Siren's Heart (Siren's Duet Book 1): Love at first sight

6. Chapter Six - Millie

“A double date?” I ask, strained as I stretch my hamstrings on the ground, furrowing my eyebrows at Kayla. Didn’t she hear me when I told her I wasn’t looking to date? Or did she conveniently forget we had that conversation?

“Please?” She looks at me with the ’Puss in Boots’ big eyes that she knows I just can”t say no to. “I can’t really say ‘no’ to the guy who asked me, and I could really, really use your moral support.”

Now, I’m even more confused. Kayla and not being able to say ‘no’ don’t really mix. I let out a long sigh and close my eyes as I loosen my stretch and accept my fate. Of course, I”m giving in. Kayla barely asks me for anything, so when she does, it”s kind of a big deal. Even if she chooses not to enlighten me.

“When?”

Her face lights up as soon as the word leaves my lips, and she lets out a deep sigh of relief.

“Tomorrow after work,” she says hastily, then hurries over to our bags to retrieve her phone. Good thing Mike isn’t here yet. He’d have her head for using her phone during rehearsal.

“On a scale of one to ten, how cute do I need to look for it?” I yell after her. I mean, if she’s going there only out of some kind of obligation, I might as well save some time and show up in jogging pants, but if it”s important to her, I”ll absolutely dress up.

She taps her index finger against her chin and looks at the ceiling as she contemplates it.

“I think you should wear that sunflower dress you showed me yesterday.” Okay, that is… oddly specific. I make a mental note of it and decide not to question her. I’ll find out soon enough what all this is about.

“You’re lucky that tomorrow is vocal training,” I can’t help but point out. “As much as I love you, I’d never go on a date all sweaty and stinky after dance rehearsal, even if it”s just for moral support.” She grimaces at the thought.

“No worries, I feel the same. Thank you, Millie, you’re really saving my ass.” She pats my head as she storms past me, her finger scurrying over her phone screen to type out a message.

She seems pleased with herself; I wonder what that’s about?

The next day arrives, and annoyance about this double date has made space for nervousness. I’ve never been on a blind date before. Dates? Sure. A lot of them. Just type it into a search engine, and someone can give you all my dates, timelines, and places. But I always knew who I was meeting, and the fact that I don’t know now is driving me crazy!

“Do I look okay?” I ask Kayla after we’re finished with our vocal training. I quickly changed from the sweats I like to wear for any kind of training into the white dress with the sunflower print she mentioned and touched up my subtle makeup that makes my eyes pop, and my skin glow.

Like most of the other dresses I own, the hem plays just above my knees, highlighting the white platform high heels I put on to make my legs seem longer. My hair is open, curls falling over my shoulders and tickling the part of my skin not covered by fabric.

Meanwhile, she had already left her flat dressed to the nines, wearing a crème-colored fluffy sweater, a beige plaited skirt, and thigh-high brown faux leather boots. The only thing she does is spray her fringe with dry shampoo before ruffling it out and refreshing her powder.

“Yeah, you look cute,” she assures me with a soft grin. She steps closer to me and fluffs my hair up a bit. “There. Perfect.”

Suddenly, nervousness rises in me like a sped-up tide. My fingers itch for something to fiddle with, and I finally find the bracelet on my right hand, and I roll the white pearls between my thumb and index finger.

“Thank you,” I mumble and smile at her. “Ah, by the way,” I perk up and search for my bag in the studio. “I made you something.”

There it is, tucked between two pillows on the couch. I quickly grab the small, white handbag and rummage through it, pushing all my knickknacks aside. There’s gum, my wallet, lipstick, a small bottle of perfume – things a girl needs for a date. Finally, I feel the smooth surface of pearls under my fingers and fish out another bracelet.

Over the past year, I”ve started collecting cute beads and pearls I findin random little stores. And since it”s boring when I”m the only one looking at them, I”ve started crafting cute little bracelets out of them, and I’ve grown to love it. It gives me space to relax and makes my brain rest while my hands function on autopilot. And by the end of it, I have cute little gifts to give away, or to treasure the memories I’ve made from where I bought the pearls.

“Give me your hand.”

She does, and I open the delicate clasp, laying the bracelet over her wrist before I snap it closed again.

It’s the exact opposite of mine. Ying-and-Yang style, I made mine with white pearls, adding one black one, and hers with black ones, adding only one white one. They”re a washed-out, matte color that caught my eye, and they’re from the final city we played our last tour in. They made me think of her when I found them.

“I found these cute pearls and just had to make you one, too.” I hold up my own wrist and wriggle it, making the pearls rattle. She looks at her own wrist with wide eyes and freezes. Fuck, maybe she hates it. “Do you like it?”

Slowly, her eyes soften, and a smile tugs at her lips. “I love it,” she answers happily, and I grin when she takes off the golden one she’s wearing on her other hand, sliding it into her bag. “Thank you.”

“You’re more than welcome,” I say happily, nudging her shoulder with mine before changing topics. “And you still won’t tell me who we”re meeting? I couldn”t even do the obligatory internet research to know what I”m dealing with.”

I just hope it”s not another newcomer our label wants us to showmance with occasionally. The last one they tried to set me up with had no personality, and the one before that thought he was God”s gift to humankind. I know the ones they set Kayla up with weren’t much better. I just hope Naroa knows better than to try that again.

“You’ll see soon enough.” Kayla laughs. She seems to be very happy about what’s going on. Kind of suspicious if you ask me. “Just trust me on this one.”

“And what if I say pretty please and give you puppy eyes?”

“Then I’m going to insist that it’s a surprise.”

“I can’t believe you’re sending me in there blindly.” I pout and narrow my eyes at her. “Something is going on.” It”s not a question; it”s a fact. And she doesn”t even attempt to deny it.

“Just trust me.” She touches my arm and gives it a reassuring squeeze. “If it sucks, I’m paying for the cocktails we’ll drink until the evening turns fun again,” she promises and checks her watch. “Now, why don’t you go on ahead? I called us a taxi, and I’ll be right there.”

“Why aren’t you coming along?” I raise my eyebrow at her.

“Uhm, I–“ her eyes dart around the room. Wow, she’s really not great at poker face and acting casual. “I need to make a quick call.”

My eyebrow wanders even higher. She really sucks at lying. Even without knowing all of her tells, I’d know that. It’s the way she doesn’t meet my eyes and shuffles her feet while playing with her earring. But I’ll ignore it, only for today. I’m sure she has her reasons. So, I shrug.

“Alright. Don’t take too long.”

The hallways are empty as I walk through them, shoulders tense and jumping whenever the echo of my footsteps is too loud. It’s almost scarier than running into a group of people in this labyrinth. I can hear each breath I take unnaturally loud in the bare corridors.

Suddenly, my heart starts beating fast, blood rushing in my ears, and a prickly nervousness settles in my gut, the hair on my neck standing alert. I quicken my steps, and the sound of my heels echoing against the bare walls doesn’t really help with settling the nerves. Finally, I reach the door and step outside, flinching when the sunlight blinds me. The air is nice and cool, and I lean my back against the wall with closed eyes, letting it fill my lungs.

When my eyes are used to the sunlight, I scan the parking lot for the taxi Kayla talked about, but all I see are the various black-tinted cars and limousines that staff and players use to come here without being seen by the paparazzi. Looks like it isn’t here yet. So, I lean my head back against the cool wall, look at the sky, and wait. And wait. It’s a lovely shade of orange as the sun is setting, painting the few clouds a fiery red as the evening turns into night.

A glance at my watch tells me it has only been three minutes since I came out here, but I”m starting to get antsy. My fingers drum against the wall in an attempt to let out the nervousness, but it’s not enough. Lifting myself off the wall, I start to pace. Left to right, and I’m still trying to find out who we’re meeting. Right to left, and I wonder where Kayla is.

The door opens behind me, and I jump, ready to tear into Kayla for making me wait. But it”s not Kayla. It”s Luca.

My muscles turn to stone, and for a second, I forget how to breathe.

His emerald eyes widen, only for a fraction of a second, before his face breaks into a sheepish smile that lights up his whole face and makes my heart beat loud enough to almost drown out his voice.

”Hi there,” he says, not breaking our eye contact, his voice cracking in the middle of his greeting. It sounds just as adorable as the shriek he let loose yesterday as I passed them during their training, and Asher tackled him to the ground.

His eyes wander over my whole body, leaving a trail of goosebumps on my skin. ”Wow, you look great.”

My heart starts to beat even faster, and the corners of my mouth lift into a small smile. A tingle spreads in my gut, and fuzzy caterpillars have announced to my stomach that they’re home. I”m so grateful Kayla told me to wear this dress today.

”Thank you.”

I take the liberty to do the same, taking in each fold of his clothes, each freckle and shadow visible in this fiery-golden evening light.

Until now, I”ve only seen him in his sports clothes, baggy shirts, and jogging pants. But regular jeans and a simple black t-shirt clinging to his body give him a completely different vibe. Straight from ‘the star athlete in high school who has mad golden retriever energy” to ”bad boy who”s dangerous because he”s charming as fuck and your mother would love to have him as son-in-law.’

My smile widens on its own when our eyes meet again, and his cheeks turn red. His pupils flash to the side before returning to mine, and he clears his throat.

”I”m… uhh, Luca, by the way.” He extends his hand, but I’m frozen like a statue. My eyes are glued to the cute dimples on his cheeks that his smile reveals, the pale freckles on his face, and the small laugh lines at the corner of his eyes. From this close, I can see that there are golden spots in his otherwise moss-green eyes, that dance in the evening light.

Suddenly, a car honks almost right next to us, and it wakes me up like from hypnosis. I subtly turn my head and blink a few times to shake off the dream-like feeling.

”Millie,” I finally answer him, a warm flush rising to my cheeks as I offer him my hand. His is so warm and soft. And big. It encases mine with ease, and even though we”re almost at eye level with me wearing platform heels, I feel tiny. His touch sends sparks through my whole body. Not daring to look at his face, I gaze at the collar of his shirt.

”I know,” he chuckles warmly, not letting go of my hand. His voice feels like a gentle caress of warm summer wind. More softly, he adds, ”Of course, I know.”

When he lets go of my hand, it feels unnaturally cold, incomplete, and uncomfortable, like it was meant to be in his. I stare at it in disbelief.

Yeah, I found Luca hot. Yeah, my eyes automatically find him whenever he’s in sight, and I can’t help but search for his voice in the murmur of his team. Yes, he intrigues me.

But this? I never imagined this in my wildest dreams.

Just me and him, the chemistry is off the charts. It’s tension in the air, invisible sparks lighting around us, and electricity buzzing, just one wrong movement away from exploding. My heart beats in my throat, and within minutes, the caterpillars in my gut have evolved into butterflies on ecstasy that makes my stomach tingle with excitement, so intense I’m afraid it’s about to burst.

This is so much more than a crush.

Goddamnit. This is infatuation–the kind of fascination with a human being that stays with you for the rest of your life.

Just like Justin fucking Dewer in high school. He was one of the ”bad boys,’ always wearing a black leather jacket, both his ears adorned with at least ten piercings, hands decorated with tattoos he had done God knows where, and he was always smoking cigarettes somewhere at the front of the school.

I sat right next to him in algebra and lent him my pencil along with a sheet of paper more times than I could count. In exchange, he used to rip a piece of the paper off and doodle something on it for me, passing it back as discreetly as a drug deal. It seemed forbidden, which made it all the more fun. And before I even knew what happened, what started as a small crush, became an infatuation over the year. Even now, ten years later, I still occasionally think about him, and I even wrote a song over the ”what ifs.”

It was intense. Yet, it is no match for what happened in the past few minutes. It doesn’t even remotely compare.

”What are you doing here?” I ask him, my voice only just above a whisper. I clear my throat, and my eyes widen as I realize just how that sounded. ”Not that I”m saying you shouldn”t be here or anything, I”m just wondering and–”

”It”s alright,” he chuckles, lifting his hand to rub his neck. I don’t even consciously decide on it, but my eyes instantly follow his movement, watching the way his bicep moves under his skin as he moves his arm. ”I”m actually waiting for Asher. We”re... going somewhere,” he sounds a bit confused as he retrieves his phone from his pocket. ”We were supposed to meet here 5 minutes ago, actually. Have you seen him come out?”

”No,” I answer, and he looks up, quickly making me redirect my gaze to the ground, the feeling of getting caught painting my cheeks in a bright red that not even my makeup can hide.

I”m a bit curious, though. Where are the two of them going? My whole body feels like bees are buzzing right under my skin as more and more questions begin to pop up in my head. ”But Kayla was also supposed to be here five minutes ago.”

”That”s strange,” he says, tilting his head. His forehead creases with small wrinkles, and holy shit, do I want to run my finger over them until they disappear. Oh God, I”m staring at him. Again. Just what the fuck is going on with me?

My phone buzzes in my bag, and I take it out, thankful for the short distraction and a chance to remember how to breathe properly.

Kayla: Sorry, the call will take a bit longer. Why don”t you go ahead?

The muscles in my jaw tighten, and I force them to relax so I can push out a deep sigh. Really? She wants me to go ahead to a date she dragged me into to begin with and meet those mystery men all by myself?

Listen, I’m good at pretending that I’m comfortable in social situations that make me feel incredibly awkward, but my skills have their limits. Plus, I just don’t want to torture myself through small talk just so she can do whatever the fuck it is she’s doing.

Also, when I finally get a minute alone with Luca, it is the worst time she could have picked to tell me to leave. When I look back at the screen, she sends me the address of the restaurant, and my eyes widen.

”Fantasia?” I ask aloud, shock making my filter completely disappear. I heard it takes months to get a reservation there. How the hell did Kayla pull that off?

”Wait, what?” Luca wonders, and his head whips around to look at me, confusion etched into his face. ”That”s where Asher just told me to go.”

”Well, it”s also where Kayla told me to go.” Wheels turn in my head, and I try to make sense of the puzzle pieces Kayla keeps handing me. Why would she go on a date with Asher? Even if it”s only a petty grudge she”s holding, she”s pretty resentful. There”s no way she”d go on a date with him. Which can only mean that...

Oh shit. My heart drops, and I lift my head to look at him with wide eyes, my heart beating so loudly in my chest I almost can’t hear myself ask, ”Wait. Are you here to go on a date with Kayla?”

”No,” he says firmly and shakes his head vigorously. Thank fucking God. The loud thumping in my ears subsides, and my heart rate slows down again. “Asher asked me to tag along for a double date, but he didn’t tell me with who.” His frown deepens, then his lips part slightly in realization, and he looks at me as if he just got caught doing something he shouldn”t have. But I pull my lip between my teeth, gnawing at it as I”m thinking over what exactly is happening here.

Because there is no way in hell that Kayla would actually date Asher. Well, at least none that I can imagine, especially since she hasn”t told me, and she always tells me when she has someone in mind. Well, not that it happened in the past few years, but way back, she told me.

Those two are so trying to set us up, I would bet a pretty high amount on it.

I glare at my phone screen, wondering if I should call Kayla and give her a piece of my mind. The audacity, I just can’t. Does she think I can’t manage my own dates?

Then again, now that I think about it... if Kayla and Asher are trying to get us to talk, doesn”t that mean Luca is interested in me? My blush deepens as that realization hits.

I loathe that they”re setting us up like this. Yet when would I get another chance to get to know Luca without his teammates trying to meddle? At least they’re letting us do it in private instead of listening in like the curious bitch I know Kayla is.

Maybe this is a sign. Or it’s the universe”s way of making fun of me. Oh, you want to stop dating? Here”s the perfect man.

My lip pulses under my teeth, but I’m not done panic-thinking.

I mean, what can it hurt to get to know him? He”s an A-List actor, a new one, but at least he’s in the spotlight himself. Then again, I don”t think he”s as familiar with the paparazzi as I had to become.

”Well then,” he sighs, his shoulders sagging as conviction crosses over his face, and I glance at him, panic setting in, all of the muscles in my back tightening. Shit, did I accidentally ignore him? With a small sigh, I relax when I see the tiniest smile tugging at his lips. He’s probably realized what Kayla and Asher are planning as well. ”They”re saying we should go, so let”s go.”

”Yeah,” I agree and nod eagerly. “Let”s go.”

Whether this is a sign from the universe, or our meddling friends, I”m taking the chance.