SEVEN | A DOUBLE DATE

Gio POV

"You're really going on a date? What am I supposed to do here all by myself?" Demetrius threw himself on my bed and asked. A couple of hours ago, Jasmine and I decided that we would meet up for drinks and to continue our conversation from last night. She'd been on my mind all day, and I was excited to see her face again.

"Drinks, Demetrius. He's going out for drinks, that's not a date," Jenna replied. Since running into her at the park, we'd been hanging out more and more, and she was quickly becoming one of my closest friends. It was nice to have a woman's point of view on things, and even though she was probably the coolest and most gorgeous woman I'd ever met, we didn't have any romantic feelings for one another. We just clicked like nothing I'd ever experienced before, and I was glad that she was a part of my life.

"Thank you, Pixie; he just doesn't listen to anything I ever say," I looked over at her and stated.

"Whatever, just so you know, Jenna, the position of best friend has been filled, I don't care if he has a cute nickname for you or not," Demetrius said with a scowl.

"Chill out; no one is moving in on your turf. If you or Gio want me to leave, just say the word, and I'm gone. I'm not trying to force myself into any place I'm not wanted," Jenna stood up and said. I loved how feisty she was. It didn't matter how short she may have been; she was going to stick up for herself at all costs. Looking at her in the mirror, I realized that she and Jasmine looked a lot alike, maybe that was what attracted me to her so quickly.

"You're wanted, sweetie, so sit down and help me pick out a shirt for tonight, please. Demetrius is just jealous because he's never had a female friend, and he had his eye on you first," I replied.

"Stone! That's against guy code; you can't tell a chick something like that!" Demetrius jumped up and yelled, making me and Jenna laugh.

"Just pretend he's not here. So what do you think? Should I go casual or more dressed up? I really like this girl, but I don't want to come on too strong, and I need to take things slow to start off."

"Go casual; it sets the tone for friendly drinks, so she doesn't get the wrong idea. Also, make sure you let her know your intentions right off the bat; women sometimes have a habit of reading too much into things and giving ourselves false hopes. You don't need to be harsh or mean to be direct and to the point," Jenna offered.

"I saw you and Jasmine together, and I can't remember the last time I saw you look so at peace. Are you sure you don't want to take it to the next level with her?" Demetrius asked.

"I'm positive, at least not right now. Jasmine's an incredible girl, but she's not my mate, and I don't want to get pulled in too deep too fast," I replied.

"In that case, I think it's a terrible idea to even entertain spending time with her. You want your mate, then go find her. Why would you spend time with a woman you really like and risk developing feelings for her? You know she's going to fall for you, there is no way that she won't, and sooner or later you're going to have to break things off and break both your hearts. Why don't you just get back out there with a chick you can tolerate but don't necessarily feel on that deeper level? Protect both you and her from hurt down the line," Demetrius chimed in. I was beyond surprised by his words; he wasn't the type of guy to discuss feelings and matters of the heart.

"Damn, that was deep, and for the first time, I agree with you 100%," Jenna stated.

"Of course you do, you want Gio all to yourself, and now there's a new chick trying to steal him away from you," Demetrius replied.

"You're an asshole, a delusional asshole at that. Gio and I are friends, and we don't see each other that way. It doesn't even matter that we just met, I want him to be happy, just like you do so stop being an idiot because I'm sick of dealing with your shit."

Demetrius smiled at her over his shoulder, and I knew that he was just teasing and testing her resolve. He wasn't the jealous type of person, but he was loyal. If someone new was going to be a part of my life, he was going to make damn sure that their intentions were pure.

"I hear you guys, and I understand what you're saying. But there's just something about this girl; I'm drawn to her in every way imaginable, and I want to see where it goes. I promise you both that I'll be careful, but I have to see what it is about Jasmine that makes it impossible to get her off my mind," I replied.

"If you're determined to do this, then I have no other choice. Little Ms. Pixie, it looks like this is about to be a double-date. You and I are tagging along," Demetrius stated. What in the hell had I gotten myself into?

***

"Alright you two, just be cool. I can���t believe I agreed to let you come in the first place, but if you're going to stay, you're going to act like you've got some god damned sense." Demetrius and Jenna were sitting next to one another, sipping their drinks and looking around the room. Any other time, they didn't get along all that well, but when it came to vetting Jasmine, they were able to put their differences aside and become an annoyingly determined team.

"What do you mean, Captain? We're being extremely cool, I haven't even called Demetrius a dick once since we got here," Jenna said with a smile.

"And, I'm strongly considering giving Jenna another shot at riding the D train, her ass looks phenomenal tonight," Demetrius replied. The two of them clinked their glasses and broke out into laughter, making me sigh.

"Fucking hell," I mumbled under my breath. These two were going to drive me insane; I could feel it already.

"Hey...I didn't know that this was going to be a group event," came a voice from behind me. I turned around and saw Jasmine looking between Demetrius and Jenna with a disappointed look on her face.

"Hi gorgeous, these are my friends Demetrius and Jenna. They wanted to tag along and meet the girl I haven't been able to shut up about," I stood up and replied.

I gave her a gentle kiss on the cheek and took her hand, pulling her to sit next to me.

"Are you two together?" Jasmine asked.

I noticed Demetrius and Jenna pass a look between the two of them before she grabbed his hand and smiled brightly. I was surprised by the twinge of possessiveness and jealousy I felt at the small bit of contact the two shared.

"We just recently met, but we can't seem to keep our hands off each other. He loves my ass, and I love his everything," Jenna said.

Hearing this, Jasmine returned Jenna's smile, making the mood at the table thaw considerably. I wasn't sure what Demetrius and Jenna were up to, but as long as it didn't interfere with me getting to know the woman sitting next to me, I wouldn't make much of a fuss about it.

"That's nice to hear, Demetrius has been chasing women for too long and could use a stable girl in his life," Jasmine stated.

Demetrius placed his glass down and tilted his head. "How do you know that? Do I look that much like a player to you?" he asked.

"No, not at all. But Gio and I did a lot of talking last night, and he spoke about you two more than a few times. Two things were made pretty clear: that you were important to him and that you were a wild child," Jasmine chuckled and said.

"You're so pretty, and your skin is goals. What kind of moisturizer do you use?" Jenna chimed in. She had a strange look on her face as she carefully studied Jasmine, and I wanted nothing more than to know what was going on inside that head of hers.

"Oh, thank you, Jenna, you're pretty too, and I love your bracelets." The ladies began to chatter with one another about beauty bars and silk setting powders, forgetting that Demetrius and I were even there.

"So, based on your first impression, tell me what you think," I leaned over to Demetrius and said.

"Well, I saw her last night, but seeing her up close is unreal. She's 100% your type, and because of that, I don't trust her one bit." I wasn't expecting to hear him say that at all. I glanced over to the ladies who were still happily chatting away, then switched to mind link.

What do you mean you don't trust her? You don't even know her.

Exactly. I don't know her, and she doesn't know me, but she talks about me like we've known each other for years. I mean, come on, who says that a guy they just met needs a stable girl in his life? And how come she was an ice queen when she saw Jenna and me at the table, then turned on the charm when we said we were together? Don't tell me you didn't notice.

Of course I did, but I also sprung two extra people on her, so a bit of apprehension is understandable.

Sure. Just be careful with her, man. I love you like a brother and don't want to see you hurt again. I'm probably just jaded after the whole Sasha fiasco.

I appreciate the concern but give Jasmine a chance before you rush to judgment. Do me that favor, please.

If that's what you want, that's what I'll do. Now, since I'm in a relationship I knew nothing about, I'm about to see how far I can take things with my new girlfriend; maybe I can get some action tonight.

Demetrius, don't do anything stupid. Jenna's only playing a role, and if you cross a line, I'll kick your ass without a second thought.

Since when did you get so touchy over your micro-mate?

She's not my mate, but she's a good girl, and I care about her. Do not do anything to make her uncomfortable; I'll never forgive you if you do.

Demetrius again tilted his head and smiled.

Right. Well, we'll see how long that lasts.

Before I could question his meaning, Demetrius cut the mind link and leaned over, placing his nose a few inches from Jenna's neck. "You smell so fucking good Pixie, I want to eat you right here, right now," he whispered, loud enough for the entire table to hear.

Jenna leaned back slightly then turned her head, looking him directly in the eye. "I love where your head is at, but cool your jets, my love. We've got all night for that, and I do mean all night, but for now, we're hanging out with Gio and Jasmine." She then gave him a chaste kiss on the cheek that made my blood boil. Jenna didn't belong to me; we both knew that, but I hated seeing her touching another man. My head was all screwed up, and I didn't know what to do about it.

"How cute are they? And he calls her 'Pixie,' that's so sweet," Jasmine smiled at me and said.

"Yeah, it's so sweet it's almost sickening," I replied. Our waiter came to the table to refresh our drinks and drop off the snacks we'd ordered, and once I pushed the anger aside, I focused my attention on Jasmine and finding out all that I could about her. I kept sneaking glances at Jenna and Demetrius, and it no longer looked like an act but seemed like they were genuinely getting along. I made a mental note to kick his ass when we got back home, and I wasn't even sure what for.

***

"Just don't touch her like that anymore, D! I don't know why and I really wish I did, but seeing your hands on Jenna made me want to rip them off your body," I yelled. We'd been home for about twenty minutes and had been arguing the entire time. All throughout the night, Demetrius and Jenna put on the show of being a new couple, and it became more and more believable as time went on. And even though I had the perfect girl sitting next to me, I had a hard time controlling the constant irritation.

"You can't call dibs on a chick you don't even want like that, Stone. If you want to have a go at Jenna then fine, I'll gladly back off, but if not, you have no play here. Besides, you have Jasmine, right? What do you need with another beautiful woman in your pocket? Stop being so fucking greedy," he replied.

"You don't even like her! Either leave my pixie alone or take your ass back home. That's it."

"Wow. Your pixie, huh? When did that happen?"

I hadn't even realized the words had come from my mouth. Had I really just called Jenna mine? What the fuck was happening?

"You know what I mean, Demetrius. She's important to me, and you have a bad habit of playing with girls and tossing them away. I don't want to see you do that to her."

"Bullshit! Don't lie to me, Gio. Tell me what's really going on, a least give me that. No one knows you better than I do, so what's up?"

I sat down on the couch and hung my head between my knees. There was way too much going on, and I was having the toughest time keeping up with it all.

"I don't know, man. Jenna is sexy, gorgeous, sweet, smart, funny, and great with kids. She's everything I'd want in a mate, and it's just my luck that she's not mine. As much as I'm attracted to her, there is no spark when we touch; I don't see her romantically if that makes any sense at all. But at the same time, I feel a sense of possessiveness over her like I would if she was my mate. It's confusing as hell, like my heart and my mind are at war, and I don't know which one is going to win. I just need time to figure it out, I need to understand what these feelings I have for Pixie mean, and I can't do that if you're trying to get in her pants. So please, I'm begging you, just back off for a while and give me the chance to get all of this shit straight," I pleaded.

"So let me make sure I've got this right. You're attracted to Jasmine, who seems to be perfect for you, but because there is no spark, you've written her off as not being your mate and just see her as a girl you may or may not date for the time being. Then you have Jenna, who your insanely possessive over, totally attracted to, and borderline in love with. But you claim to have no romantic feelings towards her and only see her as a friend. Is that accurate?"

Hearing it laid out plain as day made my head hurt. "Yeah, that's accurate," I replied.

"So you're romantically attracted to Jasmine, but possessive over Jenna? And both women seem to be genuinely drawn to you, and not because of the curse. Maybe both of them are your mate, did you ever think of that? They look like they could be sisters and got along pretty well at the bar. Maybe they are destined to be sister-wives."

"It crossed my mind; I can't even lie. But if that's the case, why don't I feel that connection with either of them? I don't understand, but I know that all of this has to do with Sasha and whatever magic she used on me. Maybe she did something to block me from ever finding my true mate. Maybe an 'almost perfect' life with Jasmine or Jenna is the best I can ask for."

"Maybe. But look on the bright side, if you end up with one, both, or neither of them, you'll be better off than you were when you and Sasha were together. I'll step back from Jenna, and I apologize if I made you uncomfortable tonight. I'd never do anything to mess this up for you; you know that," Demetrius stated. With the disaster averted, I breathed a sigh of relief for the first time that night. My love life was a complete mess, but thankfully I had my best friend there to help me navigate all the landmines.