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“I don’t know. I thought…”
“You thought I volunteered to make a baby with a woman I didn’t have any interest in?”
“I thought maybe you felt…sorry for me.”
He rolls his eyes. “If I just felt sorry for you, I’d have started asking around, seeing if any of my friends were interested in being dads.” He pauses. “But when I said I was going to be the only man to put a baby in you—what did you think that meant?”
“That you’re a little bossy.”
He grins. “Oh, you have no idea, princess. Bossy doesn’t even begin to cover it. While we’re together, we’re together. I can be a jealous man, if provoked.”
“I have no reason to provoke you. Not like that anyway.” I’m feeling a little flirtatious all of a sudden.
“Good to know.” His smile is as disarming as ever and I’m enthralled.
He’s very easy on the eyes, so I never gave a lot of thought to who he is as a man, beyond how tough he has to be to do what he does. Yet the more time I spend with him, the more I like him. And apparently, he likes me too.
“I feel like we need to start over,” I say after a moment. “I didn’t know exactly where I stood with you as far as relationships go, and I was too nervous to ask directly.”
“Okay, then let’s start over.” He smiles and extends his hand. “My name is Elliott Rageis. Nice to meet you.”
I laugh and shake it. “I’m Luna Gallagher.”
We’re cut off as the waiter appears with an appetizer and takes our entrée orders.
From there, the conversation is even easier. As if starting over somehow flipped a switch for both of us. Probably more for me than him, but this feels like a real date. Two people who want to spend time together outside of work and get to know each other beyond a surface-level attraction or even a deal to become parents.
I love the fact that he had no trouble admitting he’s had a crush on me. If I was expecting awkward, I would have been disappointed.
Because there is nothing awkward about Elliott Rageis.
“I don’t know what to call you,” I say after our entrees arrive. “Calling you Rage feels so impersonal, but that’s what everyone calls you.”
“You can call me Rage at work and Elliott when we’re alone, if that makes it easier.”
“What about Rage the Cage?” I tease. “Is there a time I should use that one?”
He chuckles. “When we’re naked, you can call me anything you want.”
Chapter Twelve
Rage
She’s delightful.
I enjoy the way she goes between sassy and confident, and shy and unsure. In my opinion, it’s humanizing. Most women I’ve dated don’t allow themselves to show any vulnerability at all in the beginning. Luna is the opposite. She knows who and what she is and doesn’t pretend to be anything else.
I love a tall, curvy woman, but that kind of physical attraction is different from what I feel for Luna. I could be attracted to ten different women on any given day. But I don’t randomly offer to make babies with them.
What I feel for her goes so far beyond that part of it. It’s just too damn soon to say those things. First, she has to learn that she can trust me. Once I get past that obstacle, it’ll be easier.
“Did you want to walk on the beach?” I ask as we leave the restaurant.
“Sure. It’s a beautiful night.”
It’s June and though it’s warm during the day, it’s cool and breezy at night.
The beach is just a block away and we pause on the sidewalk to take off our shoes. Then we step onto the sand and I take her hand.
