Page 5 of Ruined By the Hunk

“I guess,” I whisper as I follow him.

I sit on one end of his large l-shaped sofa and he sits on the other. “What kind of movies do you like?”

“Disaster movies,” I reveal before thinking, then add, “and comedies.”

“I like disaster movies too. My favorite is that one where the whole world turns to ice, but one guy can walk through it and save everyone.”

“Oh, that one’s ridiculous. I love it, too. I like the one where like every weather event hits at the same time and the best-looking geologist on the planet knows exactly how to solve the problem. If that were to happen in real life all the scientists would be fighting over which field should be consulted and who would get credit for saving the day. Everyone would be dead before a decision is made.”

“Have you seen this one?” He asks when a new disaster movie pops up on his giant television.

“No, but I want to.”

“Me, too.” He pauses and looks over at me. “I know I’ve been kind of steamrolling you tonight. If you don’t want to watch a movie or even eat dinner with me, I’ll understand. There will be no hard feelings if you don’t want to. I just want to spend time with you. I think you are so damn gorgeous and I want to know you better. There’s just something about you that I feel drawn to, Alice. I can’t stop thinking about you.”

“Did you buy the romance books because of me?” I ask abruptly. I can’t even think about him saying he thinks I’m gorgeous.

“Yes, my sister told me they might help me understand women better. I’m not sure if she was messing with me, but I started reading one when I got home earlier and it was good. Don’t know if I learned anything, but I enjoyed the story.”

“So, you're really a reader?”

“Yes, I spend most of my time off either with my family or here reading or watching movies. I’m a bit of a homebody.”

God, could he be any more perfect?

He watches me for a few seconds and I feel the heat spreading over my cheeks. “I’d like to stay and watch a movie.”

“I promise we’ll have fun,” he says as he pushes play.

Hunter

We’re twenty minutes into the movie when the doorbell rings. We both jump and then laugh.

“This is an intense movie,” Alice says.

“I know. I didn’t expect it to actually be good.” We both laugh. “I’ll get the pizza. Can you grab plates out of the kitchen? There in the second cabinet to the right.”

“Sure.”

Alice gets off the couch and I watch her as she walks before me. She seems looser —more comfortable— than she was at the beginning of the night. I want her to feel comfortable in my home, with me.

I open the door and laugh atthe stack of pizzas in the delivery person’s arms. I overdid it, but the look on Alice’s face when she didn’t know what kind of pizza she liked was sad. There’s something melancholy about her, a cloud that follows her around, but I don’t think it’s who she is. When she opens up, she’s this ray of light that shines so bright. I will do whatever it takes to make her shine, even if that means only being her friend.

I carry the pizza into the living room where she has plates, paper towels, and the wine bottle from the kitchen. Her eyes bug out when she sees how many pizza boxes are in my arms.

“I know I went overboard, but it’s for science,” I say as I sit beside her much closer thanbefore. She doesn’t move away.

“Science?” Alice laughs as she asks. “I don’t think it’s important to the rest of the world that I know what toppings I like on my pizza.”

“Maybe not the world, but it’s important tome,” I say looking deep into her eyes. “I want to know everything about you, and this seems like a good place to start. If we are discovering it together that makes it even more special.”

“Okay,” she whispers with a small smile peeking out.

I open the boxes and she looks over the different pizzas before picking two pieces. “Pepperoni and veggie deluxe are very good choices.”

She grins as she takes her first bite. “Mmm…” Pleasure beams from her face and I move my plate to cover my lap.

That sound. I want to hear it repeatedly, but not when we’re eating.

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