“Are you going to let me feed you?” He glances down at the watch on his wrist and nods up ahead. “Gio’s is opening for dinner now, and it’s the best place in town.”
“Okay,” I agree before I can think more on it. My answer should have been no and then let the chase begin.
“What brought you to Craven Cove?” he asks, taking the bags of fruit from my hand.
“My daughter. I wanted to settle down for her to do her senior year of high school.”
“My son is in his senior year as well.”
“Only one child?” I already know the answer.
“Yes, he’s been my world. You?”
“Same. It’s always been just the two of us. I’d do anything for my Celeste.”
“I know the feeling.” He holds open the door to the restaurant for me.
“Mr. Crew!” A short, round man dressed in all white makes a beeline toward Rory. “I didn’t know you’d be coming in tonight.”
The man’s eyes widen when he sees me standing next to Rory. As if on cue, Rory’s arm wraps around me, his fingers sinking into my hip. A thrill runs through my body, and once again I realize that I’m enjoying this far too much.
“I brought a date this evening,” Rory says. “Gio, this is Anna. She’s new in town.”
“A beautiful name for a beautiful woman.” Gio starts to hold his hand out for me to take, but Rory cuts him off.
“The table in the back please.” I bite the inside of my cheek to keep from laughing.
“This way.” Gio quickly grabs two menus before leading us toward the back of the restaurant. Rory orders a bottle of wine right away so we’re once again alone.
“Date?” I tease, and he shrugs like it’s no big deal. The man who was tripping over his words an hour ago is quickly fading.
“You must have been young when you had your daughter if she’s a senior,” he inquires.
“I was. Seventeen.” Gio returns with the bottle of wine and pours us both a glass.
“May I order for us?” Rory asks, and I nod.
Picking up my glass of wine to take a sip, I try to settle my nerves. This isn’t going how I planned. If he were anyone else, I would have thought it was arrogant to order for me, but with Rory, something is different. He’s not trying to be cocky or high-handed. He’s trying to take care of me. A rush of unexpected emotion hits me, and I realize this is bad. That familiar urge to run hits me, and I glance toward the door.
After Rory has finished ordering, I take a breath and steer the conversation away from my past. I’m used to the surprised faces I get when I tell them I have an eighteen-year-old daughter or when they see Celeste and me together. Most don’t dig. Not when you circle everything back to them. People love to talk about themselves, so it’s not hard to guide them away from asking too many questions about your life. I’m not so sure that’s going to be easy with Rory.
“What about you? I take it you're a single father.”
“I am.” He smiles, clearly proud of that fact. “His mother has been out of the picture from the beginning.” I watch him closely, not seeing any love lost there. “I take it you’re a single mother as well.”
“Yes” is the only answer I give.
Once upon a time I’d been the silly girl thinking a man was going to save me from my terrible life. I learned my lesson. No one can save you but yourself, and you can only ever depend on yourself.
I'll never let myself forget that. Especially when it comes to a man like Rory Crew.
Chapter Four
Rory
“So you can tell me my fortune?” I ask as we exit the restaurant.
“Maybe,” she hedges, but I see the smile she tries to hide.
“I’ve never met anyone who uses tarot cards before.” Reaching down, I take her hand as we walk down Main Street toward her car.
It’s late, and we were at the restaurant long enough for the stars to come out. I’d gotten a text from Apollo at dinner telling me he was eating with Jaxson and would be home late. Then Anna got one from her daughter Celeste saying she’d grabbed food on the way home and was watching a movie.
When her hand is in mine, it feels like we’ve done this for a long time. It’s natural and easy with Anna, and I’ve never felt so pulled into a woman before.
With Apollo’s mother it was a drunken one-night stand, and I didn’t even know her before that night. When Heather told me she was pregnant, I was shocked to say the least but was ready to step up and be the father my son deserved. I’d even made a room at my family estate for her to live with us while we tried to co-parent.
Heather didn’t even stay one night after coming home from the hospital. She dropped Apollo at my house and said she needed a break after taking care of him for nine months. Those first few days alone with him were the scariest of my life, but somehow we made it through.
“You can tell me what you’re looking for or ask me a question, and I can use the cards to guide me. I’ve been told I’m pretty good at it.”
“What would they say if I asked you to see you again?” Her car is up ahead, and I’m desperate for this time with her to keep going.
“Hmm.” She pretends to think it over, but I can see the light in her eyes. She’s not fooling me. “I think there’s a very good chance of me agreeing.”
“Tomorrow,” I say when we stop and she takes out her keys.
“So soon?”
Her blond hair shines in the moonlight, and I step closer. I’m dying to run my fingers through it, but I settle for tucking it behind her ears. “I don’t date, Anna.” She swallows hard as I move in a little closer and her back presses against the side of her car. “I haven’t had sex in a long, long time.”
She licks her lips and looks up at me through her lashes. “How long?” The question is so soft I almost don’t catch it.
“I’d say about eighteen years and ten months, give or take a few weeks.”
I watch her throat move as she audibly swallows. “T-that’s a long time.”
“I’m not one to be casual about any decision I make.” Leaning closer to her, I watch her eyes close slightly as I move my mouth to her ear. “And I’d very much like to make love to you.”
She gasps as I graze my lips against the shell of her ear and inhale her sweet scent.
“Rory, I—” She swallows again as I lick the same trail my lips made.
It’s been so long since I’ve been this close to a woman, I don’t even know if what I’m doing is right. I just know this feels so fucking good, and from the quake in her body, she agrees.
“You don’t have to answer yet.” My lips move to her neck and then slowly along her jaw. “I’m not going anywhere.”
When I get to her cheek, I lean back so I can take her face in both of my hands. With one long look in her eyes, I make my intentions clear. When she doesn’t tell me to stop, I bend down and press my lips to hers.
Hot electricity cracks between us, and for half a second, I wonder if she’s shocked me. The warmth of her soft lips melts against mine, and she gasps as if she feels it too. I take the opening to slide my tongue inside and sweep it against hers. She’s hesitant for a heartbeat before she returns the taste. Her hands come to my chest, and her fingers move to the inside of my jacket and around my ribs. It feels like she’s everywhere, and goddamn it, I wish she was.