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Daniel sat in the computer lab with machines buzzing all around him. He really ought to keep focused. It wouldn’t do him any good to mess up and have to start all over again. But he couldn’t keep his mind on the modules in front of him. It kept drifting back to the other night when he shared that kiss with Sonya. He hadn’t seen her since. More than likely she was avoiding him.
Admittedly, it frightened him. He had feared this for the past year. Not the opportunity to hold her in his arms and partake in the most passionate kiss he ever experienced, but her reaction to it. He knew Sonya’s puzzling dislike for the opposite sex.
Sure she boasted about how she delighted in their presence and took satisfaction in their desire, but once she was done with them she cast them aside as if they were a pair of well-worn socks. She took more gratification from keeping a silly pair of underpants.
He was never able to get close enough to delve deep inside her mind. She would never have allowed it. Instead, all he was able to do was sit at a safe distance and not appear a threat. The other night, as he held her in his arms and released pent-up emotions he had held in check for so long, he became a threat. She was reminded that he was a member of the opposite sex. There was no turning back the clock, no erasing the memory from her mind, she would re-evaluate their relationship and more than likely toss it aside. Probably already had. He just hadn’t received his notice.
The door to the lab opened and Jamie stuck in his head. “I’m headed for lunch. Want to join me?”
Blinking hard from staring at the computer screen for so long and pulling his mind out of his dark reverie, he nodded his head and followed the intern out of the Institute. There was no sense worrying about it until the time came when Sonya deemed their friendship was over. Until then, he would take whatever she was willing to give.
* * *
Sonya exited the deli shop and was hit by a blast of cold wind. The few free strands of hair that had escaped her loose bun, flew about her face. Lord it was still so cold and she wished the warm weather would hurry up and arrive already. She had packed away most of her winter garments and didn’t fancy the idea of digging them back out.
About to make a dash down the street toward Tristan’s bar, she came to an abrupt halt when she noticed Daniel and his intern, Jamie, approach. She froze at the unexpected wave of heat that disabled her at the sight of him. “Daniel.”
Both men came to a halt in front of her, blocking her exit.
“Sonya,” he returned her greeting but said nothing else.
She was a tall woman and easily matched their height, but she felt an overwhelming sense of being dwarfed. Jamie offered her a brief smile then shifted his glance between the silent duo. He looked all at once uncomfortable before he abruptly excused himself, telling Daniel he would find them a table inside.
Left alone, Sonya’s eyes danced around her surroundings trying not to allow her eyes to linger on his person. Which was hard-pressed to do. He appeared rather rugged looking in a stylish lambskin jacket and casual khaki pants. She hadn’t even realized he owned a leather coat. He obviously had a thing for the expensive material.
She suddenly wondered what he would look like under that jacket and the shirt beneath that. She couldn’t allow her mind to stray dangerously in that direction.
Groaning, she tucked a loose piece of hair behind her ear and told herself she needed a man soon or she would scare poor Daniel away.
“How are you doing?” They both asked in unison.
She grinned.
He smiled.
Their eyes met, and for the first time she noticed the unusual color of his. Neither blue nor grey, they reminded her of a piece of metal or tin and, contrary to what she thought before, there was a definite hint of glimmer to them. Probably a result of his glasses. She idly took note of how low they sat on the bridge of his nose and itched to reach up and push them into place.
As if reading her mind, he did just that then shoved his hands into the pockets of his coat. The weather was cooler than usual for this time of year. By this time, winter garments had been exchanged for summer clothes. However, he still wore a long sleeve sweater under the lambskin coat.
A breeze swept through the small alcove where they stood and ran its icy finger along her bare arms. Unlike Daniel, she was eager for the warmer weather and refused to put another heavy item of clothing on. However, it was days like today that she almost wished she had. Or at the least, brought a jacket.
“Are you cold?”
She gave an unconscious nod and ran her hands over the goose bumps on her arms. Then started when she saw him reach up and begin to unzip his coat. “What are you doing?”
“Loaning you my coat.” He had finished unzipping it and was shrugging his arms out of the sleeves before she thought to protest.
“You don’t need to do that.” Her eyes became agitated.
“The hypothalamus in your brain hasn’t delivered impulses to your skin.” At her frown, he gestured to her goose bumps. “The hairs on your arm are still lying flat. They trap more heat when they stand on end.”
“Oh. I didn’t know that. I thought it would be the other way around.”
“A common misconception.”
“Won’t you need it?”
He gestured toward his sweater. “I’ll be perfectly warm.”
