For the first time ever with a woman, I was making myself wait. It didn’t mean I wanted her less. Hell no. I’d wanted Eden from the second I’d laid eyes on her. That morning she’d been collecting an Uber Eats bag, ripped black jeans hugging her legs, tiny white T-shirt barely covering her tits, hair a dark mess around her shoulders. I’d been hauling a dresser and almost dropped the fucker because I was so distracted by her. And now that I had her in my life, I wanted to take my time getting to know her. I didn’t want to rush even a second of it.
She made her play and missed, the ball rattling the lip of the pocket before rolling wide.
“Seriously?” She pulled a face, scrunching her nose for the second time tonight, and shit she looked cute when she did that. “I did what you said.”
“Yeah, you did,” I agreed. “But you need to slow down. Rushing makes it harder to control the cue ball’s speed and path.”
She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth for a moment before hitting me with a sexy smile. “So, what you’re saying is, I need . . . more practice?”
The way she said it, like she knew exactly what string she was pulling, went straight to my dick. My mouth curved before I could stop it. “Darlin’, I’ll give you all the practice you want.”
Her eyes sparked at that, and heat blazed through me fast enough my control frayed at the edges. If we kept going like this, I’d be bending her over this pool table.
I dragged a hand through my hair, forcing in a breath. “But first, we should get a drink before I forget where we are.”
She cocked her head, eyes lit with mischief as she shot back, “What, already tapping out? I thought bikers had stamina.”
Christ. It was a good fucking thing she didn’t know much she affected me without even trying. I dropped my voice low, just for her. “Watching you chase this game like you’re debugging it, muttering to yourself, logging every shot and adding data points to that list in your head . . . it’s got me imagining you giving that kind of attention to me. Another second of you lookin’ at me like that and I won’t care who watches me make good on the filthy thoughts runnin’ through my head.”
She didn’t sass me back. Didn’t throw out a cocky grin. For the first time all night, her bravado slipped, just a fraction. Her hand tightened around the cue, her gaze slipping for just a second, like she was thrown by the effect she’d had on me.
She really didn’t see it. Didn’t see how every version of her—bold, awkward, nerdy, flustered—was straight fire to me. She was the kind of woman men dreamed about, and somehow, she was surprised by my reaction? Christ, she had no idea.
My hand brushed hers where it clenched the cue, thumb gliding across her knuckles. She sucked in a breath, her body stiffening at the contact, and that flicker of shyness just about undid me.
“Don’t go shy on me now, sweetheart.”
She blinked at me, cue still locked in her hand, then words just . . . exploded. “This isn’t shy, it’s—” She waved the cue vaguely. “God, you’re like a software update I didn’t agree to install. Everything’s hotter, slower, and my buttons are in weird places. I don’t even know how to function anymore. I’ll probably start buffering mid-sentence soon.” She snapped her mouth closed, staring wide-eyed at me. “Please pretend I didn’t just say that.” Her cheeks went scarlet, and she muttered, “I think I might need an exorcism.”
I couldn’t hold back my grin. Amused as hell, turned on even more. “No fuckin’ way am I allowing an exorcism. I like you exactly how you are.”
Eyes still wide, she jabbed her hand in my direction. “See, that . . . saying things like that, and using your voice like that, and existing like that . . . Every single neuron of mine has stopped adulting and started a girl band, writing songs like ‘Why Is He Looking At Me Like That?’”
She was absolutely fucking lethal. And I needed to shut this down.
I brought my mouth to her ear and growled, “Darlin’, if you knew the shit I’m thinking while I look at you, you’d stop worrying about girl bands and start worrying about how fast I could have you begging on this table.” I pulled back just enough to catch her wild eyes and added, “Let’s get that drink before your mouth talks us both into trouble.”
We grabbed burgers at the bar. Eden ordered hers with pineapple, extra cheese and pickles, coleslaw, hot sauce, and mayo. She then added hot chips to it. Not just a few; she shoved half a fistful in there, gripping the bun firmly so it didn’t explode. Then she took a blissed-out bite, eyes closed, chewing like she’d reached some higher plane of existence.
I just stared. Couldn’t not.
She opened her eyes and caught me watching. “What? Don’t look at me like that. Don’t you dare food-shame me, biker man. This is innovation. Maximum crunch-to-softness ratio, bonus spice, bonus pickle tang. It’s science.”
I bit back a grin and took a long pull from my beer, staying quiet—mostly because all I could think about was sliding her onto my lap.
She kept going, lecturing like she was giving a TED talk. “Honestly, I should be charging for this wisdom. People would thank me. I’d basically be a humanitarian for sharing this knowledge.”
I finally let my grin loose as I reached for her stool and pulled her closer. “You keep talkin’ like that and I’m gonna forget about food altogether. The only thing I’ll be hungry for is you.”
She was lost for words for at least three seconds, and then blurted, “Oh, wow. Okay. You can’t just say things like that without warning.”
I laughed. Then I ran my thumb gently over her cheek to wipe away the smear of tomato sauce she hadn’t realised was there. Her eyes flashed with want and a silent promise that she wouldn’t stop me if I leaned in closer. As much as I wanted to do that, I didn’t. “Let’s move to safer territory for both of us. Tell me about your brother. How many pool lessons did he actually give you?”
Her lips parted in a mock gasp. “Did you just politely tell me I’m hopeless at pool?”
“Not hopeless. Just in desperate need of a better teacher.”
“Oh, right. Let me guess, that would be you?”
