Henry

“What’s up, Colton?” I asked him. He had a smirk on his face as he entered the kitchen area. That was the look he had when the fucker was up to no good.

“Nothing much but a good-looking woman and her dad. I’ll take the food out. You two stay in and clean up.” He grabbed a tray to take the salads. For a guy I thought was interested in Dina, he was going about it all wrong. I haven’t given a woman any attention since the day I met Gretchen.

Dina gave him a look I hadn’t seen in a while. She was jealous. I wonder if the woman out there was pretty or he was just trying to get to Dina. After all, Colton didn’t work as a server, but after the staff cleaned up the dining room I had sent them home.

“What’s up with you, Dina?” Colton asked, smirking even more.

“I’ll take the damn waters to your little thing out there. You get the salads,” she barked at Colton.

“Ah, sweetheart. You shouldn’t go out there like that. They may never come back,” Colton teased her.

“I’m not the one who’ll be unprofessional,” she countered.

“Then let’s go. The sooner they get their food the sooner they can leave.” They stepped out to deal with the customers and I continued to clean. I hated that all I could think about was Hardy not coming to see me as promised. All night I kept feeling as if he was intentionally hiding her from me. I was going to call his office tomorrow and tear him a new one.

Dina came rushing back into the kitchen, full of excitement. “Oh my God. Mr. Hardy of the Hardy Candy Corp is out there. Holy shit.”

“Clean up after they leave and lock up. I have somewhere to be.”

I was out the door before I finished my sentence. I lifted my chef jacket over my head and tossed it on the kitchen floor. Right now, nothing else mattered.  I had my keys, wallet, and phone in my pocket and that was all I needed.

Her head whipped to the kitchen door and she gasped, dropping her fork. Fuck me, she was ten times more beautiful than I remembered. I didn’t think that was humanly possible.

“About damn time,” I said through gritted teeth. I stormed over to them, pulled her up from the chair and slammed my mouth down on hers, kissing her without giving it another thought. Her lips were soft, just like I had always imagined them. Her moan set my body on fire.

“About time is right. Goodnight, Hansel and Gretel. Take care of her. Not that you wouldn’t dare.” I pull my lips away from hers just enough to scowl at Hardy. “We’ll talk about this later.” I lifted her up into my arms, cradling her as I carried her out of the restaurant and to my truck. We had a lot to discuss, but first I was going to make sure no one could ever take her away from me again.

I set her down on her feet, crowding her against the passenger door. “You’re mine, my sweet Gretel. I’ve missed you so much and I’m not giving you a chance to get away.”

“You’ve missed me?” She seemed so surprised.

“Can’t you tell?” I asked, brushing my hand down her temple to her cheek. The feel of her skin was softer than I remembered. Visions of her kept away the lonely nights. Every time my cock ached, I satisfied my longing with thoughts of finding her and taking her for my own.

“I’ve missed you so much, Henry.” She pressed her body to mind, hugging me with a sweetness that I wanted and much more. My cock throbbed in my pants against her heated mound that was barely covered in this dress.

I lowered my hands down her thighs and just under the hem, my fingers slipping under the dress. “I need to get you home, because we have a lot of lost time and I’m not wasting a day more.” I reached around and opened the passenger door. Once I settled her in, I kissed her lips and quickly pulled away to get in the driver’s side.

I hopped in and started the engine. Turning to face my future, I saw her staring out the window. “What’s the matter?”

“You named your restaurant after our adventure that day,” she muttered, rubbing her fingers together. I stole her hand and wrapped it in mine. She looked at me with a longing I’d been waiting all these years to see.

I took my other hand and brushed her hair back behind her ear. Looking in her eyes, I admitted, “I wanted to call it Gretchen’s, but that would have raised too many questions.”

“Wow. Henry, I don’t know what to say.” She bit her bottom lip, staring at me nervously.

“Say you’re mine and that’s all I need.”

“That’s easy. I’ve been yours long before you could even stand me.”

“Could stand you? I’ve wanted you from the moment you turned around in the seat. I was lost in your eyes. That trip in the woods made me angry. How dare someone try to send you out in the wild.”

“Damn, are you always this perfect?” she asked.

“For you, I’ll always try to be.” I leaned in and kissed her once more before strapping my seatbelt on and driving off. “We need to get back to the house because I want to fuck my baby into you and I can’t do that in the truck.”

“We could, but since I’m a virgin, I’d like it to be special.”

“That makes two of us, my sweet Gretchen. You’re the only woman I’ve ever wanted.”             

“Really? You’re like Mr. Hotshot all online.”

“I made sure to make my plans known just in case you were watching or reading. I swear, you’re all I’ve thought about and nothing you say will change that.”

“I don’t want it to,” she admitted.

“Good, because I wasn’t going to let you.” I kissed her hand, then made our way to the home I built for us. It was crazy and I knew it, but I wanted no one else and I never would.

It felt like forever to get to the house. I wanted her in my arms. I got out of the car and around to her in a flash. As soon as I opened the door, I flipped her over my shoulder and carried her into the house. She gasped, clutching me hard. “Don’t worry, baby. I wouldn’t let anything happen to you.”