Page 60 of Heat Exchange
He met her gaze in the mirror and his blood rushed from his brain to his dick. “Maybe you should have seconds, too.”
“You keep looking at me like that and you’ll be lucky if I let you out of bed long enough to make a sandwich.”
As threats went, it wasn’t a very strong one. He thought about it for a minute because it was tempting as hell to drag her into bed right that very second and stay there. But having her in bed wasn’t something he lacked, although at times he wished he could have her there all night and every night. But taking her out for dinner in a public restaurant was a pleasure he hadn’t experienced yet.
“I’ve been waiting for days to take you out on a date,” he said. “You’re not talking me out of it now.”
“A date, huh?” She flipped the bathroom light off as she walked toward him.
“Yeah, I figure it’s probably about time we have a first date.”
She laughed and offered her hand to help him up. Once he was on his feet, he kissed her, but didn’t allow himself to get lost in the moment. Date first, then they could revisit this moment.
The restaurant they went to was a chain place, but they didn’t care. At least they knew the pasta would be good. There was a wait, so they sat on the tailgate of his truck in the parking lot, holding hands. She swung her legs and they made small talk, watching people walk by, until their table was ready.
An hour later, he knew he’d made the right choice in not sacrificing this date for sex and sandwiches. Lydia was relaxed, especially after a couple of glasses of wine, and free with her laughter. It was warm and deep, occasionally attracting the attention of nearby diners.
She told him stories about the restaurant she’d worked at before returning to Boston, and he had to laugh, too, at some of her misfortunes in fine dining. He’d like to get in his truck, drive over there and hand the sous-chef a beating, but at least she wouldn’t be going back there.
But she’d be coming back here,to Concord.
He shoved the thought down as firmly as he could. When the subject had come up earlier, she’d seemed almost surprised that he would question whether or not she’d leave Boston again. Maybe, on some level, he’d started believing they were building something together and it would be enough for her.
“Hey.” Lydia covered his hand with hers, frowning. “You okay?”
“Yeah.” He forced a quick laugh. “I was thinking about what a douche bag that sous-chef was.”
“Yeah, he had his moments. Some of the regular customers might be a pain in the ass, but at least I don’t have to put up with that crap at Kincaid’s.”
He just smiled at her in the dim lighting and kept his mouth shut. He knew her well enough to know if he pushed, she’d push back twice as hard. But if he kept quiet and just enjoyed one day at a time, she might just realize all on her own that Boston was where her heart was.
* * *
“ISHOULDNOThave had that dessert,” Lydia said, pushing her empty plate away with a groan.
“I think it might take more stamina than I have to work this meal off,” Aidan agreed, rubbing his stomach.
“You won’t have to expend a lot of energy getting me to take my jeans off.”
“This is my kind of first date,” he said, and she laughed.
When the server brought the bill, Lydia didn’t bother making a show of reaching for her wallet. She knew Aidan and, while she could out-stubborn most people without breaking a sweat, she knew there was no way he’d let her pay for her half of the meal. Not this time, anyway.
He stood when she did and held her hand while they walked to his truck. It was sweet, and she loved that he opened her door for her. And she knew this wasn’t a show for their so-called first date, either. Aidan was always polite and over the years, she’d seen him hold the door or pull out chairs for women all the time at the bar, whether they were with him or not. She liked that about him.
Hell, she liked a lot of things about him.
They rode back to her apartment in easy silence, listening to the radio. Once he’d pulled out onto the road, he’d reached over for her hand again and laced his fingers through hers. He seemed to enjoy touching her like that—holding her hand or rubbing her shoulder—and she never got the impression he was trying to put any moves on her. He simply liked touching her.
When they got back to her place, Oscar came walking out of Shelly’s room to meow at her. He was presumably voicing his displeasure at being abandoned yet again, but she crouched down and rubbed the top of his head. After a few strokes, he decided he’d had enough and stalked over to Aidan.
While the male human sat in one of the chairs at the kitchen table so the cat could jump on his lap and be the center of his attention, Lydia stopped into the bathroom and then plugged in their phones to charge. “I’m putting mine on Silent. Shelly’s probably missing Oscar badly by now and I wouldn’t put it past her to want me to video chat with him or something.”
“You can put mine on Silent, too.”
She looked over at him. “Are you sure?”
“Yes, I’m sure.” Still, she hesitated. “I promise I’m sure. Nobodyneedsto talk to me right now. And Cobb knows I’m not at my mother’s.”
