions, but I didn’t understand how a college student could possibly
afford a Tesla in general, let alone a Model S P90D.

Great…He must be a
trust fund brat baby,
jumping to the first conclusion in my head.

The driver’s side open and Darren sat down next to me and
started the car. The cool smooth voice of Sade came through the stereo softly
as he turned towards me.

“I’m going to take you to Johnny’s Grill,” he told me. “It’s
right down the street, the food usually doesn’t take too long and you can watch
the rest of the game if you want.”

I nodded in agreement as he pulled the car through the
parking spot and towards the main road.

Johnny’s was an obvious post game hang out, with baseball
related art covering the walls and a masculine vibe. Darren pulled out one of
the wooden bar chairs for me.

The bartender introduced himself as James and placed
coasters in front of us.

“Watcha lookin’ to sip on today?” the craggy faced man asked
in a southern accent. Darren ordered a Gentle Bully martini for himself and
looked over at me.

“You probably should eat before you drink any more liquor,”
he suggested, although it sounded more like an order. He turned his attention
back to the bartender.

“She needs to eat as soon as possible. What would you
recommend we order that takes the least amount of time to cook?”

“Well…” the bartender drawled, “I would say all the
appetizers come out pretty quick, as well as the salads.”

I scanned the menu and ordered the first items that caught
my eye; caesar salad and pulled pork sliders. I sipped on the ice water that
James brought me and wished it was something stronger. I glanced at Darren’s
face as discreetly as I could while he ordered a burger and fries. He had the
perfect amount of stubble to not look too clean cut and he had to be at least
twenty-five. His features were proportionate without being plain and any woman
would be jealous of the long black lashes that framed his dark eyes.

“What are you going to school for?” I blurted out – not
wanting any awkward silences to develop.

“I’m getting my law degree,” Darren replied, “This is my
last semester.”

His choice of career added to my judgmental thoughts of him
probably being entitled and from some well-to-do family but I nodded and said
“That’s really cool! Why do you want to be lawyer?”

Emotion appeared for a flash on Darren’s face. What emotion
it was I wasn’t quite sure. Rage? Grief? Maybe I had imagined it since his face
looked calm now.

 
“Someone close to me
paid the price for a heinous crime they didn’t commit and were framed by the
party responsible.” He looked into my eyes and this time I didn’t question the
anger I saw, “I need to make them pay for what they did.”

“I’m so sorry.” My apology for the situation was also an
apology for my silent judgment of his motivations. “No need to apologize…What are
you studying?” he asked.

“Anthropology.” I explained my love of different cultures
and travel and he smiled appreciatively and seemed to be listening attentively.

The food arrived and as soon as I took about three bites, I
felt like a new woman. I was enjoying my time with this man that had been a
stranger just a few hours ago. I didn’t want it to end but I remembered I had a
paper due at midnight and I was only halfway finished with it.

“Thank you so much for escorting me to food,” a little grin
curled the corners of my mouth up. “You probably saved my life, but I do have
an assignment I need to get to.”

“Not a problem, you look like you feel better.” Darren paid
the tab before I could protest and we headed for the door.

“I’m glad I got to meet you today,” Darren told me as we
pulled up to my apartment. “I’ll walk you to the door,” he said as he opened
his door and walked around to open my door.

So gentlemanly…why is
he so perfect…
I wanted to hug him but I felt shy and like maybe that was
inappropriate the first time meeting someone, but before I could overthink
about it, his arms were around me, gently squeezing around my waist and his
breath in my hair. I was breathless and felt like my limbs stopped supporting
themselves. As I pulled away our cheeks lightly touched and the nearness of his
lips made me imagine what it would be like to kiss him - devour his mouth and
gently suck on his tongue.
You just met
him, don’t kiss him!
That damn color was back in my cheeks as I mumbled my
goodbye.

“See you around campus!” I said as I pushed my door open. He
smiled his sexy mysterious smile back at me as he started back to his car and drove
off.

I finished my paper in record time in spite of my distracted
mind. Janet still wasn’t home and she probably wouldn’t be home until early
morning, judging from the text she had sent me about “drowning her sorrows in
alcohol” since the Mariners had not won the game. I decided to take a nap.

I slept without stirring. Darren’s brown eyes danced through
my dreams and I woke well rested.
Sunday
.
Janet came into my room and asked me how I was feeling and where Darren had
taken me. I downplayed the excitement I felt around him and ignored her offer
to give me his number. I spent the rest of the day studying and pacing around
the apartment. I tried to ignore any thoughts of
him
. I kind of wished I could see him again, but I knew that
probably wouldn’t happen.

Evening finally fell and I lay face up on my white crocheted
bedspread and stared at the ceiling fan. I felt an aching throb of uncontrolled
excitement between my legs as I thought about Darren’s eyes and the way his face
felt against mine. I needed a release. I reached under the bed to grab “Teddy”.

Teddy had been my childhood teddy bear, but for the past 3
boyfriend-less years, he had entertained me in other ways. I slipped my shorts
down over the curve of my hips and placed the stuffed animal between my thighs,
enjoying the softness against my skin. I wanted more contact against my
sensitive clit and pushed my panties to the side so the fluffy texture rubbed
directly on my lips. I angled my most sensitive spot against the brown leather
that was Teddy’s nose and rocked back and forth, leaving a wet patch on the fur.
I bit my lower lip as my body weight added the perfect amount of pressure to
make me reach climax and as release and pleasure shot through me from my pussy
to the top of my spine, I imagined Darren with me…in me…and his mouth on mine.

I slept soundly and satisfied after my orgasm and didn’t
wake up again until morning light filtered through the cornflower blue shades
that covered my window. I grabbed my phone and checked the time.

Shit. 10:15. Spanish class
starts in 15 minutes.

I pulled my favorite red t-shirt dress over my head and
slipped on some gold strappy sandals. If I had it my way, I would wear dresses
every day. I loved how free I felt in them and the circulation they allowed
that jeans just didn’t provide.

A notification popped up on my phone’s display for a friend
request. I scanned my fingerprint to unlock the screen. “Darren Accardo Wants
to Be Friends with You”.

My heart double beat for a bit and I thought
well, I want to be more than friends with
you, Darren Accardo.
I could feel my mental resolution of no relationships
while in school slowly melting and myself becoming very open to the idea. I hit
accept on his request and rushed to school.

Mr. Martin’s voice droned and warbled as the soundtrack of
my thoughts as I daydreamed in class. Usually I loved class, and especially
Spanish. I wanted to learn as many languages as I could and Spanish seemed a
very practical place to start. My thoughts today however, kept drifting back to
thoughts of the friend request. I pulled my laptop out, since it would look
more like I was actually paying attention my teacher than if I pulled out my
phone.
 

Before I could employ too many of my creeping skills after I
pulled up Darren’s profile, the chat window popped up with his name on it.

Nala, I have a
surprise for you. I’ll pick you up at Parrington Lawn at noon.

I was a bit annoyed that he just assumed I would clear my
schedule for him, but my curiosity would annoy me even more if I didn’t go.

I responded with a simple “okay” not wanting sound too
eager, but 12 o’clock suddenly couldn’t come fast enough.

Chapter 3

The trek to Parrington Lawn was long enough for my nerves to
start building up, but the gentle breeze of the approach of fall calmed me down
just enough to not panic and back out. I strolled across the stretch of grass
that was decorated in unusual sculptures and scanned the whole area looking for
Darren. I didn’t see him so I sent him a message.

I’m here. Where are
you?
I received a message almost instantly.
Walking towards you.

I looked up and saw his tall muscular frame walking towards
me, and away from a motorcycle, a helmet in his hands. My nerves returned in
full force and I realized once again that I barely knew this man, and here I
was, about to be alone with him once again.

“You ready?” He offered no explanation of our destination.
He gave me a brief hug, and turned back towards his motorcycle, expecting me to
follow him.
Maybe my nervousness wasn’t
obvious.
I swallowed the lump in my throat and took a few steps towards
him. He turned around, and seeing the look on my face and how slow I was
walking, he laughed.