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I let out another laugh. “Meh, I’ve gotten used to it. After enough time, I was able to numb myself to the effects of those looks. It’s the only way I can get her to eat vegetables and take baths regularly.”
“Well, you might have to act as my buffer tonight or I’ll walk out of here after giving her the deed to my house and title to my car.”
“Don’t worry,” I said on a giggle. “I’ll protect you.”
Those green-brown eyes hit me, all smoky and sweet. “Thanks, darlin’.”
My daughter wasn’t the only one standing before me with a face that would make a person melt.
“No problem.” I cleared the cotton out of my throat. “So who’s hungry?”
Chapter Ten
Sawyer
As the evening progressed,I was surprised to find myself completely at ease. The brain fog I usually experienced around Trent had finally started to let up, and I was able to act normal in his presence. Well, somewhat normal, at least.
Dinner went off without a hitch. The food was actually pretty damn good, if I did say so myself, and the company wasn’t anything to sneeze at either. Any lulls in the conversation were quickly filled by Renee rattling on and on, talking about everything and anything she could think of.
There’d been a few times where I’d had to translate what she’d been saying for Trent, but for the most part, he followed her toddler ramblings perfectly.
At one point, I’d actually just sat back and drank my wine, watching the two of them talk to each other. Halfway through dinner I felt this strange warmth bloom to life inside of me at their interaction, heating me from the inside out.
If this was a date—which, I still wasn’t totally sure of—it would be going down in the record books as a success. At least in my opinion. But I didn’t want to get ahead of myself.
Yes, I liked this guy. There was no use in denying that. And it scared the living hell out of me.
He was the first man in years I’d been attracted to, and what he made me feel was so much stronger than anything I’d ever felt before. It was completely foreign to me. The intensity was staggering. I hadn’t even felt this way with Graham during the time I’d convinced myself he was my forever.
The old me—Cheyanne—would have grabbed hold of this feeling with both hands, desperate to keep it and terrified it would slip from my grasp. But that was before. Before I’d chosen wrong. Before I’d made the worst mistake of my life. Before my need to be loved came back to bite me in the ass. But I wasn’t that girl anymore, and this wasn’t about me. It was about Renee.
It was because of her, my need to protect her with everything I was, that I’d made the promise to myself to be done with men. I poured all my time, energy, focus, and love into that little girl, and there wasn’t a single second of a single day that I’d regretted it. She was worth all of that and so much more.
I’d actually convinced myself that she was all I’d ever need. So the impact of my feelings involving Trent not only caught me off guard, but they actually knocked me on my ass and left me reeling.
And in spite of being scared half to death, it wasn’t an altogether bad feeling. Thanks to Graham, I’d forgotten all the things I used to enjoy about the back and forth between a man and a woman. The thrill of the game. I’d forgotten the rush I got as a woman when an attractive man looked at me like I was something special. Those were all the things I’d felt during my dinner with Trent and Renee.
It was weird. I barely knew this guy. He was only two steps past being a total stranger, yet I got a high from being in his company that I’d never experienced before. And insane or not, I actually found myself secretly indulging Luna’s suggestion to have a little fun. Trent wasn’t here for the long haul; he was a tourist. What would it really hurt to let my hair down for a little while and remember what it was like to be a woman until he inevitably went back home?
It wouldn’t hurt a damn thing, a voice in my head that sounded suspiciously like my best friend chimed in.It would be fun as hell.
It was on that thought that Renee let out a huge yawn, effectively ending the tug of war happening in my head.
I glanced at the clock on the microwave above the stove and saw that it was a quarter to eight. “Oh, wow. I didn’t realize the time. Time to get you in the bath, doodle bug. It’s almost bed time.” Pushing back in my chair, I grabbed my plate and leaned over to reach for Trent’s.
His hand came out and stopped me before I could grab hold of it. “I’ll take care of this. You go handle her.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
“I insist,” he said. “You cooked, you shouldn’t have to clean as well. I’ll handle the cleanup while you get that one in the bath.”
I stood straight, my empty plate still extended in the air. “You sure?”
“Positive. It’s the least I can do after such a fantastic meal.”
That warmth inside me burned even hotter. This man really was something else. “Okay. If you don’t mind.”
“Don’t mind at all, darlin’.”
