Page 103 of Need You
“All right, but you have to promise to be gentle. I’m not the most athletic . . . or adventurous.”
“You had game when we went kayaking.” His hand slipped under the hem of her dress and the skin-to-skin contact made her wet.
“I’ve always liked the water. Ice and snow, not my favorite.”
He surprised her by pulling through the circular driveway of the Ritz-Carlton.
“We’re going to the restaurant here?”
“Yeah. That okay?”
Extravagant and not at all what she’d been expecting.“Wonderful. But do you have a reservation?”
He fixed her with a look and left the truck with the valet before escorting her inside. The maître d’ asked for their name and led them to a table. Colt glanced around the room as he pulled out her chair. She wondered if he wanted to make sure no one there knew them or was just taking in the dining room.
They sat and Colt perused the menu. “Wine?”
“Yes, please.”
“Don’t get drunk,” he teased. “I have plans for later.”
“And what might those be?” She liked this playful side of him.
Before he could answer, a waiter came over and Colt ordered a pricey bottle of Hanzell Vineyards chardonnay. For a man who preferred beer, he knew his wines.
“You like white, right?”
“I like that white in particular,” she said.
“Good.” He reached across the table and laced his fingers through hers. “Nice dress. One of yours, I presume.” When she nodded he asked, “Do you have lacey things under it?”
“That’s for me to know and for you to find out.” He’d reduced her to a silly fifteen-year-old.That’s for me to know and for you to find out. She wanted to roll her eyes at herself.
He cocked his brows. “Baby, I’m looking forward to it.”
The sommelier came with the wine and started to give a dissertation on it. Colt listened politely but Delaney could tell he was in a rush for the steward to leave. Afterward, the waiter took their orders.
Coq au vin, she told the server because it was the first thing on the menu and she couldn’t concentrate. Colt had taken his hand away to order and she wanted it back. When the waiter finally left, he slipped his palm under the table and played with her leg. Careful. If his fingers slid any higher, he’d give her a spontaneous orgasm.
“Colt?”
“Hmm?” His lips slid up.
“What’s gotten into you?”
“That first time was like crack.”
Yet, he’d run off like a scared little rabbit and then had gone five days without contacting her. “For a guy who’s supposedly addicted to me, you’ve been missing in action.”
Colt’s expression turned pensive. “I had to do some serious thinking about this . . . about us.” He took another visual lap around the room. Delaney thought he was nervous that someone would see them together.
“What changed your mind?”
“The fact that you told me I was being a dick, that I needed to make up my mind. And the truth: I can’t seem to stay away. I think it probably started nine months ago, when you and I began fighting over parking. Usually I don’t get involved in petty shit like that.”
“But?”
“I enjoyed butting heads with you.” He grinned. “I kinda became that mean boy in school who’s attracted to a girl and doesn’t want to admit it. Not even to myself. But I want to keep it light, Delaney, if that’s okay with you?”
