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Yikes.
I cut off that possibility directly at the pass.
“Uh, no. That’s okay. I’ll be fine without it. I’m probably just a little tired. Once I have something to eat, I’ll warm up.”
“You get cold when you get tired?”
“Don’t you?”
He shrugs. “I’ve never noticed.”
I have to laugh. “Yeah, well, that’s because I’m pretty sure you don’t get tired. Ever. It’s not part of your chemical makeup. You’re like a vampire. You never sleep.”
He raises one amused brow. “What? What are you talking about?”
“Uh, hello? This whole day? Dude, if you followed me around for a day and I had as much to do as you do, you can bet your booty I’d also have a built-in nap time.”
His mouth curves up into a smile.
“I didn’t even do the motocrossing. I just watched! And I could so go for a catnap right now. How do you do it?”
“Years of practice, I guess. I haven’t really slept a traditional amount since before BUD/S.” He shrugs, but when he searches my eyes, he offers an additional explanation. “BUD/S is the equivalent of basic training but for Navy SEALs.”
“Gotcha.” I nod. “And, see? You’re basically a vampire.”
His responding smirk is sly. “Maybe I’m a vampire, but you shouldn’t discount what you did at the track. Word gets around, you know, and I hear you were a wild woman in the stands.”
I blush as he pulls the door handle to get down out of the truck. I do the same, but I have to admit a thrill runs through me as I wait for him to come around and help me down. I’m really not sure I’m going to be able to go back to just getting in and out of regular cars myself. It’s not going to feel right.
My body slides down his like a whisper, and I look up into the moonlit pools of his eyes. He watches me closely.
Almost immediately, awkwardness at his scrutiny seeps into my pores.
“We should get inside,” I babble, just to fill the silence with something. “Chloe’s probably here already,” I continue when he doesn’t move away. “What car does she drive? Maybe we can spot it in the parking lot,” I keep going.
Finally shaken from whatever momentary spell he was under, he gathers himself and glances to the car behind him—the one parked right beside us. It’s a dark-green Mini Cooper. “This is hers.”
“Oh,” I whisper. “See? I was right. She’s already inside.”
Jake nods silently.
I watch, unwilling to move my eyes from his. It’s like my brain refuses to understand that I can be the one to break contact.
Finally, he looks away from me and back at Chloe’s car before giving me the space to get out of the doorjamb. I comply, and he shuts the door to the truck behind me.
“I guess we should get inside, huh?”
I nod, without mentioning that I’ve been saying that for the last five minutes. It feels like our weird little exchange is Fight Club, and neither of us is allowed to talk about it.
Which, personally, I’m okay with. I don’t have the slightest idea what I would even say—what I would be willing to admit.
That maybe you’re kind of, sort of, forgetting the whole reason you’re with him is because he’s Mr. Bachelor Anonymous…? my mind questions. And maybe, you’re getting a little too lost in a guy who should be one-hundred-percent off-limits?
Yeah, now is not the time to think about all that insanity.
Not the time. At all.JakeHand to Holley’s back, I guide her into Boogie’s with a million things running through my mind. It feels like a jumbled mess, to be honest, and I’m pretty sure a part of me is still back there in the damn parking lot, standing in the door of my truck, staring down at her.
The way she was looking at me felt electrifying—entrancing—and I couldn’t seem to look away, no matter how hard I tried or how many times she reminded me that my daughter was inside waiting for us.
I can’t be sure, but I think it had something to do with the feel of her skin as I lifted her down from the truck. Warm and supple, and I hadn’t expected it when I’d reached up to pull her down.
Because for as cold as she claimed to be, I’ve never felt anything warmer.
The door swings closed behind us, and the hostess greets us with a smile. “Hey there! Table for two?”
I shake my head, but before I can open my mouth, Holley is already answering. “Thanks, but we’re meeting someone.” She spots Chloe over the woman’s shoulder and points. “And, actually, I see her right there.”
The woman glances back to the booth and then to Holley and me. “Enjoy dinner with your daughter.”
Holley’s mouth gulps like a fish out of water, stumbling over herself to try to explain, but I talk over her, putting my hand to her back and giving her a gentle push again. “Thanks. We will.”
