“You’ll see.” He grins and pulls me up off the swing. “I promise what we’re gonna do will be fun and just the two of us.”
I’m not sure if it being just the two of us is a good thing or not. However, my heart leaps at the idea.
How has this come to happen? One minute I’m pushing him away, and now we’re starting something between us. It’s a beautiful feeling that warms me in a way that’s new to me.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Shadow
“Where are we going?” Della asks, joining me outside the ranch house, dressed casually in a pair of jeans and a pale pink shirt that molds to her body perfectly.
I texted her before making my way out here to let her know she could dress casually. Where we’re going, I want her to be comfortable. My plan was to spend time with her and only her. I stopped at The Hideaway and got us dinner.
“You’ll see.” I grin and pull her to me. “You look beautiful.”
“Well, it’s a good thing you texted me because I honestly didn’t know what I was going to wear. I brought a lot of clothes with me, though not much isn’t business attire. I hate to think about it, but eventually, I’m going to need to go back to my place in Copper Run to get the rest of my things,” Della rambles, her brows creasing. “Actually, there’s not much left I need to go get. I wasn’t really there often enough to accumulate more than necessities. It’s mostly furniture that I could even sell. My life has been nothing but boring.”
“There’s nothing boring about you, little mouse.” I grin, giving her a squeeze before letting her go and taking her hand. “Come on. Let’s get going.”
“How come you won’t tell me where we’re going?” she asks, walking at my side to my truck.
I thought about taking her out on my bike at first when I went back to the clubhouse to talk to Lucifer and show him the file she let me borrow, but I wanted us to have as much time to talk as possible. Plus, for what I have planned, my truck is the better transportation. Everything I need is in the back.
Honestly, I don’t remember the last time I wanted to take a woman out on a date. Think the last time was high school, and it doesn't really count. I’ve been with a lot of women, though none like this. I want more than Della’s body. I want her time, her conversation, and her attention.
Della Meadows intrigues me and has since I saw her again, not including the funeral. I hadn’t even talked to her there.
“Where we’re going is a surprise,” I explain and help her into the passenger seat, something I’ve not done for any woman, period. “You wouldn’t want to ruin it by continuing to pry it out of me, would you?”
“I highly doubt anyone could pry anything out of you that you don’t want to spill.” Della huffs.
I can’t help but grin, close the passenger door, and round the hood of my truck, like my bike, this beauty is special to me. It’s not a new vehicle. I bought it as a junker and restored it myself. I’ve got a thing for the late eighties and early nineties models. Mine is a 1987 Chevy Silverado that I painted cherry red and have the lights on the top of the roll bar. Making the truck perfect for things we’ve got to do at night in the middle of nowhere and dealing with things I won’t speak of.
Besides the few times Amelia has ridden with me, no other woman has been in this truck. I have the same rule as I do with my bike, and I have a feeling that when it comes to Della, that’s gonna change in a lot of ways. Hopping in behind the wheel, I turn the key, and the engine starts up with a purr that I absolutely love hearing every time it comes to life.
Putting the truck in reverse, I back up enough to be able to swing around without hitting her car. Once I shift into drive, I reach for Della’s hand and pull it over to my lap.
The silence between us isn’t awkward or filled with tension. In fact, it’s peaceful. Della seems relaxed, and that’s good. I want her to feel she can be herself with me.
“Did you show Lucifer the file?” she asks, looking in my direction.
I glance at her, grinning, before focusing on the road. We’re not going far, which is good. I don’t want the food in the back to get cold, not to mention get us to where we’re going before the sun goes down.
“Yeah, I actually left it with him to look over. He wanted to look more into it, check what the numbers would be now. We’re anything if not efficient in checking anything that could become a potential business deal for the club.” I knew my President. I had no doubt that he would want to add it to the deal. We were gonna meet as a club before the meeting with Della and Maddox to vote on it, which I’m sure my brothers would all agree to.
“I completely get that. I would have done it myself, but you asked to take it. You did tell him those numbers were correct back when it was done, right?”
Grinning, I give her hand a squeeze. “I told him, little mouse.”
“Why do you keep calling me that?” she asks.
Taking the turn to Willow’s Bluff, I smile over at Della. “Used to call you a little mousey thing,” I tell her. “You’re so damn small, like a mouse. It suits you.”
“I’m not a mouse.” She huffs and tries to pull her hand away, only I don’t let her.
“You’re not, but I like calling you my little mouse, and that’s what I’m gonna keep doing.”
“It’s not a nice name,” she mutters.
