The Garden
Tanya sighed, and sipped her red wine. Another company mixer; another night to reflect on how much she really didn't like these company sponsored meat markets. And yet, she still came, still pathetically attempted to be part of the crowd. "Ah well, at least the drinks are free," she muttered under her breath, checking her watch to see if she could leave and not be noticed. As she glanced back up, her blue eyes were suddenly arrested by intense green eyes from across the room. A tall man, with wavy black hair, was talking to Nora, a willowy blonde from her department, and he was looking over Nora's shoulder at her, a sly smirk on his lips while he conversed with Nora. Tanya had never seen him before, and figured he must have come with Nora. Shaking her head, she looked away, and moved over towards the French doors that opened out into the elaborate garden of the hall. She could feel his eyes still on her as she drained her glass and went for another from a passing waiter. She surreptitiously watched him, until she was certain he wasn't looking at her, and she slipped out the doors into the cool night.
The night breeze played about her auburn hair, swirling her flowing skirt around her legs. She glanced over her shoulder to make sure that she wasn't being followed, and entered the labyrinth. The tall hedges immediately enclosed her on either side, and she breathed in the cool green smell of growing things. Tanya wandered the path aimlessly, sipping wine and thinking about his green eyes. She couldn't stop thinking about them, and it drove her a bit crazy. "I've probably had too much to drink," she said sarcastically to herself, "and I'm imagining the whole thing. Get it together woman." She couldn't quite shake the feeling that she was being watched, however, but she shrugged it off as a lingering feeling from the party. Tanya rounded a corner, and came face to face with a dead end. A marble bench sat in front of it, with flowers framing either end. "Great," she sighed, and she turned around, intending on retracing her steps.
She turned the corner back the way she came, and shrieked, her heart in her throat, dropping her wine glass on the grassy path. There HE stood, that same smirk on his handsome face, the wind ruffling his black hair. She gasped, and blurted out, "What are YOU doing here?" He smiled a bit wider, and stepped a bit closer to her, his arms crossed over his chest.
"Oh, I just thought you might need a bit of company," his deep voice rumbled, "You shouldn't walk around all by yourself out here."
"Thank you," she stammered, "but I'm quite capable of taking care of myself. Now, if you will excuse me, I should be getting back to the, um, the party." She stooped to pick up her dropped glass, and when she stood up, he was right in front of her, his eyes boring into hers with an intensity that was frightening, yet thrilling. She found she could not look away as she straightened, and she backed up a bit, feeling a little like she was being hunted.
"You aren't afraid of me, are you," he asked, raising an eyebrow.
She gathered herself, and said, "of course not. You just seem to have this disconcerting way of approaching me. I don't even know who you are, or to what purpose you might have by coming out here and sneaking up on me, but I am telling you I don't appreciate your cavalier attitude. Now, if you don't mind, I am going back to the party." With that, she started to stalk off, the movement marred by the fact that her heels sunk into the soft grass with each step. She staggered, and almost fell, and he caught her arm swiftly, helping her to stand back up.
He bowed floridly, and said, "My humblest apologies, my dear lady. My name is Damon, and I merely wished to make your acquaintance. I certainly did not wish to offend you, nor frighten you, but you looked rather alone, and I thought that a lovely woman such as yourself should not be alone at such an⦠interesting gathering."
She gaped at him, and blushed hard, her pale skin turning pink. She said, "Well, Damon, it's lovely to meet you. My name is Tanya, and I'm sorry if I was a bit rude, but I really don't like these parties much, and I was sure you were there with Nora, so I didn't want to bother you."
Where had that come from
, she thought with an inner groan. "And as you can tell, these gatherings aren't all that interesting; they're more like a meat market, and I really don't know why I keep coming to them." She realized that he hadn't let go of her arm yet, and she attempted to shrug him off, unsuccessfully. She gave him a withering look that had worked in the past to get rid of pests, but he only grinned deeper, and tugged her closer to him, until he was inches from her face.
"You don't really want to go, do you," he asked softly, and an electric thrill raced through her body. She certainly was intrigued by his demeanor, and caught off guard, but she was sure that someone might show up at any minute, and that would be all she needed to ruin her reputation. To her surprise, she found herself gazing back at him, watching his sensuous lips curl over his teeth in a sexy grin.
She shook herself mentally, and said, "How dare you! We have only just met, you are here with another woman, and you persist in this manner towards me." He laughed, his whole face lit up with pleasure.
"You are a saucy little lass, aren't you," he grinned, grabbing her other arm and holding her closer. "I am not here with anyone, my dear, and I certainly wouldn't want to offend your sensibilities, but I do believe that we connected from across the room, and I knew I had to meet you."
She took a step back. Her body was singing from the heat of his, and she found his attention to her very flattering. Her heart was racing, and she had to remember to breath. Internally, her body was responding in a very primal way to his, but she tried once again to impose order on her raging hormones. "Well, yes, we certainly did, um, connect, but don't you think this is moving just a bit fast?"