Chapter Seven
Rose's heart was in her throat and her hands were shaking. Dimitri was nonchalantly walking around the store, scanning the organized shelves and occasionally lifting something up to give it a closer look. He was wearing a dark, black leather jacket, faded jeans, and a dark blue knit shirt. His long hair was in a messy ponytail and his whole demeanor screamed confidence. Rose had never seen a person so predatory before in her life. His walk could easily be described as a prowl; animalistic in nature.
She wasn't sure what sent this man back into her life through such odd circumstances, but she would be lying if she said she wasn't at least a little excited; albeit terrified. When Dimitri had seen her that night at the party she was a different version of herself; a lot less clothes and a lot more confident. Now, she was dressed in her Plain clothes—a dress that fit loosely over her like a shrug, a clean face, and her dark hair pulled back in a tight bun. She was sure that if someone were to see them together now, they would laugh at how different the two people were.
When it became obvious that Dimitri was going to make his way towards the counter, Rose quickly turned around looking for a place to go.
Stupid, stupid, stupid. You're the only one in the store. You can't just leave!
Realizing she was out of options and feeling defeated, she resigned herself to the fact that this was about to get awkward.
"Excuse me," He said. His voice was strong like she remembered it, but much softer. Almost like he was coaxing a wounded animal. "Do you have frypies by any chance?"
Her only hope at this point was that maybe she looked so different that he wouldn't even recognize her. Either way, she couldn't just stand here with her back turned after he asked her a question about the store.
Turning around, she looked up at him for the first time. She realized it must be odd for him; here he was looking almost exactly the same aside from the color of his shirt, and she was an entirely different person.
"What kind of frypie would you like, sir?" Rose asked, half hoping he wouldn't recognize her and half hoping he would.
One look in his eyes and she knew the answer. Maybe it was just her imagination, but he was looking at her like she had sprouted a second head since he had been standing there. His disbelief was obvious, but thankfully short-lived.
Rose tensed up further when his surprise quickly turned to humor. His mouth turned up in a dangerous smirk and she felt her mouth go dry as she waited for him to say something; anything.
"Well, I didn't think I'd be seeing you again, sweetheart."
Just like the last time, the word sweetheart made her heart flutter. Dimitri was the only person that could use such an endearment and make it sound dirty like a curse.
Realizing that she needed to speak, Rose cleared her throat. "It's good to see you again, Dimitri."
That was good wasn't it? Polite, to the point. She didn't even think her voice cracked.
The smirk was back again. "You certainly look…different…from the last time I saw you."
Ha! That had to be the understatement of the year. Rose felt her cheeks flush as she looked down guiltily. The only thing she could think to do was apologize, though she wasn't sure why. "I'm sorry."
He looked startled. "Sorry? For what exactly?"
"I don't know. Looking different? Lying? I'm just sorry, okay?" Rose was quickly becoming frustrated with the situation. Dimitri seemed to be so calm while she felt like she was under investigation. She wasn't even sure why she felt so ill at ease. Technically, she knew that she had done nothing wrong. The situation was simply one she hadn't prepared for. And why should she feel like she owed Dimitri an explanation? It had been obvious when he had dropped her off at her house that night that he had no intentions of seeing her ever again. He had just been nice in a brotherly sort of way, she was certain. But she still couldn't deny the fact that she had developed a little crush on Dimitri since she had met him; and it bothered her that he was seeing her in such a vulnerable state.
"Why exactly would you be sorry for that?" He asked her incredulously. "I'll admit, I'm a little surprised to see you in anything but those tight pants from the other night. I don't think you were meant to be so covered up."
His gaze was playful and Rose knew that he was only teasing her. She was still caught between being embarrassed and being flattered about the pants comment.
Deciding that being shy would only make things more awkward, Rose gave Dimitri a small smile in return.
"It's funny you should say that, considering that was the first time I've ever worn anything other than this." She replied, tugging on her green dress.
With the motion of her hands on her dress, his eyes dipped down and took in her form. The blush was back full force as she felt his eyes raking over her. How was it that she was dressed in what must have been the most modest outfit someone could dream up, and he still made her feel sinful?
"You've been wearing that same dress your whole life?" he implored with a raised eyebrow.
"NO! I— " He cut her off with a chuckle.
"I'm just pulling your leg, sweetheart." He said, teasing her once again. "So this is what you do when you aren't hanging out at college parties then?" He asked, gesturing to the store around them.
"For the record, I don't make a habit of hanging out at parties." She clarified. "And yeah, the Millers are family friends. They just asked me to start working here a couple of days ago."
Dimitri accepted her answer with a nod, and then looked around him at the store; void of people with the exception of themselves.
"Well, since you don't like to make a habit of going to parties, maybe you would feel a little more comfortable with something a little less crazy." He said this looking a little unsure of himself; a new look for him, Rose was sure. "Maybe you'd like to go for another bike ride?"
Rose couldn't believe what he was offering her. Despite the fact that he had seen her in her Amish clothes and knew of her background, he still wanted to spend time with her again. She knew that it was stupid, and risky, and just plain unnecessary, but Rose knew that her time to be free and have some fun was limited. A little ride on his bike wouldn't hurt anything, right?
"I would really like that." Rose said, this time her smile was large and not shy at all.
Dimitri grinned, and reached around her to the back of the counter. Rose started as his arm lightly brushed her stomach on his way to grab a pen and a homemade brochure for a local farm offering horse and buggy rides.
In somewhat messy script, he wrote his name and a phone number. Dimitri folded the paper in half and tucked it gently into the pocket of Rose's dress, making her blush and look down, unable to look into the dark eyes that never left her face even for a second.
"You call me when you want that ride, sweetheart." He said, walking out of the store and leaving Rose with pink cheeks, unable to catch her breath.
Personally, bad boy Dimitri does things for me…. Anyone have any suggestions of what side of Dimitri they would like to see more off? ;)
Leave me love!
xoxo
Lydia