Page 48 of Four Dates and A Forever
She tried not to notice the way his face went slack at her accusation and instead she looked at the stars overhead. The summer night was showing off with a million twinkling lights and a gentle breeze carried the scent of crisp air and cologne.
Rhett.He’d moved closer. She could feel him at her back.
“Go out with me.”
She spun around. “What?”
He was right there, so close she could feel the heat of his body. She looked up into his devastating eyes and her body gave a lengthy sigh.
“Let me take you on a proper date.”
“And where would a date lead?” To disaster, that’s where.
“I don’t know, but I want to find out.”
“You’re leaving in a few weeks.”
Elsie had come back to Portland to make her goal a reality, not to become distracted by another relationship. If she’d managed to lose sight of her dreams with a selfish guy like Axel, she didn’t even want to think about what would happen to her goals with a man as gentle and sweet as Rhett. He had the power to swallow her whole.
“Then we have a few weeks to see where this goes.” His arms slid around her waist. “I’m not asking for more than you’re willing to give. I’m just asking for a chance.”
A chance at what? Her body didn’t seem to care but her mind seemed to understand. She’d tried the no-strings thing once and it left her heart a little battered. Could she walk into this knowing he would eventually go back to being a rock star? And what would their relationship look like after he left? What would her heart look like?
She wasn’t sure. And that scared her. “Maybe we were caught up in the memory of the past.”
“Do you really believe that?” She could tell by his tone that he didn’t.
“I don’t know,” she admitted. “But my future doesn’t have room for anyone or to start something remotely close to what you’re offering. At least not right now. We’re living together. In a house that could determine the direction of my life,” she reminded them both. “You had a rough night with Steph. I’m still reeling from a disaster of a divorce and the adrenaline of what tonight could mean for my career. What if we got caught up and we’re too close to this all to truly understand that it’s a bad idea?”
“A bad idea was B-team, but you made room for him. Why is it different with me?”
“It just is.” One date with a nobody that would lead nowhere was different than a date with a guy who she’d been crushing on for nearly a decade. Someone who lived in a world she’d barely escaped. “Plus, it’s not like you have the room for dating. You’re Rhett Easton, a guy who barely has time to sleep, let alone date.”
The moment those words reached the air she felt the guilt kick in. He went silent. The kind of silent that had her heart hollowing out.
“I know what I am,” he said quietly. “I guess I thought with you I could be Regular Rhett.”
“I didn’t mean it that way.”
“I know,” he said, but she could hear the hurt in his tone. “But if we’re going for honesty, you have to admit that it doesn’t matter which Rhett I am, this whole thing started the moment you walked in on me in the bathroom and it isn’t going to stop until we get each other out of our systems.”
She felt her face heat in the crisp evening air, followed by some heating in much more dangerous places. Was he right? They’d been fighting this insanity for weeks now and if anything, the pull was getting stronger. The attraction becoming harder to deny. The temptation to give in harder to resist—proof by what had transpired between them in his car.
“Whatever this crazy thing is between us… ”
“So you admit I drive you crazy?” he whispered.
“I think you know how crazy you drive me,” she said, tired of pretending he didn’t affect her.
“If it’s even half as much as me… ” He trailed off as his gaze dropped to her lips. She felt a tingle all the way down to her toes.
“What if we give in and it ruins our relationship.” She leaned in, going cheek to chest. “I like being your friend, Rhett. I don’t want to lose that.”
At her admission, she felt the tension in his body release. As if he’d been holding his breath since she brought up his more famous persona. She didn’t see him as Rhett Easton, she never had. Whenever she looked into those mesmerizing blue eyes, she saw the sweet and caring guy who’d charmed his way into her heart.
“I don’t want to lose it either, so how about we lay down some ground rules. I know how you like your rules.”
She lifted her head. “What kind of rules? Like no PDA or warm fuzzies?”
