When someone hit a foul ball, everyone around us sprang to their feet and surprising me, Charlotte followed along, ignoring the way her beer sloshed over the rim. Putting the heavy conversations aside, we talked about the game, and when the guy selling hot dogs appeared a few rows in front of us, Charlotte started picking on me for my hot dog topping choice. Or lack thereof.
We ate. We sang along with ‘Sweet Caroline’ as it blasted through the sound system. We laughed. And we had a good time but by the end of the seventh innings, I was ready to get out of there. It’d been a long day and I was starving for some real food. Food at the ball game was all well and good, but it wasn’t real food. I missed enough meals and ate enough cold to get things when I was on shift, the idea of a steak and baked potato was making my stomach rumble.
“Did you want to get out of here?” I asked when Charlotte yawned.
“I’m so sorry. It’s been such a big week and usually I spend Saturdays passed out on my couch watching Netflix and binge eating everything I didn’t have time to during the week …”
“Sounds familiar,” I agreed. “Why don’t we get out of here and go find some food. And by food, I mean real food that you eat with a knife and fork.”
“Throw in dessert, and you’ve got yourself a date,” Charlotte replied, draining the last of the water from her bottle and holding her hand out for me to shake.
“You really do have a sweet tooth, don’t you?” I asked, shaking her hand but not letting go. Instead, I helped her to her feet and led her toward the stairs, careful not to knock someone over or fall in their lap as I squeezed by.
We made it to the landing without falling when Charlotte bumped into me. The side of her boob pressing against my bicep. Something I most certainly did notice. She pushed her glasses up off her face so I could see her eyes for the first time all afternoon. Her cheeks were pink from the sun, but the sparkle in her eyes I’d been hoping to see was undeniable.
“Well, gotta make sure my ass looks good. I mean, we both know you appreciate it.” She smirked before dropping my hand and starting down the steps leaving me standing there wondering what the hell I was going to do with her.
Beside me, someone coughed to cover their chuckle. When I glanced down, a guy with a beer belly stretching his Cubs shirt smirked up at me. “Can’t say I blame you. She’s got a nice ass,” he offered, trying to be helpful.
The last thing I wanted was guys ogling Charlotte. She wasn’t a piece of meat and deserved more respect than that, but starting a fight didn’t seem like a brilliant idea either. And the fact was, he wasn’t wrong. Her ass was pretty damn impressive. But Charlotte was so much more than that. So, instead of punching him in the face and starting a fight, I headed down the steps two at a time trying to catch up. I mightn’t be able to stop them looking, but I sure as hell could stop them touching.
We bickered and argued all the way to the restaurant Charlotte chose about absolutely nothing at all. While we waited for the hostess to seat us, Charlotte announced she was paying.
“Over my dead body, Charlotte.”
“That can be arranged,” she mumbled and the woman behind her, one Charlotte couldn’t see, looked mortified. I was just amused.
“This way please,” the hostess instructed, finally leading us through the maze of tables.
I don't know what had gotten into me. I was acting like a teenager. With Charlotte’s hips swaying in front of me, taunting me, I reached out and pinched her ass, the ass I hadn’t been able to stop thinking about for the last couple of hours.
“What the?” She spun around, fist clenched, ready to throw down.
I didn’t answer. I couldn’t. She was so damn cute looking ready to pummel whoever touched her. I just held my hands up in surrender and shrugged.
Once we were seated and had our drink order taken, Charlotte pinned me with a glare over the top of her menu. “If you wanted to touch my ass, Luke, all you had to do was ask.”
I felt my cheeks burn. She’d known it was me and was now making it painfully hard by not letting me get away with it. She didn’t even give me an inch and for some reason, I loved it. The last thing I needed in my life was some vapid wallflower, something Doctor Charlotte Rowe certainly was not. And when she ordered a steak and potatoes, I knew I was in trouble.
“I want to see you again,” I told her as I cut into my steak which was cooked perfectly.
“You’re seeing me now.” She smiled around her fork.
“You know what I mean.”
“No, Luke. I don’t. What do you mean?” Charlotte smiled so sweetly it put the dessert menu to shame.
“You’re killing me, woman,” I practically growled.
“Then,” Charlotte began, taking the napkin from her lap and wiping her hands before standing up. “My work here is done.” She spun around and started walking away leaving me wondering if it was possible to be so turned on and so overwhelmed at the same time. But seeing the way Charlotte’s delectable apple ass bounced as she sashayed across the restaurant, I realized I already knew my answer.
The waiter appeared and cleared our plates before asking if we wanted dessert. Needing to get back on some kind of track, I quickly ordered, not waiting for Charlotte to return.
When she returned she looked fresh and put together. She amazed me. Charlotte didn’t carry a purse, at least she hadn't brought one today and it fascinated me. She had no makeup on, she’d spent the afternoon outside in the sun and she was still the most beautiful woman I’d seen in a long time. She had me completely under her spell and wrapped around her finger in one short afternoon.
“I ordered dessert,” I told her, watching as a frown appeared.
“Oh. I was going to order something.”
