Saturday's Chapter = Creatures of the Night - Naomi Bellini

Maya mentally kicked herself. What had she been thinking coming out on a date? This is what people do on dates, they talk about themselves, and this is what she absolutely wished to avoid. She did not want to give information about herself to anyone, especially not to this handsome man. That was the main reason she agreed to go out with him. His good looks made her hot and breathless! Damn her lively libido.




His brown hair was just a little too long, like he’d missed a haircut, but didn’t really care. His eyes were deep brown, flecked with green and his body…that was really the deciding factor. He was tall enough to tower over her by a good foot, and a lot of that was leg––long, lean legs. Maya loved legs. She knew his were deliciously hairy, and she was fantasizing about a way to get him to wear shorts in the middle of autumn, when she saw by the look on his face, it was her turn to answer. She also realized she had shredded her napkin to little pieces.



Covering up the confetti with her hand, she cleared her throat. “I came here to get away from the hustle and bustle of…another town. I just wanted peace and quiet, and this is about as peaceful and quite as it gets. I’m a librarian, pretty dull. I’ve been here about two years, but hey! What about you? You’re from New York. Talk about hustle and bustle. Are you going to stay in Hollister much longer?”

Instead of reacting like most men and launching into a detailed history of his life, Kyle began to squirm.



“Oh, New York is, yeah, noisy, busy. I’m, uh, not sure what my plans are just yet; I’ve been, er, thinking about several things…” he trailed off.



Looking down at his fidgeting hands, Maya noticed he’d shredded his coaster, and she burst into laughter.



“What?” Kyle asked.



“I hope they don’t bring us anything on paper plates or they’ll have a real mess on their hands,” Maya said, pointing to the scraps of paper between them on the table.



Kyle laughed with her and Maya was entranced. He had an open, warm smile and his laughter rang out, fun and loose.



“Maybe we should talk about something besides ourselves,” Maya suggested. Apparently she wasn’t the only one with secrets to keep.