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“I meant it.”
“How was I supposed to know? I mean, you never even spoke to me before we had that project together.”
“I know that.”
“All your friends were jocks. And they always used to snicker behind my back. Who could blame me for thinking you were just screwing around to embarrass me?”
“I wish you had said something then. I would have set you straight.”
“And how would you have done that?”
“How do you think?” When she blushes, I know she gets my point. All this wasted time, all because of crossed wires.
“We were kids,” I remind her. “Kids make mistakes. But I’m glad fate brought us together again tonight.” I can’t help but grin before asking, “Are you glad?”
“What do you think?” There’s a devilish gleam in her eyes, that disappears before the server approaches to take our dinner order.
They’re busy in the kitchen, every table full, but I don’t mind waiting. How often do I have the opportunity to sit across the table from a woman who stimulates more than just my dick? Maybe it’s the sense of her knowing me, that familiarity. A lot of water has passed under the bridge since high school, but at my core, I’m the same person I always was. There is a sort of shorthand between us that only comes from past acquaintance. I haven’t been able to enjoy that in years.
“I would love to show you around town once you settle in,” I offer over our salad course. “I could even introduce you to a few people I think you’d get along with. I’ll show you the sights. Introduce you to more establishments like the one in which we’re currently seated…”
She giggles but can’t hide her intrigue. “I thought you were rarely in town, and men like you were too busy for things like that?”
“I will never be too busy for you.”
Shit.I didn’t mean for that to come out, not that way. It turns out she’s bringing back old habits, too, such as the way I used to blurt out whatever stupid thing was at the forefront of my mind before common sense could convince me otherwise.
Staring down at her salad, she murmurs, “That’s very nice, but…”
“No. Don’t pretend this is nothing but kindness or something I feel like I have to do. When I find something I want, there’s nothing that can get in my way.”
She lowers her fork to the plate, gaping at me. “Are you saying you want me? For more than sex?”
“And if I was?”
“I don’t know what to say.”
“You don’t have to say anything.” It’s only ten minutes until midnight, and boats now clog the river, everyone waiting for the big show. A sense of excitement spreads over the dining room as champagne is handed out to the guests in preparation for midnight.
She bites her lip, staring at me with an almost uncomfortable intensity. “Are you playing me? You don’t have to. We can leave tonight where it is.”
“That’s what you think of me?”
“It took me a long time to get over you. I guess I’m not looking forward to going through that again.”
“You liked me that much?”
“Colton, I might as well tell you I was in love with you. Completely crazy about you. But you were about as attainable as the moon.” She looks out the window toward that glowing orb, the light from it shining on her face, making her hair glow like fire. “And yeah, there were times when I thought that maybe we were connecting. So when you made it sound like a joke when you asked me out, laughing and everything, it broke my heart.”
I don’t know what’s come over me. I only know I can’t sit at this table with her for another moment before making sure she understands something. I stand, extending a hand, and she hesitates for only a moment before taking it and following me to the alcove where the restroom doors sit. It’s sheltered from the rest of the dining room, and I take advantage of that by pushing her up against the wall between the doors.
“What are you doing?” she whispers, looking in the direction we just came from. “Everyone will—”
“A handful of those people just watched you fuck downstairs. You think it matters?” My fingers wrap around her jaw, and I tilt her head up so our eyes meet. “Nothing about tonight has anything to do with kindness. I didn’t offer to spend time with you because I feel sorry for you or to make up for the way I hurt you. I didn’t even know I had.”
The temptation to kiss her is almost too strong to resist. “I’m not used to being sorry for what I’ve done,” I whisper, staring at her luscious lips. “But I am sorry I caused you pain. Truly, I am.”
“Thank you?” The fact that it’s a shaky little question makes me chuckle, but the sound dies in my throat as my body tunes into her nearness. She’s a drug, one that has me under its spell. Every short, hitching breath that thrusts her tits against my chest. Every slight whimper, like the one that squeezes its way from her throat when I tighten the pressure from my hand. It isn’t pain, no. It’s need, she’s needy, she’s needy for me. Who wouldn’t get off on that?
