Chapter 3

After telling Mare about my Man of Mystery, I ordered a drink at the bar and I moved myself to the booth that he had sat in earlier. I sat back and nursed my drink while watching the other party goers. I was impressed with the vantage point that this booth offered. I could see just about every inch of the room before me. I ooohh'd and ahhhh'd over the different masks everyone else had. The all varied in design and color. They we're all beautiful. Each mask more beautiful and unique than the last. Except for one, well make that two Mine and his.

What were the odds? I mean, I did order it out of a catalog at the store, so it's entirely possibly that someone else could have ordered the same one. What held me deep in thought though, were the odds that that we had the same mask. That the one man that totally captured my speechless attention for the night, had ordered the same exact mask as mine.

I relived every moment of our time together. I smiled to myself happily for a moment. Then my smiled faded as I realized I would probably never see this man again. I felt a pang in my chest. I sighed and took another sip of my drink. I made a sour face and looked into my glass. Watered down, ugh. That certainly was convenient. I decided that I was ready to go. I figured that at least, for a while, this night wasn't a total bust. I had better leave while I was ahead.

I stood up and searched the crowd for Lenny and Mare. I spotted them at the bar not to far away.

"Hey Mare, Lenny, having a good time?" I said grinning.

Mare smiled at me and even in the low light, you could see her face flush slightly. Lenny must be laying on the charm tonight because Mare never blushed.

"Enchanting." replied Lenny looking intently at Mare, and I spied her skin flush an even darker shade of pink I realized then that I doubt I would be able to drag Mare out of here this early.

"Mare, could I talk to you for a minute?" I asked as I pulled her to the side. "Do you think Lenny would mind taking you home? I'm getting kind of tired and thought maybe I could take your car,."

"Sure Steph" Mare said as she passed me her valet slip.

"Thanks Mare, I really appreciate this." She smiled and pulled me into a quick hug. "I'll see you tomorrow."

***

When I got home, I stripped and jumped into the shower. As I stood under the hot spray, my mind ran through the events of the day. Wake up. School. Watson's homework. Shopping. The Mask. I sighed, The mask, our masks. I smiled as I thought about dancing with my Mystery Man again. Damn it Steph focus. You won't ever see him again.

I tried to clear my head and refocus on the rest of my day. I had this nagging feeling that I was forgetting about something. I squeezed some shower gel on a fluff and started to wash, while still wracking my brain on what I was forgetting.

Dickie. It hit me all at once. First the anger at him for bailing on me. Then the guilt hit. Shit. The events at the club tonight totally made me forget that I was even seeing someone, let alone that I had a boyfriend at all. It doesn't matter though, I told myself again. I'm with Dickie. It was just a few dances, I didn't even get his name. Huh, just a few dances, yea right! How could I forget about that kiss?! That was some kiss! No one had ever kissed me like that before. It was filled with passion, lust, want and need. I felt a little light headed just thinking about it!

When I finally pulled myself back to reality, I realized that I had made it out of the shower and into pajamas. I climbed into bed and turned out the lamp. I laid there for a few minutes, trying to completely clear my mind. I wasn't doing a very good job at it, but a heartbeat later, I let myself go to my body's need for sleep.

***

My eyes shot open instantly. I sat straight up in bed and the panic started to set in. I wasn't in my bed. I glanced around the room realizing I had no idea where I was or how I got here. I started to think back, what was the last thing that I remembered? Falling asleep thinking about him. Then the sudden feeling of all he hairs on the back of my neck standing on end and the electric shock that ran straight down my back. That was the same reaction my body had right before our eyes met. I wonder what that means?

I looked around the room again, taking in my surroundings. It was beautiful. The whole room was done in warm cream and black. I was sitting on a black cast iron four poster bed that sat high off the floor. To the left of the bed was a cozy looking fireplace with a small fire burning inside. A black and cream rug adorned the space in front of the fireplace on the wood floor. There was a love seat and an arm chair facing the fireplace. I could see from here that there was someone sitting in the arm chair. All I could see was the top of their head. I felt that familiar tingle run down my spine again.

I slid off the bed and felt the sheer material against my skin. I had processed so much in a short period of time, that I didn't realize I was no longer in my sleepware. Instead, I stared down at the white sundress and classy heeled sandals. I lifted my hands to my face to find I was still wearing my mask and my hair was still in the loose up do I had it in last night.

I was pulled from my thoughts when I heard movement from the armchair and a clink against hard wood. I continued to remove myself from the bed and walked over to the side of the armchair.

I walked towards the fire. I continued to watch the figure in the chair as I walked closter. I froze in place as I watched the man, now that I could see better, hunch over and place his head in his hands. I felt suddenly compelled to comfort him for whatever was causing him to act that way. I walked even closer and stood directly in fornt of him. He seemed unaware of my presence. I reached out and ran my hand through his hair in a comforting fashion.

His head shot up in shock and I took a cautious step back. I instantly stilled as I recognized him. It was HIM. My mystery man. He was still in his tux, minus his jacket. His hair, no longer pulled back, fell lightly at his shoulders. He too, still had on his mask, but I could see the emotions flash across his soft brown eyes, and his expression relaxed.

He smiled at me as he stood up. He reached out for my hand and pulled me into a warm embrace. I let out a sigh of relief as I burried my myself into his strong body. I felt that same feeling of completeness wash over me. Only in his arms, did I now feel the voic in my life without him. He pulled away, still holding onto me, as he pulled me me into his lap as he sat back into the chair. He placed a finger under my chin and pulled me in for a kiss. I felt like I was in heaven. It was soft and slow, filled with passion. I let myself go into the kiss returning the tenderness he offered. It felt neverending, and I was content with that.

Sadly, he broke our kiss, pullingme to him and putting my head on his shoulder. I couldn't see his face, but it was like I could feel his emotions. Relief, joy, peace,. It was all right there in his embrace. It seemed though, as if he was holding onto me as though I was going to slip through his fingers. As if we were in a dream and I would disappear if he were to let go.

He placed a light kiss in my hair and let out a sigh as he held me tighter.

"Babe.."