Page 4 of Aries Mated

“Thank goodness I was or who knows what would have happened…”

“Iwould have dealt with him,” Maeve interjected with a fiery tone. “I’m the owner. I guess you’re going to need a statement from me, right?”

“Yes.” Tex nodded slowly while shooting me a look. “Let me get this guy locked up in a holding cell and we will get everything from you.”

Tex took care of that while Maeve and I stood awkwardly next to each another. Every time I thought of something to say, it sounded stupid, so I quickly pushed it away. It seemed like things were really uncertain between us, and I didn’t want to say anything that would fuck things up.

“Okay, are you ready?” Tex called over to Maeve. “The interview room is just this way.”

“Do you want me to wait for you?” I offered immediately. Not just as a police officer, but as a gentleman as well.

“Oh, no, you don’t need to.” I wasn’t expecting anything different from her. “I live just around the corner. And I can take care of—”

“Yourself,” I finished for her. “I know. I just thought I would check.”

“Well, thank you. That’s very nice of you. I will have to make it up to you somehow.”

Maeve locked those gorgeous hazel eyes on me for just a moment, not leaving right away, which had my mind racing. I really felt like I was getting an opportunity to say something, to make everything alright again.

“How about a drink?” I cringed as soon as those words fell out of my mouth. What an idiot. Why did I say that? She was never going to want a drink with me. If anything, she hated me.

“Uh, yeah.”

My heart damn near stopped beating. Did she just say what I thought she did?

“I could go for a drink some time. Why don’t I give you my number?”

She dug her hand into her bag, and I was honestly kind of expecting her to come out with a middle finger and a laugh. It would crush me, but I wouldn’t be too surprised. But I was wrong. She had a business card in her hand, which she was now giving to me. There was a cell phone number on it—hercell phone number. It seemed like we were going for a drink. How crazy was that? Especially since things were weird and frosty between us. I didn’t know if a drink was a good idea, but I was definitely going to call her.

“I will be in touch soon,” I said with a sharp nod. “Good luck with your interview.”

She wiggled her fingers at me as she left with Tex to give her interview. I didn’t move until she was out of sight, and I still didn’t go immediately. I just stood there, allowing my feelings to wash over me a little bit before I moved. It wasn’t until I was outside in the fresh air that I allowed a smile to really spread across my face. Tonight had been one hell of a surprise. But a great one. Seeing Maeve again was a blast from the past, from a dark area of my past, but somehow seeing her wasn’t something that made me want to avoid her. I was looking forward to seeing her again.

“She probably won’t pick up the phone,” I chuckled to myself as I walked off, back to my room at the arena. “She’ll probably block me right away. Who knows?”

But I had a feeling that Maeve and I would see one another again, and not just her on the other side of the bar at Pleasures. There was something there for us to build on. More than just our old connection. We could have a real friendship, which was pretty awesome to think about. Especially since Xavier, the other Pisces participant in the Astro Games, had been eliminated. I needed all the friends I could get.

---