Chapter 3
BARBARA
Ising to myself in the shower, surrounded by the smell of my favorite cotton candy body wash.
I have an entire line with the same smell, and I practically drown myself in it every day.
The nearly-boiling water is warming up my half-frozen bones; I hate winter and can’t wait for it to be over.
Even if Valentine’s Day is rapidly approaching and I’m going to be flying solo for it.
Especially since my BFF Emily is getting hitched to her grumpy new man, Killian, on the day.
Normally, I might consider seducing the best man.
But in Killian’s case, one of them is freshly taken as well, and the other is a dickface.
Ugh. Fucking Ethan and his arrogant smirk and that insufferable god’s-gift-to-women behavior.
He’s so crass. Nothing like the charming player I met in Fae Nights last night.
Sebastian.
Swoon.
I exit the shower stall with an extra pep in my step.
Just a little longer, and I can log on and talk to him more.
And, yeah, I realize he might be a creepy fat old man.
But he sounds like he’s young. And like he fucks.
Snickering to myself, I slather every inch of my body with lotion, like he’s about to reach through my screen and touch me.
I should ask how old he is. Oh, and for a selfie. If he has an eighties pornstache, I’ll just block him. Sure, I’ll be disappointed for a while—I spent an unhealthy amount of today fantasizing about a man I didn’t even know existed before yesterday—but I’ll get over it.
I pause in front of the mirror, tracing a fingertip down the fogged glass until my reflection peeks through. My cheeks are flushed, eyes bright—ridiculous how a stranger’s voice can do that to me.
I pull on my robe and wander into the bedroom, towel-drying my hair as I glance at the laptop on my desk.
The glow of the login screen feels like it’s waiting for me, like he’s already there somewhere on the other side, leaning close to his mic and grinning that wicked grin I’ve only imagined.
After a moment of hesitation, I type in my username and password, hitting enter before I turn around to find my comfy loungewear.
My pulse kicks up a notch when I hear the notification ping—he’s online. I drop into my chair, heart doing a weird little tap dance as I type:
You logged on early tonight, didn’t you?
Three dots appear, then his reply:
Couldn’t wait. Thought I’d see if my favorite pixie was around.
My smile grows before I can stop it. Man, he’s smooth. Nothing like that buffoon, Ethan. God wasted good looks on a creep like him. Wait, why am I even thinking about him now?
Shaking my head free from intrusive thoughts, I answer Seb instead:
Well, here she is. What are you going to do about it?
His reply is nearly instantaneous:
Accept the voice chat invitation and I’ll tell you.
I make a low purring sound in my throat as I reach for my headset—black with pink accents and cat ears. Once it’s positioned comfortably over my ears, I clear my throat and say ‘hi’ in a few different intonations. Finally, I accept the voice chat and let him hear me.
“Hi,” I say cheerfully.
His deep chuckle sets the panties I just pulled on on fire. “Hello, little bee. How was your day?”
He even asks how my day went—totally boyfriend material.
“It was okay,” I reply. “Though I nearly froze on my way home. I’m still not used to the snow.”
“Oh?” he drawls. “Where do you live and where do you come from?”
I hesitate for a moment. I guess there’s no harm in naming multi-million-person cities, though. “NYC now, and LA originally.”
He hums, the sound tickling my ears. “How come you moved then, Bee? That’s quite the change.”
I groan, moving around aimlessly in-game until he appears by my side. Or my avatar’s side, rather. “I went to school here and met my best friend. I couldn’t bear to be separated from her,” I admit.
Seb laughs again, but not in a mocking way. “Sounds like quite the friendship,” he says. “I hope they feel the same way about you.”
“Oh, she does.” I emphasize the gender in case there were any doubts. I’m acting so clingy already. “Though she has less time for me these days, now that she’s engaged.”
“How about you?” Seb asks me after a moment of us solving a co-op puzzle with our avatars. “Husband, kids?”
I nearly choke on my own spit. “Don’t think I’d be here for hours every night if I had any of those.” I chew on my bottom lip for a moment. Fuck it. “How about you?”
“No,” he drawls, dragging the word out. “Haven’t met the right girl yet.”
Yesss.
“And what would the right girl be like?” I ask cheekily. The clicking of my mouse is the only sound for a moment, and I start worrying that I put him off.
Sebastian huffs out a laugh. “Hmm, I don’t know. Kind. Likes kids. Likes animals. Likes me.”
Check, check, check, check.
“Oh, and I think LA girls are gorgeous.”
Checkmate.
I scoff, but it sounds as fake as I intended it. “You’re such a suck up.”
“Just being honest,” he says warmly. “And you, little bee? What kind of man could sweep you off your feet?”
“That’s a hard question,” I muse. “I don’t really have a set type, it just…
happens.” Probably a traumatic response to something, judging by my shitty taste in men.
“Smart and decisive, that’s for sure. Great sense of humor.
Takes care of his body.” Like Ethan. It’s obvious he hits the gym on a regular basis.
“I like a guy who doesn’t care what people think and isn’t afraid to laugh when things are funny.
” Ethan has smile lines fanning from the corners of his eyes.
What. The. Fuck. Barbara.
Did that beefed-up pest put a hex on me or something? Why am I seeing him as I describe my perfect man to a guy who’s probably infinitely more perfect than Ethan could ever dream of being?
Sebastian’s voice shakes me back to the present. “Sounds like it’s a good thing we met then, little bee.” A tiny shiver runs through me at his tone. It shouldn’t sound like a promise, but it does.
I laugh a little too quickly, trying to shake the weird flutter in my chest. “You don’t even know what I look like, Seb.”
“True,” he says. “But I know your voice. I know your laugh. I can tell you’ve got a good heart.”
My throat goes tight. “You’re smooth.”
“I’m honest.”
God, if he’s half as good-looking as he sounds, I’m in trouble.
The conversation drifts while our avatars trek through another quest—easy, domestic little questions like how he takes his coffee. I realize I’m smiling the entire time.
When we finish the co-op, the glowing “Quest Complete” screen pops up. I could say a quick goodnight here, log off, maybe sneak a few more reels before bed. But I don’t seem to want to. I hover over the “Disconnect Voice Chat” button, unwilling to hit it.
He must sense it, because his voice drops, softer now. “Hey, Bee?”
“Yeah?”
“Do you want to keep in touch outside the game? Sometimes I work late and can’t log on, but I’d still like to talk to you.”
My heart stutters. The rational part of me screams, Bad idea, Barbara—you don’t give your number to strangers online. But the rest of me, that lonely, giddy part, melts under the warmth in his tone.
I bite my lip, then say, “You could just add me on Discord.”
“Can’t,” he says, a smile in his voice. “Company firewall blocks it. But I can text. If you’re comfortable, that is.”
He sounds genuine. Kind. Not like one of those guys who’d spam me with unwanted dick pics. I hesitate for another second before blurting out, “Okay. But no creepy messages at 3 AM.”
“Scout’s honor,” he teases. “Though technically I was Army, not a scout.”
There’s a weird déjà vu tug, like I’ve heard that tone somewhere before. I shake it off and give him my number. A second later, my phone buzzes on the desk.
Unknown Number:
Hey, little bee
Now you’ve got my number too. Fair’s fair.
I smile down at the screen before typing back:
If this is a trick to sell me extended car insurance, it’s not working.
Seb:
Damn. And here I was gonna pitch my crypto scheme next.
I laugh so hard I snort into the mic, and his deep chuckle fills my ears again. God, I love that sound.
“Guess I’ll let you go,” he says after a while. “You’ve got school tomorrow, right?”
“Yeah. Valentine’s crafts with twenty sugar-high five-year-olds. Pray for me.”
“Always,” he murmurs.
I sign off, cheeks sore from smiling. My phone lights up again almost immediately:
Seb:
Sweet dreams, little bee. Don’t let the trolls bite.
I don’t even pretend not to grin this time. I type back,
You too, Seb. Don’t go rescuing anyone without me.
I put the phone on my nightstand, crawl into bed, and stare at the dark ceiling for a long time, grinning like an idiot.