Chapter 13
Kate
I picked at my food, barely noticing what I had eaten, or whether the waitress ever showed up to refill my water. I was enthralled with our date and with him. It was perfect. He was perfect. Almost too perfect if that was possible. Nothing else mattered except Ian and his amazing eyes.
He was probably the smoothest guy I’d ever talked to, even compared to my slimy ex. But that wasn’t the only thing that made the date so fantastic. What really made it great was that we just seemed to…click. It was like I was talking to someone I had known a whole lot longer than just a few days. It was the fact that he was so good at getting me out of my own head — which was something I desperately needed ever since moving back home and saying adios to my freedom.
It’d been a long, and extremely angry cab ride just to meet up with him, but I was so glad that I’d done it. I was glad to be out. I was glad to be sitting in front of a man as gorgeous as him. Hell, I was just glad to be free for a second.
Honestly, I wished I’d gotten here quicker, that I’d somehow been able to enjoy the date longer.
Probably would have happened if I’d just taken advantage of my father’s driver. But I couldn’t. No matter how much I wanted to at times. Sure, it was nice to have someone at your beck and call; someone to take you wherever you wanted, whenever you wanted. It was especially nice not having to dig into my pockets and pay for the lift myself.
Cabs were expensive, especially now that I was going to have to get used to a teacher’s salary. I needed to save every dime I could.
I knew logically that using my dad’s driver would have made sense, but something kept me from it. Something kept me from just giving in and taking the hand-out. And that was nothing but pride. It might have been my downfall, but I’d never live it down if I didn’t have some sort of gumption about me.
He’d never let it go if I continued to take his hand-outs after I graduated. He’d say something along the lines of me always leaning on him, and how poor teachers were, and how I couldn’t even afford a cab — I knew I’d hear it.
It might not be the first time I took a ride. It might not be the second time I took a ride. But eventually, I was bound to hear it.
So I’d made a vow to myself when I got out of college.
I wasn’t going to take anything from him, other than a temporary place to stay. God knew that was bad enough. But nothing else. Not even if he insisted.
It was a quaint little restaurant. It had a nice patio, which I’d noticed immediately as we pulled up. It was so nice that it made me hate winter in New York even more — like I needed another reason.
"This food is amazing!” I blurted, finally able to taste my food as I watched him take a bite. I hadn't meant to yell, and I really didn't mean to do it with food in my mouth. I’d been trying to keep my cool for fear of scaring him off before he even got to know me. And there I was, food half-masticated in my mouth, talking about how damned delicious everything was. But it was just that good.
I hoped to god he liked a woman with an appetite because I was starved, and the food on my plate was damned good. It was just a simple Mediterranean plate, but it probably had the best marinades I’d ever had in my life.
“Sorry,” I whispered, covering my mouth with my hand.
“You don’t have to whisper,” he said, his eyes glazing over with amusement. “It’s not a library. The big bad wolf librarian isn’t going to come eat you.”
He was mocking me, but I didn’t mind. Just like I hoped he wouldn’t mind if I played with him a bit. “Didn’t the big bad wolf have to blow houses down first?”
“Yes?” he asked, confused.
“So he didn’t eat the pigs.”
“He blew them down so that he could eat the pigs,” he said with a laugh.
“Not necessarily.”
“What do you mean not necessarily?” he shot, his brows furrowing. “What other reason would there be to blow down a house if you’re a wolf?”
“Things change, depending on the story. There are different versions, new information. They change the outcome.”
“Right,” he said. “So in some other fairy tale version, the pigs live?”
“They could,” I grinned, glad that there wasn’t any awkwardness after the near-kiss we’d just had. Our conversation was flowing naturally, although there was an undercurrent of sexual tension.
There seemed to be a whole world of really great conversation between us, and we hadn’t even scratched the surface. We hadn’t even gotten into the nitty-gritty of him yet. Just light-hearted conversation about movies, music, and the generic stuff that everyone else seemed to talk about on dates. But that was perfectly fine with me. After this latest round with my dad, I needed the ease of a lighthearted conversation.
It seemed to be a dose of what the doctor ordered, in fact. I’d been laughing and carrying on — completely forgetting about the troubles I’d had for the past few days. It was great, and I was just about to thank him for being such a wonderful distraction when all of a sudden, a man approached. He was dressed in a nice gray vest and matching pants.
Ian smiled and glanced up with nothing but pure friendliness as soon as the man reached us. I glanced up, too—but instead of a smile, like Ian had, my mouth was open, shocked at the man’s appearance.
If any man could ever hold a candle to Ian, it would be this man. He was tall, slender, had short blond hair, and a short, stubbly beard. He looked like David Beckham, who’d played the starring role in many a soccer game…as well as my fantasies. “How’s everything over here?”
I almost swooned as soon as he spoke. He had an English accent, like Beckham!
“It’s just great,” Ian said kindly, still smiling. It was a fake smile. Not because he wasn’t fine with the guy’s presence. I could tell that he wasn’t bothered by it. But it seemed overly nice. Forced.
“Great. If the two of you need anything, just let me know. My name is Michael and I’m the manager,” he said.
“Thanks very much, Michael,” Ian continued to grin as the man nodded and walked away.
“Jesus, Kate,” he whispered, his obviously fake smile breaking into a normal Ian smirk. “Pick up your bottom lip…you’re drooling all over the table.”
I had to hand it to him. He was being a good sport. To say I wasn’t checking the guy out would have been an outright lie. But the truth of the matter was, Ian was hotter. I didn’t know what it was. Hell, maybe it was even the fact that he was so cool with me looking at another man, so confident and unworried about it, that pushed Ian’s appeal over the edge. But there was something about him.
“Man, I just loved his accent,” I sighed, dreamily, holding my chin in the palm of my hands. I was joking, and I hoped he knew that. But even if he didn’t, I was having far too much fun to care.
“Well, damn. Let me create a mood for you, then,” he said with a smile.
“What do you mean—” I began, but just as I was asking, he spoke.
“This date is quite lovely,” he said in a terrible mocking English accent. “Cheerio, good-day to you, Lass!”
“Oh…wow,” I said, choking on the air around me. “You don’t really believe you sounded legitimately English, do you?”
His mouth fell open in mock offense. “I’m shocked!” he gasped as a crooked smile pulled at his lips. “Wait, let me try something else.” He cleared his throat. “I’m a wee leprechaun — stay away from me Lucky Charms!”
“Oh god,” I groaned. “Well, I’m not sure Ireland and England are the same things, but I’ll let your terrible sense of geography go for now.”
“Thanks!” he said brightly. “So tell me about yourself, Kathryn,” he prompted after clearing his throat to speak formally. I could tell that he was joking. He had to be, considering we’d already spent a large part of the date talking about me.
I cringed at the name, though. No one called me Kathryn. Not unless it was my dad on a really shitty day or Claire’s school principal.
“I really wish Ian was short for something,” I muttered, and I watched as a cocky grin formed along the corners of his lips, but I knew by the look on his face that he really did expect me to continue.
“Well, I’ve already told you a little about myself. I’m not sure what else to say.”
“What do you like to do for fun?” he asked. “You know, when you’re not stalking me at Starbucks or saving the world by teaching the future generation.”
“Well, that’s pretty much all I do — except for taking care of Claire.” I laughed, realizing how lame I must sound.
“Wow. Well, we’ll have to change that,” he said.
“Hold your horses, cowboy. Who says you get to have any say in what I do?” I asked, amused.
“Touché,” he said with a laugh and took a sip of his drink. “So you really don’t like New York at all? You’re not going to miss it like crazy when you head off to the west coast?”
I cringed. I hated that question. “I have a love-hate relationship with it,” I answered, before bringing my glass of water to my lips.
“That means what, exactly?” His brows were set, determined even, and his look was almost intimidating.
“I can tell you’re used to getting what you want,” I said with a grin. “New York is fine. It’s just time for a change.” I wanted to leave it at that, no matter how much fun I was having at the cat and mouse game he’d started. I could tell he understood, because immediately, he changed the subject.
“So those pork tostadas on the menu,” he said. “Now that I can actually think about food and not about how pretty you look. You know, since you’ve already ruined it multiple times, I can’t help but wish that we’d gotten them.”
I hated to admit, as soon as he’d said the word ‘tostada,’ I instantly got hungry again. “Oh, god,” I moaned. “I love tostadas.”
“Not as much as I do,” he said. “It’s too bad we’ve already eaten so much.”
“I don’t know, I’m a fat kid at heart,” I said. “I love tostadas.”
“Little lady, I could eat fifty of them before you were even able to delicately wipe your mouth from the first bite.”
I gasped melodramatically, my mouth opening as wide as I could muster. I smacked my hands down onto the table and leaned forward.
“Doubtful!” I said as he continued to smirk what seemed to be his signature cocky smirk.
He waved his hand in the air, and as soon as he did, the waitress appeared. I was almost impressed.
“Bring us an order of pork tostadas, please,” he said.
“Coming right up,” the waitress said, grinning. I had to wonder if people were listening in on our ridiculous conversation, and if they were as intrigued by it as I was. I’d never been challenged like this before, and I wasn’t exactly sure I’d challenged anyone like this before, either.
He was fun. There was absolutely no denying it. So much fun, in fact, that I hadn’t known any time at all had passed since placing the appetizer order.
“First one to the center wins!” he said as soon as the waitress put the food on the table.
I should have cared how we were behaving in such a nice restaurant. I should have cared about my manners, and getting kicked out. But I didn’t. And it wasn’t as if I was unmerited in it — because it seemed that all the waitress, waiters, and even the manager were looking at us, grinning from ear to ear, clearly interested in our little game.
“Bring it on!” I chuckled, not even waiting before I grabbed one of the gorgeous — and delicious looking — pork tostadas.
He slapped my hand away, quickly and playfully, so that he could grab his first, but that didn’t matter. I was used to eating food quickly. I had to. I was always on the go. I was a master at it at this point.
So it wasn’t a surprise when I reached the center before he did. At least, it wasn’t a surprise to me. To him, though, that was a different story.
“You cheated!” he laughed, his mouth still full.
“I did no such thing!” I said, trying to keep my voice down, after realizing how much noise we must have been making. I didn’t exactly want to get thrown out. I was having too much fun.
"Excuse me for being talented.” I cleared my throat and sat up straight, trying to gain my composure again. But it was too late to put on the whole lady-like costume that I usually donned on a first date.
“Talented at shoving this big delicious thing in your mouth…that’s a good talent,” he quipped.
“Can’t forget the chewing them up part. Chewing, and chewing and chewing.” I knew where his mind was going, and I wanted to knock him down a few pegs. Not only was it fun, but it was necessary.
“Wow, you took a friendly competition and made it dark!” he said, holding both of his hands up with his palms facing me as if he was trying to move away. “I was just trying to be friendly, not scarred for life!”
“Now, now,” I began, my brow cocking upwards. “Let’s not be dramatic.”
I could tell by his grin that he loved the game just as much as I was. “I can’t help that you’re a cheater, and a sore winner,” he grumbled.
“Sore winner maybe, but not a cheater.” I laughed. “But you’re not so innocent yourself, you know?”
His eyebrows rose as he looked at me. “Oh?”
“You totally smacked my hand at the beginning. That’s assault.” I grinned.
“Self-defense,” he said.
I threw my hands up, defeated. He had an answer and comment for everything. There was almost no winning with this man. “Sure, sure,” I said. “If you feel like you have to defend yourself against little-old-me, then fine, I’ll let you have it.”
His mouth fell open in an amused sort of shock. “Holy shit, you actually just turned the tables by jabbing me right in the ego.” He reached for his chest, and gripped right over his heart and groaned slightly. “I mean, ouch.”
I laughed at his huge production.
He continued, “First I thought you were getting flustered by me, but turns out, you are totally against me!”
“Flustered!” I said with a laugh. “Flustered? Ha!”
“By all means, keep jabbing me!”
We both couldn’t stop laughing.
“You should be flattered!” he said.
“Oh?” I crossed my arms in front of me. “How so?”
I really, really wanted to hear this.
“Well, I mean, you know the old saying, ‘if a boy teases you, it means he likes you’,” he said as he reached over and poked my hand.
“Well, damn, I guess I didn’t realize that I was supposed to be smitten with every man who picked on me,” I joked. “I guess next time someone with a swinging appendage between their legs hits me, I’ll remember that I’m supposed to feel flattered by it.”
My eyes narrowed into a joking sort of anger.
He couldn’t help but snicker in return. “Woo… no, no,” he said. “You misunderstand me. Only when I do it, is it appropriate.”
“Oh, I see.” I laughed, my eyes falling on his smile. It was perfect. It revealed stark white teeth, and even the way his cheeks dimpled around his mouth when he smiled was the cutest thing I had ever seen.
I placed my head in my hand and leaned on the table. I was totally consumed by him and everything he had to say. I really liked this guy. It scared me how much I liked him.
Just as he was about to speak again, a ringing sound blared from his suit’s inside pocket. His eyes widened, and he stiffened, clearly realizing that it was his phone.
“I’m so sorry,” he said, just before reaching into his jacket. “I have to keep my phone on at all times for work.”
He really did seem apologetic. Adorably so.
“You’re fine,” I said with a smile. “Go ahead.”
He smiled gratefully before he scooted his chair back and whispered to me, “I’ll be right back.”
His eyes were still regretful when he pulled his phone to his ear and stood. His back hunched over, and he moved quickly away from the table and toward the hostess stand. His head was down, and he was nodding quickly over and over again. I giggled. He was an animated talker. I had noticed that days ago. He always told stories with tons of hand gestures, and he spoke with clear facial expressions. It was cute. And it actually helped him, I thought. It took away from his intimidating I-need-coffee look.
Ian was the most gorgeous man I had ever laid eyes on. And if that wasn’t intimidating enough, his stature and the way he carried himself was a lot like a man who wielded a fair amount of power. It was confident beyond anything that I had ever seen before, and I knew confident men.
It was sort of the way that my dad carried himself — but only with a little more oomph. Ian was younger. Being a young gun fighting his way to the top of what clearly was a demanding company was probably a lot harder than being a seasoned business owner. He probably had a lot to prove. At least, that’s what it seemed like to me.
I tried to look away from him. I tried to not be rude by staring at him, but I couldn’t help it. The way he moved, the way he spoke with power and energy — it did so much more than just intrigue me.
I had no idea what he was saying or what he was talking about, but he was talking quickly and as if he was aggravated. I wasn’t sure if something was wrong, or if he was just trying to get back to me and our date.
Either way, though, he didn’t look happy.
He had either gotten bad news, or the VP was riding him once again. But whatever it was, it would probably be enough to cut our date a little short.
I was surprised we had gotten as much time as we had before a crazy emergency call. I wasn’t sure how busy or how big his company was, but I knew how busy certain levels of business could be. My dad was always on the phone, on a Skype call, or at the office. There was hardly ever any downtime.
I sighed. Lately, the only downtime my dad had was spent bitching about me and my life choices.
But that didn’t matter. Not right now. The only thing that mattered at the moment was Ian.
I watched as he ended his call and tucked the phone back into his jacket pocket before turning on his heel toward me. His pace was quick, and his focus was on me. But he didn’t have the face of a man who was on the date. Instead, it had been replaced with the face of a man who had to break some sort of news to me, and I knew before he even reached me that my instinct was right.
The date was about to end.
No matter how much I really didn’t want it to.
When he reached his chair and pulled it out to sit, I took in all the details of his appearance, memorizing them to keep my imagination company for the rest of my now-lonely Saturday. His tie was loosened, and the top button of his crisp white shirt was undone. His sandy blond hair even seemed messier than it had when he’d accepted the call. I would have wondered why if he hadn’t nervously combed his fingers through it as he sat back down.
“I’m so sorry about that,” he said, smoothing his hand back through his hair to fix it.
“You’re absolutely fine,” I said with a giggle. And with double-meaning. His hair was cute when it was messy. He didn’t have to fix it.
He gave me a wry smile. “Thanks.”
“So, your work seems a little…” I trailed off for effect. “Stressful.”
I still wondered what he did for a living. We hadn’t gotten that far yet.
He blew out a huff of breath and rolled his eyes dramatically. “I’m probably going to have a stroke before my next birthday.” He chuckled and reached for the large water goblet and brought it to his lips. I watched, almost mesmerized, as his lips pursed and he took a sip of water. I wondered what those lips felt like, what they tasted like…
He pulled the glass away and looked at me curiously. “What is it?”
“Nothing.” I could feel the heat of a blush coating my cheeks. Damn my fair skin—my blushes were epic.
His tone was light, and I could tell that he was trying to get the conversation back into a carefree zone. But there was something in his eyes that made me think that his mind was somewhere else — somewhere a little more serious.
In fact, as polite as he was trying to be, he seemed preoccupied. He wasn’t the smooth talking, light-hearted man that I had just been conversing with. We were on a lunch date, but I couldn’t fault him. I had known from the very beginning that Ian was a businessman. I knew better than anyone what that meant. Every man in my family was built exactly the same way.
Big business was more than just a nine to five. It was more than a clock in, sit at a desk, clock out sort of thing.
I understood the passion, and I understood the commitment.
I understood it all.
I wondered when he was going to excuse himself as I looked at him curiously. He had nervously been sipping from his water glass, and I could tell that he was trying to either find the courage or the words to tell me he had to take off.
“What’s on your mind?” I finally asked. I wasn’t a sadist, so I wasn’t going to make him stew in his own regret.
He sighed and looked down at the tablecloth.
“I really don’t want to do this,” he started, apologetically.
“But you have to go?” I asked in an all-knowing sort of tone and smiled. I knew exactly what his expression meant. I had seen it a lot growing up.
I couldn’t blame Ian, though. Not even a little bit, because he really, really did look sorry. My dad had never given me that sort of courtesy.
He looked down, and a mix of sadness and shame played over his face. “Yeah.”
“It’s okay,” I said, touching his forearm. “But I do want to see you again soon.”
Did I just ask him out? Wow, look how brazen I was getting. Claire would be proud.
“That would be great,” he said.
I swallowed hard, emotion starting to tighten in my throat. “I had a really amazing time tonight,” I said. “I never knew first dates could be so fun.”
“Clearly, because you've never been on a date with me before,” he told me, cockily. I couldn’t blame him for being cocky, though. He had every right to be. He was probably the hottest man I’d ever seen.
“Very true.” I couldn’t help but nod, agreeing with him. The date was pretty fun, and I could only assume that it was because he was one of a kind.
I wasn’t sure if it was the fact that he was just that good with women, or if something else entirely was happening. But I started to not worry about it. All reservations on that front just sort of…seeped away. Like they didn’t exist at all, for some reason. There was just something about looking him in the eye, and seeing his gorgeous and completely cocky smirk. It was enough to make me melt all over him.
“Guess I’ll just have to break that habit,” I managed to whisper, in an almost seductive tone that I was damned proud of. Who knew I could be so alluring on the spot like that? If my earlier request for another date wasn’t enough, my new sex kitten voice sure as hell was. I was being forward as hell, and he didn’t seem the least bit put off by it. In fact, he seemed to be eating it up.
He was smiling with what seemed like both a sense of cockiness as well as a bit of relief. “I’d love that. You can see me whenever you’d like.”
I felt a chill roll down my spine at the notion. I wasn’t sure exactly what sort of power this man had over me, but it was something pretty damn intense.
He gestured for the waitress to come over with the check. His movements were so smooth, and so incredibly refined. I could tell that he came from class. All of that confidence was so strong. Masculine. Firm. Sexy beyond belief. It was so present that it was staggering.
It was there in his wave to the waitress, in the way that he signed the bill, and in the way he led me out of the restaurant with his arm draped over my shoulders. And it was definitely there when he shifted his body to look at me as we stood on the sidewalk outside the doors.
He reached out and grabbed my chin with his index finger and tilted my face to look up at him.
I immediately wished he hadn’t, and I wished that I hadn’t complied, because looking at him was dangerous…so very dangerous.
His piercing brown eyes were intense, and they were staring right into mine.
“I really do think we might have something here,” he whispered as he stepped a couple of inches closer and ran his fingers through my hair. His touch was gentle, graceful even.
I shivered and clenched my thighs together as desire pooled between them. A million emotions were shaking my stomach to its core. This connection with him was all so unplanned. I’d known he was cute — sexy as all hell, even. I’d known that he was charming. I’d known that he was a lot of things, but I hadn’t expected him to make me feel quite like I felt, wanting to be captured in his embrace.
My heart thumped so loudly and roughly against my chest that I could hear it in my ears. I knew what was about to happen, and no matter how ready I thought I was earlier when it almost happened, I was nervous.
So fucking nervous now that it was actually happening.
I felt my breath quicken and my stomach whirl. It felt like butterflies were doing some crazy mating dance inside me. I was shaking all over, shivering from the cold, but also from the fear of what I didn’t understand.
I clenched my hands to halt their quivering, and followed his movements. I leaned in, too, only to realize that he’d halted. I felt my entire body tingle, and it was like we were in slow motion as we moved closer and closer to one another.
I couldn’t believe that we were standing smack dab in the middle of the sidewalk, with the snow falling down around us. Dozens of people were passing us as we stood there, just an inch or so from each other’s lips.
I didn’t care about those people, either. It didn’t matter. I didn’t care if the whole world saw us kiss.
What I experienced in that moment, the want, the absolute desire, was something that I couldn’t explain even if I tried. It was something I’d only read about in books, or saw in the movies. It wasn’t real.
At least, I hadn’t thought it was real. Not before this, with Ian.
“Kate,” he whispered, his breath hot against my cheek.
I closed my eyes and relished the sound of my name on those lips. It took all the power that I had not to lunge at him right then and there. Just hearing my name and feeling it vibrate off his lips was almost enough to send me into a trance.
“Is this okay?” he asked.
The question turned me on even as it broke the spell. This was okay. Kissing him was the most okay thing in the world.
At the same time, I was worried. I wanted it so bad, but I wasn’t sure how Ian or this kiss or even the snow on the sidewalk around us fit into my plan. I had everything lined up, a whole timeline of my next few months, and meeting a man who did what Ian did to me was not anywhere in that timeline.
I wasn’t sure what any of this meant, but I wanted him to kiss me so I could at least find out.
His fingers played with my hair, and I knew then that I hadn’t scared him off. He was waiting for me to come the rest of the way. He was waiting for me to kiss him.
“Yes,” I whispered. “Yes, this is better than okay. This is great.”
I brushed his shoulder with my palm and then gripped at his coat.
He smelled good — like mint, but sweeter. I closed my eyes as I felt his warm breath puff against my lips. His lips brushed mine.
The kiss was intoxicating. He was intoxicating. His tongue flicked at my lips, and I smiled against him, knowing what it was that he wanted. I opened my mouth, eagerly, desperately.
Images of him moved behind my closed eyelids. My thoughts were becoming aggressively sexual, so much that I had to shake myself away from them. I was getting way too aroused for the moment. This kiss was supposed to be brief. It was supposed to be quick. He had to get to work.
But my god, his lips were sweet. And they were so, so warming.
We were outside, and it was freezing. But because of his touch, I felt completely warm.
My hand slid down his body and landed on his lower stomach. I could feel that even through layers of clothing, there was a lot of definition there. The hard ripples of his abs caused me to shudder in excitement and moan into his mouth.
He moaned too, though, as he held my waist and pulled me closer. I was completely against him, and we were groping each other right in the middle of the busy sidewalk.
It was probably the most intense first kiss that I had ever experienced.
My body rocked against him, and I felt myself losing a battle of control.
Finally, reluctantly, I pulled back. He had to work. I had to stop the kiss before I started tearing his clothes off.
“Wow,” he panted. “So I guess after a kiss like that, I don’t have to ask if you had a decent time with me.”
He smirked. Even though it was a cocky sort of smirk, I didn’t mind. I was going to let him pat himself on the back for that. He deserved it. That was one hell of a kiss.
“I might have enjoyed myself a little,” I said coyly.
His name was heavy on my lips. I really wanted to say it, to moan it out and ask him to stay.
“Ian,” I finally breathed out, breaking my composure. “Maybe we should get each other’s numbers?” I asked. When we’d arranged this date, we had just agreed to meet up. I remembered thinking earlier that it would have been nice if I could have let him know I was going to be late — before, you know, just showing up late.
He seemed to finally catch his breath. His eyes were glazed with affection as he looked down at me. His lip was curled into a faint smirk — but it wasn’t the same one he had plastered on his face earlier. It wasn’t cocky; it was something else entirely.
“I think we should,” he said with a nod.
I felt his body move and then watched as he reached into his jacket pocket and grabbed his phone. He laughed. “I can’t believe I had to wait for you to ask me for my number.”
“Well, clearly I have more game than you do,” I joked.
“Put your number in, smartass,” he said with amusement, as he handed the ridiculously huge phone over to me.
“Is this thing a television?” I said as I held it in both hands and found the contacts. “Seriously, I feel like I’m typing on a computer.”
He laughed, clearly amused, but I wasn’t completely joking. His phone was gigantic.
“You realize you fit a computer in your pocket?” I giggled.
He burst out laughing. “Considering I fit more than that elsewhere, I think I’m doing just fine.” He winked.
Immediately I felt a blush creep up to my cheeks. What was it with men and always having to make some sort of stupid innuendo about everything? It was like those that’s what she said jokes.
“Nope,” I said loudly. “Give me the phone back. I take back my number.”
I was joking, and he knew that, but it didn’t mean that we didn’t wrestle around for the phone once it was safeguarded in his strong, muscular hands.
“Too bad. Too late.” He laughed as he held the phone above my head. But even though I wasn’t as tall as him, I was still pretty damn scrappy. I jumped and looped my arms around his extended arm and hung there like a monkey, weighing it down.
He hunched over. “You’re insane, aren’t you?”
Pressed up against him, I realized again just how cold it was outside, and I craved even more of his heat. We grew closer to one another, and then closer again until we were just inches apart from each other’s lips.
Our laughter had died away, and all that was left was desire.
“I really should go,” he said, practically gasping out the words. “I think both of us need to gain a little self-control.”
He was laughing, and I knew he was joking — but man was he right. I had basically just ravaged him on the sidewalk.
My hand was still warm, and I realized it was because it was once again underneath his coat, clutching onto his shirt and flesh. Good god, that stomach…that sexy, sexy stomach.
“I’m so sorry,” I said with an embarrassed laugh, finally letting go.
He chuckled. “I really don’t mind.”
He took a step back, and I felt cold again all of a sudden.
“I mean, how can anyone resist this?” He grinned ear to ear and used his hands to suggestively gesture up and down himself.
I rolled my eyes. What an adorable and cocky idiot.
“Oh, god,” I scoffed as I clutched my arms in front of my chest, hugging myself, hoping to preserve some — any — of the body heat that I had left. “I really hope you don’t believe that.” But I was pretty sure that he did.
“Are you saying that I’m resistible?” he asked, his mouth open in a sort of mock outrage.
“Oh, it definitely means some variation of that.” I wished that I could have looked more serious as I said it, but I couldn’t stop smiling.
“Well, damn,” he said. “I guess my charms are no match for gingers!”
I scoffed. “Puh-lease, you can’t tell me you’ve never been with a woman with red hair.”
A guy like him — he had been around. It grossed me out a little to think about, but it was obvious. Hell, he had probably been with every type of woman imaginable. And I couldn't help but have thoughts about my past. They caused a tinge of worry for liking Ian so much.
“Not one like you,” he said in perfect player fashion.
He smirked. I smirked back, almost unable to help myself. Like he had me in some sort of trance, where I wasn't actually buying it, but was definitely impressed by it.
He raised his hand up in the air with a powerful confidence and placed one foot almost in the street. His stance reiterated everything that I already knew just by talking to him. That he was strong. That he was fearless.
My heartbeat thudded against my chest, and I felt my pulse quicken again. I could feel an intense and heated arousal begin to rise in me once more
I bit my lip and tried to stifle the desire as much as I could. The things this guy did to me—it was incredible.
A taxi pulled up, and Ian grabbed the door handle. “Hey, which way are you heading?” he asked. “Did you want to share a cab or something?”
I shook my head and smiled. If I got in that damn cab with him, I would probably maul him. Mauling sounded like a great idea, but maybe our first time mauling each other shouldn’t be in a taxi. And probably not in a Starbucks bathroom, either, despite what my overactive imagination gave me in my dreams.
“No, that’s okay, you really need to get to work.”
He looked at me, a small look of unease on his face — almost like worry. “Are you sure?” he asked.
“I’m close enough to walk,” I said. “I’m really okay.”
He laughed. “I’ll see you soon?”
I smiled. “Definitely.”
I would have swooned if it hadn’t been so ridiculous. I watched him jump into the backseat of the cab, and I couldn’t help but smile.
As the cab pulled away, my coat buzzed.
I smiled, a sense of knowing washing over me, as I pulled out my phone and looked at the screen. It was a text from Ian. Wanted you to actually have my number, he’d written, along with a little winking emoji.
I grinned.
I had been hoping throughout lunch that I hadn’t missed any texts from Claire’s school or from Claire herself. But when I looked at the rest of my alerts, there was nothing else listed, only a few emails.
Now that Ian was gone, I was a little sad that I didn’t have anyone else trying to get in touch. Not that I wanted to hear from Claire per se — but it would have been nice to hear from someone…anyone. I could have told them about my awesome date with Ian. I could have gushed like I used to with my girlfriends.
I’d had tons of friends when I was an undergrad student. It was crazy how that the number dwindled down to just a few for grad school. Apparently, it dwindled down even more after grad school, at least for me. Other than the text from Ian just a second ago, I hadn’t had a text from a friend in days.
I sighed and glanced up from my phone in just enough time to see a familiar man approaching me on the sidewalk.
“Hey!” I shouted out to him. I smiled brightly and squealed out like a little school girl. See? I wasn’t totally alone in the world. Of course, I wouldn’t be gushing about romantic dates with this guy. “Ben! I haven’t seen you in forever!”
Truth was, I really had missed Ben, even with the ups and downs of our relationship. I pulled his lean body into a bear hug as soon as he got close enough, but he tensed. My brows furrowed and I pulled away. I looked at him curiously. Why was he so tense?
He threw what I could only imagine was supposed to be a smile at me. But he wasn’t really smiling. I knew his smile. This forced approximation wasn’t it, not by a long shot.
“What’s wrong?” I could feel my eyes narrowing in concern.
“Were you having lunch with Ian Cross?” His voice was stern, and his tone was serious — almost accusatory.
“Yes?” I answered, my voice almost cracking. I didn’t know Ian’s last name, and I wasn’t sure how I was supposed to answer that, but I didn’t want to lie to Ben. I wanted to ask how he knew Ian, but he looked too irritated.
His eyes shifted to look at the sidewalk for a moment. A small, but visibly sullen look appeared on his face, just before it was replaced with a pissy scowl.
“Ben,” I said, touching his forearm. “What is it?”
His jaw clenched for a moment and then he cleared his throat and looked up. “Nothing.”
He smiled, and this time, it was his actual smile. And I wondered if he had gotten that good at bullshitting since becoming a head honcho at Bio-Research because something told me it wasn’t just ‘nothing.’ Even if he could somehow pull off a real smile, going by what he was like just a few seconds before — there was clearly something bothering him.
But I wasn’t in the mood to go through the process of twisting his arm to figure it out. If he wanted to shrug his pissy behavior off and act like nothing was wrong, I’d let him.
He put his arm over my shoulder and pulled me close to him.
I smirked before edging closer to the warmth he offered. That was it, I decided; I was going to shrug off whatever sort of issue Ben had with me having lunch with Ian and just enjoy seeing him. It had been a really long time.
And even though I didn’t want to miss Ben like I did, I couldn’t help myself.