Moments of Julian (13 page)

Our bodies are molded together and
certain muscles in my body are tingling and quivering. And with our
close proximity, I can tell that Julian feels the same
way.

He turns again so we are face to face.
He leads me into a basic and then turns us as we continue the
basic.

He finishes us off by leading me into
an underarm turn, but keeps me spinning until I lose my balance and
he drops me into a deep dip.

This would be the perfect moment for
him to kiss me. There are glittering lights and we’re alone and
there is no one around to pass judgment.

But this is a first date. And we both
seem to have silently agreed that we need to slow things
down.

Julian stands me back up, his eyes
warring with lust and excitement and the knowledge that something
in my past makes it so he needs to keep himself in check. So, he
takes my hand in his again, and leads us into the
restaurant.

I realize through dinner that there is
no denying the heat that exists between Julian and I. Sparks flew
the first time we met, that night where I tumbled with him into the
backseat of my car without even knowing his name. We have been
orbiting around each other for weeks now, just waiting to collide
and explode into something cosmic and grand.

I know it is coming. I eagerly await
it.

But maybe I like a little torture too,
because I plan to enjoy the grand climb leading up to the
climax.

My heart races through dinner and I
cannot keep my eyes from Julian. We do not say much, but the
tension between us is intense and very real.

By the time we finish eating, I feel
out of breath and yet ready to run a marathon with all the pent up
emotions I am holding in.

Neither of us says anything as we
descend the tower, once again enjoying the magic of the night. We
stand side by side, hand in hand, keeping a bit of distance between
us before either of us spontaneously combusts.

Julian once again hails a cab and we
climb into the back seat. I sit on one far side, he sits on the
other, a needed yet torturous distance away.

“
As far as first dates
go,” he says, his eyes staring at me through the dark. “How does
this one rank?”

I bite my lip to try and hold in the
smile. It doesn’t work.

“
I’d say this one ranks
pretty high,” I say through the suppressed smile.

Julian smiles back. “Nothing too scary
and personal shared that will chase you away from maybe accepting a
second date?”

I feel ridiculous and cheesy and I
can’t wipe the smile from my face. “Well, I’m not sure I’ve gotten
enough information on you yet. I mean, I still don’t even know what
you do for a living.”

Julian’s hands rest on his thighs
again and I hate that they are on his legs instead of mine. “I work
in computers. I’m a private developer; thus my work schedule is
spotty. How’s that for boring sounding?”

“
Hmm,” I nod. “So you’re a
computer geek who dances, dresses as nice as I do, and loves rock
music. An interesting combination. At least I shouldn’t get bored
any time soon.”

“
I would sure hope
not.”

“
Here you are,” the driver
says through a thick Asian accent. I pay the fare and we climb
out.

I take the initiative this time and
grab Julian’s hand as we walk through the doors of the hotel. We
enter the elevator and it starts to rise.

“
I am trying to decide if
I feel robbed of the drop-off doorstep, goodnight scene,” Julian
says as he looks down at me. “Or if I’m pretty damn lucky that I
know I get to spend the night.”

“
Plenty of women let men
stay the night on a first date,” I say with a coy smile. “But not
quite in the same way.”

The elevator lets us out on our floor
and we walk to our room. The maids have been by in our absence.
They’ve moved all the pillows and blankets back to the bed from the
couch, and turned the bed down. They’ve left mints for
two.

Julian keeps catching my eye as we get
ready for bed. We brush our teeth side by side in the bathroom
before I kick him out so I can change into my nightgown. While I am
behind locked doors, he takes a pillow and blanket to the couch and
pulls on a pair of flannel night pants and a plain blue
t-shirt.

I tug at the hemline of the nightgown
as I step from the bathroom. I love that Julian’s eyes take all of
me in, but I also feel self-conscious.

A smile forms on Julian’s face and I
come to the doorway and lean against the frame. Julian stands just
inches from me.

“
Looks like you get the
goodnight, door scene after all,” I say quietly, studying Julian’s
lips.

“
Guess I do,” he breathes.
He reaches a hand up and lets his fingertips brush the side of my
face before tucking a lock of hair behind my ear. “Thank you for a
wonderful evening.”

“
Thank you for planning
the perfect first date,” I say, looking up into his
eyes.

“
Does this mean I get the
privilege of taking Sage McCain on a second tomorrow?” There is
genuine hope in his voice.

I bite my lower lip and give a
nod.

“
I eagerly look forward to
tomorrow then,” he whispers. “Goodnight, Sage.”

“
Goodnight.” My heart is
racing as I let him slide the doors closed between us and let
perfect moment number two slip away.

Every nerve ending in my body wanted
to kiss him, but I am also enjoying the prolongation of the
moment.

That doesn’t mean I don’t go to bed
that night sexually frustrated.

CHAPTER NINE

I wake early the next morning, long
before Julian stirs, so I pull my laptop out and search for some
way to repay the excellent day Julian planned yesterday.

He planned the perfect first date, but
I will nail the perfect second.

We spend the middle chunk of the day
ice skating at an indoor rink I find. My balance is not as good as
Julian’s. Not surprising, considering Julian is an excellent
dancer. He holds my hand most of the time, and we make our way
around the rink. I feel stupid and terrible at it. And I hate that
feeling. But for just this day, I don’t mind not looking perfect in
front of him.

We grab a quick bite to eat around
seven and then I rush us off in the taxi to a more central part of
the city.

“
What is this place?”
Julian asks as we climb out of the cab. There is a line forming
around the side of the building. “Is this a club?”

“
Sort of,” I say, taking
his hand and leading him to the front of the line. I hand the
bouncer a piece of paper and he unhooks the blockade and ushers us
inside.

The space is dark and not particularly
nice, but it is exactly what I would expect for a music venue.
There is an extensive bar off to one side and a stage at the
forefront of everything. A full set is already arranged up on the
stage: drums, guitars, basses, and microphones.

“
Sage, what’s going on?”
Julian asks, confusion on his face.

“
If you’ve got a VIP pass,
you’d better hurry back for the meet and greet,” a man who is
standing next to a door by the stage says.

“
Come on!” I say
excitedly, pulling Julian towards it. Julian hesitantly
follows.

There is a small crowd of about ten
other people in the backstage room. They all wait with nervousness
on their faces and the air is excited and on edge.

“
What are we doing, Sage?”
Julian once again asks, leaning close to me and
whispering.

“
Just wait a second,
you’ll see,” I whisper back.

“
Thank you all for
waiting,” a woman says, who appears suddenly and silently as if
from nowhere. “And thank you for your support of Suit. The band
will be coming in in just a minute and you’ll get the chance to
hang out and talk.”

“
Suit?” Julian breathes.
“Suit is here?” He looks down at me with big eyes.

I nod, my lips in a tight, proud
smile.

“
And we’ve got VIP
tickets? They’re coming out here in a minute?” A small sweat has
broken out on Julian’s forehead and his eyes are a mixture of
excitement and nervousness.

Just then, four guys walk through the
curtain separating this room from the stage. Everyone except me and
Julian start clapping. He’s still too stunned to do or say much of
anything.

The lead singer, who I looked up and
learned is named Jackson Tate, looks nothing like a country singer
despite how his name sounds. He is instead dressed in a tailored
suit and his hair is styled and slicked back. He has the looks that
would make the panties fall off of nearly any woman.

The rest of the band is dressed
casually in jeans and t-shirts and leather jackets.

They get their name from the fact that
their lead singer always performs in a suit.

“
How did you know this was
my favorite band?” Julian asks, turning stunned eyes on
me.

“
You were dead asleep when
I woke up this morning,” I say as he slides an arm around my
shoulders. “I grabbed your phone and started scrolling through your
music, trying to think of ways to get out of debt for yesterday.
You had about five albums from Suit, so I figured you must like
them a lot. I was more thinking for future, but they happened to be
playing here tonight and well, I got tickets!”

“
You are seriously
amazing!” Julian gives a breathy and stunned laugh and presses a
kiss to the top of my head.

The band has worked their way through
the crowd and Jackson is nearing us. I slip into the background as
he engages Julian in a conversation and let him have this moment. I
can tell he’s nervous, but he’s talking excitedly and his eyes are
bright.

I enjoy the music enough, but I have
to admit, I am not an avid music buff. So while Julian sings along
to every song once the show gets started, not that I can hear him
over the pounding speakers, I simply nod my head along throughout.
Jackson Tate performs with enthusiasm and engages well with the
crowd. Julian and I both put our hands up to him during the concert
and he grabs our hands twice.

The show doesn’t get over until just
after midnight and I am relieved when we finally get outside
because the club has grown hot and humid with the taste of body
sweat and beer in the air.

We stop on the curb and wait for a cab
to drive by. The crowd from the club disburses around us, some
waiting for a cab as well, others headed for their cars or walking
to their destination.

“
That was amazing,” Julian
starts babbling. “I’ve been listening to these guys for over eight
years and it has never worked out for me to go to one of their
shows. You happen to pop online and find they’re performing two
miles away from where we are staying…?” Julian seems to be at a
loss for words.

“
I’m glad you enjoyed the
show,” I say with a smile when he looks down at me, a slight look
of awe on his face. “How was this for a second date?”

A huge smile breaks on Julian’s face
and he pulls me into his arms, hugging me tight to him.

“
If this wasn’t a second
date, I think I might ask if you’d marry me,” he laughs.

My heart skips at least two beats, but
thankfully I don’t have to overthink what he said too much, because
just then, a cab pulls up to the curb. Julian holds the door open
for me and I slide in.

The taxi driver has the heat blasting
and even I am too warm. Julian slides his jacket off, revealing his
tattooed arms under his short sleeved shirt.

Something tightens in my lower belly
at the sight of Julian’s toned forearms. Small veins stand out from
his skin, creating a few rises and valleys across his
arm.

I let a single finger trace the path
of a snake that wraps around his wrist and makes its way up his
arm.

The entire drive home, I let my
fingers outline the many images that decorate Julian’s beautiful
skin.

I’m almost disappointed when the taxi
pulls up in front of the hotel and lets us out.

On the elevator ride up, Julian wraps
his arms around me from behind and I can feel his breath, hot and
slightly fast, on the side of my neck. The doors slide open and I
step out, taking his hand once again, and leading him to our
room.

I feel as if I have half the club
still clinging to my skin, so when we get to the room, I
immediately opt for a shower. I don’t know what I am doing when I
intentionally do not lock the bathroom door. I strip down and climb
into the warm cascading water.

But Julian is trying very hard to be a
gentleman and the doorknob never moves.

I brush my hair and pull on the extra
nightgown I brought with me. I open the door, steam billowing out
from the room and find Julian sitting on the bed. He gives me an
approving smile before slipping past me and closing the door. A
second later, I hear the water turn on.