I averted my gaze and glanced back at the gold letters across the black restaurant awning.
“I’ve missed New York Chinese food.” I reached for the door handle and pulled it open. “After you.”
I caught her chest rise with a deep inhale as she met my eyes, probably thinking of the time I’d grazed against her on purpose as I opened the door to that coffee shop. We couldn’t be flirty or playful today, and it already sucked.
The tables were mostly empty, as I’d expected on a late Friday afternoon. Rachel asked the hostess for the booth in the far corner that seemed to be closed in on all sides. I guessed she’d picked that table for the privacy we’d need to talk, even though the few patrons here didn’t seem to notice us as we made our way to sit.
All I could think about was that it was tucked away far enough to run my hand up her thigh and get her to make that little mewl when my fingers found the heaven between her legs.
For fuck’s sake. Get it together, Jones.
“Are you okay?” Rachel asked after I cleared my throat a little too loudly, trying to knock myself back into the present andend these hot yet pointless fantasies that would only tempt and distract me more than I already was.
“We can go somewhere else?—”
“No, this is fine,” I said, squeezing her shoulder before I realized it. “It’s just been a long week, but this is okay.”
She stiffened a moment under my touch as she glanced back at me, her eyes searching mine, beckoning me even more. This attraction or pull or whatever this was between us was just as confusing and potent now as it had been when we’d first met.
Something that, if we were going to work together, I had to try harder to ignore.
My ex-wife had once accused me of being a robot without feelings or affection, and I’d always wondered if she was right. I’d thought the way Rachel had made me come alive that night was a fluke, but when I couldn’t stop thinking about her afterward and almost swallowed my tongue when I saw her again, maybe the problem wasn’t me after all.
Maybe it had been a marriage dead enough not to want to fix it, even if it had felt like I should.
“If it’s okay with you, once we get started, I’d like to record.” She set her phone on the table and handed me a small clip-on microphone. “I’ll take notes, but it will be easier for me to capture everything if I can play it back. No one will listen but me, and I promise to delete it after the article is written.”
“That’s fine with me,” I said, taking the mic and clipping it onto my T-shirt. “How’s this?”
She slipped in an earbud and nodded.
“Perfect,” she said, pressing a button on her phone screen as she smiled. “Is that your way of being incognito?” she joked, nodding to my cap.
“I guess. I mean, I’m not that known around here yet, but I didn’t want any leering eyes or interruptions.”
“Well, you’re sitting down. No one can watch you walk away.” The corner of her mouth lifted as she picked up a menu. “They won’t know they’re dining with the best butt in baseball.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. “You’ve been on Instagram, I guess.”
“Only today. My sister was the one who told me about that and showed me a reel. That’s quite the accomplishment.”
“It’s ridiculous,” I said, nodding a thank-you as the waiter set down glasses of water. “One online article with me on a list seemed to get everywhere. The guys would always give me shit over it.”
“I bet you had that title before the article. I’ve seen enough footage of your games. But when I start the recording, I’ll leave that out.”
I took a sip of water, holding Rachel’s pretty gaze over the rim. The cold liquid slid down my throat, and I managed to relax for the first time this week.
“So, what should I get?” I asked Rachel as I picked up a menu.
“Asking the locals again?” As the side of her perfect mouth tipped up, a smile glided across my own lips.
While I’d been excited to see her again—and talk to her without anyone else watching—I’d been nervous too. I hadn’t known if she was angry for what I didn’t share with her or embarrassed about what had happened between us, but it was just as easy as it had been when we first met.
I wasn’t sure if that was a good or a bad thing, as it was already a struggle not to get sucked in again. Or sucked in more.
“It’s never failed me before.”
I caught her cheeks flush a little red before her eyes flicked to the menu. It felt like unspoken memories of that amazing night dangled between us, even if we were only referencing the before.
