Page 11 of Angels & Whiskey
I smiled again, trying to calm my nerves. “Ready?”
“Just let me put these in water first.”
I followed her inside and finally noticed that she was wearing a bright red dress that matched the roses and her lipstick. My eyes continued down the curves of her ass—she had a nice ass—and to her legs. Damn, they looked good too. It had been a long time since I’d seen a woman in heels, and these made her legs seem as if they went on for days. I had a flash of them draped over my shoulders as my face was buried between her thighs. A year without sex was wearing on me for sure.
I shook my head, trying to clear the image as I looked around her living room while I waited. I was looking at her pictures on the fireplace mantel when she came out of the kitchen. “Okay, now I’m ready.”
“Great.” I smiled, gesturing for her to walk in front of me. I placed my hand on the small of her back, trying the best I could to fake that I was her boyfriend. Her long, chestnut-brown hair brushed across the back of my hand and I had to fight the urge not to remove it.
After she’d locked her front door, I led her to my white GMC Yukon. Opening the door for her, she climbed in and I went around to the driver’s side. I already knew where we were going. I wasn’t supposed to ask. She’d planned the entire date and told Bobby. I was just supposed to act as if it was my idea.
“I hope you like Thai.” I started my SUV.
She grinned. “I love it.”
I wanted to tell her that I was nervous. That this was my first time, but she didn’t seem nervous and I didn’t want to make her.
“Thank you for picking me up. I’ve gone on a couple of these and I was always extremely nervous that I met them at the restaurant.”
I breathed a sigh of relief. It was natural for me to feel nervous, but I still wasn’t going to tell her that this was my first time. “Of course. It’s Valentine’s Day and I wouldn’t feel right having you meet me at the restaurant.”
“That’s sweet of you. I’ve never dated an army captain before.”
I started to ask how she knew I used to be a captain in the army, but then remembered that Bobby had added it to my online profile. He’d said that the women would be enticed by a military man. He even asked if I had my uniform in case some wanted to role-play. Of course, I did, but it brought back too many bad memories.
“You haven’t?” I asked, not having anything else to say.
“Nope. When did you get out?” she asked, looking over at me as I drove toward the restaurant.
“It’s been about a month … ten months since I left Afghanistan.”
“Wow. I bet Malibu is so different from Afghanistan.”
I laughed sarcastically. Of course it was. “You have no idea.”
“Tell me about it.”
I looked over at her. I knew she was just trying to make small talk and get to know me. After all, we were on a date, but I had too many wounds and talking about it brought them all back.
I heard the voices in my head, “Cochran would want you to be happy.”
I took a deep breath before I spoke, “To be honest, it fucking sucked.” I laughed, trying to act as if everything was okay. I wasn’t going to tell her about Alyssa. “Sand, wind, the fucking sun was hot as hell. And you know,” I shrugged, “gunfire.”
“I can’t imagine risking my life like that. It’s very brave of you. Thank you for your service.” She patted my knee and I looked down at it as if it were burning my skin through my jeans.
She’s just a woman. An attractive one at that. You can do this. Have fun. Who knows, sex might be good for you.
“You’re welcome.” I took her hand in mine, brushing the back side with my lips before linking our fingers—boyfriend shit.
I saw her smile out of the corner of my eye, not removing her hand from mine. I had to admit, it felt nice to hold a soft hand again.
After dinner, we walked along the beach. The air was cold as the wind blew through my light long-sleeved T-shirt, but since I wanted to give Christine a good experience, I acted as if it didn’t bother me at all.
Over dinner, I’d loosened up. It really was as if we were on a date. I’m sure it helped that she’d gone on a few dates with other escorts before me. She told me that it was easier to date an escort because she was too busy trying to run a million dollar PR firm. She didn’t really have the time, but she still needed a hard body once in a while. Who was I to judge what she did with her free time?
We walked hand in hand along the cool sand, the moonlight casting a path for us. “I’ve had a very nice time,” she beamed.
I smiled. “Me, too.”
