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“I’ve never actually been on a date, or had drinks with a guy, or whatever this is. I met my ex-husband when I was in school, and we were together until three years ago.”
His eyes widen a fraction. “Damn. How long were you together for?”
“Twenty-one years together, married for eighteen.”
“You don’t look old enough to have been married that long.” He says it smoothly, making me snort.
“I’m thirty-nine, Lick. I got married at eighteen. Trust me, I’m old enough.”
“You don’t even look thirty.”
“How much did you have to drink?” I tease.
“Not enough to cloud my judgement. You’re fucking beautiful. No lie. I saw you come in earlier with your friend, and I couldn’t take my eyes off you.”
I jump when the waitress returns with our drinks and puts them down on the table.
“Put them on my tab,” he tells her.
“Sure thing, Lick. You guys need anything else?”
I shake my head as Lick tells her no.
He picks up his glass and takes a sip, his eyes moving over me in a way I swear I can feel. “I couldn’t imagine getting married at eighteen. I was hell on fucking wheels,” he admits, making me chuckle.
“It wasn’t what I saw for myself either, but life happens.”
He tilts his head, sensing there’s a story there, but I’m not sure if I want to tell him the rest. People tend to judge me right off the bat when they find out I was a teen mum.
Fuck it. “I fell pregnant when I was fifteen. My ex and I decided to make a go of it, and for a while it was okay.”
“Okay? Not exactly a ringing endorsement for marriage.”
“I was a kid. We both were. We had no fucking idea what we were doing or how hard it would be. When the babies were born, I grew up really damn fast.”
“Babies? How many kids do you have?”
“Two. A set of twins, a boy and a girl. We struggled so much that we decided we didn’t want any more. We already had one of each, so it was time for my ex to focus on school again, and then when he was done, it would be my turn to go back.”
“I’m sensing that’s not how it worked out.”
I chuckle and lean forward in my chair. “You really wanna talk about my ex?”
4
Lick
This beautiful woman has no fucking idea the effect she’s having on me.
“I want to know everything.”
She shakes her head, looking both confused and amused, which is cute as fuck. “Why?”
I tell her the truth. “Because you interest me, Emma. And I haven’t felt this interested in a woman in a long fucking time.” I don’t tell her that I’m not sure if I want to embrace that feeling or run for the hills. Right now, I’m happy to see how things play out.
Her shoulders slump before she reaches for her drink and drinks almost all of it down in one, making me grin. “Sorry, talking about my ex tends to drive me to drink.”
“I take it, it wasn’t an amicable breakup?”
