Sand Point Way

Shana walked through the milling crowd, peering around for the pretty blonde with loose flowing curls. The hair that Cassie flicked irrefutably every time she flirted or accosted a young gentleman. After doing four or five walkthroughs of Tobias's place, her frustration had peaked. She walked outside the penthouse to the elevator and rode it all the way down in a fury of silent curses running through her head.

As she walked out to the parking lot, the same five words kept running through her mind. I am going to kill Cassie! When she rounded the corner, all her suspicions proved correct, and she couldn't help but let out a very unladylike "FUCK!" echo through the parking lot. "I AM going to kill Cassie."

"I am not sure killing your roommate over her taking the car is reasonable, but who am I to judge? After all, I did just meet you. It could very well be exactly like you to kill someone over a car." The soft baritone voice caught her slightly off guard, and she jumped a little.

"Jeez..." She turned around and saw Cyrus a few feet away, leaning on a very sleek, very expensive black Mercedes McLaren with dark tinted windows. "Way to scare the crap out of me. Oh, and no, I don't think killing someone over a car is worth it… Besides, I hadn't meant to say that out loud," she said, both surprised and annoyed at his implications.

"I know, that's what makes this all so slightly amusing. I haven't been this entertained at one of Tobias's parties in a long time." He chuckled softly, and she found she quite liked the way the sound bubbled from the back of his throat in a soft, husky sound. "Can I offer you a ride?" She looked at his charming face, still slightly flustered, and weighed her options.

"Yes, thank you," she responded decidedly, not letting his joke poke at her. She walked slowly towards his car and watched as he walked to the passenger's side and met her there with an open door and a slight bow. She looked at him from her peripheral vision and gave him a large grin as he shut the door behind her.

Sitting in the cool leather seat, Shana surveyed the clean car around her. Well, he certainly likes expensive things, she thought. She rubbed her arm uncomfortably, then reached forward and touched the dash. It was cool; the black leather left her fingertips tingling and chilled. She looked at her finger—not a speck of dust on the entire thing. The inside was immaculate.

The interior was all black, just like the outside, and gave her this odd feeling of being in a small, dark, comfortable cave. The dash was decked out with all the bells and whistles the car could probably offer. It seemed all very busy up front without being very busy. She looked over as Cyrus got into the car and shut the door behind him.

The car filled with a slight awkward silence as he turned the vehicle on and let it run for a second. When he didn't back out or make any attempt at moving the car anywhere, her mind jumped to a thousand different scenarios. You just met this guy. What if he is someone dangerous? What if he has bad habits? It's night—where are you going to get help from? Calm down, you have your cell. You can just dial 911 if things go wrong. Poke him in the eyes if he tries anything...

"No offense, sitting here is nice and all…but where am I taking you?" he asked smoothly.

She controlled her burst of relief and laughter that threatened to overwhelm her for a second. She brought her head back up, composed, then looked over at him with as serious a look as she could muster.

"7239 Apartment 13 Sand Point Way. Thanks."

His eyebrows rose in surprise, then he relaxed and put his hand on the shifter.

"Whatever the lady so desires." He gave her a smile, then put the car in drive.

Whatever I desire, huh? Shana felt like punching herself for even thinking that. She looked down at her hands and played with the ring that lay on her right ring finger. Her grandmother's ring, an heirloom.