Real Challenge (Atlanta #2) (4 page)

Did you figure out who you are yet? My address in 1788 Baxter in the Rosemont Neighborhood. Don’t forget the brown shoes.

She was still keeping him guessing. He had no clue how to answer that ridiculous question. It was too cryptic for his style, so he responded the only way he could.

I think you’re not making any sense because my lips rocked your world last night.

He laughed out loud when he read,

Get over yourself. They barely nudged my continent. But don’t worry, I’ll let you try again tonight. See you at 6:30.

He had never looked forward to a first date like he did with Cassie. She kept proving herself to be a challenge. He loved a challenge. He looked forward to sweeping her off her feet, conquering her obnoxious exterior to find the girl underneath who most certainly wanted him. Her kisses told him that. Cassie Walker was worth the effort, and the victory would be that much sweeter because of it. His playboy self couldn’t wait to have her.
 

Plus, he still had at least one more chance at a goodnight kiss worthy of her approval. He laughed at how ridiculous that sounded in his head. Not wanting to brag too much, but he remembered how often women threw themselves at him, no effort needed. He kissed, they melted. That’s how the process worked…but not with Cassie.
 

She was almost infuriating with her buoyant, non-stop personality and energy. Still, he couldn’t wait to see her again. That energy almost vibrated off of her and he wanted to experience more. He wanted to break through her attitude and see her wanting him.
 

After she texted Scott her address, Cassie remembered that morning’s conversation and laughed. She couldn’t help it. Scott was gorgeous beyond measure and actually challenged her back instead of shying away from her when she threw out her typical sass. All his bravado served to crack her up. She couldn’t wait to see if she could find more of his honest moments. Those moments were obviously the best of him.

She got herself some lunch before changing into her black leggings and dance top. She used the little dining room of the house as a yoga studio. She had secured several yoga mats to the floor and painted the walls a serene, soft blue. She looked around and smiled at her little room, still thinking about Scott seeing it during the grand tour. But trying to focus her breathing, she held herself tall and strong with her hands in prayer position in front of her. She spoke a soft
namaste
and then began the series of stretches of the Sun Salutation to the sounds of some new age music.
 

After almost an hour of yogic stretches, poses, and deep breathing, Cassie was completely exhausted and peaceful. She took a long, luxurious shower, then settled in to her soft suede couch with a study book and an old wool trapper’s blanket she came across on one of her shopping adventures. But before she could study for her nursing exams, she had to text Scott one more time. She couldn’t make this easy on him.

I think you should bring me a flower tonight, but not a rose. Too cheesy.
 

Less than a minute later, she got a text back.

You’re not the boss of me…I’ll bring you something better than a flower. See you soon
.
 

She laughed out loud that he flat-out denied her. She loved that he wasn’t going to put up with all of her attitude. Oh, the game was on and she couldn’t wait to play. She couldn’t imagine what he was going to bring her. This was going to be interesting.
 

After she was done studying and trying to figure out what Scott would have for her, she thought about going out thrifting. That was always tempting, but she had plenty to keep her mind occupied between her nursing study courses, her job, maintaining her house, and now, thinking about Scott.
 

She grinned at that last part, and rolled her eyes at herself for getting so worked up over a guy. That wasn’t usually like her. But still, he was a nice guy with the best set of shoulders she’d ever seen and a dimple that made her stare. His eyes were a sparkly, liquid blue and his blond hair was cut just a little shaggy. She imagined him combing his hair properly for work, but she loved the tousled look he had at the party. Focusing on much else was becoming genuinely difficult.

She decided to spend some time doing some domestic-goddess type chores. She played music the whole time, keeping herself light and energetic. She joked with Scott about working at being such a snot. To an extent that was true. She was deliberate about keeping herself light and fun and sassy. Never did she want to sink into depression because of her childhood. She chose joy. Every day. Her marbles proved it. When she filled up her Joy Jar, she dumped them back into her wooden bowl and started again. One could never have too much.

At about six o’clock, her house was fresh, her laundry was done, and she was ready to get dressed for her date. In her matching chocolate-brown satin bra and panty set, she stood in her bedroom looking at her closet. She couldn’t decide what to wear. She had a lot of fun choices. Most of her clothing had come from thrift stores as well, and she loved mixing and matching the vintage treasures with modern pieces. She rarely wore the same combination twice. She finally chose a black flapper-style minidress complete with fringe and wore it over thin, wine-colored leggings. She pulled a faded denim shrug off a hanger and pulled the soft fabric around her shoulders. She put on her black ballet-style slippers.
 

She almost reached for her jewelry chest when she remembered her promise not to wear any bracelets. Cassie smiled at herself in the mirror. She noted the nice curve of her breasts peaking out just a bit from her low-cut dress and loved that Scott would get an eyeful when he saw her.
 

She was proud of her body. Lots of yoga and some genetic help from her beautiful mother had given her a feminine, mildly-curvy build. She felt shapely, but never too big. Her c-cup breasts were round and had a delicate lift to them, and her bottom was perky but not wide. She had a small waist and a flat stomach. Her legs and arms were gently toned from the stretching and strength yoga provided. In the little dress she was wearing, none of those features were hidden.
 

She pulled her long straight hair up into a relaxed twist with a simple clip. She pulled a few strands loose around her face to soften the look. She pinned a small silver dragonfly into the twist, dabbed on some subtle make up, and she was done. Now she just had to wait for Scott to pick her up.

Chapter Three

At 6:28, Scott knocked at her door. He prided himself on his punctuality and he knew he’d never hear the end of it if he kept her waiting. He saw her walking to the door through the window and readied his brightest smile for her.
 

“You’re early,” Cassie said with a sassy smile as she opened the door. His smile turned more natural when he laughed at her greeting.

“You’re beautiful,” he returned, hoping to catch her off guard a bit, too. Epic fail. She smiled back easily, and all he could do was look at her long legs under her skirt.

“Do you want me to
actually
spin this time?” she laughed.

“Actually? Yes, please.”
 

Why not? If she was offering, he’d love to see her ass in that dress.
 

Cassie stood up on her toes and spun around in a graceful pirouette while she let a small laugh sneak out. “There, I’m glad that’s over with. I’ve felt the urge to twirl since you were eyeing me last night.”

“You really look amazing, Cassie,” Scott said with a practiced smile. He had never seen an outfit quite like the one she was wearing. She was eccentric, but still managed to look classy.

“Thank you. You look quite handsome, yourself. Nice shoes,” she said a little triumphantly.
 

Scott grinned and looked past his his crew neck shirt, dark jeans, and down toward his brown shoes. “Thanks. I had help picking them out.”

He let Cassie lead him in to her house and show him around. She seemed to enjoy how many times his eyebrows went up at the varied decor around him and more than once he said, “What is this thing?”
 

She nearly always answered him with “I have no idea.”
 

He was baffled by her yet again. “Ok, if you have no idea what half this stuff is, then why do you have it?”

“Because it all makes me smile,” she said as if the answer were perfectly obvious. She seemed actually surprised by his question. “Don’t you have things around just because you like them?”

“Not really. My place is a typical guy zone. Couch, TV, and mini-fridge. That’s just about my whole living room. Don’t get me wrong, it’s nice. I don’t live like a caveman, or anything.”

“Well you kiss like one.”

Scott laughed out loud again, still never ready for whatever Cassie said, but he finally had a comment to his advantage. “Then you must like cavemen, because you gave me an A+. What’s that?” he pointed to the shelf by her door.
 

“That’s my Joy Jar,” she said with a huge, genuine smile. He watched her walk over to them and take a marble from the wooden bowl and drop it into the glass jar. “Every time something makes me happy, I drop another marble in. It makes a joyful noise and it helps me stay focused on the positive. That marble just now was for the look on your face when I twirled.”
 

He was blown away by her again. Her perspective and positive energy was damn-near intoxicating. His own perspective was so opposite. He focused on success, not joy. Success brought him a great sense of accomplishment and served to fuel his drive for more, but he couldn’t describe any of it as joyful. The more sides he found to her, the more he wanted her. She wasn’t the typical party girl he went after, but that was ok.

“Wow. That’s actually quite cool. Do you mind?” Scott was reaching for the wooden bowl, hoping he got to contribute. He wanted to show her that he could keep up with her. It was all part of the seduction. Lines might not work, but the show of appreciation might.
 

“Be my guest, but you have to tell me what it’s for.”

He dropped the marble in and smiled at her. “That was also for your twirl.” He grabbed one more marble and dropped it in, announcing, “That one is for the other chance you’re about to give me to prove you wrong about my ‘caveman’ kiss. Do I get another try before our date to prove you wrong on that completely absurd description of my kissing?”

“I suppose. But remember, you don’t have many chances left. As much as I liked your caveman kiss, it was completely inappropriate for a first date.”

Scott wrapped one arm around her waist and pulled her in against him, arching her back gently. He smiled and kissed her sweetly and then a little deeper with one smooth, slow move of his tongue with hers. As he did, he placed something in her hand.

When he let her go, he watched Cassie look at the delicate silver bangle bracelet in her fingers. The bracelet had a hint of turquoise color through the band that was a perfect match to the shirt she had been wearing at the party. She smiled softly, completely surprised by the gesture. “Definitely better than a flower,” she said warmly, her eyes twinkling a bit.

Score. When she didn’t even rate his kiss, he knew he had just knocked her off her game a bit and he smiled to himself. This was the first time he saw a genuine reaction from her, rather than her big, playful personality. He was already wearing her down. He also found her reaction exciting. The soft look in her eyes was just as sexy as the ornery glint he usually saw.
 

“Well, I figured you might not be able to survive an evening without any bracelets at all based on how many you wore at that party. I didn’t think having just one on your wrist would upset local gravity too much. Are you ready?”

“Not until you tell me if you’ve figured out who you are yet.”

“That again? I have no idea how to answer that,” he said, almost annoyed now. He wouldn’t show it, though. No, charming was the order of the evening.

She slipped the bracelet onto her wrist and smiled. “Ok, I guess I’m ready anyway. Let me grab my purse. Where are we going?”

“Have you ever been to jail?”

“Excuse me?”

He laughed at the look in her eye. He definitely chose the right restaurant. The cost was worth that shocked face alone.
 

“There’s a restaurant a county over from here that was converted from an old sheriff’s station and county jail. The tables are all in the old cells. Don’t worry, they took the doors off.” She still hadn’t picked up her jaw and he grinned wickedly at her.
That’s one more point for Scott Merchant
, he thought to himself.
 

“Wow, you sure know how to try to win a girl’s heart…jail on the first date,” she laughed a bit incredulously, but he already knew she loved an adventure.
 

“It’s actually called The Big House, and some eccentric chef from Seattle moved here and started it up. I think the only reason we got reservations on short notice is because it’s a Sunday. It’s a bit of a drive…I hope you don’t mind.”

“No, I don’t mind. This should be interesting,” Cassie said with a smile and reached for his hand.
 

He loved that she was direct like that. No shyness. No drama. She wanted to hold his hand so she did. Her boldness made him feel like she was the one going after him…just like she had in that kiss. Game on. He led her to the door and waited as she locked it behind her. She tucked her keys into her black purse and held his hand again as he walked her to his black SUV in the driveway.
 

Working to impress her with his skill as a gentleman, he held her car door open for her. She stepped up in gracefully and settled herself in, clicking the seatbelt in place as he was climbing in his side. This time, he reached for her hand and saw her smile. Advantage Merchant.

The entire 45 minute drive, Cassie and Scott talked easily. The conversation was less playful than any had been up to this point, but that didn’t matter at all. They compared stories of education, laughing at the differences between the school of business at Georgetown and the medical assistant’s program at the local community college.