Page 113 of Hunt Me
“You know you can talk to me about anything.”
“I know, Cal. I just… Maybe having some time alone will put everything into perspective.”
“This is about this mystery man. Right?”
Shrugging, I took another sip of wine. The fact I couldn’t get my mind off Mikhail remained a clear testament to my insanity. There was no other way of looking at it. “How did you know Jason was the one?”
Instead of developing a dreamy look in her eyes as I would have expected, she frowned. “Are you talking about forever or just a fantasy man created in our minds and while using our favorite vibrator?” She burst into laughter when she noticed my intense scowl. “Oh, come on. Don’t dare try and tell me you don’t have atleast one tucked away in your nightstand. I know the books you read.”
Heat flushed my face and I hid behind my glass, able to laugh because she was right. “Okay, maybe one. Or two.”
“And here I thought I’d need to have a chat with you about the birds and bees.”
I acted as if I was going to punch her playfully. “Which one is Jason? Fantasy man or forever man?”
My baby sister, the girl who’d always seemed as if she’d had her head in the clouds, dreaming of unicorns and rainbows, shocked me with her answer. “Neither.”
Wine flew from my mouth and I coughed several times. “What?”
“There’s a third category. The man who’ll make a great teammate, remain a friend, won’t lie to you, and will make our parents happy. A solid man.”
“That sounds like a block of wood, not someone you want to spend the rest of your life with.”
Her shrug seemed nonchalant. “Solid is something you can count on. Solid means I’ll have a good life.”
“What about the life you deserve with wild passion that leaves you breathless, his touch burning your skin and when he gives you the look from across the room, you melt into a little puddle on the floor? Or when the anticipation of seeing him again leaves butterflies in your stomach. And his kiss… When you could do nothing but spend the evening in front of a roaring fire with a glass of wine and nice jazz music, kissing for hours. And the sex is… Let’s just say you could spend all night long in each other’s arms for weeks. Months. What about that kind of relationship?”
I didn’t realize she hadn’t said anything for a full thirty seconds. When I looked in her direction, her eyes were wide open.
“Wow,” she all but purred. “You didn’t just have a fling, sister of mine.”
“What does that mean?”
“That means you’re in love.”
“I am not!” I tossed hair behind my shoulder as a heated shiver coursed down my spine.
Callie pointed her finger. “Yes, you are. That’s amazing. That’s everything I’d love to find, but it only exists once in a lifetime. Do not allow him to get away. No other man will ever measure up to him.”
“What if he’s all wrong for me? What if he’s not only powerful, but dangerous?”
“All the better.” She grinned. “I’m serious. Do you really believe all the hype about the Dmitriyev family? I mean come on.”
“What if they’re criminals?”
“There isn’t a human being alive who doesn’t cross over that thin line of right versus wrong. You ought to know that better than anyone. Besides, if he loves you the way you obviously adore him, then he’ll change.”
“That’s where fantasy comes in. That only happens in romance books, Callie girl. No one ever truly changes.”
She leaned in, lifting a single eyebrow in admonishment. “I think you don’t want to change him. I think you crave and need him just the way he is. In my mind, danger equals the kind of passion you just described. I will stand by what I said, that that kind oflove is once in a lifetime. You’ll regret it for the rest of your life if you keep your guard up.”
I glanced toward the window, no longer avoiding the images of Mikhail in my mind. When I sighed, she giggled once again.
“See. You can’t stop thinking about him.”
“It’s not a match made in heaven.”
“What if it is? What if fate brought the two of you together?” She posed the question with an evil smile on her face.
