“Glad, I haven’t disappointed you so far.” I sit back, eager to learn more. “So why the app?”
Her fingers trace the edge of the table—long, graceful, almost entirely white, except for a few brown spots, nails painted to match her lips.
“Like you, I’m stepping into a new opportunity. It’s demanding and needs my entire focus. But it’s been a while for me too, and I’ve missed companionship. A random hook-up, to put it bluntly, could come back to bite me. Which is ridiculous and sexist.” Her eyes flash, her mouth tightening for a beat. “But that fight will have to wait. For now, I need privacy, and Secrets in the Dark gives me that.”
“You strike me as someone who locks in hard and doesn’t let go when something matters.”
“My father calls me a Doberman.” She smiles, conveying that she agrees.
“Determined, loyal. Disciplined… but with a streak of rebellion. I see that.”
“How?”
“I read people well. Occupational hazard. My guess? You’re taking on a leadership role that has profile, probably in a male-dominated field.”
“Hmm,” she says, neither confirming nor denying, then shifts gears. “Is Neo your only sibling?”
“Yes.”
“You’re the older one, I assume.”
“By six years. What made you think that?”
“I get first-born, high-achievement energy from you.” Her eyes narrow a fraction, looking into mine as if she’s searching forwhat’s behind them. “There’s an intensity about you, a serious focus. Not in a bad or boring way,” she adds. “Sorry, I shouldn’t typecast.”
“No apology needed. You pegged me right.”
“I think because I recognize some of it in myself. I’m ambitious. I strive to excel at everything I do. But I’m not always hustling. I value my downtime. It lets me refuel. After a long day, I’ll walk the beach near the dunes. Come home and put on satin jammies—because I’m extra like that.” She laughs at her indulgence. “Then I’ll unwind for the evening with a crossword puzzle, some reality TV.The Real Housewives of Atlantais my guilty pleasure. And chocolate, of course.”
I smile at the line-up. “You have balance.”
“You don’t?”
She clocked me again. “It’s not my forte.” The bigger the challenge, the better. That’s what drove me… until I crashed. Now, I’m trying a different scene. Small town—lower pressure, slower pace. It should be easy. And therein lies the rub. Easy has never been the measure of success for me.
Some days, this stripped-down version feels like I’m walking around with a layer of confidence scraped off, raw where I used to be steel.
But I’m not dragging that corpse into tonight.
Not with Luna.
Sexy. Gorgeous. Bright as hell, Luna.
I like her intelligence. Her down-to-earth humor. The way she draws me in and pulls me out. It feels good being with her. The kind of good I didn’t know I needed.
“I’m learning how to relax,” I tell her.
“How’s that going?”
“Not great,” I admit with a short laugh.
“What do you do to loosen some of that intensity?”
“Workout and…”
“And what?” she urges when I pause.
I consider dodging the question, but her expression is too eager.
