It was a new experience for Gillian to have someone be so attuned to her schedule. Walker was enthusiastic and inquisitive about her job. He seemed to be fascinated by how organized she was and how many different kinds of events she arranged. He’d warned her to be safe and they’d finalized plans for the evening.
Since Walker had said jeans were all right, she took a chance and wore her favorite pair of brown and turquoise cowboy boots as well. She wore a turquoise shirt that matched and had braided her hair in two long braids that hung over her chest. She’d also dug some ribbon out of a drawer and tied each braid off with a piece.
She thought she looked cute…but it might be overkill. She definitely looked a little touristy in her cowgirl getup, but she felt good, so decided to go with it.
Gillian had just walked out of her bedroom when the buzzer sounded, letting her know someone was at the doorway downstairs. She pressed on the button. “Hello?”
“It’s me,” Walker said in his distinctive deep rumble.
Without another word, Gillian pressed the button to open the door and let him inside. She knew she had maybe two minutes before he’d be knocking. She took a deep breath, then another. She was nervous as hell, which was crazy, considering Walker had definitely seen her at her worst…twice.
She’d wanted to look nice for him tonight. To let him know that she was looking forward to spending time with him. The knock on the door came about a minute before she was expecting it. Smiling, happy at how excited Walker seemed to be for their date as well, she peered through the peephole, confirming it was him, before opening the door with a huge smile.
“Hi,” she said brightly. “You got up here fast.”
She barely got a chance to register what Walker was wearing before he was easing her into her apartment and closing the door. He backed her up against the wall next to her front door then reached out and took her face in his hands, tilting her head up. Gillian grabbed hold of his biceps and looked at him in surprise.
He didn’t say anything, which kinda freaked Gillian out. “Walker?”
“Hmmm?” he murmured.
“Are you all right?”
“Good. Great, now that I’m with you.”
She smiled uncertainly.
“Shit,” he said under his breath. “I’m fucking this up.” Then he took a deep breath, grimaced, and took a step away from her.
She shivered at the loss of the heat of his hands on her face. “What’s wrong?” she asked, biting her lip.
His hand came up once more and he tugged her lip out of her teeth, then smoothed the pad of his finger across her lower lip. “Nothing’s wrong. I just…I almost forgot we were taking things slow for a second. Seeing you almost broke through my restraint.”
Gillian frowned. She looked down at her jeans and boots, then back up at him.
“You look amazing,” Walker said softly. He picked up one of her braids and fingered it for a moment. “Every time I see you, you surprise me by being prettier than when I saw you last.”
“Do I…is this okay for where we’re going to dinner tonight? I know it’s a bit much, but I love my boots and thought if you said jeans were okay, they’d probably do. And I haven’t worn this shirt in a while. And after I’d gotten dressed, it just seemed more appropriate to put my hair up like this than to leave it down.” Gillian knew she was babbling, but Walker’s reaction had put her off balance.
“It’s absolutely perfect,” Walker reassured her. “As I said, I almost forgot my vow to take things slow when I saw you and did something I promised myself I wouldn’t do.”
“What’s that?”
“Kiss you the way I’ve been dreaming about. Put one hand up your shirt and the other down your pants. Take you against the wall as I kept my nose buried in your hair to better inhale your sweet smell.”
Gillian froze. Holy shit. Walker was way more intense than anyone she’d ever been with before—but she liked it. No, she loved that he knew exactly what he wanted and wasn’t afraid to admit it.
“Shit, I freaked you out, didn’t I?” he asked, taking another step away from her.
“No! I mean, maybe a little, but not in a bad way. I’m just not used to anyone being so honest, but I like it. And…as much as I feel connected to you…I…it’s a bit soon for that. But…” She hesitated.
“What?” Walker asked. “You can tell me anything. Tell me to back off, that I’m moving way too fast, that I’m crowding you, that you need space…and I’ll respect it.”
She shook her head. “I was just going to say that while I might not be ready for all that right now…can I have a raincheck?”
“On the ravaging you against the wall?” Walker asked with a small smile.
“Yeah, that.”
“You got it, Di.”
They smiled at each other, and Gillian found she missed having his hands on her. She loved that she could make him act without thought. She had a feeling that didn’t happen a lot with him. She reached for his hand and intertwined her fingers with his. “Take me to dinner?” she asked softly.
He squeezed her hand and nodded. Together they walked into her living area so she could grab her purse.
“I ordered one of those camera thingies online yesterday,” Gillian told him. “It should arrive on Monday.”
“Good.”
“And I told both my neighbors that a former client was upset with me and if they heard anything weird from my apartment, that they should call the police.”
She looked up at Walker and found he was staring down at her with a satisfied look. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For taking this seriously. I know constantly thinking about your safety is a pain in the ass and can be kinda scary as well. But knowing you’re taking this seriously makes me feel a hell of a lot better about being so far away from you.”
Gillian had thought about that as well. They lived at least forty minutes from one another. If someone broke in or otherwise tried to hurt her, even if she was able to call him, there wouldn’t be anything he could do in the short term. “I might be blonde, but I’m not an idiot,” she told him. “The last thing I want is to end up a hostage again. It wasn’t fun the first time and I have no desire to repeat it. If you think I might be in danger, I’d be stupid to dismiss your feelings.”
“Good. Now, are you hungry?”
“Yeah,” she said.
“You gonna be okay for an hour or so, or do you need a snack?”
Gillian chuckled. “I’m not exactly wasting away, Walker. I think I can hold out until we get to the restaurant.”
Walker tugged on her hand until she fell against him with an umph.
“I know you’re not disparaging your body, are you?” he asked.
Gillian shook her head. One hand was still in his, trapped behind her back where he was holding her to him. The other she rested on his chest as she looked up at him. “No. But I know what I am and what I’m not. And what I’m not is the size and shape of the women men seem to love to look at on the runways and in magazines. I’m okay with that, because I like to eat. I love chips and salsa, and I won’t give up my chocolate.”