Gold Hair and Lightning

"Is there anything I can get for you?" Jack asked, reaching into his fridge to grab himself a beer.

The walk to Jack's apartment had been entertaining. He was a very funny person, and Tessa enjoyed being around him. She liked the fact that she felt safe with him. He would stop if she said no and he wouldn't hurt her. She looked up from sending Emily an 'I'm ok' text and nodded. "Bring me a beer too."

"So, your accent." He tossed her a bottle and took out a box of corndogs from the freezer. "British?"

"Australian, actually." She twisted the top off and placed it on the table in front of her, taking a seat on the white couch.

"Fuck, almost." After putting the corndogs in the microwave, he took a seat beside Tessa on the couch. "What brought you to Chicago from down under?"

"I actually moved to Canada when I was 18 for school. I moved to Chicago for more opportunity." That was only half true. Jack would have to wait to have to find out the other half.

"What'd you go to school for?" Jack asked, taking a swig from his beer. Tessa watched as he licked his lips after and tried not to think naughty thoughts.

"Photography," she replied. She bit her lip and smiled. "You'll have to model for me sometime."

He smirked and flexed one of his arms. Tessa was thankful he was wearing a plaid shirt that hid his muscles. The microwave went off and Jack stood up. He gestured to a cabinet beside the TV. "Find a movie."

Tessa opened it up and was faced with a wide variety of DVDs. Her favourite Disney movie was Aladdin so she picked that one. She placed it into his DVD player and decided to take the opportunity to look at the pictures on top of the cabinet. There was one of him as a child with what looked to be an older brother and a younger sister. There was an older woman in the picture as well, presumably his mother. No dad, though. The second picture was him behind a drum set, making a goofy face at the camera. "You play drums?"

"Yeah, I'm in a band." He came back with a plate full of corndogs, ketchup, and mustard. He placed it on the table and crossed his arms. "Being nosy?"

Tessa looked away, embarrassed. "Sorry."

He grabbed her gently by the waist. "Hey, I'm just kidding." He released his grip and took a seat on the couch, grabbing a corndog. "Yeah, I play drums in a band I created with my friends. Sean is the guitarist, Greg is the bassist, and Michelle is the singer."

"That's neat." Tessa sat down beside him, thinking about how jealous Emily would be that she was hanging out with someone in a band. Emily was somewhat of a groupie. "What is the name of your band?"

"Eighteen. The four of us met when we were eighteen, so we just went with that." He took a bite of his corndog after dipping it into the mustard. "We're all twenty six now, by the way. How old are you?"

"Twenty three. You're old," she teased.

"Psh." Jack pushed her playfully. "You're a baby."

Tessa shoved him back. "We're not really watching the movie, are we?"

"No, I guess not." He leaned back and stretched one arm around the couch, his fingers grazing her bare shoulder. "But I don't mind this. I'm not used to this."

"Not having a one night stand?" she asked, raising a brow at him.

"Yeah," he replied. Tessa found his honesty refreshing. Most men wouldn't admit to having sexual intentions so quickly. "But there was something about you."

She rolled her eyes. "Oh, please don't tell me I'm like other girls."

He shrugged, laughing at her reaction. "Fine, I won't say it. I like you, though."

Tessa stared at him, trying to read whether he was genuine or was truly just trying to get her into bed with him. She couldn't tell, and her vagina was telling her just to sleep with him. She scooted closer to him and laid her head against his shoulder. "I think I'm going to spend the night here."

He wrapped his arm around her, pulling her closer to him. "That's ok with me. Do you want something to change into? That dress can't be comfortable."

"Please." Tessa stood up, straightening out her dress. "Where's your bathroom?"

Jack's eyes lingered on her as he looked her up and down. "You're beautiful."

Tessa rolled her eyes but she couldn't help but blush. "The bathroom?"

Jack gestured to the hallway. "The door at the end. I'll grab you some clothes."

"Thanks." She walked to the bathroom and admired how clean his house was. He approached her with a shirt and pajama pants, closing the door behind him. She changed into the white t-shirt but the pants didn't fit. "Uhm. I have a problem."

"What is it?" Jack called through the other side of the door.

Tessa opened the door and scrunched up her nose. "Pants don't fit."

Jack smiled at her, his eyes travelling from her legs to her face. "I don't see a problem."

She shoved him, smirking in return to his compliment. "Fine." She picked up her dress and headed back into the living room.

"Where are you going?"

Tessa gestured to the couch, a confused look on her face. "Getting ready for bed."

He shook his head. "No, you're sleeping in my bed. I'll take the couch."

She rubbed her lips together, looking at him with smoldering green eyes. "Or we could share the bed."

"I thought you were against one night stands." He took a step closer to her, making her want to reach out and take him right then and there.

"It doesn't have to be a one night stand as long as you call me the next day."

"I promise I will." He wrapped his arms around her waist, their chests touching. She could feel his heartbeat and it made her skin hot. She pulled away from him. If Tessa Monroe was anything, it was a tease.

"I bet you say that to every girl," she said, pouting her lips and giving him puppy dog eyes. "How am I any different?"

He reached out and grabbed her hand. "Because I'm not going to sleep with you tonight."

She frowned. "You're not attracted to me?"

Jack looked appalled. He grabbed her other hand and pulled her close. "No! No, that's very far from the truth. I am super attracted to the hot girl standing in front of me." He pulled her hand down to his obvious hardness. "As you can tell. I won't sleep with you because I want to wait. I want to spend time with you and get to know you before we do that."

Tessa placed her palm on the side of his face. "You're not real. You're an alien."

He laughed, placing his hand on top of her own. "Maybe I am. You discovered me out."