Page 54 of Moonlight and Mischief
He halts his work and leans back to look me in the eyes. The glow of them shows how turned on he is, and suddenly I’m doubting if we will do anything else besides ravage each other today. That would be absolutely fine with me.
“They agreed with my assessment. We’re putting together a plan. Everything is going to be fine.”
Relief washes through me, relaxing my muscles and giving way to a burning desire to touch every bit of him that I can. With the stress lifted, I can keep him all to myself without any guilt. At least for a few hours.
“So what do you want to do today?” I ask, hoping he says stay in bed.
“I’d like to take you on a date,” he says.
“Wow,” I say, my grin widening until my cheeks hurt. “What’s the plan?”
“You’ll find out. Nothing too crazy, but I think we’ll have fun,” he answers.
Resisting the urge to squeal, I kiss his cheek and head toward my bedroom to put on real clothes. “But we have to be back in time for dinner. I invited everyone over for a game night. I hope you don’t mind,” I say over myshoulder.
His eyes go wide. “You did?”
“Um, yeah. They all know about our living situation now, so why not? I can cancel if you like or ask Hazel to host.”
A slow smile breaks out across his face. “No, it sounds great. Just unexpected.”
After some deliberation, I pick a yellow sundress with tiny white daisies all over it. It might clash with my hair, but I don’t care. The dress makes me happy, and Jasper must like it too because his lips part silently when I walk out of the bedroom.
He’s wearing jeans for once, though they are black like most of his clothing, paired with a black Henley. It might be casual, but damn if he doesn’t look scrumptious.
It’s a quick walk to the parking lot, and we don’t see any of our packmates.
Jasper’s car is a sleek and sporty SUV. Black of course. It’s shorter than the trucks the pack owns, and somehow much fancier. He opens the door for me and I slide onto the leather bucket seat.
“Wow, that’s a lot of buttons,” I mutter as Jasper settles into the driver's seat and pushes another button to start the car. The steering wheel has a little shield in the center with a tiny stallion. I have no idea what brand it signifies.
He grins at me, throwing the car into reverse and smoothly pulling onto the winding road to take us to town.
“This is a nice car,” I say, peering at the central flat-screen display. Jasper hums, smiling as I continue, “Do you like it better than the one you had to leave behind?”
He shrugs. “It’s a newer model of the same thing. I like what I like.”
“Oh, cool,” I say. He turns from the dirt road onto the highway and I admire the trees whipping by.
He glances at me. “Do you want to get your own car at some point?”
“Probably not,” I admit. “I don’t even drive.” That gets his attention.
Frowning, he asks, “Do you knowhowto drive?”
I shrug. “Never learned. It didn’t seem important.” He shakes his head, and his hand goes to my leg, sliding higher until my entire body is tingling. He stops, fingers gripping high on my thigh, the hem of my dress pushed up. I have half a mind to grab his wrist and shove his hand higher, but that’s a bad idea while he’s driving.
His hand lifts as we exit the freeway for the tiny mountain town that sits about twenty-five miles from the pack. I’ve been in town a few times, but it’s so small, there isn’t much reason to visit.
Jasper parks on the curb in front of a brick building. I tug my dress back down before he opens my door and helps me out. Our fingers weave together and he leads me to a brick archway. The sign says “Birch & Brew”.
“This is my favorite coffee shop. Well, the only coffee shop within a hundred miles, but it’s still great. I finished my degree online right here,” he rambles, pushing the heavy wooden door open. Is he nervous?
The smell of caramel, cream, and coffee swirl around us. The steam wand on the espresso machine hisses as a barista with green hair froths some milk. The sounds of country-folk music resonates softly.
“What would you like?” he asks, squeezing my hand gently.
“Tea, please.”
