Hare Today, Bear Tomorrow (Mating Call Dating Agency #1)(7)
“I don’t even like muscles,” she announced to the slightly rusted door of her ’99 Civic, in the instant before she swung it open and winced at the squeak, just like she always did. She sat in the seat, skillfully avoiding the sprung spring that always stuck her in the left part of her ass, and turned the key in the ignition. “I don’t like muscles... do I?” she asked, looking at herself in the mirror and not quite sure what to make of what she saw. “Or... oh God, what if I’ve turned into one of those girls that goes weak in the knees and starts jabbering when a guy with biceps that sorta peak up walk into a room.”
The way she pursed her lips at her reflection and then shook her head from side to side before rolling her eyes confirmed that no, in fact, she was decidedly not that sort of girl. But still, here she was, going to meet some giant hunk of meat for Thai food, and she had no real conscious realization that she’d agreed to anything. It was just like a drifting mist that floated into her nose and out her mouth.
“But what the hell,” she said with a little twist of a grin. “If nothing else, at least I’m walking out of this place with a full stomach and gas.” She laughed at herself. “Okay maybe I’ll hold off on the chili sauce. I can’t in good conscience submit anyone else on earth to Garnet Gas. Unless they really, really deserve it.”
4
The glow of Siam Sushi, Ribs, Chinese and Thai was something that could only be described as ‘Las Vegas, if it were tackier.’
Framing the door to the joint were huge topiaries in vague panda shapes. They were once very well-manicured, sharply trimmed panda bear shaped shrubs, but had long since fallen scraggly and frazzled. Weird vines, featuring bell-shaped flowers, hung limply from what Garnet knew were once panda ears. “Been a while, I guess,” she said with a sad smile.
As Garnet conversed openly and publically with the shrubs, the phone that she always kept snugly tucked into her back pocket buzzed hard enough to give her a jolt of surprise. For once, her balance didn’t fail, which was good, because it’s one thing for a rabbit to be clumsy in the privacy of her own house or apartment, or meetings, or pretty much anywhere else. It’s entirely another to trip over your own ass and have a blow out right in front of a fairly well-populated restaurant.
“Hello?” she caught her balance on one foot and hopped from the curb to a parking space divider, and then back again on her other foot. For just a moment she smiled at her own agility. “That was pretty cool.”
“What was?”
The voice coming through her phone’s speaker was so deep, so wonderfully rumbling and growly, that Garnet felt tingles in places she knew better than to tingle in public. “Uh,” she stammered for a moment, then laughed. “Well, ha, I tripped over a concrete thing in the parking lot and wait a second, who is—”
“You know who this is.” The voice was calm, and gentle, but holy hell did it ever give her the craziest little twirl of excitement in her sweet spot. Almost immediately, as soon as the electric tingles washed over her, a cool wave of relaxing sweetness followed.
“I guess I do,” she finally said when she breathed easier. A knot twisted her lungs, but she loved the way it felt and thought about how long it had been since she’d felt this way. Years, she remembered, and even when she’d had boyfriends before, they’d never made her feel as special as this guy had in just a handful of syllables. Hell, she’d never felt like this after a whole night of wine and dancing. “Stacy?”
“Blade,” the voice responded. Finally she managed to listen to his speaking without getting all wiggly. Thank goodness for small victories, she thought, a little pathetically. “I mean, yeah, my name’s Stacy, but I go by Blade. Middle name. And yeah, it was pretty cool.”
You have got to get ahold of yourself, girl, Garnet thought. You’re like the last person on earth to get all stupid and giggly over some meathead. This is just a date, maybe some fun, nothing more. You have GOT to calm down.
She took three breaths, forcibly measuring and pacing the inhale, the exhale. Good, she congratulated herself. There you go, girl, there you go. “So, Blade, where are you?”
“Wait, this is coming off as creepy, isn’t it? I can’t ever tell if something is gonna come out creepy.”
“No,” she said, then paused for a second. “Well, maybe, but to be honest with you I’m not the most socially adept rabbit in the warren.”
“Rabbit, huh? Fluffy tail? Big, brown eyes?”
“You’re working me hard, huh?” she asked the question in a pitched up tone, feigning offense. “You sound like you’ve done this a time or two.”
“Never when it mattered,” he added, somewhat cryptically. “Anyway, sorry if I made you uncomfortable, but I’ve never seen anyone that made me stop and stare quite like you did. And that’s no carny bull horning.”
“Did you just say bull horning? Like, instead of bullshit?”
“My grandpa always said ‘garden seed’ when he wanted to swear. Which,” the rumbling voice paused to chuckle, “come to think of it was kind of a lot. Maybe if he just said the real word he woulda got the frustration out quicker.”
For a moment, the two of them sat silently on the phone. A flicker of headlights caught Garnet’s attention and she looked toward the source, and straight into Stacy’s burning eyes. She could see them even through the darkness. Sometimes, those rabbit senses were pretty great, she thought. As they stared at each other, she felt another squirm in her guts. When he cracked a smile, she thought she’d just quit breathing if he kept it up. And then when he finally climbed out of the car, still holding the phone to his face, her heart did stop for a moment or two.