ECHOES IN ETERNITY

MYSTERY MAN Part 3

My brain and mouth loose connection for two whole minutes and I blatantly stare at the specimen of a man before me unable to take my gaze away, or blink for that matter. I swallow and after taking a deep breath I manage to string a few coherent words together.

"Uhm, no," I manage to say finally, clearing my throat. I try to collect my wits without feeling lost, "I was just stretching."

"Oh," he replies simply looking at me with a serious face. I can finally see the contours of it clearly, and I think he is trying to look nonchalant. His voice has something deeper, as if he is yearning for something, with recognition, like he knows me.

"Do you mind if I run with you?" he asks and the voice has a caressing effect on me; causing me to immediately think that this man can do things to a woman with his voice others can't manage to do with their hands! My mouth is slightly open and I am having trouble getting words out of it. He looks at me expectantly with the intensity of his penetrating gaze, looking through me, assessing.

Oh shit! He'll think I'm intellectually challenged, or maybe that's the initial reaction he gets from every woman which I assume it gets progressively worse, just like I'm behaving right now. His presence is immensely captivating. Even though his gaze is hidden behind his dark sun-glasses, I feel its burning ferocity, permeating through my skin, heating me up, and giving me shivers all at the same time. This man could make love with one look, or two words and make a woman come, buckling her at the knees without even touching her.

I dip my hand into my sports bra in a bid to turn the volume down of my boob Pod as his eyes follow my fingers, and he gives me a suppressed, crooked smile that calls to something deeper in my groin, "my iPod," I mutter quickly.

"I see..." he murmurs, absently caressing his lower lip with his index finger, drawing my attention to his mouth. "That explains why you couldn't hear me," he says excusing my dumbstruck behavior.

"Yeah, well..." I reply, with another less than intelligent response. "I'm sorry... I, uhm, I like to do my morning runs alone," I say finally stringing together a half coherent sentence while dismissing him. If I remain here, I'll end up making an even bigger ass of myself in front of this seductively attractive man.

"I'm Alex," he says in an enticingly assertive tone as if he didn't hear me just dismiss him, extending his hand to me expectantly. His proximity is putting all my senses into overdrive with his tall, lean, angular, fluently muscular stature, and short, dark, wavy hair encasing his well-chiseled face spectacularly. And those eyes hidden behind a manly pair of expensive jogging glasses still manage to pierce through me with a scorching force. Everything he has on, although delightfully few are screaming with class, and expensive taste--unlike my collar ripped white t-shirt purchased from the $5 or Less store by the pier in downtown Santa Barbara. Sarah, my contrived mother would approve of his expensive taste, begrudgingly. I notice that his t-shirt is off and conveniently tucked behind his shorts, underlining and emphasizing his well-worked out abs covered with a sheen of sweat. I feel the heat rising in me despite the cool ocean breeze. I try to hide my blush to no avail. The slight quiver of his lips gives his amusement away making me pout. But, my years of ingrained manners take over.

"Ellie," I murmur as I reach out to take his proffered hand. The second the tips of his fingers touch mine, I feel a fiery spark and a jolt that courses from him into me, making my throat dry. I feel as if I dipped my hand into hot burning coals wrist deep, and find myself gasping for air, and immediately and forcefully pull my hand back from him. If he didn't reach out to catch my forearms lightning fast with both his hands immediately, I would have been knocked on my ass into the sand, but instead I'm now flush with his body so close not even air would pass through between us. I feel his breath hitch, and then he inhales deep, shaky breath as if to absorb my scent. I think he just whispered my full name, "Elissa Cassandra!" with a yearning sadness in his voice. Or am I just imagining things?