I slide my tongue into her mouth and know I’m lost. Arousal rips through me, hard and fast, the warmth of her mouth and theway she presses her body into mine turn me on. I tug on her hair and she moans, the vibrations rippling through me. She winds her arms around my neck and presses her lush body against me, stripping away my defenses. With a groan, I tangle my tongue with hers, then press kisses and nibbles down the side of her neck, suckling on the sensitive spot behind her ear.
She grips my hair, holding on as I devour her, tasting her flesh and finding it as sweet as she is. My cock throbs as desire consumes me, fast and furious, based on this one first kiss alone. I could go on like this forever, just feasting on her mouth, learning what she likes, imprinting myself on her.
But without warning, the tinkle of the doorbell interrupts us and she jumps, backing away from me, fixing her hair, and swiping her hand over her mouth, her cheeks flushed as she faces the customer in front of her.
“Umm… hi. I just wanted to buy some candy,” a woman says, stepping toward the door, her own face flushed.
“No, wait. I’m sorry. What can I get you?” Faith rushes behind the counter, leaving me with a hard-on the likes of which I’ve never seen and the inability to speak. So I lower myself into the chair in front of my laptop, drawing in a deep breath and hoping I can get back to work.
Long after the customer leaves the shop, Faith busies herself in the back, clearly avoiding me, which I let her do, knowing we’ll be alone later tonight at my apartment. In the afternoon, the shop becomes busy, the after-school crowd tumbling in. Clearly word has gotten around, and teenagers come and go, keeping Faith hopping.
At no time do I catch sight of anyone looking remotely suspicious, although I realize I need a picture of her brother if I’m going to recognize anyone stalking the premises. I checked in with the PI Gabe gave me and the man said he hasn’t found any hint of Colton in the city. He’s tracked his movements in hishometown up to a week ago, after which he disappeared. But the man is still searching.
Finally, the end of the day comes, and since Faith closes up at six during the week, only staying open later on the weekends, we can go home. I help her clean up and close the store in silence. I understand she is still flustered by the kiss. Clearly, she isn’t one of my more experienced women, and I both like and appreciate that about her. She is unique, special, and gets under my skin. And if her brother comes near her, he’ll have to answer to me.
We’re settled in my car when I turn to her. We haven’t eaten since lunch, and I’m starving. “How about Italian for dinner?” I ask.
Her eyes light up at the thought of food. “Sure.”
“I know a great little place we can go. The owner is a friend of my cousin’s. He introduced me to him when I moved to town and you’ll love the food.”
“Oh! You want to go out and not order in?” she asks, sounding surprised.
I chuckle. I want to talk to her in a setting where she can’t escape to her room, make sure she understands that our kiss meant something.
“You owe me a date, sweetness.”
Her face flushes, and she turns to me. “Did I ever actually agree to go out with you?”
I reach over, because we’re at a stoplight, and run my knuckles down her cheek. “By moving in with me, it was implied that we’d have dinner together.”
I drive us to a parking garage, leave the car with the attendant, and stroll, my hand on the small of her back, to an old-fashioned northern Italian restaurant.
The owner, Gino, greets me as we walk in the door. “Jason Dare, it’s been too long! Rosa! Jason is here!”
A robust woman comes out of the kitchen, rushing over to greet us. “Jason! Did you bring Gabriel?” she asks, giving me a kiss on the cheek.
“He’s home with his family,” I say. “But I did bring a friend. Faith, this is Rosa Bianci and her husband, Gino. She makes the best pasta in the city. This place is a hidden gem.”
Rosa, an attractive older woman with dark hair, smiles at Faith. “Oh, what a pretty young lady. You finally brought a girl here to meet us!” She grasps Faith’s cheeks and holds her face in her hands. “So nice to have you here.”
“It’s wonderful to meet you,” Faith says, finally getting a word in. She shoots me an amused glance, and I’m pleased she isn’t put off by Rosa’s friendliness.
I deliberately never bring women here. Rosa, who took an instant liking to me in part due to the fact that I’m Gabe’s cousin, and she loves Gabe and his family, would assume there was more going on than just a dinner. And I didn’t want any woman I was with making that assumption as well. It speaks volumes that I don’t have a problem with Faith here now.
“Come,” Gino says. “I have your special table and nobody’s sitting there.” He leads us to a small corner in the back that I know well.
“Sometimes I come here and sit in the corner and work,” I explain. “This table is quiet.”
“And you never bring women here. Interesting,” Faith says under her breath.
I grin as I hold out her chair. She is going to grill me about my love life; I can see it coming. And I don’t mind answering. She already knows my mother hasn’t met women in my life. Faith has a strong inkling as to what I’m about. She just doesn’t know why I keep my emotions bottled up tight. If she asks, I’ll admit to some things, but not to all.
After ordering fried zucchini and a bottle of Pinot Grigio wine, I lean back in my seat and study Faith. After a long day at work, she is still as pretty as I found her this morning when she walked out of her room, a smile on her face. I love how she easily wears the Sweet Treats tee shirt, never worried about being dressed down, always comfortable in her own skin.
“So, how was your day?” I ask with an amused grin on my face.
She mock glares at me. “Are you looking to discuss that kiss?” she asks, surprising me that she broaches the subject first.
