Maisie
SINCE PARKING WAS a crapshoot, I took a rideshare and the driver dropped off at the side of the restaurant. I climbed out of the car and made my way to the front on shaky legs, still wanting to run the other way.
What the bloody hell am I doing?
I squared my shoulders and took a deep breath, forcing my feet forward just as I heard, "Hey, Sunshine."
I turned to see Hatch walking toward , and my breath hitched. It was warm, but he still had a leather jacket on over a tight black T-shirt, dark jeans and boots. God, he was gorgeous. And what the hell was up with all this "Sunshine" business? I willed my undies to stay exactly where they were, because if he kept saying things like that to , I was done for.
I slid my sunglasses onto the top of my head and smiled. "Hi."
After closing the distance between us, he wrapped an arm around my waist, and kissed my cheek. "You look beautiful."
"Thank you." I closed my eyes for a second, relishing his touch. He also slled delicious. Holy crap, I was in trouble.
His gaze scanned my body. "You wear this to work?"
"Yes."
He let out a quiet grunt.
"Is that weird?" I wore a sleeveless, pencil sheath dress. The top was a herringbone pattern, while the skirt was black and it was finished off with a thin silver belt. I had on a pair of black Louboutin sling-backs and the outfit was all as far as style went.
"No, babe, it’s sexy."
I sighed. Well, that certainly wasn’t helping the undies stay put.
We headed inside and, although he let precede him, his hand stayed put on my lower back as he spoke with the hostess and she showed us to our table. I felt a little bereft when he had to remove his touch in order for to take my seat.
He shrugged off his jacket and settled it over his chair, revealing his muscular arms bulging out of his tight, black T-shirt.
"I’m surprised you could make it," he said.
" too," I admitted, setting my nu down so I could look at him. "My friend is taking care of Poppy for the evening."
"She could have co."
"My friend?" I joked.
Hatch chuckled. "Sure. More the rrier."
"I’m not ready for Poppy to be privy to potentially dating again," I admitted. "Regardless if this is considered a date or not, it’s just... well..."
"I get it." He focused back on his nu. "And this is just two people in the sa place gettin’ a bite to eat. Not a date."
I felt deflated in a weird way. It was painfully evident to that I wasn’t hip to all the nuances of the dating world, and I probably didn’t want to be. I’d always believed when a man invited you to dinner alone, it was considered a date... but what did I know? Maybe now, everything was casual and a date was sothing olde ty people did when they got bored pushing the hoop with a stick down the dirt street. The server arrived and we gave him our drink and dinner orders and then we were left blissfully alone again.
"I t Kim at the park the other day," I began, trying to break the awkward silence.
"Yeah, she told ."
Interesting. They’d talked about . I liked that. I actually liked that a lot. Maybe this wasn’t so bad.
"How do you two know each other?" I asked.
"Her old man and I are in the sa club."
"What kind of a club?" I asked, and took a sip of water.
"Motorcycle club."
"Oh, so you show off your motorcycles and ride them together?" I’d seen clusters of motorcycles on the freeway during the sumrs sotis and everyone always looked like they were having a blast.
He smirked. "Sure, we’ll go with that."
I smiled. "That sounds fun... if not a bit dangerous."
Our server returned with our drinks, so I never really got clarification on the dangerous part. But regardless, motorcycles scared . Especially the thought of folks riding them in such a rainy climate.
"What’s the na of your club?" I asked.
"Dogs of Fire."
"Oh, interesting." I didn’t really know what to say. The na was a little silly in my opinion, but I doubted Hatch had much to do with it. I heard his low chuckle and heat crept into my cheeks. "Sorry."
"It’s okay, Sunshine." He smiled. "I like it."
"My inability to hide my thoughts?"
Hatch nodded. "Nice change."
"People hide things from you often?"
"They try."
"Oh." I bit my lip. "I’m sorry."
"How was work?" he asked, changing the subject.
"Good." I smiled. "Uneventful."
"What bucks do you stop?"
I pressed my lips into a thin line.
"Too personal?" he asked.
I shook my head. "No. I’m just never sure what people will think when they find out."
He raised an eyebrow, sitting back slightly. "Oh, yeah?"
I didn’t tell people what I did. My company had a boring and vague na, Mann Industries, and until I really got to know soone, they just thought we did imports and exports. Which we did... our imports and exports just happened to be of a sexual nature. For whatever reason, I felt comfortable with Hatch and I figured if he was going to run, it would be now and it would be good to get it over with. Taking a deep breath, I leaned forward and whispered, "I run a sex toy business."
"Shut the fuck up," he said.
I sat back and nodded, my face on fire.
He grinned. "That’s the best thing I’ve ever heard."
I laid my palms against my cheeks, trying to cool them. Now I felt weird... well, weirder than I had previously. I shouldn’t have told him. He was probably just another pervert who would assu I was a slut because of the business I was in. God, I needed to get out of there.
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