“Thanks, but I’ll be all right.” She pulled on a knee-length elegant red cashmere coat. “I like walking in the snow. It’s kind of nice with all the quiet and the way it muffles sounds—even the traffic.” Her face reddened again. It was clear she wasn’t used to talking about how things made her feel, at least not to strangers.
“Me too.” he said quietly as their eyes met. “About the snow. It’s nice. Like walking in an empty church. There’s a solemn reverence.”
“Yes, exactly.” Aubree looked down at her feet and back up to him. “Well… I should get going. I’m sure I’ll see you later.”
“I hope so. Bring any more bad dates here and drinks are on the house.” He flashed her a smile and she grinned back.
“It’s a deal.”
When she walked away, Matthew felt as though she’d ripped off a small piece of him and was carrying it away in her hands.
Fuck, he was falling for this woman he barely knew. He glanced at his phone and suddenly had an idea. He opened the phone and searched the app store until he saw the Meet Cute app. He downloaded it and hit the “Create Account” button, then he searched until he found her profile.
He couldn’t stop smiling. This was going to be fun.
3
The French Kiss
Three days later…
It was a bit after eight PM when Aubree’s phone beeped. The little heart shape on her screen meant she had a Meet Cute notification. She opened the app.
“Vesper1has sent you a hanky-panky challenge,” She read aloud.
Aubree snuggled deeper into her couch and pulled her cup of hot peppermint tea toward her. She tapped on the question mark icon next to the words hanky-panky to read more about what it was.
“A hanky-panky challenge is a steamy challenge issued by one user to another. The challenge can be completed in person or online with whoever the user receiving the challenge chooses. The user can ignore challenges or accept them.”
“Huh…” Aubree hit the button to read the challenge.
“Vesper1challenges you to French kiss a stranger with an accent.”
It was kind of cute; she had to admit she liked the idea. Maybe because the first guy she thought of was Matthew, the hot Aussie bartender. Aubree stared at the screen for a long moment with her heart racing wildly as she considered if she should accept or not.
“Oh, what the hell.” She hit the green accept challenge button. Little kisses flew up on the screen. Aubree checked her watch and glanced outside her tall apartment windows. It was dark and snowy, but the walk to Love Potion #9 wasn’t that far. She threw off her cozy blanket and headed to her walk-in closet. After trying a dozen outfits, she finally picked a dark green knee-length long-sleeved dress, black tights, and cute little black ankle boots. Before leaving, she pulled on her coat, a scarf and a knit cap.
By the time she reached the bar, it was almost nine PM and the place was full of customers. Aubree saw three bartenders, including Matthew, working hard to fill orders. She hesitated, half hidden behind a tall wall that separated the bar from the restaurant portion of the large room. Matthew grinned as he shook a metal shaker and poured the contents into two glasses before topping them with cherries and umbrellas. It was clear he truly loved his job. But it still puzzled her a little that a smart man like him had left the business world just to make drinks. But if someone loved something, shouldn’t they do it? As tough as her job was, she liked it a lot. Its challenges were fascinating; the way the trading floors worked had always been so interesting to her.
Aubree wondered if she should go home since the bar was full, but as Matthew’s eyes swept the crowd, he spotted her and lifted his head in a silent greeting. When she didn’t move, he waved her over. Her heart gave another wild excited bump as she approached.
“Have a seat.” Matthew nodded at the only empty bar stool and looked at her expectantly. His blue eyes were so bright and intense.
“Just water, for now.” She blushed and ducked her head. How did a girl ask a guy to French kiss her? She didn’t really want to do that in a crowded bar.
“You eaten dinner yet?” He called out over the hubbub of the surrounding customer conversations.
She shook her head. She’d actually forgotten about dinner tonight; she been busy working late at home on project for work.
“If you can wait ten minutes, I have an hour break. There’s a great pizza place next door.”
“Sal’s?” She nodded eagerly. She loved Sal’s deep-dish pizzas.
“Great.” Matthew moved further down the bar to prepare more drinks.
Ten minutes later, he handed off his black bar apron to another young man and grabbed his charcoal gray peacoat from the coat rack behind the bar. He put a hand on Aubree’s lower back as he guided her out the front door, and her body burned from that single touch. They walked to the restaurant next door and ducked inside as wind blew down the street, showering them with fresh snow.
Aubree laughed as she brushed snowflakes off her nose and her heart stilled when she looked at Matthew’s face. His eyes were bright and clear, and his lips were curved in a playful grin as he pulled her up against him. She gasped, a little shocked that he would touch her like that, but she had to admit she liked it.
