Page 113 of Hard Hitter
His heart squeezed. “What else do you need from me? I want to know.”
She rolled her head to face him, amusement in her eyes. “See, you’re not going to like my demands. There’s a reason I tried to stay away from you.”
“Tell me why that is.”
Ari put her cheek on his chest. “We need to be subtle at work. I don’t mean secretive. But the job really matters to me, and I have to act like a professional. So no touching.”
“Hmm.” He caressed her breast in his palm. “Okay. I might need to do some extra touching in private to tide me over.”
“That’s not a deal breaker.”
“What else, then?”
Ari opened her mouth, then closed it again.
“What is it?”
She just shook her head. “Nothing. I think I should get up and take our dinner out of the oven.”
“All right,” he said, uncertain about the change of topics. “Can I pour you a glass of wine?”
“I’d love one.”
THIRTY-THREE
SATURDAY, APRIL 2ND
Ari woke up the next morning wrapped in Patrick’s arms. And she woke up happy.
Then they shared a shower in his magnificent bathroom. It was a long and multiorgasmic shower, after which she had to go home for a change of clothes before work.
“Meet me out for coffee and a pastry,” Patrick suggested as she got dressed. “You like that cookie place, right?”
“Okay,” she said immediately.
“That was easy,” he teased, kissing her cheek.
But itwaseasy. It was a relief to just give in to her feelings for him. To say yes instead of “it’s a bad idea.” Not only did she enjoy his company, but it was her nature to lean in rather than to pull away. By saying yes to him, she was saying yes to herself, too. “I’ll meet you at One Girl Cookies in half an hour.”
“I’ll be there,” he promised.
And he was. Her eye was drawn to his handsome, solid form even before she’d made it inside the door. Lola—the counter girl—was smiling at him with stars in her eyes while he inquired about the offerings.
“Hey,” she said, approaching.
Lola looked up. “Hi, Ari!”
Then Patrick turned to greet her, and his whole face changed shape. His eyes lit up, and he smiled in a way that she was pretty sure he didn’t show anyone else. “Missed you,” he said.
“Well I’m back. Have you had the chocolate croissant? They’re awesome.”
“Two chocolate croissants,” he told the young woman who waited with a plate and a pair of tongs. “And a large coffee.”
Ari ordered a latte, and Patrick didn’t let her pay. He hadn’t let her pay for the groceries last night, or the wine, either. “I can buy my own food, you know,” she argued after the girl moved away to make their drinks.
“Humor me.” He shrugged. “I’ve never had anyone to spoil before now.”
Her heart melted into a puddle approximating the chocolate inside the croissant that Lola was setting down in front of her. “Well, if you put it that way.”
