Page 30 of Malliko
The shared laughter with my childhood friend lifted my mood enough to tell her, “There’s a guy at work who has asked me out.”
“Is he rich?”
“Carmen,” I said in a disapproving manner.
“I know money isn’t everything, but I don’t want you slaving away for someone like you did with Jeremy.”
“I doubt that he’s rich. He’s a student.”
“Did you say he’s a student? Wait, how old is he?”
“I’m not sure. My age… maybe a little older.”
Her tone deepened. “Whaaat? That’soldfor a student.”
“He’s doing his PhD in anthropology.”
“Anthro-what? I don’t know what that means.”
“Anthropology?”
Carmen smacked her tongue. “Yeah, I never understood what it is they do.”
“It’s the study of human societies and cultures.”
“Huh. That sounds… nerdy.”
“Yeah. Sort of. But he’s different.”
“Would you date him?”
“I…” I thought about how to say it. “He’s only staying for a few months so I know it wouldn’t be anything long term, but he’s attractive and articulate. I don’t know how to explain it, but it feels like a freebie of sorts if that makes sense.”
“Sure. I get that. If the guy isn’t afraid of dusting off your coochie’s cobwebs, then invite him in.”
Once again, we laughed together and then I crawled under the covers in my bed as the conversation turned to Carmen making fun of the people whom we both knew. For twenty minutes we chatted before Carmen had to end our talk because she was eating dinner with her parents, who lived next door.
I lay for a moment reflecting on our conversation. Maybe Carmen was right and all I needed to do was take a chance.
There were too many areas of my life where I had no real power. But my sexuality wasn’t one of them. Maybe I wasn’t ready for a sex club, but less could do it. A date sounded like a better first step.
Tomorrow, I would talk to Malliko. If I was going to explore, I would feel much safer knowing he could protect me if one of my dates turned out to be dangerous.
CHAPTER 9
Lunch Meeting
Malliko
I noticed the difference in Clara the moment she walked into the office. Her hair was down and styled with big, lush curls, and her nails had a beautiful green color now. Looking at her face, there was a new glow to her eyes and her skin. And her lips looked fuller and redder than they had yesterday at the Irish bar.
“You look beautiful today.” My compliment was sincere and made her smile a little as she continued her morning routine.
“Maybe that's because I had a good night's sleep for once. I even had time to think about your offer.”
“You did?” Pulling over a chair to sit next to her, I waited for her to elaborate. Watching her lips, I absorbed the new pleasant flowery scent around her.
With a quick glance to the open door, she lowered her voice and spoke fast. “Now isn’t the time to talk about it, but if your offer still stands, I was thinking we could have lunch and discuss details.”
