Page 65 of Wild Hearts

And if she didn't feel settled, would they move to Virginia? I didn't want to voice that thought yet. It was always a concern in the back of my head.

"You want to get dinner, and then we can figure out what else we should do with our night?"

I sensed that we'd have to take advantage of any night we got. He wouldn't want to leave his daughter alone to spend time with me. Maybe for a few hours but not overnight. Would something happen tonight? Did I want it to?

We headed to the lodge and were seated in the restaurant. It had a pub feel with dark wood accents and gaming tables on one side.

"The food is good," Walker said when the waitress left us with menus.

I nodded. "I've eaten here a few times with friends."

He lifted his gaze. "Have any dates brought you here?"

A smile curved my lips. Was he jealous? "I usually hang outwith dates in town." The truth about that was I would have felt awkward bringing another man to the resort. Not that the Wilde family would have said anything about it.

"You date a lot?" Walker asked, his focus on me and not the menu in his hands.

I shifted in my seat. "I wouldn't say that."

He lifted his gaze again. "You're not looking for a serious relationship? You don't want to get married and have kids?" Then he winced. "Don't answer that. That's way too personal, and you don't owe me anything."

"I don't mind. I haven't met anyone I could see that with." Could I trust the dreams of a teen girl, with no idea of what she wanted out of life? "At one time, I thought it could be you. But we were so young."

Walker's eyes widened. "I thought that too."

With that concession between us, the waitress returned, and I ordered chicken and potatoes. Walker ordered steak. "We always get steak when I meet here with my cousins."

"They're like your brothers at this point, aren't they?" I asked.

Walker nodded. "Yeah, not that I would have admitted that when I was younger."

"Back then you were upset about your parents' death and resentful of the world." He'd come such a long way.

"But you pulled me out of that."

I waved a hand. "You give me too much credit. You would have figured it out."

"I don't know about that. I was unreachable until you came into my life. And I don't doubt you eased the path for Dakota too. My aunt and uncle love you for that."

My cheeks heated. I've never had anyone say that about me. If my cases felt easier than my coworkers', I assumed it was because my kids had less trauma in their lives. Was I ready to consider the common denominator was me? "That's nice of you to say."

Walker reached over and covered my hand with his. "You don't have to stay the night. But I'd like you to."

"I want that too," I said softly, my heart beating harder.

There was an undercurrent of expectation between us. I remembered how good things were with him, but it was so long ago, and we were young. Would things be different now that we were adults? Would we still have the same chemistry?

Now I wanted to be alone in the cabin, but we had dinner yet to get through. Who had thought it was a good idea to go out? "We should have stayed in."

Walker leaned back, his hand slipping from mine as he chuckled. "Poor planning on my part."

My lips quirked into a smile. I liked this side of him. He was happier, more content. He was settled, and that went a long way to alleviating my fears about whether he'd stick around this time. He had a daughter; his family lived here. I didn't have anything to worry about.

It was just old fears surfacing because of what happened last time. But it wouldn't be fair to paint Walker with the same brush. People change, and he'd learned from his past mistakes. He wouldn't do the same thing this time. We'd talk. We'd work it out. That's what adults did.

Dinner came, and we ate, talking about things going on at the resort and in town. Christmas was quickly approaching, and we both had a list of things to do. I helped my office with the angel tree, presents for the foster kids, and he had a lot of people to buy for this year since he was home.

He paid for dinner, and I didn't argue. He was a gentleman through and through. That hadn't changed, and when he was done, he stood and held his hand out to me. "You want to go home?"

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