“Yeah, Hank. Because of you.”
He surged forward, pressing his lips hard against mine in another kiss. I let my eyes slip shut, ready to stop fighting the pull between us. The one that had never been one-sided after all.
Between one breath and the next he was gone, the door clicking shut behind him, leaving me with tingling lips, a raging boner, and the biggest smile ever.
CHAPTER 21
Hank
I pulledinto Jamie’s drive a quarter after eight Monday night. There’d been an agonizing two-day wait because of his catering schedule. It gave me a lot of time to think, to imagine, to…jerk off. Any doubts I had about wanting a guy had vanished when I came over my stomach, his name on my lips, the memory of that kiss burning through my mind.
Judging by the texts we’d exchanged over these two days, though, Jamie was less certain than I was. He’d given me a chance to cancel the date, to say I was just drunk and confused. But I wasn’t going to take the out. I wanted this, and I wanted Jamie to know it, so I had to pull out all the stops tonight.
That had started with going to the Rainbow Garden and embarrassing myself again by throwing myself on Maverick’s mercy to help me choose the perfect flowers.
I gathered the bouquet off my front seat, opened my door, and strolled up Jamie’s sidewalk.
He opened the door before I could ring the bell, lookinggorgeous in a fitted Paisley button-down, maroon jeans that molded to his slim waist and legs, and coffee-colored Oxfords. His brown curls, usually wild but charming, were smoothed into tamer waves and swept to one side.
“Wow,” I said. “You clean up nice.”
He smiled shyly. “Silas helped me. I called him in a panic when you told me you’d made reservations. I figured we’d have our first date at the dog park or something.” He chuckled nervously, eyes dropping to the bouquet I held. “Is that for me?”
“Oh, yes!” I thrust it forward—nearly taking out his eye in the process. “Shit, sorry. Too much eagerness.”
Jamie laughed as he gazed at the flowers. “Roses, huh? Bold choice.”
I tucked my hands into my pockets, unsure what to do with them now that I wasn’t holding the bouquet. “Maverick said, um, they were appropriate in this case, even though it’s a first date because…”
Jamie peeked up at me through his eyelashes, looking so much like he did that first day at the park that I wanted to kick my ass for being so stupid. I could have had this,him, this whole time.
I reached out and cupped his face. “Because, he said, I’m already head over heels for you.”
I swallowed Jamie’s gasp right off his lips, unable to resist kissing him again. He tasted like sunshine and sweet crisp apples and everything good in the world.
I tightened my grip, then sprang back when a thorn poked me in the chest. Jamie, too, was wincing from the bouquet crushed between us.
“I should put these in some water.”
I stepped inside, following him toward the kitchen. “Where are the dogs?”
“I asked Silas to take them for a walk.” He blushed prettily. “He helped me get ready. I’m not really that great with all of this.” He waved a hand toward his hair and outfit.
“Ah, that explains why you look so polished.”
He took a vase down from a cabinet, filled it with water, and arranged the flowers in it. The long-stem roseswerea bit much, but Maverick had sold me pink ones the color of the blush in Jamie’s cheeks, and that did seem appropriate.
“Is it bad?” Jamie asked. “It looks like I’m trying too hard, right? I knew it!” He whirled from the counter. “I can go change?—”
“Jamie, no.” I caught his arm, stopping him, the fabric of his sleeve slick under my fingertips. “I just brought you roses. If anyone is trying too hard, it’s me. I just… I want tonight to be perfect.”
“Me too,” he whispered.
“Good. You look perfect for where we’re going. I only meant to say that I like classic Jamie just as much.”
He smiled, relaxing a fraction. “Well, good, because classic Jamie is what you’re getting after tonight.”
“As long as you like classic Hank?”
