Page 43
“Oh God! Oh God! Oh God! Let me up!”
“What’s wrong, Joy? Are you messing with me again?”
I nearly face-planted as I scrambled off Graham’s lap, but he caught me just in time. I frantically scanned the ceiling, my heart racing.
“Thank God.”
“Joy, you’re freaking me out again. What in the hell is wrong?”
“I thought there was a CCTV camera in here.”
He frowned down at me from where I was hanging from his arms.
“Baby, there is no way I would be kissing you in here if there had been a CCTV camera. Trust me, I checked.”
“You checked? Why would you have thought about checking? I know we have those cameras for our security, and I didn’t think to check. Why would you?”
“Old habits die hard,” he muttered.
“Huh?” Oh yeah, military.
“Long story, Doll,” he sighed. “Let’s eat.” He pulled me up and gave me one last short, hard kiss.
The way he said that made me want to push for information, only because I sensed pain. But I knew this wasn’t the right time. One day soon, that would change. I intended to show him that he could trust me with his pain because I really began to think Graham just might be a man I could trust with my heart.
Chapter Eleven
It had been a week since our kiss. I’d seen Joy just once since then. There was a Harley build and another extensive motorcycle repair at Thatcher’s that I needed to help with, and at her place, the other kennel assistant was out sick with the flu. So, when our schedules finally aligned for Saturday night, I wasn’t wasting the opportunity to do things right.
It started with taking Joy to a steak place in the Old City in Knoxville, with soft lighting, cloth napkins, and a chocolate dessert I knew she would love. I planned to end the night back at my place, away from the world, where we could explore the fire that had ignited the night we kissed.
“You’re sure concentrating hard,” I noted as I watched her take another slow bite of her chocolate mousse.
“It’s just so good,” Joy moaned. “It has something special in it. I’m trying to figure out what it is.”
“You take your time, Doll.” Of course, if she did, I wouldn’t be able to walk out of here without the entire restaurant realizing I had a hard-on.
After three more excruciating bites, her eyes lit up. “I’ve got it! Well, I’ve narrowed it down. It’s molasses or honey! I’m going to have to experiment with each one.” She reached out and grabbed my hand. “Will you let me experiment on you?”
I looked down at her hand and then up into her excited gaze. “Doll, you can experiment on me to your heart’s content.”
I watched her cheeks turn the same rosy pink as her body-hugging dress. She tried to draw back her hand, but I caught it before she could.
“Y-y-you know what I meant.”
I turned her hand over and stroked my thumb across the rapid pulse at her wrist, then smiled. “It’s okay, Joy. I knew what you meant.”
She blew out a breath that sent a strand of blonde hair flying from her face. “Good. That’s good,” she said with a relieved grin.
“But I’d absolutely love it if you would experiment on me in other ways. Maybe even tonight… at my house.”
The way her eyes widened, I could tell she understood my meaning. I waited with bated breath to see what her reaction would be. It didn’t take long. Her lashes fluttered down. Then she looked up at me, giving me the same sultry, sensuous smile she had been reserving for the mousse. “That sounds absolutely wonderful.”
Damn, if I thought I was ready to get her alone before, hearing her say those words in that sexy tone had me about ready to throw my credit card at the waiter the next time he walked by and haul her ass out of here. Somehow, I refrained and reached for my wallet. I pulled out my card and placed it on the edge of the table like a gentleman, praying the waiter would take it fast.
By the time we were out the door, I had to work hard not to throw Joy over my shoulder and carry her to my truck. Her silver heels were out of this world, but she wasn’t walking nearly fast enough as far as I was concerned.
We’d made it partway to the parking lot when a woman called out Joy’s name.
