chapter 22
HUNTER
“WHERE ARE WE GOING now?” she asks, and I can hear the smile in her voice. She hasn’t stopped smiling since we climbed back in the car, and I’m going to take that as a sign that she loved the day.
“To my house,” I tell her cheerily. “I thought I could cook you something, and we could have some wine in my Jacuzzi.”
“Of course you have a Jacuzzi,” she says in a dry tone. “Wait, a Jacuzzi, as in naked in the Jacuzzi together?”
I chuckle at the panic in her voice, because she couldn’t mask the excitement mixed in at the idea. “There will be bubbles in the Jacuzzi, and I’ll keep my hands to myself, I promise.” I pause, adding, “Unless you don’t want me to. I can take you home if you like, but I kind of don’t want today to end yet.”
“Me either,” she admits, looking down at her hands. “And a Jacuzzi sounds nice.”
She looks a little unsure though, and I don’t want her to do anything she doesn’t want to, or for her to regret anything. I don’t plan on doing anything more than kissing her, and maybe catch a glimpse of that beautiful body in the water. There’s no rush.
“It’s your call,” I say to her, watching indecisiveness pass over her. If she wants to go home, I’ll drop her off with a kiss at her door. I’ve loved spending today with her, and I think, or maybe just hope, that she’s changing her mind about me. There’s still the chance that she will suddenly decide this isn’t a good idea for her, but I’m hoping our connection wins out, and that she’s willing to at least explore what’s here between us.
“Let’s go to yours,” she eventually decides. “I’m not ready for tonight to end either.”
I nod, not wanting to react too much, but inwardly, I’m jumping for joy.
I COOK HER A steak, with a beet-and-feta salad and roasted potatoes, while she sits at my breakfast bar with a glass of red wine. I also aim to impress her with my mushroom-pepper sauce.
“I didn’t know you can cook,” she muses, lifting the crystal to her lips.
“I have to feed myself somehow,” I tell her, lip twitching in amusement. “My sister will come over now and again and cook for me, but the rest of the time I need to fend for myself.”
I want her to know I’m not a boy, I’m a man. I don’t expect a woman to look after me or take care of me in any way. I can cook, clean, and I don’t expect anyone else to do those things for me.
“I can see that,” she murmurs, taking another sip of wine. “I’m impressed, Hunter.”
“With what?”
“With everything.” She smiles, placing the glass down. “With you. With tonight. I don’t think anyone is going to be able to top that date.”
“I will,” I tell her, grabbing the plates and placing them on the countertop. “Tonight is not the peak of us, Riley; this is just the beginning.”
She rolls her eyes and laughs, but she also blushes a little. “We’ll see about that,” she murmurs. She looks different without a bandanna on her head, her hair down below her shoulders. She looks softer, I think, without the more pinup style she usually chooses for herself. Not that I don’t like that look though. I serve the food, and then we sit at the dinner table to eat.
“You never told me who you ended up leaving in charge of the pub,” I say, remembering that she wasn’t sure what to do about that situation.
“I couldn’t decide between them,” she says, putting her fork down and scowling. “If I heard either of them say they were the backbone of the place I was going to go to prison for murder. The new guy, Izaac, has some manager experience, so I left him in charge.”
I go still, surprised. “So instead of choosing between your two friends you put a random in charge of them? Someone who hasn’t even worked for you before?”
She cringes, nodding. “It was that or they were going to kill each other. Now they have some common ground—they both want to kill me, so they’re probably best friends now.”
I laugh at that. “And planning your mutiny?”
She nods slowly, expelling a deep sigh. “Yeah, it’s not going to be pretty when I go in tomorrow. I hope they weren’t too mean to Izaac, but Callie thought he was good-looking, so maybe she’ll control the sass.”
The look we give each other says that we both highly doubt that.
“Do you think he’s good-looking?” I ask her, keeping my expression neutral.
She shrugs. “I suppose so. I mean, I was being professional, so it’s not like I was checking him out. But yeah, I guess he’s a good-looking man. Probably another reason for Preston to be angry at me, but Callie might cut me some slack.”
She better not be checking him out.
“Fair enough,” I reply, watching as she bites into her steak. “How is it?”
“Delicious,” she says, licking the sauce from her lips. “I’m awful at making steaks, I always end up flipping them ten times and cooking them until they’re dead.”
I glance down at the pinky goodness of my creation. “Well, I guess I’ll be making all the steaks from here on out.”
She laughs softly, and then says, “I’m good at other things though.”
My brows rise. “Like what?” I choke out.
Her eyes narrow, and she puts down her cutlery again. “You know what I mean.”
“No, I don’t think I do, why don’t you explain it to me,” I tease, provoking her.
She continues eating, ignoring me, while I watch, entertained by her behavior. “Already giving me the silent treatment?”
“Nope, just not going to take the bait. You like getting a reaction out of me; I’m not going to give it to you,” she states, lifting her chin and flashing me a glare.
“Is that right?” I murmur, chuckling. “I’m getting used to that stubborn look of yours.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” she replies, lip twitching. “I’m such a sweet, amicable woman. I don’t have a stubborn bone in my body.”
“And I’m a virgin,” I mutter under my breath.
“I might as well be,” she replies, muttering under hers, getting my instant attention.
“What do you mean by that exactly?” I ask, studying her.
She chews slowly, swallows, and then avoids my eyes. “I just haven’t had sex in such a long time, I pretty much can’t even remember what it feels like.”
“How long?” I ask.
She winces, shifting on her seat. “Just over a year.”
A year?
She hasn’t had sex for a year?
Surely that can’t be good for her health.
“Wow,” I manage to get out. “A year is a pretty long time.”
“You’re telling me.”
Her tone is dry, her expression sarcastic. I can’t exactly empathize with her. The longest I’ve gone without has been now, ever since I decided I was going to fight for a chance to be with Riley.
“Is that why you’re so grumpy sometimes?” I blurt out, chuckling. I have to make this into a joke, because right now I’m imagining dragging her to my bed, stripping her down, and kissing her from head to toe, taking my damn time, worshipping her, and then going down on her and eating that pussy until she’s come enough times that it makes up for her year of celibacy.
“Probably,” she replies, and we both share a laugh. “It’s laugh or cry,” she admits. “I don’t know. Jeremy stopped touching me when things went to hell with us, which was fine with me. But I didn’t want to get into anything else, and I don’t think one-night stands would be for me.”
“You don’t need to explain,” I tell her gently, reaching over and taking her hand. “You’ve just made tonight a hell of a lot more difficult on me though.”
“Why’s that?” she asks, tilting her head to the side.
Fuck, she’s cute.
“Because I wasn’t going to . . . and now . . . Fuck. I just wanted to kiss you tonight. And now, after that, you have me wanting to show you exactly what you’ve been missing,” I admit, putting my hands up in a surrender movement. “That didn’t come out right. Obviously it’s up to you what happens or doesn’t tonight, but I really just wanted to spoil you and kiss you . . . a little . . . okay a lot, and—”
“I get it, Hunter,” she says, tucking her hair behind her ear. “I don’t know what’s going to happen tonight, but I’m glad you made that awkward speech so I actually have to consider it and decide what I’m ready for.”
“That’s what I’m here for.” I grin. “But yes, just know that I have no expectations whatsoever, and I’m more than happy to just cuddle you in bed if that’s all you want to do.”
The thought of her in my bed has me feeling really fucking excited, the caveman in me kicking in, and just wanting her in my space. I honestly don’t care if she doesn’t want to even touch me, I just want her here.
Yeah, I have it real fucking bad.