Her beautiful, blue eyes peeped open, and she pulled the covers up with a yawn as she saw me walking back in with the tray of food.
The food seemed to wake her up, her eyes becoming clearer and a smile gracing her beautiful face.
"You didn't have to do that for me."
"Nonsense. It was a great night, and I'm an early riser."
I gave her a warm smile, setting the tray down as she scooted up into a sitting position on the bed.
"I didn't even hear you get up." She rubbed her eyes. "Sort of thought you'd be the type to slip out. I mean, this was a no strings attached sort of thing, right?"
"Yeah, but that doesn't mean I don't enjoy some morning cuddles."
Slipping back under the covers, I pressed up next to her, pulling the tray so it ran across both of our laps.
The night had definitely been about having a bit of fun and satisfying my needs, but I tried to at least be a gentleman.
I may not want to be with her forever, but breakfast didn't bother me as long as she didn't get the wrong idea.
But it would help if I could remember her name.
I looked around the room, seeing if anything would jog my memory, but it stayed elusive.
If I had a shrink, they might theorize that I subconsciously pushed women away by doing something as simple as forgetting their names.
And there might be something to it.
I hadn't had a serious relationship since… well… since my powers had blossomed that horrible night as a teenager.
Dark thoughts of that night threatened to rise back up in the dark corners of my mind, and I slammed them back down. I was not about to go down that deep, dark rabbit hole.
"Are you really not super, just enhanced?" She bit into the omelet, moaning a little. "Because this is fucking amazing."
I smirked. "Yeah, just enhanced."
Enhanced was what we called those who had the super gene, but their level of powers weren't quite 'super'.
It was also a blatant lie. "I think it makes life easier not being super."
My powers were a secret from the world, and only to keep that secret did I justify lying. Someone was only as good as their word.
She shrugged with a big smile on her face as she ate the breakfast and spared a few glances at the flower.
She leaned into me, snuggling up. I'd meant it; I enjoyed a good snuggle.
But the look she was giving me told me she might develop more than short-term fling feelings. If she did, I'd have to stop seeing her casually. Which was a shame. She was one of the prettier ones lately and had been fantastic in bed.
"Not that my B grade powers are doing me much good. I'm still stuck modeling in crummy commercials." Her face became a cute type of grumpy.
"You know, you could put on a cape with at least a C grade power. Sign up with the Bureau of Superheroes and save a few kittens, score some photo ops, and really launch your modeling career," I suggested.
Meredith—no, that wasn't it either—frowned. "That doesn't feel like what being a superhero is supposed to be."
I shrugged. "I just finished a commercial with Miss Point City, and I can tell you that she didn't put on a cape to save people. She did it for fame."
And Miss Point City was a bit of a bitch, but I politely left that out.
My date looked at me in surprise. "Really?"
"Yeah, people become heroes for all sorts of reasons."
I speared a few more of the strawberries. Some of them are not so valiant, but I kept that part to myself.
"Huh, I'll have to think about it. But I have another topic." She paused. "How would you feel if we made this thing more regular?"
There was a sparkle of hope glimmering in her eyes.
Melody!
That was her name. I almost cheered but realized that would be poor timing given the topic she'd just led us into.
I looked down at her, trying to figure out how to let her down gently.
"Listen, Melody—"
She took in my face and jumped in. "Fuck. Fuck. I'm sorry, forget I said that. We can just—"
I held up a hand to stop her. The damage was done.
"I get it. But I'm just not in a place where I'm ready for a commitment like that."
I didn't mention that I hadn't been ready for over twenty-five years.
Melody shook her head, tossing her blonde hair. "Damn. Tell me what girl messed you up—I'll go beat her up for all womankind. You were the perfect date last night."
I used the oldest excuse in the book. "I was just trying to get in your pants."
She hit me with a pillow. "Bullshit. Zayn, do you realize how many guys have hit on me? You were genuinely the sweetest, most caring date I've ever had. That and then the sex? This food? I'd like to see anybody not fall for you."
Melody was clearly frustrated, but she didn't aim it at me. She seemed to aim it at the hypothetical woman who had broken my heart, even though that wasn't what had caused me to shut down.
Not wanting to get into it, I just took the excuse.
"I'm not a psychopath. Just not looking for commitment," I tried to reason with her.
But I could still see the wheels spinning in her head, trying to figure out what was 'wrong' with me so that she could fix me.
Damn, I never liked the 'fixer' type of girl; they could get too close to the truth.
She was gorgeous, always dressed well and put together. I had hoped she'd be a little more focused on herself and less on me.
It looked like it was time to bail. And I had to admit that I was a little bummed. I'd been hoping this would last two or three dates before she had tried to make it more.
I looked over at the clock; it was seven, giving me a perfect excuse.
"Look, I have to get to work."