Page 46 of Scoop Me Up
My cock ached to be touched, but I fought the urge to rush things or to imply that I wanted more. I wanted Gabe to make his own decisions about us, not falling into a lust-fueled haze and doing things he wasn’t ready for. As he kissed me again, he rocked his groin, pressing into my thigh, his erection obvious against me.
We kept kissing, breathless and desperate to get more and more of each other, like teenagers who couldn’t get enough. When we parted, Gabe sat back against the couch cushions again, breathing hard, lips shining and pink. His cheeks and chin were red-tinged from my stubble scraping his face as we’d kissed. It took a lot of self-restraint not to lunge across the couch and beg him to take me then and there.
He grinned at me as he caught his breath. “I think I’m going to like staying here.”
I let out a startled laugh. That wasn’t at all what I’d expected to hear, but I wasn’t going to complain about the sentiment. “I think we’re both going to like you staying here.” My stomach twisted in a different way, not lust or desire but hunger. “But maybe we should eat at some point.”
His grin widened. “That sounds like an excellent idea.”
“What do you want for dinner?”
His eyes darkened and his eyebrows rose quickly.
I rolled my eyes. “I meant food.”
“Oh, in that case… I don’t know.”
“Would you be up for having dinner out? As friends. Not as if we’re taking this public.” I felt the last part was necessary to clarify, given the rules we’d come up with.
“I could not possibly care less.”
“Sparky’s it is.”
Gabe stood and gestured to his outfit, the khakis and button-down that, presumably, he’d worn because it was a workday. “Let me change first.”
“Yeah, of course. Take your time.”
He didn’t take long, emerging from the guest bedroom—hisbedroom—in jeans and a T-shirt. Even in casual wear he looked good enough that it took a remarkable amount of self-control not to pull him back onto the couch.
“Ready?”
I took a deep breath and smoothed my shirt. “As I’ll ever be.”
We made the short walk to Sparky’s, but it took a few minutes for us to warm up to each other again, to settle into a conversation that didn’t involve our mutual desire for each other. Soon enough, we relaxed into it and we were talking about our days, Gabe telling me about a business he was working with, me telling him about school.
“Oh, I have good news, actually. I signed a lease today for the ice cream shop.”
Gabe stopped walking, smiling brightly at me. “Seriously? That’samazingnews. I’m so proud of you for chasing your dreams.”
I rubbed the back of my neck, a little embarrassed by the praise. “Thanks. I have to meet with the foreman to arrange the renovations this weekend.” I was quiet for a moment. “I also think I’ll need to find investors. I have the money for the lease, at least for a little while, thanks to my Frozen Fest win, but I’ll need ingredients, marketing, supplies. So much.”
“I can invest,” he blurted.
I frowned and shook my head. “That’s not necessary. I’ll find someone.”
“Sam, it’s perfect. I’m looking for a business to invest in. I was just working with Miles to find something. You need an investor. Let’s help each other.”
It sounded too good to be true, and I wasn’t willing to risk the potential fallout. “I can’t let you do that. What if things go southbetween us? Or what if my business fails? Or any number of things? I don’t want to overcomplicate things.”
He nodded and shrugged one shoulder. “I think you’re being stubborn, but okay. I won’t push.”
A few moments later, we were at Sparky’s. As we entered the diner, the volume of chatter dipped for just a brief second, but during that time, it felt as if every pair of eyes was on us. My stomach fluttered with nerves—what if people couldtell?
Sage looked at us with narrowed eyes, expression skeptical. With a smirk on their face, they grabbed a couple menus. “Table for two?”
I nodded, face heating, and Sage sat us in a booth, putting the menus in front of us. “We have our date night special going on right now,” they said, a suggestive gleam in their eye as they pointed to a section of the menu that described the deal.
“Thanks,” I murmured as Sage stepped away. Under the table, I stretched my legs out and rested one foot against Gabe’s. I ached for more but at the same time, prayed nobody would notice a thing.
