Page 126 of My Favorite Hero

“Okay.”

I heard her yawn, and I smiled ruefully. “Go to sleep, Pix.”

“Do you want me to stay on the line and talk to you until you fall asleep?” she offered.

Something warmed inside me at her suggestion. It was sweet and thoughtful. Then she made me laugh.

“Or I could talk dirty to you until your hose deflates and you can sleep.”

“Who says my hose is inflated?”

“You’re lying in bed thinking of me. I’m sure it is.”

I couldn’t deny a semi at the thought of her talking dirty to me. It wouldn’t take much to be ready to go. But I refused to give her the satisfaction. “You’re not all that sexy, Casey.”

“Whatever, Thorne. I bump against you by accident, and we have lift-off.” She paused. “And it would work if I told you I had a bubble bath earlier. I was all hot, wet, and steamy.” Her voice dropped. “And I thought of you the whole time.”

Dammit. She was right. I was hard now.

I tucked the phone between my ear and shoulder and fisted my cock. “Talk to me, baby.”

I straightened my tie, checking my reflection. I smoothed down my hair and ran my hand over my jaw, feeling the scruff. I had to be clean-shaven for the job, but on my days off, I liked to let the beard grow. And Casey liked it too.

For more than one reason.

I was looking forward to this evening. Our first official date. I had dinner reservations one town over at a nice steak house. I had wondered about adding something else, but I knew by the time dinner was done I would be pretty wiped, but I did plan on rocking her world when we got home. At least twice.

I hoped that counted.

I hurried downstairs, picked up the flowers, and went to her front door, knocking. It took a minute for her to answer, and she looked confused.

“What are you doing?”

“Picking you up for our date.”

“You could have come through the closet.”

“Nope. I wanted to do it right.” I held out the flowers. “For you.”

She took the flowers and stepped back, waiting for me to come in. “I need to get a vase.”

I followed her to the kitchen, admiring the way the dress showed off her back. I wanted to run my fingers down her spine and feel the shiver I knew it would evoke, but I resisted. I reached over her head, grabbing the vase she was peering up at and handing it to her.

She smiled, looking almost shy, and rose up on her tiptoes to kiss my cheek. “Thank you.”

I replied by tugging her close and kissing her sweet mouth. “You look beautiful.”

“It’s the dress.”

I kissed her again. “It’s you.”

She patted my chest. “So far, this is the best date ever.”

I winked. “Yeah, it is.”

Casey looked across the table at me, the low lights around us making the candles flickering on the table seem brighter. They highlighted her cheekbones, playing over her features in a soft way that made her even prettier than usual. She wore her hair up again, the style accentuating the delicate line of her neck.

I planned on kissing every inch of it when we got home.