Running From the Night by R. J. Terrell Read Free Book Online

where he was, still facing the place Melinda had just been standing. He heaved a sigh and chuckled mirthlessly. “Baited again,” he muttered under his breath.
    O O O
    Late lunch and one torturously long movie later, Jelani and Melinda were standing in front her apartment building. “I wish we could hang out longer, but I’ve got to get to Burnaby in a couple of hours to babysit for a friend.”
    “Sounds fun.”
    “Kids can be fun, Jelani. You’ll see one day.”
    “If you say so.”
    She laughed. “Guys are almost always the same. You hate the idea of having kids till you have one. Then you’re mush about them.”
    “If you say so.”
    She shook her head and continued to laugh. “Oh, come here!” Before he could react, she stepped closer and grabbed his face in two delicate and soft hands and brought his face down to hers. His surprise was efficiently stifled as he enjoyed the feel of her soft lips on his. The kiss lasted longer than he would have expected, and shorter than he wanted. When she stepped back again, she was glowing.
    “You know something? I like you, Jelani.”
    He stood there, no doubt staring stupidly at her.
    “You should close your mouth or a bird is going to take up residence.”
    His mouth closed with an audible click of his teeth, and she giggled, stepping a bit farther away. “I guess this is goodbye for now. Enjoy the rest of your day, love. Talk to you later?”
    “That can happen.”
    She frowned. “Sometimes you say the weirdest things.” She tilted her head to one side. “But it’s cute.” She turned and reached into her purse for her keys, all the while Jelani absolutely did not notice how well her pants complimented her curves. Once she was halfway through, she turned and smiled warmly at him. “Don’t be such a stranger; okay?”
    “Okay.”
    “Bye-bye,” she said, flapping her fingers up and down in that girly wave that all guys loved to have directed at them.
    “See you.”
    After the haze cleared from his mind, he reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. After finding Daniel’s number, he dialed his roommate.
    “Hah ha! So a movie and you’re out, huh? Judging from the time, I’d say it was a movie, dinner, coffee, and a carrot and string!”
    “Yeah, yeah, whatever. Might have been progress made today, might not have been.”
    “What? She give you a peck on the cheek and a pretty smile?”
    “Let’s just say those lips are a little softer than I’d imagined.”
    “No way!”
    “I’ll tell you about it later. You still up for today?”
    “Let’s do it.”
    “Cool. I’ll see you in thirty.”
    He hung up the phone and enjoyed a deep breath of fresh air. “Well, that was unexpected.”
    “I thought it was considered insane for a person to talk to themselves.”
    Jelani froze mid step. He knew that voice. He’d heard it before, back in Stanley Park. He turned to see the same woman from last night. Five feet five inches tall, long black hair tied into a ponytail that draped over her right shoulder. He saw those same light brown eyes as last night, and enjoyed yet another view of her smooth brown skin; too much of that brown skin was exposed for this time of year. She was dressed in a short top that stopped several inches above her navel, and a long skirt that fell to her ankles.
    Above her bare, sandaled feet, were anklets with tiny bells. They must not be real bells, because he didn’t hear anything when she’d snuck up on him. She must have dropped out of a tree or jumped out of a bush or something.
    “I … it’s not considered insane unless you answer yourself from a different perspective,” he replied. “Aren’t you cold in that?” He waved a hand at her clothes.
    “I don’t get cold very easily,” she replied with a wink.
    They stood silently for a while, each regarding the other. The top of her head was barely over his shoulder, but there was a presence about her that suggested the situation was the other way around. She