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“Hi. Miss me?” I tease.
“Always.” His eyes meet mine, the earnestness there about does me in.
God, I am one lucky girl. Grinning, I lean up on my tiptoes and press a kiss to his lips. “I missed you too. Now, let’s eat.”
Chuckling, he steps back, my hand in his so he can shut the door. I lock it with the fob and slide the inconspicuous little device into my jean pocket. We go inside and find a seat.
“I’m stuffed.”I sigh and rub my hand over my belly.
“That was exceptionally good today.”
“Right?” I sit up and let out another long sigh. “Now, I could use a nap.” I wrinkle my nose. “I shouldn’t be this tired; I’ve done nothing today. I think being a stay-at-home person is not for me. It’s exhausting doing nothing all day.”
“Baby, you’re always going and doing something. Your schedule makes me tired on a normal day. You’re being too hard on yourself.”
He is too cute sometimes. “You’re biased.”
“I’m right,” he insists, taking my hand. “Come on, let’s go walk off this lunch, then we can go home and chill.”
That’s code for him getting me naked, sweaty, and then falling asleep while we watch TV. You know what, I am okay with that. He works his ass off to keep this town safe every day. He is allowed to be tired and to just drop off to sleep any time he needs to.
“Sounds good to me.”
He drops a few bills on the table to cover the food, and I put down another to cover the tip. Our waitress has been fabulous, after all.
“Have you thought any more on what you want to do with the storefront?” he asks me while we cross the road.
I shake my head. “Not really. I have a few ideas, but really, the options are somewhat limitless. I know I want an eatery of some kind. Food is what I’m good at, and it comes in all kinds of shapes and sizes. The options…” I look over at him then back to the path before me. “I could do an intimate sit-down place. Fancy food, but that means high-ticket prices. That doesn’t seem to fit the immediate area. I don’t want to alienate certain clientele because I’m trying to be boujee.”
His bark of laughter has my cheeks flushing with heat. “I think you just nixed that idea. So what else?” He pulls me closer to him.
“Well, I also had the idea of a sandwich shop, but that’s not enough.” I laugh, nervous all of a sudden. “Maybe a hot lunch deli.”
“A hot lunch deli?”
“Yeah. A place that’s quaint but affordable to all. Something that is palatable for the average, everyday person. I know this is a seaside community, but not everyone wants seafood. Or a sit-down 5-star event. They want to shove food in their mouths and get back to it. Good food that will fill their stomachs and stick with them for the next few hours. That’s what I want.”
“All right, I’m liking this so far. What kinds of foods are you thinking about?”
“Well, if we do hot lunches that are available to-go or to eat at one of the tables overlooking the street and the beach... Maybe a soup of the day, hot sandwiches, and maybe something else. Possible a small meal option. Spaghetti, lasagna, southern style chili…”
“It sounds like you just decided what you for sure want to do. I can hear the excitement in your voice right now. I think it’s a great idea, really. You’d just need to figure out exactly what you want to serve. Maybe each day the hot meal could be something different? Your roast with mashed potatoes and gravy is delicious. I know a lot of the working class out here would enjoy something like that.”
I tug his hand and lead him down the street to my building. Wow, that still sounds unreal. I pull my keys out, unlock the door, and after shutting and locking it back, I head toward the office. I have to beat him back there to make sure the closet door is closed since some of their gifts are in there.
His arms come around me, tugging me back against his hard body. “Why are you running from me?” His lips brush the shell of my ear as he speaks.
I may have moaned. Not sure. My brain kind of melted.
“Noah…” I shake myself. “I wasn’t running.” I smirk. “Yet.”
“Yet?” He turns me to face him. His body presses into mine until I have nowhere else to go. His mouth comes down on mine in a hard, needy kiss. I know I moan that time. This man makes me come undone with the softest of kisses. This side of him, the dominant man that devours me… I am a goner.
“You’ve been teasing me since you climbed out of your SUV.”
“I have not,” I protest.
“Oh, but you have.” His hands run down my thighs and around to cup my backside. “These jeans show off every luscious curve. And that ass, baby, I wanted to take you in that parking lot.”
