Page 23 of Company Ink

"You sound surprised," I comment, stopping in the middle of the sidewalk.

Adrian shrugs noncommittally. "Stimulating conversations are hard to come by these days."

"Stimulating?" I laugh. "It's not like we were discussing the political landscape of the Ottoman Empire."

"And what do you know about the Ottoman Empire?" Adrian asks, perking up one eyebrow.

I press my lips into a thin line, thinking I'm so fucking clever. "That it was smaller than the Loveseat Empire?"

Adrian expels a low chuckle, shaking his head. "You're ridiculous."

I playfully swat Adrian's shoulder. "Oh, come on! That was punny!"

"You know that they say puns are the lowest form of humor," Adrian, muses, the streetlight reflecting off his softened features.

"Actually, the quote goes 'A pun is the lowest form of humorwhen you don't think of it first'. So..." I shrug. "Sucks to be you."

Adrian covers his face with his hand. "You are...something else."

"So, I've been told," I grin, checking my phone. I have a missed call from Lucy. "Listen I gotta go and uh—meet up with my friends."

Disappointment briefly flashes across Adrian's face. "Are you taking a cab?"

I wish."No, I'll just walk. I don't live very far. Maybe twenty minutes?"

Adrian takes a step towards me. "It's getting dark out. Do you want me to walk you home?"

I can't help but smile. "That's nice of you to offer but I think I'll be fine. I have a taser in my bag."

"Right," Adrian laughs out loud until he notices my deadpan expression. "Wait, are you serious?"

I reach into my purse and pull out Tatiana, my baby pink palm-sized stun-gun. "Yeah! I bought it off Wish for like thirty dollars!"

I point it towards Adrian, and he stumbles backward. "Cassie, be careful with that!"

"I'm not going to taser you, relax!" I tuck Tatiana safely back into my bag. "Plus, it doesn't hurt that bad."

"And how would you know?"

"I accidentally tasered myself while I was unpacking it," I admit sheepishly.

Adrian's eyes widen. "You what? How is that even possible?"

"It came in very stubborn plastic packaging!"

Adrian pinches the bridge of his nose. "Did it hurt?"

I bite my lip, my playful gaze piercing Adrian's. "A little. But I have a very high pain tolerance."

"Is that so?" Adrian's eyes flicker with heat, causing my heart rate to accelerate.

"I think you need a cold shower," I whisper without thinking. "You seem a little too excited to hear me say that."What kind of freaky ass shit is this man into?

"You really don't have a filter do you, Cassie?" Adrian breathes, taking a step closer to me, leaving zero room for Jesus.

I shake my head, my mind swirling with anticipation. "I don't see the point," I mutter, catching the moonlight reflecting off his earthy irises.

Adrian lifts his hand up and tucks a wayward piece of hair behind my ear, his fingers grazing the length of my neck, forcing a wave of trembles down my spine.

---