Her eyes widened in shock. “What? Why?”
“Because you have bare feet and I don’t want you stepping on anything.”
She scrunched up her nose in an adorable way. “Oh, I’ll be okay.”
Wanting to make sure of that and also needing her in my arms, I went for the truth.
“I’d like to be sure you don’t hurt your feet, but I’d really like to hold you. Permission to pick you up?” I asked again.
She hesitated for a second but then said, “Permission granted,” in a formal tone that made me laugh.
I bent down and placed my arm under her knees and swept her up into my chest. “Wrap your arms around my neck so you don’t fall.”
When she did as I asked, my body hummed with satisfaction. She pressed her body close to me and I inhaled her beautiful scent. She was a tiny thing. Hell, my fire gear weighed more than her, I thought.
Hesitating for too long as I soaked up the feel of her, she said, “I’m probably too heavy, put me down.”
“You’re not heavy, you feel perfect.”
That made her blush even more and so to lighten the mood, I started jogging back toward her house.
Not to sound like a girl, but the sound of her giggling was more enchanting than the collective twittering and tweets of the dawn’s chorus of birds.
It was either think along those lines, real sappy shit, or about the way my cock flared to life.
And that I’ve been trying to keep that under wraps.
Chapter Twenty-Three
RIVER
Next Saturday had turnedinto the one after that.
I felt horrible that the date I consented to was postponed because I was too nervous to go without others, but my sister had to work the first weekend I’d originally agreed to. Huntley assured me it was not a big deal and had managed to get time off by swapping schedules with someone else.
Sitting on my bed, I stared at the clothes scattered around the room. They lined the floor, my bed, the chair in the corner, and the dresser. Almost every square inch of my space was covered, and as I eyed it all, it was plain as day I had nothing to wear on a date.
Grabbing my phone, I dialed Lake. When she answered, I panic-yelled, “We have to cancel!”
“Whoa, take a deep breath and try again so I can understand what you are saying,” she told me.
Sucking in air, then letting it out, I tried to calm myself and then gave it another go. “We need to cancel right now; I have nothing to wear.”
Laughter burst through the phone and I pulled it awayfrom my head to glare at it. She couldn’t see me but hopefully she could feel my heated gaze. Because this was sonotfunny.
“Why are you freaking laughing?” I asked her after putting the phone back to my ear.
After gaining her composure, she replied, “Everyone goes through this, you’re just nervous. I’m sure you have something perfectly great to wear. I’ll be right over.”
And then the line went dead.
True to her word, she was at my house in less than ten minutes. We went through every article of clothing and while she had thought many were fine choices, I turned them all down.
“I should have gone shopping. And I can’t do all this primping and shit,” I told Lake.
My sister laid her hand on my shoulder. “Huntley wouldn’t care if you were wearing a garbage bag, he likes you just the way you are.”
I huffed out a frustrated breath. “I just wanted to look…” I didn’t finish, I was being silly. “Who am I kidding, this dating thing isn’t for me.”
