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“My panties?”
“Yes. I want them.”
My mind flooded with a hundred reasons to say no, but the idea of walking into the fancy restaurant and dining alone with Cooper with no panties excited me. I pushed aside my arguments and did as he instructed. I shimmied out of the lacy panties and pressed them into Cooper’s hand. I was slightly embarrassed by how soaking wet they were, but Cooper ran his fingers over them and smiled at me.
“Very good,” he said before pocketing them. “Let’s go.”
The door opened at his words and he extended a hand to me as we exited the car.
Chapter Fourteen
The restaurant was breathtaking. It took up the entire top floor of a very fancy hotel downtown and boasted a five-star celebrity chef. We had to take a very long elevator ride to the top, but it was more than worth it—the walls were all windows that allowed a 360-degree view of the city, as it sparkled in the night. I couldn’t seem to get enough and Cooper caught me staring. “Fantastic, isn’t it?”
All I could do was nod in agreement. Somewhere between exiting the limo and stepping into the gorgeous restaurant, my champagne cloud had lifted and my mind was at odds with itself again. It was like being back at square one with Cooper and unsure how to proceed. He was so
damned sexy and it seemed anytime he poured on the charm, I fell for it—hook, line, and sinker.
“This is one of my favorite places. It’s amazing.” He set his hand on my waist. “Come on, our table is ready.”
I looked back to see a hostess was waiting for us. I set aside my mixed feelings and let him lead me to the table, his hand gently on my low back until he went to pull out my chair and help me get seated.
“Thank you,” I said as I sat down. He didn’t say anything, but the smile he offered was devastating. I was very aware of my every move. Even with my shapewear on, I felt exposed without my panties, and knowing that they were wet and sitting inside the pocket of Cooper’s undoubtedly expensive pants was making me insane. I fidgeted in my seat to get comfortable and watched him across the table, wondering if he could read my unease.
Cooper didn’t seem to notice. He kept his eyes trained on me as I got situated and then immediately ordered a bottle of—I’m assuming—very expensive wine and put in an order for some appetizers to get us started.
“I want you to try one of everything,” he said once the waiter had left the table.
“Not a good plan, if I ever want to fit in this dress again,” I said, desperate to break the spell he had somehow managed to cast on me.
He laughed. “Then take it off...”
I instantly felt my cheeks blush. “Cooper!” I hissed as the waiter approached to drop off the wine.
He shrugged and kept laughing.
“Someone is going to hear you,” I added.
“I can’t help it. You bring out this side of me,” he replied.
“Apparently, a lot of women do.”
He groaned. “Back to that again?”
“Did we ever really leave it?” I asked. Shot fired, I took a sip of my wine and waited for his response.
“I thought so—or at least I was hoping so. Allison, what is it going to take to convince you that I’m not the womanizing dirt bag that you make me out to me?”
Frustration bubbled up inside of me. I felt like this whole debate might as well be recorded and then we could save ourselves the words, and just hit play. It was the same thing over and over again. “It doesn’t really matter.”
“Obviously it does, since you keep throwing it in my face every other day. It’s like this automatic defense for you. You just throw up a wall because you’re afraid of actually feeling something.”
“I’m not afraid. But you know, even if I was, even if your little shrink speech was right, at least I’m afraid because I actually let myself care, you know, once upon a time, and…” I stopped, letting my words fade into the background chatter of the busy restaurant. If I said one more thing, I was going to break down and Cooper had already seen me way too vulnerable.
“So that’s it, huh? One guy treats you like shit and you think the rest of us are all the same as him?” Cooper’s voice was harsh, but not raised.
I looked away, staring into the distance, praying the tears in my eyes wouldn’t slip past my lashes.
“Not just one guy,” I whispered. “Every, single, one.”
