At her touch, he awakened as if she had willed it. In a way, she had wanted it. There were only so many more things one could learn from a person asleep and unaware than what could be learned when that person was awake. Maya sat quietly, appraising his striking blue eyes as they watched her. She wondered if he realized he was awake or if he thought he was still dreaming. The jinni had often been likened to a dream.
“One too many Shakespearean plays?” Maya teased softly, resting her arm along the back of the bench as she watched him. Her voice had an implacable yet attractive accent that had been accumulated through a lifetime of traveling the world. She wondered if he was an actor or not. It was likely he probably just read a bunch of plays or saw a bunch of movies where archaic languages were used. Maybe he was even a renaissance fair kind of nerd, but she couldn’t really see that with the way he was dressed.
Maya flashed him a dazzling smile as he complimented her appearance. She’d been compared to angels a lot in the past, but she didn’t mind even though she knew she was far more beautiful than any real angel could be. Just because they were meant to be ‘heavenly’ didn’t mean the jinni didn’t surpass them. “Well, thank you. I’ve never been compared to an angel before.” She lied, playing coy. A hint of a blush passed over her cheeks when he kissed her hand. She’d become adept at bringing things like that on cue. His lips were soft.
“I’m Maya. I’m very pleased to meet you, too.” The jinni’s eyes were very quick to pick up subtle clues. For instance, despite the fact that the shadows were deepening all around them, she noticed that there was no man-shaped shadow anywhere around the man on the bench though she cast her own shadow. The glint of his pointed canines in what light remained also caught her eyes. Immediately, her mind registered that this man was probably a dhampir. She’d had a lot of fun with such beings in the past, but they were often less satisfactory than full blooded vampires. Even so, this man could be another valuable notch on her bed post, so to speak, despite his seeming uncertainty about simple things.
The jinni watched him quietly while his mind seemed to become a little lost in thought. She didn’t miss the profound sadness that filled his gaze, and she felt a stab of jealousy. Whatever had caused such agony had not been because of her, and that was rather saddening. She preferred to have pain caused by her, especially when it came in epic, heartbreaking doses. That was okay, though. Maybe she could mend his broken heart instead only to smash it later.
“I don’t think you seem foolish.” Maya said innocently. “I think you looked very sweet and very peaceful.” Then he mentioned the coffee, and she said, “Hm?” before her dark eyes moved to her lap where she held the cup she’d taken from him on her thigh. “Oh, yeah! It looked like you were going to drop it, and I didn’t want it to burn you if it fell.” Though she acted like she’d forgotten about the cup, she hadn’t. It was all a part of her game. She didn’t know this handsome man, and while it was likely he knew of her, he didn’t actually know her personally, so she thought it would be fun to pretend she was someone else today. Maybe her relatively modest attire – when compared to her other apparel – helped.
The jinni hid her smile when his gaze started to wander though it secretly pleased her greatly when he appraised her form. The colouring of his cheeks told her that sexual encounters weren’t a normal thing for him. He could be inexperienced, or he could just feel embarrassed about having gotten caught ogling her breasts. Either way, Maya figured she’d learn which was true eventually. A pretty boy like this one would be conquered.
“I’m sorry.” Maya said sweetly. “When I saw you sleeping and your cup about to fall, I decided to help. Then, I realized that you seemed very extraordinary, so I figured if I waited for you to wake up, I would be able to. I’m a pretty patient person when I want to be.” Her fingers twirled absently through the ends of her straightened hair.
“Has it been all of the college work that’s been keeping you up? The homework can be pretty rough depending on your major. What’s yours?”