I felt his pride, though, and was relieved that he didn’t think I was defective or something.
I gave him a soggy laugh that I prayed didn’t sound fake.
When his lips met mine, it was hard not to back away, not to retreat. He was nice. Kind. A good date. I’d never been in the market for a date before because I’d never had the chance to, but so far, I’d had a good time. What with Dane back in West Orange, and then Jared here, but neither of them did it for me.
I wasn’t even sure what it was.
Dane hadn’t been good in bed, but Jared was. He was generous with himself, eager to satisfy, and though my body might have peaked a little, my head just hadn’t been in the game. He didn’t deserve for me to treat him like he was a leper.
"Thank you for dinner," he murmured with a soft laugh, his lips gently pressing against mine before he moved down, onto my throat, down to my breasts.
It felt strange not wearing the leather necklace, not having the solid weight of the key to Storm’s padlock tucked into my cleavage, but I’d removed it tonight because I’d intended to have sex. Something I almost regretted now.
My nostrils flared as I worked through my desire to toss him away, and as he sucked on my nipple, I was grateful when my alarm rang. I’d set it, just to be on the safe side. This had happened with Dane, and the last thing I wanted was to be stuck here like I’d been with him.
"Damn," he grumbled, but it wasn’t mean, just disappointed. "Guess you need to pick your daughter up, huh?"
I sighed and apologetically murmured, "Sorry, babe."
He grinned at me. "No worries. Hey, I’ll be away the rest of the week on a conference, so if you don’t see me in the diner, don’t worry. I haven’t ghosted you."
Well, that made me think he was going to ghost me. Damn, it was definitely a bad sign that I was relieved. A part of me even hoped he wouldn’t come into the diner where I was working now… or was that just wishful thinking?
I blinked. "Okay."
He shook his head as he lowered his mouth to mine again. "Seriously, it’s a boring team-building exercise. When I get back, we’ll go out again, yeah?"
I shot him a smile that I hoped was eager and nodded. "I’ll look forward to it."
Quickly rolling out of bed, I grabbed my purse and my phone to turn off the alarm, then shot off a text to Storm.
Me: I’ll be back in time to get Cyan.
Storm: You sure?
Me: Of course.
Storm: I made soup. Or do you want me to order in? Rex came. He’s staying the night before leaving tomorrow.
My eyes rounded with surprise. And relief. I knew how worried Storm had been about Rex. Heck, I’d started to worry too.
Me: Rex is there?
Storm: Yeah.
Me: Is he okay?
Storm: As well as can be.
"Everything okay? You look shocked," Jared questioned, his concern clear.
"No, it’s all good. Just checking in with the gym where my daughter’s got a class."
Storm: Soup or takeout?
What was it with him and soup right now?
I was beyond grateful he’d cooked, but I knew he hated it.
Deciding to save him from himself, I typed out:
Me: Order in. Your choice.
He sent me a thumbs up, just as MaryCat texted me. We’d grown close over the last couple of weeks, enough that I’d shared the gossip about Jared asking me out.
MC: How did the date go?
Me: I’ll tell you later. xx
MC: Just tell me if you want to see him again.
Me: No…
MC: Damn.
Smiling a little, I shoved my phone back in my purse and started gathering my clothes together. Well aware Jared watched, I tried not to feel uncomfortable with his eyes on me.
Storm… why was it only now that I realized I never actually felt that way with him?
At the beginning, after Cyan, I’d been like this. But over the years, he’d celebrated my body in so many different ways that I couldn’t really be self-conscious. He reveled in my tits, loved my ass, and wasn’t afraid to tell me so.
No, Keira. NO! He’s bad for you. BAD.
I cleared my throat when I was ready, and though it was weird, I rounded the bed and leaned down to give him a quick kiss on the cheek.
He smiled and, afterward, said, "The door locks itself."
If I’d been serious about him, that would have been a red flag, but I was just grateful I wouldn’t have to wave bye to him as I drove off.
"Speak later," I told him huskily, hoping I still sounded eager.
Darting out of the bedroom, I managed to find the light switch and headed down the stairs. It was a nice house. Very nice, in fact, for a divorced guy with two kids to pay child support for.
Another red flag if I’d been interested in him.
When I left the house, a light popped on, which was how I saw him.
At first, his presence made me jerk back in surprise, then I recognized Jump.
My throat tightened as our eyes clashed and held.
Storm would know soon.
Or maybe he already did.
Would he have asked me about soup if he’d known I was fucking some guy I’d met at the diner? Who’d bought me a nice meal after work, who’d wooed me?
Jump broke eye contact first, and when I saw a glint of light, I knew he was on his phone, probably informing Storm I was leaving.
My throat was tight as I headed into my SUV and backed onto the road. Jared’s home was a few streets away from Main Street, so the rumbles of my engine and Jump’s weren’t out of place as we rode off.
Mind whirring as I drove to Cyan’s gym, I told myself I had no need to feel guilty. Nothing to be ashamed about. I’d done nothing wrong. I was a single woman. I could sleep with whomever I wanted.
Those things were all true, they were all facts, but that didn’t stop me from being nervous.
Cyan was bubbling with enthusiasm, talking about the horse and how she’d managed to do a handstand on the barre, and I let her, the white noise comforting me even as I braced myself for what was about to go down.
A weird hum throbbed in my veins. It wasn’t excitement, neither was it dread. It was just energy.
I felt alive.
A little nauseated, sure, but alive.
After I pulled into the driveway to my house, Cyan darted ahead, racing to find out who our visitor was seeing as there was a shiny red hog on the road, and I let her.
Behind me, I heard Jump’s half pipes as he pulled into his own home, then Cyan’s squealing made itself known to me. For a moment, I found her joy discordant with my current mood and carefully climbed out of the driver’s seat.
As I moved toward the front door, suddenly hyper aware that I needed to shower off Jared’s musky aftershave, I saw why Cyan was squealing as Rex had picked her up and was hugging and twirling her around in a circle all at the same time.
Storm watched on from the kitchen doorway, his amusement clear. His eyes softened when Cyan darted over to him for a hug as well, and I bit my lip, waiting, waiting…
Over her shoulder, he looked at me. He didn’t look around, didn’t have to find me. He saw me standing on the doorstep, saw me as if he’d known where I was all along, and in his eyes, there was…
Nothing.
No rage. No jealousy. No hate. No bitterness.
I blinked. Taken aback. And then I deflated.