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Sixteen
They climbed out of the freezing lake water, gathered their clothes and dressed quickly. The short drive back to his house seemed to take an eternity. And not only because he worried they might freeze to death before they made it to his house.
“I’m beginning to understand that your lack of fun-having,” he said, angling the vent to blow warm air on her, “has less to do with your not knowing how to do it and more to do with you needing control over every situation. You’re a natural rule-breaker, Hals.”
“I never would have thought so until now.” She snuggled deep in her coat. “But I think you’re right. I’ve been in control for so long, it’s hard to let go.”
“Especially when you know handing it off could result in disaster.” He pulled into his driveway and opened the garage door. He understood the disaster part all too well. His job was to be in control. He wrangled out-of-control situations—or ones that could spiral out of control—into some semblance of order.
“The rub is if you screw up, you’re the only one to blame.”
“Been there.” Nothing was worse than failing. Or expending well-meaning effort and then landing face-first in the dirt. The thought came that he’d played it safe in some areas of his life to avoid failure, but he shrugged the idea off. He wasn’t going to waste a single second with Hallie turning that over in his head.
“So we both like control. How’s this going to work?” He killed the engine and punched the button on a remote, bringing the garage door down. “You caught me off guard at the lake, but when it comes to you and me taking this inside, and upstairs, and into the hot tub...” A slow grin spread his lips as he imagined the ways he would have her. “Who calls the shots?”
Her eyes sparkled. She was enjoying herself as much as he was. “We can take turns.”
“Hell yeah, we can.” He would have his way with her, but he also liked the idea of her having her way with him.
Inside, they kicked off their soggy shoes and walked over to the kitchen counter. The cheese platter had been sitting out too long to appear appetizing, but the wine was still good.
“Can I pour you a drink?”
“It’s not necessary.”
“I didn’t say it was necessary.” He grabbed a pair of fresh wineglasses and poured. “If nothing else, this will warm you up.” Her hair was wet and wavy, the strands curling on the ends.
She sipped the wine, her eyes closing as she savored it. God, she was beautiful. How did he get so lucky?
“You’re right. This is warming me up a little.” She put the glass down and licked her lips almost nervously. “I need to be honest with you about something. You don’t have to try this hard. The bar for romance is set pretty low for me.”
He didn’t like hearing that. He set his glass next to hers. “Meaning?”
“Meaning—”she shrugged one shoulder “—the places I have been ‘romanced’ aren’t exactly romantic. There was that time in the car...”
“Ah, yes. The requisite car sex,” he interjected. “Overeager first time?”
“You guessed it. The second time was on the couch.”
He winced and guessed, “Parents’ basement?”
“His. Not Gram’s basement. She would’ve killed me.”
He had to chuckle. He could only imagine Eleanor Banks’s reaction if she’d found Hallie attempting intercourse on the family’s floral couch. Her gram would have chased the boy out of her house with a shotgun. “I’m not laughing at you, more at how similar our situations have been. It’s tragic the shit we do when we’re young. We’re in such a hurry, we miss out on the good stuff.”
“I’m not sure I ever made it to the good stuff. Until you, I mean.”
Now, that was sweet. She’d just unwittingly set the tone for tonight. “New plan. I’m gonna give you a night you’ll remember for the rest of your life. You shouldn’t settle for less than you deserve, Hals.”
Her eyes warmed like he’d touched a deep part of her.
“Why don’t you call the shots tonight?” he offered, taking up his wineglass again. “Use me up. Think you can handle me?”
She answered by smoothing her hands down his shirt and then unbuckling his belt. By the time her golden eyes peered up at him he was damn near breathless.
“I take that as a yes,” he wheezed.
“Definitely a yes,” she confirmed. “We can start with a shower.”
