Drew cracks a smile that crinkles the corner of his eyes. “I’m not surprised. Anna’s looking to start a cult over that new cactus pear cheesecake.”
“Cactus pear? Damn, that sounds even better than I imagined.”
“You two,” he says with a groan. “Cheesecake peas in a graham-cracker-crust pod, I swear.” He steps back and gestures back toward the door.
I eye him skeptically as I start back inside. “You only want me to go first so you can look at my ass, don’t you?” I accuse him.
Drew holds up his hands in mock surrender and grins. “Guilty as charged.”
We cross the threshold and I hang back, mostly since I have no idea where he’s taking me, but also to turn the tables on him. He grins and wiggles his eyebrows at me as he takes the lead. I follow him into the kitchen and down a set of stairs, landing us in the lower kitchen. The view of his backside is as good as it always is.
He makes to lead me through the kitchen when Anna catches up with us.
“Oh good, she didn’t dine and dash,” Anna jokes. I look down and note that she’s holding a piece of cheesecake on a plate. She notices my glance and waves it under my nose. “You didn’t think I’d let you leave without trying it, did you?”
Drew rolls his eyes. “I was just going to get her a piece,” he grumbles.
“Yay,” I say, clapping my hands together and accepting the plate. “I’m going to eat this right here. If that’s not okay, stop me now.”
Drew puts his hands on his hips and looks down, shaking his head. “You two.”
Anna gestures for me to try it, so I slide the fork through the silky concoction. The second it hits my tongue, I swear my knees buckle a little as a groan escapes my mouth.
“Omigod,” I moan. “Soooo good.”
“Right?” Anna asks with a grin. The expediter calls out an order and Anna gives a wave and leaves us.
I down another bite of the cheesecake as Drew watches me, still laughing. “I don’t think I’m going to be able to eat very much of this. It’s so rich.”
Drew opens his mouth obligingly. With a wicked grin, I get an obscene amount of cheesecake on the fork and shove it in his mouth. He takes it like a champ, making an exaggerated face of enjoyment and yummy noises while he chews it. By the time he’s done, I’m laughing too hard to eat anymore, so I hand the plate back to him. He sets it on another counter and looks up to find the expediter watching us.
“Don’t you have orders to plate?” Drew asks pointedly.
The guy grins. “I’m on it, Chef.” His head disappears from the window, but I can hear him chuckling.
“You’re bad for my mean boss image,” Drew teases me.
Something Anna said flashes through my brain suddenly. “Oh, crap. I think I did just dine and dash. I never paid for lunch!”
“Please,” Drew scoffs. “Like I’m going to let you.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
I hear titters behind the line and Drew looks over his shoulder at the no fewer than three employees watching us and rolls his eyes. He gestures for me to follow him, so I do. He leads me through a side door, into a small office, and partially closes the door to give us some privacy.
“Sorry about those guys, they’re not exactly used to seeing me being all mushy.”
“I make you mushy?” I ask hopefully.
Drew gets a glint in his eyes. “Mmm. Among other things,” he says in a suggestively husky tone that makes me blush. “I’m glad you stopped by. I don’t know how I was going to make it until Wednesday without seeing you.”
I want to admit that I feel the same way, but my conversation with Aunt Meg is still niggling at the back of my mind.
“I hope I didn’t cause problems at work. Clearly they’re not used to knowing things about your personal life. I didn’t mean to overstep.”
He reaches for me, wrapping his hands around my waist and pulling me against the hard plane of his chest. One hand reaches up and trails through my hair as he looks deeply into my eyes. “Don’t apologize. They’re not used to knowing things about my personal life because I don’t usually have one. And I don’t really give a fuck who knows how crazy I am about you.”
I place my hands gently on his pecs, trying not to get distracted by their hardness. “I have a question.”
One of Drew’s brows lifts. “Shoot.”
I take a deep breath. “You said you don’t really think about the future. Does that mean you don’t have things you want? Personally?”
One side of his mouth quirks up. “Are you asking if I ever want to get married and have kids?” he asks bluntly.
I can feel the burn of the blush that spreads over my cheeks. “Not to me, just, you know, in general. But yeah. I guess that’s what I’m asking.”
He skims his hands lightly over my back as he thinks about his answer. When his eyes return to mine, I can already feel his intensity. “I’ve been so focused on my career, I guess I never thought about if and when it would happen. And I can’t say I’ve ever been with someone who made me want those things. But I’m not opposed to them. And …” He hesitates.
I tilt my head. “What?”
He pushes out a heavy breath. “I don’t want to scare you off.”
My whole body stiffens, unsure of how he means that. “If you don’t tell me, that might do it.”
Drew chuckles. “Fair enough.” He inhales deeply. “I’m not usually the kind of guy who moves fast. Never saw the point. What’s the hurry, you know? There’s time to get to know the person you’re dating, decide if you’re right for each other. But I think I knew, CJ, the moment I saw you, that we’d be together. I didn’t really realize that until you stayed with me that first night. And I’m not saying I’m there yet. But I recognize the inevitability, if such a thing exists.” He pauses. “Do you believe in fate?” He looks at me, clearly on tenterhooks as he awaits my response.
The well of fear inside me dries up at his words. And he has no idea that I have firsthand experience with inevitability. I close my eyes. “Yes,” I breathe. I reopen them and take a step back.
He allows me to, clearly respecting my need for space.
“That’s what this feels like,” he says simply. He watches my face for a moment. “So have I scared you off? Because if so, then I take it back, clearly it’s not fate.”
That gets a laugh out of me, and it breaks the tension.
“I’m not scared,” I assure him. “That’s just what I needed to hear right now.”
“Well, then I’m doubly glad I told you,” he says with a grin.
“Me too.”
“There’s just one more thing.” He steps toward me and my eyes go wide.
“What’s that?”
“I’d like to call you my girlfriend,” he says carefully. “That okay?”
“Very.” My voice is a soft sigh, betraying the emotion he’s stirring in me. It’s almost too much. Can life really be this good?
“Awesome.” He nods slightly, still staring at me from a couple of feet away. The tension is practically unbearable, but in a good way this time.