That Night.....Part 6

"Thank you for the dance," Sean says awkwardly. He didn't know what else to say in that moment. It's now 2am, the bar is closing, and he hasn't kissed her. Without realizing it, he and Zara had danced for about an hour and a half straight. Sean had ample opportunity to join his lips to hers but he had an urge to take his time. He had been enjoying the build of the anticipation, and his ego wanted to build the anticipation so much that this woman would practically be begging him to kiss her. He wonders if Zara is the type to beg for anything. He realizes it might have been a mistake to play the long game. As soon as the house lights came on and the vibe was interrupted, Zara reverted right back to the distant, half-interested posture she'd had when he first introduced himself.

Zara surveys the crowd seemingly in search of her friend. In reality, she cannot bring herself to look at Sean. She doesn't want him to see the disappointment in her face. She's also embarrassed. Whatever she had just experienced with Sean was unreal and she has no idea how to process it in the moment. So she avoids his stare, pretending to be looking for Eve even though she and Eve had come to the bar separately. Unbeknownst to Zara, Eve had already left the bar. Whenever Zara later checks her phone, she will see a text message from Eve telling her to "enjoy the rest of the night" with a winking smiley face. In this moment, however, Zara's faux quest to find her friend is nothing more than an attempt to distract herself from Sean. It isn't because he'd done anything wrong. To the contrary, something about the past 90 minutes in his arms felt so right. It felt too easy. It was too exhilarating and calming all at once. Zara is all over the place inside. Her spirit is in complete confusion and turmoil. "What in the world just happened between us?" she keeps asking herself. "Why didn't he kiss me? Do I smell like cigarettes?"

Sean stands aside watching her. Eve is nowhere in sight and Zara knows she can't keep this charade up for much longer. Sean can sense the panic arising in Zara and extends her an olive branch.

"Looks like your girl left already. I can walk you to your car."

Relieved, Zara simply says okay and pushes past the crowd toward the door. Sean follows behind her. When they reach Zara's car, Sean follows her to the drivers' side to open her door but hesitates when the opportunity arises. He isn't ready for the night to end. He considers asking for her phone number but figures she would never call. Even if she answers his calls, he knows he won't get this moment back. The time is now and he is aware of the urgency of it. He considers kissing her before she gets into the car. Instead of reaching for the door handle to open it, he places his hand on top of the car, just at the doorsill, and subtly leans his weight against it.

Zara notices this gesture. If she wanted to just open the door, get in, and drive away, she could. She didn't feel like she was being held hostage. To Zara, Sean communicated that something was unfinished between them and she agreed. She wants more too. More to the point, she is craving his lips on hers.

"Are you hungry?" Sean blurts out. At first, Zara is confused.

"Um, not really," she responds before realizing that this is an opportunity to extend the evening and, perhaps, end it with a kiss. Part of her is annoyed. "Why is he dragging this out? Either you want me or you don't. What is this game we're playing?" she wonders.

"Okay," he responds simply. Zara can tell that he is disappointed at her response. She watches him as he searches for his next move. Now it's her turn to extend the olive branch.

"Actually, now that you mention it, I haven't eaten anything since lunch. Maybe I should put something on my stomach," she says sweetly. A smile spreads across Sean's face. He has such a great smile. "There's a 24 hour diner just up the street on Cahuenga. I can drive since we're already at my car."

"Okay cool. I didn't drive anyway. I rode with Mina.....who has clearly abandoned me now that I think of it." He laughs to himself.

"Oh no! Do you wanna check to see if she's still here?"

"Nah. It's fine. I'm a big boy. I can catch a rideshare home. I appreciate your concern though. Its cute."

Zara blushes like a schoolgirl. "Okay then, big boy," Zara teases. "Let's go."

Sean strolls over to the passenger side and gets in the car. As Zara focuses on maneuvering out of the parking space, Sean rests his hand on the inside of her thigh, just above her knee. It takes all of Zara's willpower to remain focused on the incoming traffic. If she had it her way, they could just make out right here in front of the bar. Damn the food! Something about this man's touch sends her body into hysterics. Every molecule in her body literally bounces around in excitement and anticipation. Zara's containment of it all starts to weaken with each passing second. Luckily, the diner is only about a 3-minute drive from the bar. Ten more seconds in that car with his hands on her thigh and Zara would have lost her composure and pounced on him like a little meerkat.

Parking at the diner was easy enough. Sean opens his door and announces to Zara that he will open her door, indicating that she should wait for him to do so. Zara generally doesn't wait for men to open her car door. It usually didn't happen so she had grown accustomed to not waiting for it. On such rare occasions as this, she had no problem waiting patiently for the gentleman to perform his duty. She can tell that Sean is the type of man who confidently takes the lead and treats his women like ladies. Zara finds his confidence sexy and alluring. She has no idea where this night is headed but she is open to it. Although they'd only met a couple of hours ago, she feels safe in his lead.

Once in the diner, Sean points out a booth in the corner of the restaurant and requests to be seated there. He looks over to Zara for her approval and she nods her head in agreement. In her mind, he chose the perfect seat. The diner wasn't too crowded and the booth would give the two a bit of privacy.

As Zara slides into the booth, Sean informs her that he is going to the men's room. While she has a few moments alone, she checks her text messages. She sees Eve's message from around 1:30am and responds succinctly with "GIRL! Call you tomorrow with deets!" and a winking smiley face. Zara responds to a couple of other texts and switches to the camera app so she can check her lipstick. It was long worn off so she takes out the tube to freshen it up at the table. She pops another mint in her mouth, returns the contents to her purse, and snaps it closed.

Sean returns from the bathroom refreshed. He had given himself a small pep talk in the men's room. He didn't have a plan at this point. He couldn't read Zara the way he could read most women. Every time he felt like he had reeled her in, she skillfully unhooked herself and swam away like a cunning little mermaid. Something about this chase intrigued him. He felt like she had somehow hooked and reeled him in! He wants more of her vibe, her energy. He has no real intention of taking her to bed tonight. Of course, he wouldn't reject her if she initiates. Some unfamiliar connection had certainly been made in the bar and he has no idea how to navigate it. The pep talk helps him regain some composure and sense of control. He concludes to just enjoy some food and hopefully good conversation, then go home.

"Hey you," Sean catches Zara's attention from the menu. "What looks good on the menu?"

"Thinking about some chilaquiles. I had them here before and they were amazing."

"What is that?"

Zara giggles. "Yeah, you are definitely new to LA. It's like nachos except with eggs. Kinda like nachos for lunch, chilaquiles for breakfast. Does that make any sense?"

"Kinda. I'm open to something new though." When the waitress comes over, Sean orders chilaquiles for each of them.

"So, you said you moved here for work but you didn't tell me what you do."

"I'm an HR professional. My company promoted me to handle the West division of the company. My exact title is Director of Human Capital West. It's fancy for a position that really does nothing more than conflict resolution."

"Doesn't sound like you love it. Tell me, what are you passionate about?"

Sean's inquiry takes Zara by surprise. She initially has no answer. At least, nothing flirty and cute. His question abruptly shifted the conversation from light and fun to deep and intimate. Zara squirms in her seat with discomfort. The way Sean looks at her waiting for her response tells Zara that he isn't going to be satisfied with any answer other than the heartfelt truth.

"Dancing," Zara whispers before she even realizes what would come out of her mouth. It was as honest as Zara had ever answered that question.

"So then why aren't you doing that?"

"Because I like to make money," Zara says with a laugh, attempting to ease the tension. Sean joins in the laugh but he continues with the conversation. He wants to know more about Zara. He needs to know who this woman is, what she's about. He knows there is something between them and he must figure it out before she leaves his presence.

Zara feels it too. Her natural defenses want to resist him. She wants to dodge his piercing questions but something about him just brings out her innermost self. She had not talked about her passions with anyone in a while, not even with Eve. Zara's relationships in LA were mostly surface. Depth just isn't a thing in the sunny city of angels. Who is this man undressing me this way? she wonders. But nothing about the conversation was forced. It just flowed like magic. Before they knew it, they were sitting in a diner with empty plates in front of them, hardly any other patrons around them, and the sun starting to rise before them.

"Wow! The sun is coming up! What time is it?!" Zara exclaims in disbelief and looks at her phone for the time. The clock reads 5:43am.

"Damn. It is," says Sean, equally in disbelief. They look at each other, each wondering how time had flown by so fast. Neither can conceive how they managed to spend so many hours together upon first meeting. The first coherent thought to come to Sean's mind is that this is the moment. Now or never. This time, he follows his instincts and goes in for the kiss. At first, his lips only lightly brush against Zara's. He wants to be sure that she is inviting. When her eyes close and her hand caresses the back of his neck, he accepts the invitation and takes her lips between his. She parts her lips, inviting him further, and he grabs her by the waist, bringing her closer, deepening the kiss. The passion between them is so strong and so pure yet carnal. It wasn't entirely lustful but it was sexy as hell. It wasn't a prelude to something else. This kiss was no mere appetizer before the main course, as kisses often tended to be. Not this night. For Zara and Sean, this kiss was precisely what the night had been building up to. Nothing further was needed.

They kissed for many minutes, maybe 10, maybe 30. When they finally parted from the kiss, Zara knew that something more than a mere joining of the lips had just transpired. Zara had no words. She literally did not utter a sound from the moment he took her by the hand, led her to her car, kissed her once more, and promised to call her the next day. She literally just floated from the table, to her car, to her apartment, to her bed, and ultimately to sleep.

By the next afternoon, Zara had no idea how any of it had happened or if any of it had been real. Zara immediately dismissed the notion that she may have fallen in love with a total stranger in one night. Such notions are silly. She lay there in her bed going over every detail of the previous night and early morning, completely in awe. "I can't possibly be in love so quickly. We just met. Maybe I was drunk? I'm probably romanticizing it." So many thoughts race through Zara's mind at once. "But that kiss.....omg, that kiss." Zara's body warms from her head down to her toes. Tears form in her eyes for no apparent reason. There are no adequate words for what she is feeling. Her body's only way of expressing it is with tears. She let them fall. She was scared and happy and unhinged and at peace all at once. Trying desperately to reason with herself to no avail, her mind settles on one question over and over again. It was a dangerous question to ask. It would lead down a road of absolute uncertainty and vulnerability, each conditions with which Zara had always been incredibly uncomfortable. She decided she wouldn't resist it this time. This time, the answer might finally be in her favor.

Her cell phone dinged, letting her know that she had a new text message. It was from Sean. It simply read, "Dinner tonight?" Zara smiles. She lets out a sigh and allows herself to speak the question out loud, "Could this be the One?"