Chapter 6
Six
Maria
My heart hasn’t stopped pounding since Mark approached me after work. It’s even worse now that he has my hand firmly clasped in his as he leads me into the restaurant. I really hope my hand isn’t clammy, because this whole situation is embarrassing enough.
I still can’t believe this is happening.
It’s not what I had in mind when I changed my status last night, and I’m still trying to figure out both how we got here and how I feel about it.
Darius was obviously on board with everything because he practically threw me at Mark as soon as he got the chance.
I, however, am not so sure. Despite what Mark has said, I know that I am out of my depth here, and everyone else is going to know it too.
This place is obviously popular and is so busy that about half a dozen people are waiting to be seated just inside.
Many turn to look at us as we enter, and a few even make note of our joined hands.
The expressions that follow say exactly what I’ve been thinking: They can’t believe we are here together.
I’m pretty sure that some even assume I must be family.
My low self-esteem has me wishing that the ground would swallow me whole.
It’s been a long time since it’s been this bad, but I have never been on a date with a guy who’s built like a Greek God.
In fact, there’s a part of me that’s still waiting for the punch line to whatever cruel joke this is.
A guy looking the way he does has no business being seen with a girl looking like me.
Mark, on the other hand, is as cool as a cucumber, pulling me past the waiting patrons to the hostess’ podium, where a man and a woman are looking over something on the computer. He’s calm and confident, and he holds himself the same way. They both look up at us as we approach.
A look of recognition crosses the man’s face only seconds before he grins. “Mark, you made it!”
“We did,” Mark replies. He pulls me next to him and wraps an arm around my waist as if to keep me close. His fingers brush against the small sliver of skin between my shirt and my jeans, and my nipples harden in response. He should not have that kind of effect on me.
The man looks between Mark and me, his smile growing as he holds out a hand toward me. “I’m Jim.”
“Maria,” I reply politely, shaking his outstretched hand.
“Maria.” He repeats my name as if testing it out, and for several moments, he continues to stare at me before he finally grabs a couple of menus and steps around the podium. “Alrighty then. Follow me, you two.”
With Mark’s hand still on my waist, the two of us follow Jim through the crowded restaurant.
It’s a nice place; not fancy, but not super casual either. There are mostly couples here, of varying ages, and the tables are even topped with white tablecloths and a couple of tea-light candles in those little glass jars that some use as fish bowls for beta fish. I like it. It’s cozy.
Our table sits at the back of the restaurant against the wall.
The dividers in between the tables are high and provide a sense of privacy, and we are far enough from the windows that the dim light is all we have to see by.
It’s definitely got a more romantic vibe than the other tables, and I wonder if that’s intentional.
“Is this alright?” Jim asks.
“It’s perfect, Jim. Thank you,” Mark replies, motioning for me to sit first.
I slide into the booth and set my purse on the bench seat next to me. As I do, Jim places the menus down on the table, first in front of Mark, then in front of me. I expect him to leave since hosts don’t usually hang around the tables, but he doesn’t. At least, not right away.
“I have to say, Maria, you must be something special.”
With a nervous smile, I look up at him. “What?”
He shrugs one shoulder. “It’s true. I’ve known Mark for a couple of years now, and I have never seen him here with anyone. It’s always been a table for one. Glad to see that’s changing. He’s a good man.” He taps his fingers on the table and smiles almost proudly. “Enjoy your meal.”
With that, he turns and leaves us alone, his parting words hanging heavily in the air.
Mark immediately starts browsing the menu, but I can’t take my eyes off him.
I’m trying to figure out if Jim was just pulling my leg or not, because it’s really hard to believe that Mark hasn’t been in any serious relationships.
He’s ridiculously hot. Is it possible he just didn’t bring any of them here?
A thought hits me then, and my whole body freezes, my eyes nearly bugging out of my head. Oh my God. Did I miss something?
“I can practically hear the wheels turning in your head, Maria,” Mark chuckles, interrupting my thoughts. He sets the menu down on the table and then folds his hands on top of it in front of him. “What’s on your mind, baby?”
“Are you gay?” I blurt stupidly.
Smooth, Maria. Real smooth.
A look of shock crosses his face, but it’s gone just as quickly as it appeared, and he suddenly barks a laugh that’s so loud it startles the couple sitting at the table across from us.
My cheeks and neck heat, and for the second time in a matter of minutes, I want to disappear.
I, too, am suddenly aware of how stupid that question was.
“I’m sorry,” he finally says, wiping his eyes. “I don’t mean to laugh. But what on Earth gave you that impression?”
I focus on my hands, which I’m wringing in my lap beneath the table. “Well, Jim said that he’s never seen you with anyone.”
Mark lifts an eyebrow, nodding slowly. “I don’t date. Is that a problem?”
“Of course not,” I reply quickly. “I guess I’m just curious as to why you insisted on going out with me tonight if you don’t date.”
Before he can say anything, a beautiful blonde waitress steps up to our table.
She cheerfully introduces herself and then asks to take our drink order, though it doesn’t go unnoticed that she continues to eye Mark as she speaks.
Sheepishly, I order a water for myself, and Mark orders two large Cokes without taking his eyes off me.
“I haven’t dated because no one has interested me enough to do so,” he says once she’s gone, turning his attention back on me. “I insisted you come out with me tonight because I’m interested.”
A shy smile tugs at the corners of my mouth, and I pull my bottom lip in between my teeth as I look down at the table and menu in front of me. That was probably the nicest thing anyone has said to me in… well… ever.
To distract myself, I pick up the menu to decide what I am going to order. However, before I can lift it off the table, Mark covers my hand with his. “Hey. Don’t do that.”
I lift my gaze to meet him. “Do what?”
“Hide from me.” His thumb brushes against my knuckles reassuringly as he speaks. “Is it really so hard to believe that I’d be interested in you?”
“Honestly? Yes,” I answer simply.
With his brows creased, he tilts his head to the side, considering me. “You don’t think much of yourself, do you?”
“No.” My response is both immediate and firm, but it’s the truth. “There are a lot of things about myself I’d change if I could.”
I hoped he would drop the subject and move on to easier conversations. However, he leans back in his seat and folds his arms across his massively muscular chest. “Name one.”
“My weight,” I mutter, picking at a discolored spot on the table.
“There is absolutely nothing wrong with your weight, Maria.” He must see the disbelief on my face because he continues. “Working at the Insurance company is just my day job. I’m also a personal trainer and life coach.”
Hearing that causes something to click in my head, and I finally realize how the hell he ended up on my friends’ list.
“Oh my god. That’s it!”
He blinks. “What?”
“That’s how I know you. Or at least, how we ended up friends on social media.
I went to your gym and inquired about a personal trainer.
They weren’t taking new clients, but I was given your name and told to contact you via social media because, while you didn’t officially work there, you helped people on your own time. ”
“Huh,” he mutters. “Well, shit. I’m disappointed you didn’t follow through because we could have met a lot sooner.”
“And I’d be skinnier,” I add pointedly.
I can’t say for sure, but I think Mark growls at me. “Stop that, Maria. Like I said, there is absolutely nothing wrong with you or your weight. In fact, I prefer curvier women. I like to have something to hold on to.”
My lips part in a soft gasp as my cheeks burn due to the filthy thoughts his words provoke. I don’t even know if he meant it that way, but that’s how my mind took it.
“Oh.”
“You know, I like it when you blush,” he says with a smirk. “Especially when I’m the one causing it.”
I laugh softly and finally pick up the menu. “You are so full of yourself.”
“Nah. I just really like knowing that I have the same effect on you that you have on me.” He leans further across the table, closer to me. “I’ve had a fucking hard-on from the moment I saw you at the coffee shop.”
A small gasp fills the air, and this time, it didn’t come from me.
We both look up to see that the waitress has returned with our drinks and just heard everything he said about his ‘hard-on’.
I snort a laugh as she sets our drinks on the table, with Mark sliding one of the sodas in front of me, and then she composes herself enough to take our food orders, once again paying special attention to Mark and his requests.
Funnily enough, things become a lot less tense after that.
The rest of the date goes the way most first dates do, where we throw random questions at each other to get to know one another better.
We talk about our families and where we grew up, as well as our previous partners, which surprisingly aren’t many for either one of us.
We also talk about pets, current living situation, and future goals. You know, the usual stuff.
Talking to Mark is easy, too easy. We get along well, and we even have more in common than I originally thought.
I find that I really like the guy, and that scares the hell out of me because the chances of this going the same way most of my relationships go, with him trying to change something about me, are high.
Especially since he’s a fitness trainer or life coach.
Even so, it’s been a long time since I enjoyed myself this much, and by the time Mark is walking me up to the front door of my apartment building, my cheeks hurt from smiling so much.
“Thank you for tonight,” I tell him softly when we reach the door to the building. “I had a really good time.”
He smirks, and damn it, that smirk is going to be the death of me. “You sound surprised.”
“Well, I am,” I admit truthfully. “I wasn’t expecting any of this after changing my status last night. I was just trying to get Darius to back off.”
“Right, remind me to thank him.” When my brows furrow, he chuckles. “If he hadn’t been bothering you about your dating life, I never would have met you.” He pauses for a moment, his smile growing. “I’m curious: What made you choose me? As your social media boyfriend, I mean.”
“Oh. Um.” I chew on the inside of my cheek and shift on the balls of my feet. “Luck. I guess. I did the whole ‘eeny, meeny, miny, moe’ thing.”
Mark laughs a full belly laugh while stepping closer to me at the same time.
“Like I said, it’s fate.” Lifting a hand, he pushes a strand of hair back behind my ear, the light brush of his fingers making me shiver.
“This is the most fun I’ve had on a date in a very long time, Maria. I’d like to do it again.”
“You would?” I don’t bother to hide my surprise.
He nods. “Very much so. If you are interested, that is.”
Oh, I'm interested, way more than I should be. But my rational and guarded mind is still trying to figure out what his endgame is.
“I’m interested,” I still say.
The grin he gives me is boyish as he pulls out his cell phone and passes it to me. I do the same, and we finally exchange numbers.
“I have back-to-back meetings for the next few days. So, I’ll call you in a day or two so we can compare schedules,” he tells me, pocketing his phone.
My shoulders deflate a bit as my heart sinks, because that’s what guys usually say before they disappear on me, and I’m starting to think I misunderstood everything.
“Oh. Okay. Sounds good.”
“I can tell that you don’t believe me, Maria,” he murmurs, cupping my cheeks with both of his hands.
His thumbs brush against my soft skin, and goosebumps erupt all over my body.
“I know you don’t trust me because of all the guys who’ve hurt you in the past, and I look forward to proving that I’m nothing like those assholes.
But that’s going to take time, and right now, all I can think about is kissing you. ”
My heart slams against my ribcage as Mark begins to lower his head toward mine.
He’s moving slowly, obviously giving me the chance to stop him, but my brain is no longer functioning, and I can’t think of a reason why I shouldn’t let him kiss me.
I know I am probably going to regret it later, but I can’t bring myself to care.
Instead, I find myself tilting my head toward him and meeting his lips in anxious anticipation.
There have been several times throughout the night when I found myself imagining what it would be like to kiss Mark.
Sure, he kissed me in the shop earlier, and while it still took my breath away, it had been almost nothing, a quick peck.
It felt like something we did all the time.
But this kiss? I may have died and gone to heaven.
His body is flush against mine, so much so that I can feel the heat of him through my clothes, and when his tongue brushes against the seam of my lips, I part them on instinct.
The taste of him dipping his tongue into my mouth nearly brings me to my knees, and the only thing holding me up is the grip he has on my hips.
Guess he was telling the truth when he said he liked something to hold onto.
The way his fingers dig into my flesh tells me that he’s enjoying this just as much as I am, as does the hardness of him pressed against my belly.
Our lips move in time with one another, our tongues doing a slow, sensual dance that should be illegal in its own right, and my panties are soaked through within seconds.
This man knows how to kiss, and it has me curious as to what else he might be good at. By the time he pulls away, I’ve completely forgotten how to breathe.
“Wow,” he murmurs.
“Yeah, wow,” I whisper. I take a step back just so I don’t try to kiss him again. There’s no way I’d survive another one. “Good night, Mark.”
“Good night, Maria.” Despite my trying to put some distance between us, he reaches up and pinches my chin between his fingers before pressing one more kiss to my already swollen lips. “Sweet dreams.”
They most certainly will be.