* * *
An hour and a half later, I sat at a café table outside Pressed in an upscale strip mall, waiting for Phoenix. I wasn’t familiar with this part of town. It was technically still Orange, but it was fifteen minutes away from campus, in horse country. I’d passed a few signs indicating there were trails in the expansive park across the street. I zipped my leather jacket and shot a longing look at the Starbucks on the corner. I wore nicer than usual jeans and a black button-down shirt, but I was still chilly. Hot cocoa sounded good right now. Whipped cream, chocolate shavings…
“You’re here!”
I glanced up as Phoenix approached and did a double take. “You dyed your hair.”
He grinned as he ran his fingers through his hair. “Yes. Step one of getting into character. This is my Billy Idol meets Billy Flynn look. What do you think?”
“Uh…you look good.”
He looked hot as fuck actually. The lighter shade of platinum made his blue eyes pop. It was closer to white than blond. Not a look everyone could pull off, but Phoenix definitely could. His navy wool coat and light-blue jeans rolled at the cuffs added an edgy appeal. Yeah…he looked amazing.
“Thank you.”
“No red lipstick?”
“Not tonight. I didn’t want to scare you away. Aren’t you freezing out here? Let’s go inside and find a seat. Or better yet, let’s get our yogurt and grab a table under that space heater.” He pointed to the seating area a few feet away, then pivoted on his heels and sashayed into the store.
Pressed was an ultra-minimalist juice and veggie cleanse bar with stark-white walls and floors. Modern cloudlike fixtures floated above the marble counter. The only hint of color was the chalkboard-style menu on the back wall and the few toppings they offered for their four flavors of yogurt. Yes, four.
“What is this place?” I whispered. “There’s nothing to eat.”
“Sure there is. You have your choice of vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, or matcha. Or you can get a juice. It’s all delish, but the chocolate is my fave. I like a little coconut and strawberry on top too. If you’re feeling naughty, you can get pokie chips and almond drizzle. High rec. Why are you looking at me like that?”
“You said this was a yogurt place. Aren’t they supposed to have at least half the flavors Baskin Robbins does?”
“Fifteen and a half?” he joked as he inched closer to the counter to order. “Try the chocolate. You’ll like it.”
“You know The Yogurt Factory by campus has some awesome flavors. Peanut butter, mint chocolate, cake batter, cookies and cream, and every topping known to man.”
“I didn’t think you’d want to be close to school.” Phoenix gave me an uncertain look. “We can go somewhere else.”
“No, I’m teasing you. I’m not hungry. I had Carl’s Jr. after my game. And in case you’re wondering, they have excellent fries.”
“Good to know,” he said with a laugh. “How was your game?”
“We won. It wasn’t pretty but we pulled it off.”
“What were the numbers?”
I rolled my eyes. “The score was four to three.”
He winked, then squeezed my elbow and pulled me toward the counter to order. “I’ll have a large chocolate with almond butter drizzle, strawberries, coconut and…chocolate chips too. What about you, Max?”
“Uh…a small chocolate, please.”
“Oh! Try the matcha. Can you give him a taste? Oh, and the strawberry too, please.”
“Of course,” the young girl behind the counter smiled.
She set the three samples in tiny paper cups on the counter before turning to make Phoenix’s. “Well? What do you think?”
“The strawberry is okay. The green one is just…meh. But the chocolate is decent.”
“Decent? Oh, Max. How will we ever make it together?” He sighed theatrically as he handed over his credit card.
I snickered at his delivery, then pulled out my wallet. “Wait. You’re not supposed to pay. I am. Excuse me. Can you take my card instead?”
“Ignore him, please,” Phoenix told the amused teenager. “Our first date is on me.”
The girl handed back his card and slid our frozen treats toward us with a cheery smile like she thought we were cute. It made me a little uncomfortable. “I don’t do cute,” I grumbled to myself as I followed him outside to a small, round table under a space heater. But when he stuck his tongue out and licked the side of his spoon, I couldn’t look away. I shifted on the chair and clandestinely adjusted my cock. Phoenix wasn’t cute. He was hot. And I definitely wanted to do this…and him. I just needed some guidelines.
“So this is our first date?”
He chuckled. “Yes. Or we can say it’s a booty call ‘terms and conditions’ meeting.”
I snorted a half laugh. “O-kay…”
“Maybe we should talk about something else for a few minutes. I’ve been too nervous to eat much today. I don’t think I can talk sex on an empty stomach. Talking while hungry is worse than drunk texting for me. I need to eat before I pass out. Tell me about your day or something.”