CHAPTER 3
The next evening, while Holly was gearing herself for a night on the couch, her phone rang. *Not again*, she thought and went to pick it up.
“No, no, I’m not going clubbing again,” she said into the phone, assuming it was Chantelle asking her to go out again. Knowing Chantelle, that was exactly the kind of thing she’d do.
“Oh, I agree, I’m definitely not in the mood to go to a club. Once this month was definitely enough.” The voice on the other end was definitely not Chantelle’s. The deep male voice was unmistakable.
“Aaron?” she asked, thankful that he couldn’t see how nervous she suddenly was. She kicked herself for saying his name, as it made it seem as if no other man would phone her or as if she had been waiting for his call. “Chantelle told me that she gave you my number,” she quickly added. “Um, hi.”
“Hi,” he said and chuckled. “I’m sorry for going behind your back after you so blatantly said no to me. But I’m not one to give up. Also, I just wanted to know if you wanted to come around for a drink?”
*What?* thought Holly, *to his house?* “Uh, thanks, Aaron, but I’m a bit busy tonight,” she said instead.
“Chantelle told me that you’d say that. She also told me that you definitely would not be busy.”
Holly puffed out her cheeks. “Well, that’s rude of her. And somewhat embarrassingly true.”
“Then come around. I’ll get a cab to pick you up. That way, you don’t even have to drive here. Come for a drink or two, and then he can take you home.”
*Oh, what the hell*, thought Holly. *It wasn’t like I did this kind of thing every day. Anyway, it was only a drink.* “Okay, I’ll come for a drink. But I’m taking my car. What’s the address?”
When she put the phone down, she ran to her room to get dressed. She put on a pair of tight dark blue jeans and a loose white cotton shirt, with a pair of sneakers. She was aware that this outfit made her look very young and very different from how he probably remembered her, but she was determined not to stay too long. If this put him off, all the better. She brushed her hair, put on a little makeup, and headed to her car.
When she arrived, she was completely taken aback and almost wished she had taken a cab rather than let him see the small and derelict car that she was driving. His house was massive! *How does just one person live here?* she wondered, whistling out loud. Her heart was beating fast as she walked up the driveway, and she suddenly felt smaller than ever before. She pushed the doorbell and waited, playing with her hair and trying to keep cool.
When the door opened, she tried to hide her smile. Aaron might not be the type of guy she was after, but he sure was handsome. Today, he was wearing dark blue jeans and a white t-shirt, and as soon as she saw him, she laughed. “Looks like I got the clothes memo,” she said. The two of them looked as if they had completely coordinated their outfits.
He laughed, bent forward to kiss her on the cheek, and led her inside. The inside of the house was even more impressive than the outside, something Holly didn’t think possible.
“This house is amazing,” she said, looking around and trying to take it all in. She wanted desperately to take photos to show Chantelle, but he was standing there looking at her intently. She shifted from left to right, feeling his gaze on her. Finally, he spoke.
“Red wine okay?”
“Perfect,” she said, watching him pour her a glass. The two of them sat down on the couch and clinked their glasses in a toast.
“To comfortable seats without stupidly drunk people around us,” she toasted.
“To music soft enough that we can actually hear each other talk,” he said back. And they laughed. The wine was good, and she told him so.
“Thank you, I own a vineyard in the country and have a huge collection of new bottles waiting for me to taste.”
*He owns a vineyard.* Holly tried to act as if she met people like this every day. Instead, she almost spat out her wine, exclaiming, “YOU OWN A VINEYARD?!”
Way to act cool, Holly.
He laughed. “You’re even cuter than last night.”
She smiled but inwardly groaned. *There’s that word again, ‘cute.’ Guess I should’ve worn a dress or something. Stupid young face.*
But when she looked up, she caught him staring at her. In a way that looked more than someone who just thought she was cute. He was looking at her in a way that she wasn’t used to. For the first time in her life, she felt sexy. It was a good feeling.
“Holly, I’m going to be blunt here. I like you. Normally, I wouldn’t be quite so honest from the start, but there’s just something about you that makes my heart skip a beat. Firstly, you’re absolutely beautiful. I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone that combines pretty, interesting, and sexy so gracefully. You take my breath away. I want to protect you and yet kiss you all at the same time.
Secondly, I know I’m older than you, and I know that is probably something getting in the way of you looking at me as anything more than a friend, but I want you to know that age doesn’t bother me at all. You’re the first woman I’ve been able to talk to so easily in a very long time. So age is not the issue here.”
Holly stared at him, surprised by this sudden speech and excited by the fact that he had just called her a ‘woman’ instead of just a girl. She liked that.
“Holly, can I ask you a question?” She nodded back in reply, looking earnestly into his eyes, still too surprised to say anything.
“Are you innocent or do you just look innocent?”
She thought about that for a moment. She was well aware that she looked like a young girl without any experience, but was she? She wasn’t a virgin, but she’d only had sex a handful of times, and each time had been quick, unexciting, and with people that she didn’t care much for. She was very aware that her love life was nothing special and that she’d never done anything out of the ordinary.
For some strange reason, she didn’t feel bothered by this line of questioning at all. She liked his openness with her, and she wanted to be open with him too. Nor did she feel embarrassed by the truth of her experience.
“I am innocent,” she answered quietly.
Aaron stood up and took Holly’s hand, lifting her up. Without her heels, she was quite a bit shorter than him. He bent down, cupped her face in his hands, and kissed her. This was unlike any kiss she’d had before, and she felt her knees start to buckle. She kissed him back, gently at first and then with more passion than she even knew was possible.
He stood back, looked at her, and said, “Holly, I’d like to teach you a few things. Can I be your teacher tonight?”