“Why are you so hellbent on us being seen in public together?”
“Because I want us to have hot, steamy, mind-blowing, illegal in thirty-eight states kind of sex again. Absolutely, I do. But I’m not going to lose control of myself again like I did at your house.The only way I’ll ever be able to do that is if we really are together—and that means starting with a real, in-public first date.”
I paused, knowing the consequences, but I also knew that I couldn’t deny Erik what he wanted.
It was just sex, right? I could’ve gotten that from anyplace I wanted. Only I realized that wasn’t true anymore. Erik De Ruiter was the exception to the rule. He was the only person, man or woman, to offer something so amazing.
And he knew it. Of course he did. And he knew I would ultimately go along with anything he wanted. Why else would he do everything in his power to drive me crazy?
25
ERIK
Before I tell you about our real first date, the answer is, yes, I did have to climb out through the bathroom window. Yes, it was a ridiculously tight squeeze. And, yes, I was completely naked.
I want you to know that Kayden panicked so badly that he couldn’t let me get dressed and then act like I was there to meet him about team business. No, he wanted me out of the house the hard way.
The things we do for love!
But that’s not all. You should know something about Buffalo’s Westside: All the houses stand extremely close together. There was literally zero chance that no one noticed the naked guy in Kayden’s back yard. There’s probably footage on some guy’s security camera. Like, I’d never felt so embarrassed in my entire life. I put my clothes on as quickly as I could and fled…but realized I had no shoes!
Oh, and I have one more thing to tell you. Kayden Preston sucks his thumbs when he sleeps!
I’m not joking. I woke up a couple times in the night. Call of nature and all that. It was pretty dark in the room andeverything, but one time it honestly looked like the arrogant man had his thumb in his mouth. When I returned from the bathroom, he’d pulled it out. God, I wish I’d taken a picture.
Actually, I wish I could’ve had a picture of the way Kayden looked in bed the rest of the time. So peaceful. When I slipped back under the covers, I scooted up beside him and threw an arm over him. This wasn’t just different than sleeping with the girlfriend I’d had back home.
It was better.
Anyway, we decided on the Colter Bay Grill on the corner of Delaware and Allen for a nice dinner date. Low-key, you know? This time, I had the chance to dress up nicely for him. He wore the same dress shirt with gray dress pants he had for our first date at his home.
We sat by the window in the bar area where we could barely hear ourselves over the music.
“Ever been here before?” he asked.
“Nope.”
“Bro, you’ve been missing out. They’ve got the best wings in the entire city of Buffalo.”
“You mean it’s not The Anchor Bar?”
“No, dude, that’s where the Buffalo wing was born. This place perfected it.”
“That’s cool. I might just get a burger.”
Kayden lifted an eyebrow as if choosing anything over chicken wings constituted some mortal sin, at least in the city of Buffalo.
When our server came, Kayden ordered Pepsis for both of us, as well as two double orders of wings. The server, a lean, dark-haired young man who could’ve been a student at Larkin, headed back into the kitchen before I could say anything.
“I told you I was thinking of getting a burger,” I said.
“Yeah, I know.”
“Then you just ordered for both of us.”
“I wouldn’t think of it that way.”
“Why not?”
