"Are you trying to break up with me?"

"We'd have to be dating to break up," I answered.

"Fair enough. Are you trying to end our sexual exploits before they've had a chance to be explored? Are you telling me you no longer want to go bike riding with me?" he coaxed, trailing his hand over my knee.

"Of course not. I was just trying to give you an out," I said, watching his hand with bated breath as it crept higher up my leg.

"I'm not looking for an out," he said, all joking gone from his voice. "I'll be here at six to pick you up," he clarified.

"And there would be that bossy side again," I said. "You really don't have to. Maybe you should rest tonight and we can get together tomorrow," I reasoned, trying to re-establish boundaries.

"Let me get this straight. I ask you to dinner, proceed to be a total dumbass by eating something I'm allergic to, you rush me to the hospital, sit by my sorry ass until a room was ready and then proceed to drive forty-five minutes out of your way the next morning to pick me up, making yourself late for work and yet, you think I'd pay you back by making you walk home after stranding you at work. That's not bossy. That's owning up," he said, flipping my hand over to plant a kiss on my palm.

"Besides, I don't want to be away from you that long," he added, placing another kiss in the center of my palm.

My breath quickened at the touch of his lips. "Okay," I finally answered, forcing myself to withdraw my hand so I wouldn't be any later for work.

Shutting the car door behind me, I walked away even though I would have much rather stayed with him. I was surprised at my reluctance to leave him. Even with my pathetic experience at dating, I'd always been put off by the limited conversation skills the guys I dated seemed to have. More times than not, the conversations had been stilted and often one-sided. Usually a few hours into the date, I was ready to call it a night and anxious to escape their presence. Was this how a real relationship was supposed to be? Did people really crave the companionship of their significant other to the point of being obsessive over it?

"I'm glad to see you survived your jump," Fran greeted me as I entered the store.

"Piece of cake," I answered, donning an apron.

"Piece of cake, my ass," she grumbled, glaring at me. "You're lucky you didn't break your damn fool head."

"It might be an improvement," I quipped.

"Don't be sassy."

"Yes, ma'am," I answered, smirking.

"And don't 'ma'am' me. You know that makes me feel old," she reprimanded. "Now, tell me about your date with Mr. Handsome."

"How did you know I went out with him?" I asked, chuckling at another title being bestowed on Nathan. It seemed we could only talk about him in adjective terms.

"Darling, did you forget where you live? Plus, your man came in to ask me about restaurants. So, tell me everything. It's been years since I've heard anything spicier than Mitch Hick trying to grope Nancy Lewis during the bake sale. In her dreams, more like it."

I laughed at her words. "There's not much to tell. Nathan wound up having an allergic reaction to the cashews they put on his salad and spent the night in County General Hospital."

"Piss. Not even a kiss?" she asked, sounded highly disappointed.

"Well…" I hemmed and hawed, not sure how much of the kiss in my living room I was willing to share. "He may have kissed me a few times."

"Details. Now," she demanded. She perched herself on the stool behind the counter and waited for me to continue, her eyes sparkling with interest.

"We may have shared probably the hottest kiss of my existence before we left for dinner last night," I admitted, blushing.

"Don't stop now," she encouraged.

"I guess you could say I was unprepared for the sensations it would evoke in me," I admitted, trying to describe it in the most tasteful way possible. Over the last few months, I'd learned that Fran was more frank than any person I'd ever known. Between her and Tressa, my sex life or lack of was public knowledge.

"Honey, I could have told you he'd be a good kisser. I could tell just looking at him and listening to him that he knows how to treat a woman right."

"He's such a contradiction," I admitted, sinking on the spare stool behind the counter.

"In what way?"

"At times he seems every bit his age—sophisticated, mature, in control—but when he lets his guard down, he seems years younger. It's as if he grew up too quick and forgot to have fun," I mused.

"Don't fool yourself. You're the spitting image of what you just described your young man as. It happens sometimes to those who have suffered great loss or faced circumstances no child should ever have to face," she said, looking knowingly at me.

"Are you sure you weren't a shrink in a past lifetime?" I teased.

She snorted at my words. "I could have never tolerated all the bellyaching. Now get back to the kiss and those sensations it 'evoked' in you," she said, repeating my words from earlier.

"Just put it this way. It was toe-curling, mouth-dropping, body-quivering hot."

"That's my kind of kiss. The kind where everything inside you melts away to nothing," she said, gazing out the storefront, lost in memories.

"Exactly," I agreed.

"When are you going to see him again?"

"He's picking me up after work," I admitted.

"Excellent," she said, rubbing her hands together in glee like she was the one he was picking up.

I smiled at her enthusiasm even though my own stomach was filled with butterflies. I had a good idea where Nathan and I would wind up that night, and I couldn't help being nervous about it. After our failed attempts thus far, it seemed destined that when we finally consummated our relationship, it wouldn't live up to the expectations. I couldn't help worrying that he would find me less adequate than the usual women he hooked up with. When our relationship was supposed to be a one-night stand, I at least was comforted by the idea that I wouldn't have to see him in the morning. As things stood now, I would have to face the shame if he found the sex subpar.

I was grateful that I at least had the day to gather myself. As fate would have it though, the afternoon flew by, and before I knew it, Fran was flipping the "open" sign over to "closed."

"You have fun tonight," she said to me with a glint in her eyes as I deposited her at her front door.

"Thanks," I mumbled, trying to ignore the butterflies in my belly that couldn't have been any more active if they were completely jacked up on sugar.

Nathan was leaning against his vehicle waiting for me when I joined him. "How was your day?" he asked when I came to a stop in front of him.

"The usual. How about you?"

"Boring, but I tried to get a little work done when thoughts of you weren't intruding," he said, grinning crookedly at me. "What about you? Did you think about me at all?" he asked, pulling me closer so I stood in between the gap of his legs.

"Not at all," I lied.

"Liar," he said, using his hand to tuck my hair behind my ear. I shivered as his fingers grazed my sensitive earlobe. "I bet you thought about me as much as I thought about you," he whispered as his teeth gently nipped my ear.

"Whatever helps you sleep at night, big boy," I gasped as his mouth left a trail of heat down my neck.

"Mmm, I like the way you taste," he murmured, ignoring my taunt. He moved the collar of my shirt aside so he could rest his lips on the small indention between my neck and collarbone. I dropped my head back, giving him free access. I didn't care that we were out in the open for the world to see. At least the setting sun cooperated by cloaking us slightly in the late afternoon shadows.

Chapter 12: A surprise destination

Nathan

"Are you ready to go?" I asked, finally forcing myself to pull away from her delectable neck.

"Mmm-hmm," Ashton answered with her eyes still closed. She looked positively devourable standing there willing and ready in my hands. The urge to haul her to the nearest bed I could find and ravish her was almost more than I could take, but I resisted for now. I had plans for the evening that unfortunately did not include a bed until much later. It was only after I dropped her off earlier that I concocted the plan to give her an unforgettable evening considering my complete failure the night before. I told myself it was all part of the whole seduction plan. Charm her, screw her and then hand her over. I was a bastard.

My plans for the evening had come together relatively easy thanks to a few kind townsfolk and one of her best friends who had been very accommodating with my requests. By the end of the evening, Ashton would be putty in my hands, and I would finally be able to get her out of my system. As long as the weather held together, the night would be perfect. Unfortunately, my patience was being tested by low heavy clouds that had moved in over the horizon as the day progressed.

"We better head out," I said, dropping a quick kiss on each of her closed eyelids. "Hopefully, the weather cooperates," I added.

"Why, where are we going?" she asked, slightly confused. Her eyes were still cloudy with passion that tested my already shaky restraint. "I thought we were going back to my place," she added, sounding disappointed.

"I have something else planned," I answered, smiling at her disappointment.

"Oh, okay. Where are we going then?" she repeated.

"You'll have to wait and see," I said, dropping my voice so it would come out mysterious. I placed my finger against her lips when she tried to say something else. "It's a surprise."

"I hate surprises," she griped, climbing into the passenger seat.

"You're a chick, how can you hate surprises?"

"Because, you never know what's going to happen."

"Hence the word surprise," I teased.

"Why don't you tell me, and then I'll act surprised," she cajoled.

"Um, how about NOT," I answered, pulling onto the dirt road I had driven down just a few hours prior.

"I think you took a wrong turn. I'm pretty sure this road belongs to Mr. James and doesn't lead anywhere," she piped in as I continued to drive slowly over the ruts in the road, trying to avoid the tree branches on either side of the narrow lane.

"It's all good," I reassured her, lacing my fingers through hers.

"Oh shit, this is the time when you're finally going to add my boobies to your trunk."

"You got me. Surprise," I teased.

The trees surrounding the vehicle closed in tighter around us, scraping against the sides of the Range Rover in one last-ditch attempt to keep us out before opening up to a clearing with a large lake bordering the property. Ashton gasped beside me when she took in the sight in front of us. I had to admit, we'd done a great job creating the effect I wanted. The clearing was illuminated by multiple lanterns that hung from the low branches of the towering trees. Candles sat on the ground, flickering in vases and surrounded a large quilt that had been spread out on the ground. I smiled at the overall effect. Ashton's friend Tressa had outdone herself.

I'd been hesitant to employ her help, afraid she'd tip Ashton off on the surprise, but she'd proved to be a godsend. She jumped in wholeheartedly at the chance to help me surprise Ashton. Her ideas were sound, and I let her run with them.

"The clouds kind of screwed up my whole plan for a picnic beneath the moon, but you get the idea," I said proudly.

"What are you trying to do to me?" Ashton asked, looking awestruck at the scene before us.

"I figured I owed you for last night," I said, linking my fingers through hers so I could drag her to the waiting blanket and picnic basket perched on top of it. "This way we can knock two of those items off that list you have," I added as she looked completely transfixed by the lanterns.

"Two?" she asked with a catch in her voice.

"A canoe ride beneath the stars," I answered, pointing to the aluminum canoe I'd finally been able to track down. "I'm hoping the clouds will give us a break," I added wryly.

"This is too much," Ashton said, not looking ecstatic like I had pictured she would be.

"What do you mean, sweetheart?" I asked, placing my hands on her shoulders.

She shrugged them off. "This," she said, pointing to the picnic. "And that," she added, pointing to the canoe.

"Why is it too much?" I asked confused. Sure, I might have gone a little overboard for this date, but the end result would make it all worth it. Somewhere between deciding not to turn her over to my client right away, and making her mine, I decided I wanted to get to know her better. I wanted to know why she had run. I had to know why her eyes occasionally clouded over with hopelessness, and what lurked behind the passion that flared up in those same eyes. She was like a rare treasure that begged to be discovered and explored.

"Because, we're not a couple," she said. "We're not even lovers yet," she added through gritted teeth before turning and stalking off for the vehicle.

"Hey, wait. I know we're not," I said, snagging her hand after she'd only taken a few steps. "But that doesn't mean we can't get to know each other and enjoy the time we have together," I said, cupping her face with my hands. "I just want to enhance what we have going on here."

"You're trying to make me fall in love with you," she said with trembling lips. She looked as if she was fighting back tears.

"I've already been down the heartbreak route, and have no plans to travel it ever again, but that doesn't mean I'm not going to enjoy what we have going on here. You yourself have to admit that the connection between us is more than lust," I said, pulling her closer. "I say let's explore it and just enjoy it. There's no reason we need to rush any of this. We can let the anticipation build up before we finally let it crash over us. I've taken the next few weeks off from work. Spend them with me," I pleaded.

"This was supposed to be just an affair," she said, her eyes shining brightly with unshed tears.

"And that's what it will be. That doesn't mean we can't have fun discovering each other along the way."

"What if you fall in love with me?"

"You keep asking that. Trust me on this. My heart is too hardened to ever love again," I said, running my hand up the side of her face. Pulling her close, I placed my lips to hers, probing with my tongue until she opened her mouth fully. Our lips caressed each other until the rigidness in her arms disappeared and she melted against me. "Tell me you'll spend the next few weeks with me," I said, pulling back despite her protests.

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