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Working closely with Wilder would make it impossible to resist him, but there was no way out of this unless I bailed on my first sponsor. No way in heck was I going to do that.
“This is really weird, right? First, we drop in on the same wave, then I see you on a random beach before bumping into you here, and now we’re both going to endorse the same board wax.”
He shook his head, then smiled—a panty-melting expression. “I wouldn’t call it weird.”
Feeling my nipples pebble, I set the contract on my lap and crossed my arms over my chest. “Then what would you call it?”
“I think it was the universe giving me a helping hand,” he murmured, leaning back in his chair with a knowing grin. “I needed another chance to talk you into going out to dinner with me, and now I’m going to have plenty of them.”
A lot of people thought I was weird when I talked about the power of the universe, and here was my dream guy crediting it for bringing us together again. He seriously couldn’t be any more perfect as far as I was concerned.
I couldn’t help but wonder…had I manifested Wilder into my life by putting him on my vision board? If so, I probably needed to put a lot more stuff on there. Like winning the lottery and other things that were nearly impossible.
“You’re just going to keep asking until I finally agree?”
“Yup.” His smile widened. “I figure you’ll give in eventually.”
He was so right. I definitely would. And not just to dinner. Once Wilder got me alone in a romantic setting—or even just somewhere that we’d have more privacy than the closed door to Van’s office provided us—I had a feeling we’d do a lot more than just share a meal. The chemistry between us was too strong.
“How about we go for that bubble tea you offered earlier?” I suggested, not quite ready to give in to the temptation he presented without thinking about it a little more. And figuring out how I’d explain that my ultimate goal for this season was to break his record.
“Nah. We have a lot more to discuss now.” He shook his head as he patted his six-pack abs. “And I’m hungry. Grabbing a milk tea won’t satisfy me now.”
The sensual gleam in his green eyes made it clear he was talking about being hungry for me as much as food. Maybe even more. Knowing that he felt the connection too—and that we were going to be working closely together—I gave in to his request. “Okay, I’ll go to dinner with you.”
“Great.”
He stood from his chair and held his hand out to me. When I slid my palm against his, a zing of electricity passed between us. I was in a daze as he led me toward the door, and it wasn’t until he walked me out to the parking lot that I realized he expected our dinner to happen right now. After climbing into my Jeep, I met his gaze. “Tomorrow, Wilder. Not tonight.”
“Sure thing, baby.” He shut my door for me and leaned his arm against the window frame. “One thing surfing has taught me is how to be patient. I can wait for you if that’s what it takes.”
5
Wilder
Not many things got me more excited than riding a spectacular wave. Typical of an adrenaline junkie like me. So I was completely shocked when I realized that after only seeing each other twice, Chloe had jumped to the top of the list. The very top.
When she finally agreed to have dinner with me, it felt like I’d just won the biggest purse of my career. I informed her that a car would be picking her up the next evening, though I didn’t tell her where the destination was.
Now, as I cooked dinner in my home and anticipated her arrival, I was like a kid at Christmas. If my sister saw me like this, there would be no end to the grief she’d give me about it. The big, bad surfer giddy over a woman. Not that I really care what they think, I thought with a mental shrug.
The doorbell rang while I was dicing vegetables for a salad. I wiped my hands on a dish towel and hurried to the foyer. When I opened the door, Chloe was looking at the house and fidgeting nervously. She was wearing a pretty mint-green sundress with spaghetti straps that hugged her torso—and showed off a tantalizing amount of her cleavage—then flared at the waist. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail, but the sun gleamed on the light streaks in the dark-brown tresses. She wore dangly earrings and a chain around her neck, both ending with what I was pretty sure was a moonstone.
She looked stunning and elegant, but I had to hold in a laugh when I glanced down at her feet and saw a pair of sparkly silver jelly ballet flats. I couldn’t think of a time when I’d ever seen a pair of jelly shoes on anyone over eight. Yet Chloe pulled them off, and even made them look sexy as fuck.
