“Hi, I’m Rob.”
Madison looked up from her phone and placed it on the bar in front of her. The man to her right was extending his hand with a bright smile on his face.
“Madison,” she said, shaking his hand.
“Can I buy you a drink?”
Madison almost said no, mostly out of habit. She glanced at her phone, then back at Rob. Not bad looking, she thought to herself. Handsome, actually. He had dark hair, a nice tan, and a smile that cut through the low light of her surroundings.
“Sure,” said Madison. “Long Island Iced Tea.”
Rob motioned to the bartender. “So, Madison, are you from around here?”
*BZZZZZ BZZZZ*
Madison’s phone buzzed on the table in front of her before she answered. She was about to pick it up, and then stopped herself. She turned slightly and smiled.
“Actually, yeah,” said Madison, “I grew up over in Trenton, but now I work here. What about you?”
“I’ve only been living in the city for a few months,” said Rob. “I like it, but I miss the fresh air.”
“The air definitely leaves a lot to be desired,” Madison said with a chuckle. “I like to get out of the city sometimes, though, it helps me stay centered, you know?”
*BZZZZ BZZZZ*
Madison glanced at her phone, still facedown on the bar. For just a moment, she closed her eyes and her heart sank. She should answer these texts, but good-looking guys aren’t exactly a dime a dozen in this city. She turned her attention back toward Rob.
“My folks own a ranch about thirty miles up the way,” said Rob. “I still go out there about once a week just to take in the nature. Sometimes I even camp out there.”
“So you’re more of an outdoorsman?”
Rob laughed. “Yeah, I know, country boy moves to the big city. It’s cliché, but it’s how things have turned out.”
Madison sipped her drink and smiled, turning toward him slightly. “I don’t know,” she said. “Clichés can be interesting too.” Madison’s drinks were starting to give her a warm buzz and every time Rob smiled, she found her heart pounding against her chest. She knew she was blushing, and for just a moment she wondered what it would be like to spend a night in the arms of this country-boy-turned-city-man.
“Well good,” said Rob. “I’d hate to think I was boring you.”
“You’re not even close to boring me.”
*BZZZZ BZZZZ*
“Do you need to get that?” asked Rob. He nodded toward her phone.
“Nope,” said Madison, with a smile. For a split second, Madison realized she had leaned in slightly closer and now her heart threatened to slam its way out of her chest and hurl itself at Rob’s feet.
“Might be your boyfriend calling.”
“I don’t have one.”
“A pretty woman like you? I don’t know, I’d have thought you were taken.” Rob put his hand on hers and with that simple touch, electricity surged from her heart to her left arm, leaving a tingle where their skin met.
“It’s… a long story, and it’s not worth talking about,” said Madison. “So not to change the subject, but do you work out?” Madison said with a grin.
That’s right,
she thought,
I’m checking you out.
Rob’s eyes glinted. “I do, actually. Not as much as I used to before I moved here, but I like to stay in shape.”
“I can see that.”
Rob put his head down and chuckled. “I like going rock climbing once or twice a year,” he said, “It really helps. Have you ever been?”
“Me? Oh, no, I’ve never done anything like that.”
“You should try it, it’s a really great way to get close to the earth’s natural beauty.”
“Maybe I will.”
Madison bit her lip. She was peripherally aware that the ice was rapidly melting in her Long Island Iced Tea, but she really didn’t care. The Long Island Iced Tea was the last thing from her mind. The more pressing matter was that she was sitting in front of this attractive, interesting stranger. She almost felt as if a spell had been cast over her.
*BZZZZ BZZZZ*
Oh for God’s sake,
Madison thought to herself. She wanted nothing more than to throw her phone into the garbage can, maybe give it to some homeless person as an early Christmas present. She wanted the phone and everything it represented right now to disappear, leaving just her and this seemingly perfect guy. Before Madison realized she had done it, she picked up her phone and read the texts.
Dan
I don’t know how to tell you how sorry I am. Not a day goes by where I don’t miss you. You have every right to be angry over what I did. I can’t excuse any of it.
I’ve ruined the only thing that ever made sense to me. All I could ever ask is that you find it in your heart to forgive me, to be with me, to try and love me again.
I wish I had never met her, and I wish I had never done the things I did. I can’t take them back, Maddy, but I can become a better person.
Madison rolled her eyes, then looked up at Rob. She tried to recollect her train of thought. “So, Rob, what do you do here in the city besides chatting up women in bars?”
“I’m actually working on a business degree,” said Rob. I mostly moved to the city because the commute in and out of town is brutal.”
“Do you like it?”
“It’s not exactly following my dream, I suppose, but it’s a job. What do you do?”
“I’m a veterinarian,” Madison said, meeting his steel blue eyes once more.
“That sounds rewarding, do you like it?”
“I do,” said Madison. “What’s your dream job?”
“That’s a tough one,” said Rob. “Maybe a ranger for the Parks service.”
“That’s a long way from contracts and investments.”
*BZZZZ BZZZZ*
Dan
There is nothing I wish more than that I had never hurt you. I can make this right, I can be everything you deserve to have and so much more. Just, please, at least answer me.
“Maybe one day,” said Rob. “It’s a long story, as you say.”
“I’m sure,” said Madison. Now she was warm all over. She wasn’t quite positive if it was the booze, or if this handsome stranger just had complete hold over her, but she was sure that if she’d been a cartoon character, she’d have little hearts coming out of her head. She leaned in closer, steadying herself with the bar, getting a closer look at Rob’s eyes. Try as she might she was having a hard time not getting lost in them. Rob, for his part, was leaning as well. His cologne was woodsy, of course, with a hint of peppermint. Her heart fluttered again.
“I know we just met,” said Madison, “But I really want to know what kind of kisser you are.”
Rob blushed a little, then smiled. He leaned in, brushing his lips ever so slightly against hers. Just like that, her entire being was on fire. She floated up from her body, and found herself as a spirit looking down on the scene below. She wanted more, of course, and for a moment she found herself wanting to go back to his place, her place, anywhere he would have her.
*BZZZZ BZZZZ
For just a moment, the spell broke, and she remembered the phone in her hand as she ended the kiss.
“I’m sorry,” she said, “I don’t usually… you know, do that kind of thing.”
“I’d ask you if you wanted to go back to my place,” said Rob, “but I’m not that kinda guy.”
“Probably for the better,” said Madison, her voice shaking. “I’d probably accept.”
Rob smiled. “Maybe I should give you my number, we could go out on a proper date?”
“I’d like that a lot, Rob.”
Madison took her phone in her hand and looked down. She added Rob as a contact, took his number, and then before she knew what she was doing, she had opened Dan’s texts.
Dan
You are my entire world, my soul, and without you I am lost.
Madison hesitated for a second, just long enough to tear up a bit. She pushed aside the memories of the good times, and even the memories of the bad times. This was a step she was going to have to take sooner or later. She texted Dan.
Madison
I’m sorry. I can’t.