2. Kimbra
KIMbrA
“ I ’m going to throat-punch my douchebag of a boss,” my bestie, Sadie, says over the phone. “She’s conspiring against me, I swear.”
“What do you mean? They wouldn’t have hired you if they didn’t want you around.” Sadie graduated last semester and moved to Colorado for a job at a prestigious real estate agency.
“Yeah, you’d think that, right? But oooooh noooo .
Cindy is making me drive all the way up a freaking mountain to do a property assessment.
The worst part is, I’m pretty sure the resident doesn’t know I’m coming.
Cindy was all be discrete, Sadie. Keep your distance, Sadie.
Do this job no one else wants to do, and be thankful for the opportunity, Sadie. Ugh, I can’t stand her!”
“You could always come back home,” I suggest. “I’ll be graduating soon, and then we can move in together and take over this city.”
“Yeah? A real estate agent and a botanist ruling over Vegas? Sounds like a cheesy chick flick,” she muses.
“I’d totally watch that movie,” I counter.
A beat of silence passes between us. Sadie doesn’t say anything about my suggestion to move back.
She made it clear she’d never live in Vegas again, even though it breaks my heart.
I understand, though. After what her foster parents put her through, I don’t blame her for getting the hell away from them.
“So, other than your final project, what else have you been up to? I worry you’re bored without me there to spice up your life.”
“I’ll have you know I went to a fancy ball last night,” I inform her.
“Yeah, the same one you go to with your dad every year?” She sounds unimpressed, which is fair. Truthfully, my life has been pretty dull without Sadie.
“This time was… different,” I reply. That’s an understatement. My mind wanders to Aurelio for the hundredth time since leaving him on the balcony.
“Oh?! Do tell! Did you meet a boy?”
“No,” I’m quick to say. Too quick. I know Sadie is going to call me out. It’s not a lie, though. I didn’t meet a boy . I met a powerful, dangerous man . And I even got him to smile.
“Girl, you have to give me the deets. I’m dying over here. I hardly have time to make new friends let alone date with all the shitty grunt work and stupid assignments at the office. Let me at least live vicariously through you.”
“It was nothing, really. Just a dance.”
“A dance is hardly nothing . You’ve never talked about dancing any of the other times you’ve gone to the ball with your dad.”
“Fine,” I say exasperatedly. Honestly, it’s nice to talk to someone about it. I don’t know that there’s much to say, but I know Sadie will listen. God, I miss her so much. “He was talking with my father when I walked up. He introduced himself and…” I trail off, looking down at my right hand.
“And…?”
“And instead of shaking my hand, he kissed my knuckles,” I say all in a rush.
Sadie gasps dramatically, making me roll my eyes.
“Then he immediately left, which was weird. I may have stalked him after that. Just a little bit. Not like in a creepy way, I just… I don’t know. I felt like we had more to talk about, like our story wasn’t over yet.”
“Aww,” she coos. “That’s so sweet it’s kind of gross.”
“Hey, you were the one who wanted the details,” I remind her. “Would you like me to stop?”
“Never!”
I laugh at her adamant response. “After some time passed, I saw him go out to the balcony. I can’t even remember what I said to get his attention, but when he turned around and locked eyes with me…
” A shiver runs down my spine, landing between my thighs.
That’s been happening more frequently since meeting Aurelio.
“Anyway, I went full plant-nerd on him and started talking about crossbreeding and the wonders of dahlias being octoploids.”
“Well, that’s… unique,” Sadie replies, trying to find the positive side.
“I know, I know. What was I thinking? He must have felt sorry for me because then he asked me to dance.”
“On the balcony? The secluded balcony that overlooks the romantic twinkling lights of the city?”
“I don’t know if anyone has ever described Las Vegas as romantic,” I say flatly.
“Shut up and let me fantasize, will you?”
I chuckle at my friend and her insistence on making a big deal out of last night.
Just because I still have butterflies from our brief dance doesn’t mean he even remembers me at all.
Aurelio probably danced with dozens of women last night.
He may have taken one home with him to spend the night.
That thought shouldn’t make me jealous, but damn if my stomach doesn’t twist up at the idea of Aurelio’s lips on someone else’s neck, his hands roaming over another woman’s body.
I’m not so naive as to think he’d ever truly be attracted to me the way I’m hungry for more of him. He’s older, hot as hell, mysterious, and exudes power everywhere he goes. I’m a chubby college kid who spends all of her time in a greenhouse.
“Okay, so you’re dancing under the stars with the city skyline spread out before you, the hint of classical music drifting through the air, and you’re locking lips with a sexy man who fell for you instantly. Go on,” Sadie encourages.
“We were not locking lips,” I correct her. “Just dancing. More like swaying because I can’t dance. He got me to relax enough to stop stepping on his toes, then he dipped me backward and… kind of… kissed my neck.”
“You totally did kiss him! You skank.”
We both burst out laughing. Nothing could be further from the truth for either of us. Unless Sadie has been keeping a big secret from me, we’re both rather inexperienced when it comes to romantic relationships – physical or otherwise.
“I didn’t, though. It was just… it was probably an accident. It wasn’t even a kiss, really. His lips brushed up my neck, and then my dad called my name, and we separated.”
I skip over the part where I almost fell, he caught me, and held me for a moment too long. Sadie would only get me spun up about how it means more than it actually does. I don’t need any more reason to obsess over a man I’m probably never going to see again.
“Way to cock-block, Lieutenant Olsen,” my friend deadpans.
“Sadie! It’s not like we were going to sleep together. He was just being nice.”
Even as I say it, I get the sense that nice isn’t a word used to describe someone in his position.
Yes, I know who Aurelio is. Every cop in the ballroom last night knew who he was.
That’s how much power he holds – Aurelio, the head of the Caparelli crime family, walked into a building full of law enforcement officers without even blinking an eye.
“Sure, sure. Keep telling yourself that.”
I’m about to argue with her when I hear a knock on my front door. Strange. I’m not expecting anyone. “As much as I’d love to disprove your point, there’s someone at the door. I’ll text you later, okay?”
We say our goodbyes, and I walk to the door, surprised to see a scrawny teenager holding out a large bouquet of flowers.
“Kimbra Olsen?” he asks, his voice cracking slightly. Poor kid.
“Uh, yeah, that’s me. Who are these from?” I ask as he hands me the vase.
“Read the card,” he says with a shrug.
I thank him and close the door, setting the bouquet on my kitchen table. The fragrant dahlias are absolutely gorgeous, with a variety of deep red, fuschia, powder pink, and even purple blossoms. Surely this can’t be from…
I find a small envelope addressed to me and open it. Inside, there’s one simple sentence: Thanks for the dance.
They really are from Aurelio. What does this mean? Has he been thinking about me, too? Did he stay up way too late last night replaying every word, every touch, every glance from our evening together?
I’m getting carried away again. I blame Sadie for filling my head with crazy ideas of kissing and romance.
Aurelio didn’t leave his number or even sign the card.
But he remembered what I said about dahlias.
If not about their eight chromosomes, at least about how I’m using them in my final project. That counts for something, right?
I don’t know. I don’t know anything about this stuff.
Another thought occurs. Aurelio somehow found my address.
That alone should be a red flag, but for some reason, I feel…
safe. As crazy as it sounds, I know he’d never hurt me.
Plus, turnabout is fair play. I spent some time digging around in my father’s office last night before returning to my apartment, and I happened to find the official address of the Caparelli compound.
I tuck the note back into its envelope and shove it in a kitchen drawer.
My dad doesn’t come over often, but if he happened to stop by and see evidence that someone danced with me…
I’m not sure he’d take it so well. And if he knew the note was from Aurelio?
He might just do something stupid, like punch him in the face.
My father has always been protective of me, even going so far as to isolate me from friends he deemed “bad influences.” Sadie was the only one who stuck around long enough to wear down my dad’s defenses.
Besides, there’s nothing to tell my dad. Aurelio and I will never have a moment like that again. It was just one night. We were both bored, but we shared a moment. That’s all. At least, that’s what I’m telling myself. No good can come from pursuing anything, but a girl can dream.