Two

Harlow

Was I crazy?

It was entirely possible I’d lost my mind, but it was too soon to tell.

The first indication that not everything was right in my head was the fact I was sitting at a booth inside a diner across from a man I’d just met mere minutes ago. I’d justified being here with him, because he’d stepped in to help me out of a horribly awkward and uncomfortable situation.

Following the encounter I’d just had with Rob, maybe I should have simply thanked Blaze and gone home. For some reason, I couldn’t just walk away from him after he did what he’d done for me.

Of course, I’d conveniently used the excuse that I was already dressed up and out for a good night. In my mind, if the night could be salvaged, it was worth taking that chance.

Now that we’d just been seated and Blaze was sitting across from me, I felt compelled to thank him again for what he’d done.

“I know I already said it, but I think it needs repeating,” I started. “Thank you for doing what you did for me back there.”

Blaze smiled at me, and there was something about it that felt warm and genuine. “It really was no trouble for me. I’m just glad you didn’t have to sit through that.”

I huffed. “Yeah, tell me about it. I mean, I know it’s been a very long time that I’ve been out of the dating scene, but I didn’t expect that. Am I crazy to believe or expect that people take the time to talk and get to know one another before taking steps like that?”

“You aren’t crazy to feel that way. I won’t lie and pretend there aren’t people who get together for the sole purpose of hooking up, but I’m willing to bet both parties are aware that’s the case before heading into it,” Blaze noted.

Nodding, feeling reassured I wasn’t completely unreasonable in my line of thinking, I sighed. “Well, if there’s one thing I’ve learned tonight, it’s that dating apps aren’t the thing for me.”

He cocked a brow. “Is that where you met him?”

“Yeah. Somehow, I told myself that would be the best way to meet someone I might be compatible with,” I explained. “Let me just say that he did not present as a total creep through the app.”

Following a beat of silence, Blaze asked, “Were you in a relationship?”

“With that guy?” I countered, not able to hold back my cringe.

He laughed. “No. Sorry. I meant before you decided to get on the dating app. You said you’ve been out of the dating scene a long time. I was just curious if the reason is that you were in a long-term relationship before.”

This was nice.

Talking to someone and having a real conversation where that person took the time to get to know me. This was what I’d expected I would have had tonight with Rob.

I didn’t know anything about Blaze, but I would have been lying if I said I wasn’t worried about what he might have been thinking about me.

“I wasn’t in a relationship before,” I revealed. “I’ve just had a hard time finding someone who would be interested in asking me out on a date.”

He narrowed his eyes slightly, like he couldn’t believe a word I was saying, and his lips twitched. “I’d never be the kind of man to call a woman a liar without a justifiable reason to do so, but I’m having a very difficult time believing that. How long has it been since you’ve been asked out on a date?”

It had been so long; I couldn’t even remember. “Maybe ten years.”

Blaze stared at me, looking completely dumbfounded by my response. Now that I’d said it out loud, I realized how ridiculous that sounded, especially for someone at my age. So, I didn’t offer any additional information. Instead, I took the time to take Blaze in.

I’d lucked out.

He was a great-looking guy. Blaze was taller than me, which was a huge bonus. I considered myself to be on the taller side, because I was five feet nine inches tall without heels. I had them on now, and he still had at least two or three inches on me.

Blaze also had a body that he clearly took the time to keep in shape. He was wearing a plain black T-shirt which was molded to his arms and across his chest like it had been made specifically for his body. A solid chest, broad shoulders, and strong arms made up the top portion of his physique. Though I couldn’t inspect them now, I’d seen the way he filled out his jeans. The man didn’t skip leg day. He had a narrow waist, thick thighs, and a great ass.

The thing I’d been able to examine the most was his face. And there was no denying just how handsome he was. He had dark brown hair, two or three shades shy of being black and very close in color to my own. It was buzzed short on the sides and back and left longer on the top. Blaze’s eyes were a shade of brown that looked like it had been mixed with honey, and he had a full beard that had been clipped short.

If I’d been judging them based on just their looks, there wasn’t a doubt in my mind I’d have chosen Blaze every single time over Rob.

“Are you a prankster?”

“What?”

Shaking his head, a look of disbelief emblazoned in his expression, he said, “You’re telling me that in the last ten years there hasn’t been a single man who was interested in you enough to ask you on a date?”

Nodding again, I confirmed, “That’s what I’m saying.”

Blaze was still having a tough time. “I don’t understand.”

I inhaled deeply, and as I exhaled, I confessed, “I’m a rather boring woman, I guess. I’ve lived a pretty quiet life. When I tell you that this dating app thing was a first for me, I’m not joking. I don’t do things like that.”

The silence stretched between us for a moment. Maybe I should have been embarrassed by my situation, but I wasn’t. While I wondered what Blaze was thinking, I certainly didn’t feel bad for living the life that I had.

“So, after ten years or so of not dating, what prompted you to join the app?” he queried.

I shrugged. “Loneliness. Living a sheltered life will only get me so far, and there are things I want in my life that I won’t get if I don’t start taking steps to make them happen. At least now, I can add something adventurous to my list of exciting things I’ve done.”

“What’s that?”

I bit my lip to stifle a laugh. “I’ve pretended to be friends with a man I didn’t know just to get out of a bad date.”

Blaze didn’t stop himself from laughing. “You really think that’s exciting?”

The corners of my mouth tipped up. “For me, it is. You don’t understand just how boring I am.”

In a move I hadn’t been anticipating, Blaze reached across the table and covered my forearm with his hand. He stroked his hand back and forth a few times before he offered a squeeze and said, “Why don’t I believe that’s true, either?”

My throat grew tight, my mouth dry. I reached for my coffee cup with my other hand and lifted it to my lips. After taking a sip, trying to ignore the warmth of his hand on mine, I rasped, “I’m not lying.”

Blaze squeezed my arm once more, released it, and returned his hand to his own mug. Once he’d taken a sip of his coffee, he returned, “I didn’t mean that in a bad way. I just think you’re underestimating yourself. What do you do for a living?”

“I’m a hairstylist.”

“See? That’s already exciting. You’re far more talented and creative than I am,” he reasoned.

My belly flipped. I liked that he saw it that way. “Oh yeah? What do you do for a living?”

“I’m a private investigator.”

My eyes nearly fell out of my head. “Are you serious?”

He nodded. “Yes.”

It was suddenly making sense. “So that’s how you knew things weren’t right back at the bar. It’s your job to notice things like that.”

“You could say that, if the situation had been different,” he began. “But that isn’t entirely the truth in this case tonight.”

Confused, my brows pulled together. “What do you mean?”

Blaze took another sip of his coffee. When he set the mug down, he said, “I have a confession to make.”

Confusion turned to surprise. There was, perhaps, a bit of hesitancy lingering there, too. “A confession?” I repeated.

He hesitated a moment before he shared, “I saw you. When you walked into the bar and sat down, I couldn’t help but notice you. Initially, I thought to myself that if there was a guy meeting you there tonight, he was one lucky man, because you’re beautiful. But the longer you sat alone, waiting, I started to think I’d gotten it wrong. I thought I needed to work up the courage to walk over, take a chance, and introduce myself. And just as I decided to do that, I saw that guy walk up and sit down with you. Then the thought that ran through my mind was that if I had been him, there isn’t anything in this world that would have prevented me from arriving on time to meet you.”

Wow.

I hadn’t been expecting that.

And since it had been so long since I’d been in this position with a member of the opposite sex, I had to admit it felt good to hear him say he thought I was beautiful.

In fact, it wasn’t until he’d said it that I realized I’d forgotten what it was like. I didn’t remember how it felt to have someone appreciate me in that way. All it took was Blaze’s honesty for me to have it again.

I couldn’t deny that perhaps I was meant to go on that horrible blind date.

Because if I hadn’t, I wouldn’t have been sitting here with that flutter in my belly or the rapid beat of my heart.

“Gosh, Blaze, I don’t know what to say to that.”

“There’s nothing to say. Just know that I’m glad that guy was as brazen as he was, so I had the opportunity to step in, and that you understood I was merely trying to help you out,” he returned.

“It was nice that you did that,” I told him, smiling. “I don’t think a lot of guys would have jumped in and helped out the way you did in a situation like that.”

He tipped his head to the side and lifted his shoulders slightly. “Well, I couldn’t sit back and do nothing. As a guy with two sisters, it just wasn’t in me to stay silent.”

“You have two sisters?” I asked.

“Izzy and Zoe.”

“Any brothers?” I pressed.

Blaze shook his head. “Nope. It’s just the three of us.”

I grinned at him. “I’ve got two siblings, too. Brothers. Kevin and Austin would probably want to shake your hand and buy you a beer for doing what you did for me.”

He smiled back at me and noted, “Again, it wouldn’t be necessary. To be honest, I’m more than happy to have you sitting across from me right now. This was not in my plan tonight, but I can’t say I’m upset about it.”

Blaze was making it harder and harder to feel anything but happy. “Yeah, me too.”

A few seconds of tension-filled silence stretched between us. It wasn’t uncomfortable by any means, but it certainly had my insides trembling a bit. Butterflies were dancing madly in my belly, especially when he sent an intense stare in my direction.

Unable to stand that pressure, I asked, “So, can you tell me more about your job? What exactly do you do as a private investigator?”

Blaze didn’t hold back. He dove right in and told me all about the place he worked, Harper Security Ops, and the work he did there. I found it fascinating, admitting to myself that it was possible I’d been missing out on a lot if everyone I’d kept myself away from the last ten years was as cool as Blaze was.

Every time he said something interesting—which happened frequently—I’d interrupt and ask questions. Blaze answered every single one of them.

Eventually, we shifted the conversation to me. He’d asked more about my salon, where it was, and how long I’d been cutting hair.

Of course, that led to us learning we were both thirty-two years old. Blaze’s birthday was in July. Mine wasn’t until November.

Even though I knew we’d shared a lot with one another in the time we’d been sitting there, it felt as though we’d just sat down. When I glanced at the time on my phone, I noticed hours had passed.

“Oh, wow. I hadn’t realized how late it was,” I said.

“You’re right. I kind of lost track of the time, too,” Blaze said.

I lifted my gaze to him. “I guess that’s what happens when you’ve got good company. Time flies.”

He smiled at me and nodded. “Yeah, I guess so.”

Although it would have been easy to stay where I was, so I could enjoy more time with Blaze, I didn’t know if it was a wise move. “I should probably get going,” I told him.

I could have sworn I saw disappointment wash over his expression briefly. “That’s probably not a bad idea. I’ll walk you over to your car.”

I reached into my purse to pull out some money, but by the time I’d freed my wallet, Blaze had already put some down on the table and was standing beside it, holding his hand out to me.

“Oh, you didn’t have to do that,” I said, placing my hand in his. “I was supposed to be treating you as a thank you for what you did tonight.”

He urged me from my seat and replied, “We’re not all like that guy you met with at the bar. I’m honored to have been able to buy you a cup of coffee, Harlow Stout.”

God, why did I like the way he said my name? He even remembered my last name, which I’d given to him as we left the pub and walked across the street to come to the diner.

I could feel the heat moving through my body, and I was certain my cheeks had turned a shade of crimson. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. Are you ready?”

I nodded.

At that, Blaze guided me toward the exit before he led me across the street and toward the parking lot next to the bar.

When we came to a stop beside my car, I looked at him and felt a wave of something I couldn’t describe wash over me. Was this it? Would I walk away and never see him again? It felt like the kind of moment that required something big to happen, and yet, I wasn’t quite sure I knew what that something was.

“I had a wonderful time getting to know you tonight, Harlow,” he said.

“It was the same for me with you, Blaze.”

Seemingly prepared to handle this conversation, Blaze didn’t hold himself back. “I’d love it if we could exchange numbers, so I could call you up and take you out sometime on a real date.”

A real date.

A real date with a nice guy.

It sounded wonderful, and I imagined it would be even better than what we’d had with each other tonight, even if tonight had already been wonderful.

And I’d just been feeling worried that I might not ever get the chance to see Blaze again. It seemed foolish of me to turn down him down now.

Apparently, I’d taken too long thinking about all this that Blaze got the wrong impression. He’d reached into his pocket, pulled out his wallet, and held out a card for me. “Look, I realize that what happened tonight wasn’t what you’d expected or anticipated. I get it. So, take my card. My cell is on there. I think you and I could have a lot of fun together if given the opportunity. So, take some time to think about it, and if you decide you want to give this a shot to turn into something else, or even if it’s just so you could prove to me how boring you really think you are, I’d love to hear from you.”

I took the card from him and tucked it into my purse.

Then I returned my attention to his face. I didn’t know if he had any expectation about what would happen next. Did he want a kiss? Did I want one? “Thank you, again, for what you did for me tonight and for helping me turn the night around.”

“The pleasure was all mine.” Blaze opened my door for me, silently answering the question I’d had about his expectations. When I folded in behind the wheel, he said, “Get home safely.”

“I will,” I promised. “You do the same.”

He smiled at me. “I will. Goodnight, Harlow.”

“Goodnight.”

The next thing I knew, Blaze had closed my door and waited beside my car until I turned it on. He continued to wait there until I put the car in drive and pulled away. And just before I pulled out of the lot to head home, I glanced up in my rearview mirror and saw that Blaze still hadn’t moved from that spot beyond turning his body, so his eyes could follow my car as I left.

The whole way home, I replayed my entire night with him in my head, doing it with a smile on my face.

Suffice it to say, my best friend was going to lose her mind when she heard all about the night I’d had with a man named Blaze Matthews.