Page 18 of Vinny

“Anyway,” she sobered, “mom died and I had my degree in music performance but stayed an extra year to obtain my teaching degree as well.”

“Teaching?” he asked.

“That’s my first love, besides playing Easndah. I’d love to teach, but my father was furious when I stayed that extra year. He refused to pay, so I worked in small clubs and taught on the side to make the money I needed.”

As much as Vinny wanted her to tell him all about herself, he was getting more and more angry at her father.Sounds like an asshole.

Watching the flat land all around, Annalissa was fascinated with the scenery. She relaxed back into her seat, feeling peaceful.When was the last time I talked about my mom? Or talked about my father without getting so nervous.She realized how easy it was to talk to Vinny. Sliding her gaze sideways, she watched his profile.God, he’s gorgeous.He seemed genuinely interested in me, but then he probably has lots of women that want to talk to him. Remembering the actions of the flight attendant, a frown crossed her face.I’m such a dork. What would he ever want with me?

“You getting hungry?” he asked, his rich voice pulling her out of her thoughts. The growl coming from her stomach was his answer. Chuckling, he said, “I’ll take that as a ‘yes’. There’s a stop up ahead where I can get some gas and we can grab some food.”

“That’s perfect. To be honest, I could use a bathroom break as well. Too much coffee this morning,” she said with a blush.

Fuckin’ adorable,he thought, but wished she had said something earlier. “Babe, if you need to stop for any reason, you let me know. I don’t want you uncomfortable.”

She nodded, the blush still visible from the tops of her breasts to her hairline. They pulled into a large truck stop convenience center and parked close to where he could keep an eye on the vehicle from inside.

By the time she was unbuckled, he had appeared at her door, offering his hand to assist. Walking toward the building, he wrapped his arm around her shoulder as they went in. Looking up at him, she wondered about the act of intimacy. At least it was intimate to her.To him?I’m sure he’s had his arm around tons of women.Wishing this assumption did not bother her as much as it did, she lifted her chin slightly as they entered the building.

He nodded toward the back where the restrooms were and she quickly took care of her business. Exiting the room, she saw him standing against the wall across from her, one leg crossed in front of the other, his muscular arms crossed over his chest. His face relaxed into a sexy smile as soon as she saw him.

“Are you waiting for me?” she asked, looking around.

He pushed off of the wall toward her, swinging hisarm around her shoulders once again as he propelled them toward the food court. Curiosity filled her as she wondered why he seemed to stay so close but she had to admit, it felt wonderful.I can pretend, can’t I? That he’s into me, just for this little while.

Vinny saw the appreciative looks that came their way. He did not care about the ones aimed at him from the ladies and for the first time realized that he had no interest in them at all. But his blood pressure rose from the ones coming from the men, openly ogling Annalissa. Looking down at her, he saw that she was oblivious.She’s got no idea that she’s a walking wet-dream.While he appreciated her innocence, he cursed her naivety.Awareness could keep her safer. Giving the men a glare that had them looking away, he marched her up to the counter.

She quickly ordered a hamburger and french fries, with a chocolate shake, before he ordered the same, only doubled.

They found a table where he could keep his eye on their vehicle and dug into the food. She moaned in appreciation as she ate heartily.

“Gotta say I like to see a woman eat like she enjoys food instead of picking at everything,” he commented.

She grinned while shoving in a french fry loaded with ketchup. “I love food. It’s a wonder I’m not as big as a horse.” She saw his eyes roam over her figure, appreciation flaring there. It was a heady feeling to think that a man as virile as Vinny could find her attractive. Blushing, she looked back down to concentrate on her lunch.

As they finished, she headed back to the restroom one more time and when she came out, found Vinny standing like before, right outside. He had a bag in his hand and once again threw his arm around her as they walked to the car.

“Take the bag, please,” he gently ordered, handing it to her. She did, remembering his request that she follow his directions even if they did not make sense to her. Seeing his gun holster under his jacket, she realized that with his left arm around her and his right hand now free, he would be able to reach his gun. Suddenly nervous, she began to look around as well.

He felt the tenseness enter her body and rubbed his fingers along her shoulders before sliding them underneath her hair and around her neck. “I got this, babe,” he said.

Babe. He sometimes calls me babe. She loved the sound of it as it came from deep inside of him, resonating through her.He probably calls every woman ‘babe’.But somehow it made her feel special.If he just called me Ms. O’Brian, I would only be a job to him. But ‘babe’? Even if I’m one of a million women he calls ‘babe’…grinning to herself,I like it.

He jumped into the driver’s seat quickly as soon as he had her buckled in. She had relaxed as they walked the rest of the way to the car but he knew she was picking up on his tenseness. He eyed the car that matched what had been following them earlier, but was unable to identify the occupants.

The problem with HWY 70 was that it was long and flat and was the main road between Kansas City and St.Louis. Filled with travelers, vacationing families, and truckers. Anyone following could be innocently traveling the road. Or watching them.

Pulling quickly onto the highway again, he kept an eye on the car that was slowly circling the parking lot. Breathing a sigh of relief when he did not see them following, he glanced sideways as he heard a soft voice asking, “Are we okay?”

Reaching over to link his fingers with hers, he smiled, saying, “Yeah. We’re good.” Giving them a little squeeze he added, “Thanks for listening and following my directions without questioning,”

She smiled at the compliment as she leaned back to get comfortable. “What was in the bag anyway?”

“Snacks.”

“We just ate,” she exclaimed.

“You never know when we might get hungry,” he answered, grinning.

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