Page 19 of Catch a Tiger

He added that last bit on a whim. He’s never been so brash with a girl before, but with Maria, all bets are off. His cock hardens just thinking about her wrapped up in lace, but does he expect her to wear it? No. He doesn’t even expect to get laid, but he knows by saying those things to her, that she’s blushing. He lives to make her blush. It’s the most beautiful sight in the world to him.

Maria: I think you’re trying to make my heart explode.

Mark: Wear whatever you want, beautiful girl. I’ll see you when the sun goes down.

She doesn’t respond, so he pockets his phone with a grin plastered on his face and heads to the weight-lifting machine next to Sean.

“And?” Sean asks with a grunt as he pulls the weights to his chest.

“Tonight.”

“Good. Now wipe that stupid smile off your face and do something manly.”

Chapter 8

Maria

Maria hadn’t needed Darius to push her out the door this time. She had been excited to go on this date, especially since she and Mark had been talking all day through text messaging. So, she had quickly dressed in another dress, this one white, and headed out the door as soon as he pulled up.

He had flirted with her endlessly throughout the day, and it made her feel like she was the center of his attention. That she was the only one who mattered to him.

He talked about his job and she talked about hers. He complimented her whenever she started to sway toward her appearance again. The length he’d go to to make sure she felt special was something she hadn’t experienced before, but she liked it. And she was starting to feel better about herself, less self-conscious.

She could get used to this. She could get used to him. The thought scares her a little. She’s been so used to having to care for only herself, that it feels scary to have someone else care about her that’s different than Darius.

Now, as she sits in the car with Mark, she still feels those butterflies and fear, but they’re not as intense. She doesn’t know why, but she feels completely safe around him. Even the silence feels safe.

After a few moments of saying nothing and watching the last of the city fly by, she turns to him and asks, “So, where are we going?”

It’s well after dark and supper time, so she knows they’re not going to another restaurant. Besides, something tells her that he doesn’t repeat the same dates, not if he can help it. He seems to be a romantic, and she’s enjoying that fact.

He glances over at her with a slight smile and adjusts his hands on the steering wheel. “I have a little place I like to go to when I need some quiet.”

Taking a right, he drives up the road that leads to higher ground. “Oh yeah? Where’s that?”

“You’ll see.”

The butterflies return full force when he grabs her hand and intertwines his fingers with hers. His hand is warm and calloused, and the pad of his thumb rubs small circles along the backside of her hand. It makes her shiver, though she does well to hide that fact.

“Is this okay?” he asks when he notices her staring at their joined hands.

“Um . . . Yeah.” In fact, it’s more than okay. It makes her feel cherished, something she hasn’t had since she lived at home with her parents.

“Good,” he says as he puts the car into park.

Startled that they stopped, Maria looks out the front window and then gasps. They’re on a cliff that overlooks the city, and the view is breathtaking. She tells him as much.

The black sky has a million twinkling stars shining over the city full of lights. The moon is bright, almost tucked behind a few clouds that linger. She can see the cars driving on the roads, little specks in the distance, but she can’t hear anything. All she can hear is their breathing and the slight breeze that blows against her window.

He chuckles under his breath. “It is. I come here as often as I can.”

“I can see why,” she whispers.

Squeezing her hand, he lets go and opens his car door. “Come on. It’s better without a window in front of you.”

She smiles to herself and hops out of the car. The gravel crunches underfoot when she meets him at the front of the car. There’s a bench right before them, and he gestures for her to sit. “Stay right here.”

“Where are you going?” she calls after him when he jogs back to his car.