As he bent to put his shoes on at the door, he glanced back, relieved to see she was getting her jacket from the closet.Progress.
If he had his way, by the end of the night he would dismantle a sizeable section of her walls.
Chapter Fourteen
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“Feel like anythingspecific?”Tristan asked as he drove them toward the waterfront.
She didn’t even have to think about it.“A double cheeseburger with bacon, and crispy fries.”
He laughed in surprise.“Okay then.Sea Hag?Or somewhere else down the coast?”
“Sea Hag’s perfect.”Driving down the coast with him outside of work felt too much like a date, and she was already struggling to suppress her feelings for him.Besides, she was starving, and the Sea Hag made the best burgers in town.
A cool front had moved in over the past few hours, blanketing the low-lying areas in a thin band of fog that hugged the ground.The streetlamps along Front Street were surrounded by misty, hazy halos of light.
Now that the tourists had all gone, there was plenty of parking along the waterfront.The ever-present wind coming off the ocean washed over her as they walked up to the bar.Tristan opened the front door for her.
“Thanks,” she murmured, her shoulder brushing his chest on the way by.She pressed her lips together at the hot zing that shot through her body.Even accidental contact with him caused a reaction.If he ever put his hands on her with intent, she wasn’t sure she could handle it.
Doubts began to creep in.
She shouldn’t have come.Shouldn’t have done this, but he’d caught her in a weak moment.This was blurring the lines between them even more and probably sending him the wrong message.She’d have to make sure he understood where she still stood.
The server put them at a candlelit table for two overlooking the water.Through the blanket of fog, she could see the tops of the waves as they rolled onto the beach in the distance.It felt inappropriately romantic.Intimate.
The deep craving for him ratcheted up another notch.
Thankfully, the server came right over to take their orders, saving her from having to make conversation she wasn’t up to at the moment.It wasn’t that busy in here, and the kitchen was fast, so they should get their food fairly quickly and be out the door within half an hour at most.Surely she could hang in there that long without cracking.
She ordered her burger and a red wine.He ordered a turkey club and stuck with water.
“Did you get up to anything yesterday?”he asked.
“Not really.Read the book Bristol dropped off, and that’s about it.”
