She apologized profusely, but I was fine with waiting. I wasn’t really in much of a rush for the night to be over, especially after having bored Candy all night and having it end on such a bad note with a flat tire. I wanted more time with her, more time to turn this night around.
“Want to play a game?” Candy asked, playfully.
I looked at her and smiled. She had an infectious smile. It made me want to agree to whatever she was asking for.
I nodded dumbly.
“Great,” she said. “Because I already got you some shoes and got us a lane.”
It was my turn to laugh.
We started playing. I hadn’t played in years and it showed. She beat me terribly. And she wasn’t really much of a gracious winner. She made sure to rub in the fact that she won with a full victory dance. I laughed hard at her dancing. It was amusing to watch her dance around the bowling lane. I could tell that other people were amused, too, because she got a lot of smiles and laughs from people playing in nearby lanes.
This was the Candy I wanted to see, the curious, fun, vibrant girl I’d seen hiding in the corner at that first auction. Despite her hesitation that night, there was something in her eyes that spoke volumes. There was something wild in her aching to be set free, and I wanted to be the one to uncage her.
But, even while they were making my heart bloom with unexpected feelings for this girl, her dances were also turning me on. The way that she shook her ass, moving her hips in circles made me think about the way that she writhed on the stage beneath my tongue.
More than anything, being there in the bowling alley with her, laughing until my belly hurt, reminded me that I was having more fun than I could remember having in a very long time. She was showing me that things didn’t have to be a crazy party for it to be fun. She looked like she was having more fun dancing around the bowling alley than to any of the wild parties that I could have taken her to.
It made me think that maybe I should consider slowing down a little bit and taking things in more. It would help me to better appreciate the finer things in life rather than speeding through life at such a break-neck speed that it’s hard to appreciate much of anything.
Maybe I would help her embrace her wild side, but this girl was also giving me a brand new perspective on life, making me want to reign in mine to match hers. I had to know more about her.
“Let’s sit out in front and wait on Amelia,” I said.
I used waiting on Amelia as an excuse. I really just wanted to talk to her more. I actually hoped that Amelia would take her sweet time in coming to get us.
“I had a great time here,” she said, clutching her chest as she laughed.
I could hardly believe it. The unplanned part of the date was the part that she was actually impressed with. I made a mental note never to plan another date.
“So did I,” I admitted. “As a matter of fact, I can’t think of the last time that I had so much fun.”
“Me, either,” she said. “I spend so much time working at the bakery that I rarely take time out for anything else for myself.”
I remembered my early days in building my business and remembered how consuming it was.
“But, that kind of comes with building a solid business, I think,” I said.
“You sound like me,” she said, chuckling lightly.
“Well it is,” I said. “I remember building my business and not having time for anything else. But, if I hadn’t have done those things that I needed to do in the beginning, I wouldn’t be in the place I am now.”
I didn’t want to sound like a braggy douchebag, so I didn’t often drop the word that started with “b” and ended with “illionaire.”
“Yes, I know,” she said. “But, when it’s all that you’re doing, you can start to wonder if it’s all worth it. I mean, I did nothing but build my business from the time that I got started until now. I worked really hard to build it up to where it is now. You can ask anyone. It’s my baby. It’s my legacy. I don’t have kids, but it’s the way that I want the world to remember me: as a dedicated and talented baker. I mean, not that I don’t want kids or anything, but-“
“No, I get it,” I laughed, “Right now you’re just throwing everything into your dream, just like I did. And then once I got where I wanted, I kind of went a little…fun crazy, I guess,” I admitted.
“You make it sound like you went totally off the rails.”
It felt like I had. I’d had more than my fair share of girls and booze. I’d woken up far too many times in unfamiliar places with no recollection of how I’d gotten there. I’d trashed hotel rooms, swung from chandeliers…
But at the same time, there were lines I didn’t cross. Other than a joint here or there, I’d never played with drugs, and even weed hadn’t been fun for me, just made me hungry and sleepy. I’d kept things…tame-ish.
We talked for a while longer until Amelia got there. It was refreshing to have such a nice conversation with her. Not only
