Jake went to his bedroom and pushed the door open, feeling guilty for even wanting to check on it.It was too soon to be thinking about taking Savannah in there.Well… he thought about it all the time.But even though they were getting closer every time they saw each other, he felt like he needed to take his time before taking their relationship to a more physical level.
Of course he wanted her.And she wanted him, too.That wasn’t ego on his part — it was just recognition of the way she reacted to him.The chemistry was there, no doubt about it.With girls he'd been with in the past, he'd been eager to have sex as soon as possible.When he was younger, sex had been the main point and purpose of most of his relationships.
But Savannah was different; the way he felt about her was different.She needed to trust him first.By the same token, he needed her to trust him.It’d break his heart if they went there too soon and it scared her off.
He was all in, but he was still a little bit raw from the way she’d left town so suddenly.He’d thought that they were getting to know each other as friends first — and that getting together was inevitable.So when she told him she was moving away, he kind of felt like she’d pulled the rug out from under him.
He understood now.His jaw clenched tight remembering what she’d told him about this Rick Harlow guy.He wished he’d known.He would have seen the asshole off, and then she would never have had to move to the city.
He opened the bedroom door wider and stepped inside, wondering what she’d make of it when she finally came in here.
He let out a short laugh as he straightened the duvet and picked up his pillow to sniff it.He kept telling himself that it was too soon, that it was best to take their time and let her dictate the pace — but that hadn’t stopped him from running all his bedding through the washer and dryer as soon as he got home from work.
He set the pillow back down with a rueful smile.It always felt good to sleep in clean sheets — even if he would be sleeping in them alone after he took Savannah home later.
He hurried to get the door when the bell rang.He’d intended to keep an eye out for her — not stand there in his bedroom like an idiot.He smiled when he checked his watch.She was early.He’d wanted to go pick her up, but she’d said that she’d come herself when she was ready, since she needed to go home and shower first.
His jaw clenched again.He hated what she’d told him about kids calling herStinky Savvie.His heart clenched at the idea of a miniature version of her — just a little girl doing her best to take care of her mom and make it through life with no one to teach her about the basics, like showering.He dragged his mind away from the question that had bothered him about that.Her mom might have been sick, she might have been in a wheelchair, but why hadn’t she taught her daughter about basic personal hygiene?
He pushed the thought away and opened the front door with a smile — one that grew bigger when he saw her.
“Hey.Come on in.”
He closed the door behind her and cupped his hand around the side of her neck as he pressed his lips against hers.Her cheeks were pink from the cold, and her eyes shone as she looked up into his.
“That’s a nice welcome,” she breathed.He curled an arm around her waist, holding her to him as he kissed her again, more deeply this time.When he finally lifted his head, she chuckled.“And that’s an even better welcome.”
He laughed with her.“Sorry.I should probably have given you time to get in through the door and take your coat off first.But I’ve missed you.What can I say?”
“You don’t need to say anything.And you definitely don’t need to say sorry.I’ve missed you, too.”
“Well, we’ll make up for it tonight, then.”
Her eyes widened, and her chest rose and fell, making him wonder if she’d been thinking along the same lines he had earlier.He hadn’t meant it that way, but maybe she thought the making up for missing each other might mean… No.He had to stop going there.The way they felt about each other, there was no question in his mind that sleeping together would evolve naturally, and it was best to wait until it did.
“Are you hungry?”he asked.
“I am.I usually get a snack as soon as I get home, but I was in too much of a hurry to get showered and come over.”
“What do you think, then?Do you even want to take your coat off, or should we go now?”
“Go?”she asked, eyebrows raised.
“Oh, yeah.Sorry.I didn’t even ask you, did I?I thought we could go to Giuseppe’s tonight — you know, make up for our first real date that never actually happened when Troy called for us to go and help Cara.”
“All right, yeah.”She looked down at herself.“Yeah, if that’s what you want to do, we can go.”
“If you’re thinking you’re not dressed for it, you look gorgeous to me.But if you’re tired and don’t feel like going out…”
“I’d love to go,” she interrupted.“If you think I look okay, then I’m good to go.”
“Let’s do it, then.I figured if we go earlier, there’ll still be plenty of time to come back here afterward and watch a movie and hang out.”
He knew what she was thinking when her gaze flicked toward the living room door.He only hesitated for a moment before saying, “Josh is away this weekend.He’s gone to San Francisco.”
She might just take that as a detail about what their friend was up to, but part of him wanted her to have time over dinner to process the information.Damn.He really wasn’t thinking about her spending the night.Or he was trying not to.But now she’d have more time to consider it, knowing that Josh wouldn’t be on the other side of the bedroom wall.
~ ~ ~
