AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“An average guy but with smokin’ hot eyes.”
While she blushed, horrified at her blatant flirtation, he cringed a little but with a smile on his face, his hand creeping over to hold her hand. “Since I was a kid, I’ve heard I had my grandmother Isabella’s eyes. She’s gone now, but I remember her from when I was little.”
“You’re holding my hand,” she said, grinning.
“Is that okay?”
“Yes, it’s okay. I’m going to try to relax if it kills me.”
“I won’t go any farther than this, okay? Just our hands will touch.”
“Just our hands,” she said, smiling.
The animals were frisky in the cooler weather. Talking nonstop, they walked the trails, pausing when they saw an animal out in the open.
“Uh-oh, animal porn,” Jake said, laughing, pointing at a white-tailed deer couple in a romantic pose.
Quickly grabbing his hand down, she laughed, too. “Don’t tell the world. They might want privacy.”
“They should go behind some trees, then,” he replied.
The minutes turned into hours. Because it was a weekday, there weren’t many visitors. “I feel like we have the place to ourselves,” Jake said, standing at a food kiosk to buy coffee.
“This is really nice. Walking is good exercise, too.”
“You won’t have to run today.”
“Actually, I’d still better run. I need the aerobics.”
“I’ll run with you. I need it, too. I get winded hiking up hillsides when we’re out on a call.”
“Everyone does, Jake. You’re carrying all the extra weight of the gear. It’s not easy. That’s why I can’t miss a workout. Your neighborhood has the best place to run trails. You just have to watch that you don’t sprain an ankle.”
They found a bench to sit and drink coffee overlooking a savannah in the zoo’s Australian section. His hand found hers again. The electricity from it traveled from his palm to hers, up her arm, across her chest, and she could feel her nipples erecting.
Uh-oh.The unusual sensation titillated her. She hadn’t been intimate with a guy in a long time. Awkward fumblings at the door when an infrequent high school date dropped her off had been thankfully interrupted by Gerald or one of Geri’s brothers. The Angel boys were known to be possessive of their sister, in the extreme.
The concern that Jake Saint was going to be more than just a distraction loomed large. She was already fond of him. She wanted more and she’d only known him for four days.
“Are you ready to go? I could use that run now,” she said, feeling antsy.
“We can race walk to the truck,” he replied.
“Good idea!”
They threw their empty cups away and started out side by side, but once they were out of the park, she took off to his truck, laughing in the wind.
“I can’t keep up!” he shouted.
“Your legs are twice as long as mine!” she cried. “Lengthen your stride.”
They got to the truck at the same time, out of breath and bent over with hands on knees, laughing.
“Next time, park downhill from the zoo, will you?”
“I’ve never run back to the truck on a date before,” he said.
“Do you bring dates here a lot?”
