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Not even a monk would’ve been able to resist kissing Allison with her standing so close. And he was no monk. “Starving.” But not for food. Dipping his head, he took her lips.
Beneath his, Allison opened her mouth and traced his lips, sending out an unspoken message. One he heard loud and clear. Opening his mouth, he waited for her to make the next move. Right away she dipped her tongue inside, teasing his and causing his pulse to march double time.
She knows how to kiss. His hands itched to move lower than her waist. Instead, he pulled her closer, pressing her body into his and taking control of their kiss.
He could’ve happily stayed just where he was all night, but crinkling plastic reached his ears and Allison pulled away. “Come on. I keep the vases in the kitchen.” She tugged on his hand, leaving him no other choice but to follow her. Not that he minded. At the moment, he’d follow her into a raging firefight.
With care, she snipped each stem before placing it in the glass vase, telling him she had a lot of practice at the task. If he’d wanted to make an impression, he should have brought her something other than flowers. Too late now.
She had almost all the stems cut when she stopped. “Did you send something to my office this week?”
The unease in her voice more than her question reinforced his instincts from earlier that something wasn’t right. “No.” So what if she got a gift at work. It was none of his business. He saw her hand shake when she added the last flower to the vase. “What did ya get?” He only asked because she appeared upset, not because he cared if other men sent her things.
“Some candy. It’s no big deal. I’d just like to know who sent it.” She shrugged and stuck the last flower into the vase. “All set to go.”
She better never play poker, because Allison couldn’t lie, but if she wanted to pretend the gift didn’t bother her, he’d play along tonight.
***
Asking if he’d sent the candy and bear had been stupid. Even before she spoke, she knew the answer. A guy like Rock didn’t send furry teddy bears with notes, which said Thought you’d like something sweet while you worked. Then again, he didn’t seem like the flower-giving type either, but she had a beautiful bouquet in her kitchen.
When she’d opened her door and saw them in his hand, she’d done a double take. Dates showed up with similar arrangements all the time. While she appreciated the gesture, it didn’t warm her from the inside out. Seeing Rock standing there holding them had done just that. How could seeing a big, tough guy like him holding something so delicate do anything else? Even now while they waited for their waitress to return with their drinks, the memory made her smile. Then there had been his kiss. Holy moly, what a kiss. She’d only ended it because the alternative would’ve been hitting the sheets rather than watching hockey players hitting the boards. Hitting the boards, she thought that was the correct phrase anyway.
Inhaling, she savored the smell of sweet barbecue filling one of her favorite restaurants in Alexandria. Other than her twin brother, no one knew she loved chicken or ribs covered in barbecue sauce. She didn’t really care which style sauce. As long as it was authentic, not the gross bottled stuff sold in stores, and she had plenty of napkins while eating it, she was happy. She couldn’t imagine any of the men she’d dated in the past sharing her enjoyment of the somewhat messy cuisine. Rock seemed like the type who would, which was why she picked Cooper’s tonight.
“Everything here is great, but I recommend the chicken with Kentucky Black Barbecue Sauce. If you get pork, get the South Carolina Mustard sauce.” Allison read the specials listed on the paper stuck inside the menu, each one sounding better than the one before it.
“You’ve been here before?”
Talk about a silly question. She’d suggested this place, hadn’t she? Who would suggest a restaurant they’d never eaten at? “Yep, and that surprises you
because?”
He put his menu down, and she watched the way he shirt stretched over his shoulders and biceps. His long shirtsleeves did nothing to hide his well-defined arms. And while she had a fabulous imagination, one of these days she’d like to see just what his shirt hide from view.
“I thought you’d prefer places like Siena. Barbecue can be messy.”
He didn’t know her well yet, so she understood his assumption, even if she didn’t like what it implied.
“When you suggested this, I thought maybe it was my sister’s idea too.”
At least he’s honest. Too many times in the past, she’d gone out with men who said what they thought she wanted to hear. “Nope. I get takeout from here a lot. My cooking skills are limited. But I did get the idea of a hockey game from her.” He’d know soon enough she knew next to nothing about hockey, despite her recent efforts.
Rock gave her another one his steam-producing smiles, and Allison hoped no other women in the restaurant noticed. If they had, she might have trouble getting him out of there later. “Guessed as much. She told me you liked flowers and Gertie at the florist picked them out.”
“Gertie is a sweetie. I stop in there about once a week and pick something up. I like fresh flowers in my office and house.”
“She reminded me of my Nonna.”
“That’s Italian for grandmother, right? Do you speak it? I learned Spanish and German in high school, but they didn’t have Italian.”
“I’m not fluent, but I know enough keywords to get by.” He reached out for his water glass, his movements once again pulling her eyes with him. “You don’t know anything about hockey, do ya? We can skip the game if you want. Go somewhere else.”
“Nope, but I’ve been reading up about hockey this week and the tickets are in my purse.”
He cocked an eyebrow and nodded. “Let’s see what you’ve learned,” he said good-naturedly. “How many players does each team have on the ice at one time?”
At least he’s starting with the easy questions. Sure, she’d read a few articles, but she didn’t think all that much had sunk in. That tended to happen when she wasn’t all that interested in a subject. “Six.”
