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Skylar

My mind must be playing tricks on me, but I swear I just saw burlos companion from the diner two days ago out in the shadows by my house. Just a silhouette, but when I saw it, burlo intensified came to mind. No one else that big would fit what I think I saw unless it was a bear. But they are few and far between in these parts.

After standing there for what felt like hours but was probably only seconds, glaring at the spot outside, I finally move, deciding it must have been in my mind. Literally, nothing has moved, and if there were anything there, it would have moved by now.

It must be my mind playing tricks on me, like all the times I feel like someone is watching me. Sure, I tell myself unconvincingly before quickly heading back inside with my unfinished pasta, locking up behind me. I close the curtains to the sunroom for extra measure, spooked that someone might actually be out there.

I was lying in bed after tossing my uneaten pasta in a container and deciding I needed sleep. It doesn't come, however, as my mind keeps wandering to a man with off-white shoulder-length hair. I'm not surprised I imagined burlos diner companion standing in the shadows. He has been on my mind nonstop since seeing the back of his form.

In my dreams, he has green eyes. Green eyes that I drown in and look at me with such an intensity it feels like I can't breathe. And his big hands. Those hands have unraveled me so many times in so many different ways in my fantasies over the last two nights that it's not even funny. When I wake up in the morning, I am literally wet. I wonder how many wet women are out there dreaming about this guy. He is leaving a trail of snails in his wake. It's sick, but damn if I didn't crave him.

The following day, I woke up wet, but alas, not due to burlos companion pleasurably invading my dreams. No. I wake up in a cold sweat with the remnants of my usual nightmare lingering in my mind. I can't say I'm all too surprised, especially after what happened last night. Being spooked probably triggered this one specifically.

The frequency is starting to worry me, but I have had these phases before, I remind myself. Shrugging it off, I get my morning routine on the go, and soon enough, I'm heading out on my bicycle to my shop. Not before I check out the spot where I thought I saw burlos companion last night. There is nothing there. No footprints or anything. I am relieved that it is my imagination playing tricks on me.

As I cycle through town, I see some people from the diner I didn't recognize the other day wandering around. They look like tourists checking all the shops out. If I'm lucky, I smile to myself, I may get some additional sales out of this lot.

Rene is an early bird and has been opening the shop since she started working for me. Pulling up, I place my bicycle on the side. I step toward the door and stop dead in my tracks. My heart rate instantly speeds up like I have just run a marathon.

He is in my shop. They're in my shop. Fuck fuck fuck. Burlo and his companion from the diner are standing in my shop at this moment. His companion is facing away from me, speaking to Rene.

Looking down, I curse, thinking I should have put on a nicer pair of jeans, not these oldish ones that have a paint stain on the bottom. I'm wearing my old Vans. My hair, shit, it's all over the place. I quickly tie my hair up in a loose bun on top of my head. I must look like an idiot. Thank the pope. They are so engrossed in their conversation with Rene that they don't notice me hovering outside my own store. What a nut job. I mentally shake myself, taking a deep breath before opening the door.

Ting, the little doorbell rings. Internally I groan, remembering why I got this thing. Sometimes I would be so engrossed in a book I wouldn't notice someone had come into the shop. Installing this doorbell thing was a remedy for that situation. A decision I was currently regretting. My face is beetroot red. I can feel it. Even my ears feel hot.

Remember, he is trouble, I tell myself repeatedly as I step forward.

All three sets of eyes turn to look at me. I look at Rene, then up at burlo, and then my eyes move over and meet with the most gorgeous green eyes I've ever seen in real life. I mean, these things look photoshopped. Too vivid, too deep, too green, with little speckles of brown around the iris. My heart skips another beat, and I mentally high-five myself for accurately guessing green, but at the same time don't deserve the win as nothing in my imagination compared to the real deal.

The other thing I notice, which is quite bizarre and coincidental, is that this man smells like sandalwood and pine—my favorite two scents. I can see it swirling around his body, whipping off him before vanishing into thin air and reappearing seconds later. Joining them together is a unique scent of his own. Every person has an unrepeated, uniquely colored pattern joining their other scents together. This must be why I'm so attracted to him. It must be because of the way he smells. It has nothing to do with the way he looks. Yeah right. 

I take in his off-white hair, which is in a half ponytail, his face on full display. He has stubble, but you can clearly see a defined jawline resides underneath. His nose is a bit on the sharper side, but it suits his face. And that mouth. My eyes linger on his slightly red lips. They are a little dry, but I could fix that, I think to myself, unconsciously wetting my own lips with my tongue. He has a large scar from his right jaw down his neck, ending at his clavicle. I want to run my finger over it.

He looks to be in his late thirties, over 6'3" tall, as I initially estimated, and he is all muscle. My eyes leave his mouth and roam down his body, taking in the simple black Levi's t-shirt he is wearing that hug and kiss his muscles. My gaze continues down his torso, past the denim that hangs off his hips, down his muscular thighs and legs, landing on his shoes. Vans. He is wearing a pair of Vans. I look down at my feet. Realizing what I am doing and have been doing only when Rene breaks the silence.

"You okay, Sky?" Rene asks me, nervousness in her voice sets me even more on edge. She is usually calm and collected, so I wonder what has led to her current state.

"All good, just having a moment." I slightly recover, walking forward. There isn't enough room in this shop for everyone with these two gigantosauruses standing there. Or enough air.

"Ivan and Dmitri are new to the town and are introducing themselves to the locals," she says, gesturing first to burlo, who has his hand on her back, and then to his companion. Dmitri. I would never have guessed he would have a Russian name. It suits him, I muse to myself, wondering if he has an accent to accompany the name.

I look at Rene, again noticing Ivan's hand on her back, and when I look at his face, he is just staring at her lovingly. Bizarre. Maybe it's love at first sight. Or maybe they know each other from somewhere? I'd have to ask her about it later.

Dmitri, who has, up until this point, just stood there staring at me, chooses this time to finally speak.

"Yes, we are moving into some houses on the outskirts of town, and we thought we would come and do the neighborly thing and say hello." His voice is disgusting. A lie. Like with everything to do with this man, his voice is no different. Perfection. A slight Russian accent and a rich deep voice that sends shivers down my spine. Purr. Ugh, did I just shiver physically? No can do, I remind myself. This one is trouble with a capital T.

I move forward as he holds up his hand to shake mine. His hand is so big. As our hands touch, I feel a tiny spark. It reminds me of when I used to drag my feet on the carpet at home when I was young, and then when I touched the door handle, I would get a little shock. The small shock has me jerking my hand away briefly before apologizing and re-attaching it to his. His hand engulfs mine as he shakes it. His eyes never leave me. Faint tingles can be felt where our hands touch. Maybe a residual effect from the initial jolt, I wonder?

Our scents twirl and mingle together. My swirl of autumn leaf brown, with faint pastel yellow and apple green, joined together by my unique marker twirling around Dmitri's scent, together circling our joined hands. It's utterly mesmerizing.

Not sure what to say, I start with the normal. "I'm Skylar, but everyone calls me Sky." I look up, smiling at him while wondering what an appropriate length of time for a handshake is.

"Dmitri," he says, flashing me a brief, almost strained smile. I get the feeling this man does not smile or laugh often.

I look over at Rene, silently pleading with her to intervene in this whole awkward situation. Useless, really, as she has her eyes fixed on Ivan. As I look back at Dmitri, he slowly releases my hand.

"Ivan," Dmitri says, not looking away from me, "time to go." 

It sounds more like an order than a request. With that, he moves past me and leaves, followed shortly thereafter by Ivan, who is looking back at Rene with longing in his eyes. The ting of the door can be heard, and then they are out and gone.

"What just happened?" I swing around, looking at Rene.

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