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When Vanessa spoke, so open and honest with her heart on her sleeve, I felt like I could really fall for this woman. But like she said, grief was a tricky thing. “I know what you mean.”
“You do?”
I nodded and reached for a sausage link just to give myself time. “I lost more people than I would have liked in the Army. It fucks with me. Nonstop. Sometimes I’ll hear a song that one of my guys used to sing and it’ll level me for an entire fucking day. And then I feel guilty when I realize that I hadn’t thought about him for weeks, maybe months. Like I should have thought about him more.”
“Exactly,” she sighed, flashing a bright smile that lit up her blue eyes like gems. “It’s nice to talk to someone who understands.”
“And doesn’t just want you to hurry up and stop being sad?”
She nodded. “Yep.”
“Easier said than done,” I told her with a laugh. “It’s probably why I’m always such a grouchy bastard.”
“You? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you grouchy.” She laughed at the thought, and I kind of liked the idea that she saw me differently. It gave me hope that maybe she would look at me differently.
“Maybe you take away all my grouchiness.”
Vanessa nibbled her bottom lip, drawing attention to how plump it was especially now that her pink lipstick had started to fade. “Maybe I like having that superpower.”
“Maybe you should.”
Yeah, this was definitely flirting. I had that tingling in my arms that you got when you were vibing with a beautiful woman, and my heart raced in anticipation of her next smile. Her next laugh.
“And maybe you should prove that you can eat as much as you said you could.”
Her blue eyes narrowed at the challenge and her lips pulled into a playful grin. “Oh, don’t you worry your pretty little head, Emmett. I’m gonna eat so much you’ll have to roll me out to your car.”
“I can always use another workout,” I told her with a shrug and grabbed a slice of bacon from the plate that sat between us. “Eat up, then.”
“You’ve been warned,” she said and proceeded to eat her weight in breakfast food but rather than being turned off, I was so damn turned on looking at her lips, slick from the greasy food and listening to the erotic moans she made with every nibble. Every bite. Vanessa put away a lot of food, but still left plenty uneaten. “Impressed?”
I looked down at the huge dent we’d made in the food and nodded. “Beyond impressed, actually. And a little upset I don’t get to roll you back to the car.”
When my fingers twitched at the thought of putting my hands on Vanessa’s perfect ass, I knew it was time to go. Her car had probably been fixed for more than an hour by now, and here I was, torturing myself.
She blinked, long lashes fluttering prettily, and for just a moment, I saw a flash of heat in her eyes. I would have loved to take her up on that promise in her eyes, but she wasn’t ready. “Maybe another time?”
“Sure. Ready to get home?”
She nodded. “Your company has been amazing, but I think I have about fifteen minutes before a food coma sets in.”
I put enough cash on the table to cover the bill and the tip, but Vanessa wouldn’t have it. “I’ll leave the tip,” she insisted.
I wasn’t put off by her tone, just the opposite.
“Cool. Tomorrow when the guys give me a hard time, I’ll tell them a beautiful woman bought me dinner.”
“You won’t,” she said, so sure she knew me.
“I might,” I insisted, my hand on the small of her back as we left the diner. I kept my head on a swivel, searching for danger in every dark corner, behind every barrier.
“But you won’t,” she shot back with a cheeky grin as I closed the door.
“But I could.” The quick trip back to her place was mostly quiet, both of us deep in thought and probably embarrassed as hell that we’d revealed so much of ourselves to each other. After all the loss we’d experienced, it was odd to share so much so soon. “Thanks for sharing dinner—or breakfast—with me tonight, Vanessa.”
She flashed a smile across the car and her shoulders sagged in relief. “Thanks for asking, Emmett. I had a great time.” She leaned forward and I froze, unprepared for what I thought was about to happen, which ended up being a pretty chaste kiss on my cheek. “Good night.”
“Not so fast,” I told her and jumped out of the car, determined to walk her to the door because I was a gentleman and because of my vow to protect her. “I’ll walk you to the door.”
“Next time I promise you can roll me to the door, if that makes you feel better.”
