‘Take a break from that and tell me what prompted zis zex dream,’ she said, steepling her fingers. ‘How does it make you feel?’
‘Well, Dr Freud …’ Dani riposted. Then she shook her head. ‘It was nothing. Just mental junk floating through my head while I slept. Stress, worry, thrill, Kevin Buck. Whatever.’
Cheryl held up a hand, eyes comically wide. ‘Did you say … Kevin Buck?’
Dani was unable to suppress a small giggle. ‘Yep.’
‘What on earth is a Kevin Buck and where did you get one?’
‘Kevin Buck is a student in the Monday-night class. He asked me out for a drink after tomorrow night’s class.’
‘Is he a …’ Cheryl looked at the ceiling as if steeling herself. ‘Young buck?’
Then her head tipped back and she was laughing, trying to suck in air. Dani, sleep-deprived and still shellshocked from her dream, couldn’t help but join in, gave into her own laughter. ‘Actually, he is. I think he’s a few years younger than me.’
‘What’s he look like?’ Cheryl was leaning on her desk now, a stack of colourful sticky notes trapped beneath her crossed arms. ‘Spill. I’m old, I’m married and I need the mental fodder.’
‘First off, I call him man bun.’
‘Ooh, he has the man bun. This is good. Go on.’
‘Dark hair, dark eyes, dark stubble. Tall, lanky but muscled, well built, great smile, nice, funny. You know, typical guy who’d make your shoes melt if he asked you out.’
‘And he did. He did ask you out!’ Cheryl crowed.
‘He did. And I said no.’
Cheryl’s face fell.
‘At first. Then I said yes. We’re going out tomorrow after class.’
‘Good, this is excellent. Good for you, Dani!’
Dani glanced at the clock. ‘If we’re going to waste time, we might as well go eat. I’m not super productive as it is. I feel bad using work time to gossip.’
‘Let’s go. Early lunch, then. It’s slow today. Three cancellations and it was a light day to begin with.’
Together they rode the elevator down and headed to the cafeteria. ‘You know I have sex dreams,’ said Cheryl. ‘Usually about Paul, but sometimes not. Sometimes it’s that strapping, deep-voiced Idris Elba. Sometimes, it’s that guy who plays Sherlock. The one who looks like the human embodiment of a bored feline. Weird name. Anyway, in this one, he takes this ribbon and—’
‘Ah!’ Dani said. ‘TMI, Cheryl. TMI!’
Cheryl frowned. ‘Oh, come on.’
They entered the cafeteria, ordered their food and found a table. ‘Just let me learn to digest my own sex dreams before I have to digest yours.’
‘Fine, fine,’ Cheryl mumbled. ‘But you never told me what it was. What happened?’
Dani stirred her chicken noodle soup and stalled by crumbling crackers into it. Finally, Cheryl had had enough. She took the final pack, smashed it by squeezing it in her fist and dumped it in. ‘Tell.’
‘He painted me.’
Her friend shook her head. ‘He painted you? So? Isn’t he painting you in class?’
Dani shook her head. ‘No, he’s drawing me in class. And I meant, he painted me. He painted my body with paint using a paintbrush. And he … strayed dangerously close to highly sensitive areas.’ Her phone buzzed.
‘Oh … sexy painting. I get it. Cool. He painted you and?’
Dani’s phone buzzed again. She held up a finger and answered. ‘Hello?’
‘Hey, it’s Chris.’
Her face was suddenly on fire. Her pulse a wicked thump and bang in her veins. She could feel it in the very centre of her forehead, a thrumming rush.
‘Hi.’ God, her voice was breathy. Weak. Maidenly.
‘Hey,’ Chris said. ‘Just making sure you’re still coming tonight. That you didn’t get home and decide I was insane to suggest it and you were equally insane to accept.’
Momentarily speechless, Dani was focused on the thoughts running through her mind. The first being: You should paint her the way she deserves to be painted. Like the art she is … What he’d said about her in her filthy, filthy dream.
The other followed swiftly: He sat and watched you stand there nude last night. Utterly naked. Without a stitch of clothing …
‘Hello? Dani?’
Cheryl was watching her, an avid look on her face. She could smell the drama, Dani was sure.
‘Yes. Sorry. I’m here. And yes, I’ll be there. I don’t think you’re insane. The verdict is still out on me, though.’ She forced a laugh and cringed to hear the vaguely lunatic tone of her laughter.
‘Good. I’ll see you then. You did great last night. Spectacular. You looked amazing, Dani,’ he said. A few beats of silence while she tried to prompt herself to thank him but failed. Then he cleared his throat. ‘OK, then. I’ll see you tonight. New class. They’re going to love you too.’
She managed a strangled ‘OK’ and then ‘bye’ and then he was gone.
‘So who was that?’
‘Chris. The friend of mine who thought up this whole crazy thing. He teaches the art class.’
Cheryl sat back looking very smug. ‘Friend?’
Dani nodded, stirring her soup but not actually eating it. ‘Yep. Since we were teenagers. Grew up in the same neighbourhood.’
‘Just friends?’
‘Yes.’ Her tongue sort of stuck to the roof of her mouth so she took a sip of water. Then another.
‘So why are you blushing like a virginal bride?’
‘I’m not.’
‘Oh, darling. You are.’
‘He’s just a friend. I swear.’
Cheryl made a noncommittal noise. ‘Not sure I buy that. I think someone might be hot for teacher.’
Dani decided that telling her friend that Chris had also had a starring role in her dream would be a very bad idea. She stirred her soup and sipped her water until it was time to go back upstairs to her office. She just had to get through the day and then not freak out when she saw Chris. No big deal, really. The dream hadn’t meant anything. Her mother had always called dreams ‘psychic
