“Let’s just say it was doing its job a little too well for my liking, sending out vibes to all the wrong guys.” She laughs lightly, then her knees slide along my thigh as she swivels her stool in my direction. “Besides, it wasn’t a complete fail. It got me half a slice of pie.” She smiles. “Speaking of, what did you think of it?”
“It was delicious.” I slide the empty plate a few inches away, “Definitely worth the stop.”
“Carla makes all the pies from scratch. You better tip her well, I already know you spend twelve dollars on smoothies, and this pie has to be so much better than that green sludge.”
She’s got me there.
Having already paid for the pie, I reach for my wallet, pull out a twenty and slide it under the empty plate. Brooke moves off her stool, again her knees making slow, seductive contact with my thigh.
After thinking about her all week, I can’t just let her walk out the door, again. Even though she rejected my phone number request at the bookstore, tonight feels different. She seems more relaxed, less distracted.
And Jesus that dress she’s wearing should be illegal. I’m thirty-six, my nights of going out and partying are well behind me. I’ve been working non-stop for years and haven’t been on an actual date in the same amount of time. I know what I want now. To find a partner to settle down with and have a family. I’m not interested in casual hookups that are going nowhere.
But, I’ve got to do more than what I’ve been doing, which is an endless reel of work, sleep, workout then work all over again. I’m finally in a place where I can take a breather and I should have some fun. And Brooke looks like fun. Not to mention I am insanely attracted to her. There’s a chemistry between us that I felt at the bookstore, even when she was busy cleaning up smoothie and turning me down. Something tells me she might not reject me this time.
Brooke stands and I follow suit. She’s tall, at least for the moment with the stilts for shoes that she’s wearing, and just inches away from me. Her green eyes are fixed on mine. I watch her tongue peek between her lips, wetting them slightly.
“Bummer your dress didn’t work out.”
“Yeah, it’s too bad,” she says with a barely contained smile.
The pie was delicious, but something tells me it won’t be the sweetest thing I taste tonight.
9
Brooke
After excusing myself to the restroom, I call Sam and leave her an erratic voicemail about the sexy doctor I just shared pie with at the diner, then wash my hands and dry my armpits with a paper towel. I probably should have done that in reverse order, but it doesn’t really matter—ifI sleep with him, I’m not going to see him again. This encounter has one-night stand written all over it. Witty pie chat, exchange of first names only, it’s perfect. Although, I should text Sam a picture of his ID in case he’s the kind of doctor that dissects women and keeps body parts in jars in his refrigerator. I think I saw that onDatelineonce.
I don’t know what’s gotten in to me tonight. I usually don’t make a habit of telling strangers I’m wearing a ‘fuck me’ dress, but tonight the words just flowed freely without any embarrassment. I wonder if he thinks I’m a slut, or a hooker. Oh, shit. Maybe he thinks I’m walking the streets, and just taking a break for pie. The ‘fuck me’ dress thing sounded funny in my head, but now I’m wondering if I’ve made it awkward. I should have made it clear that I don’t expect him to pay for it, that I’m just looking for a casual, one-time hookup, free of charge.
I think the liquor has definitely gotten to my brain and I take a deep breath and pull open the door. I can see the counter from the restroom hallway and it’s empty. Oh, shit. I should have been clear. A simple, wait here, I’ll be back and we can have sex, for free, would have been good. Was he freaked out?
The door to the men’s restroom opens and Cole steps out.
“Oh, hi. You’re still here,” I state the obvious.
I step back a foot to give the man some space. He definitely looks more intimidating without green smoothie all over his shirt. Had he been that tall and broad-shouldered at the bookstore? I don’t think I’d noticed him in that way with the whole green smoothie debacle and my anxiety about running into Gina. Even in my five-inch heels, Cole—that’s right, he does have a name—towers over me. His shoulders are broad and for how baggy I thought scrubs were supposed to be, Cole’s scrubs fit snuggly on his thighs and chest.
The color brings out the blue in his eyes. Since we’ve been talking tonight, one thing I’ve noticed about Cole is the different smiles he has. And how they all make me flustered. There’s the full smile that makes the skin next to his eyes crinkle, like when he’s laughing. The no teeth, humor in his eyes smile when he seems amused but not quite chuckling. And then, there’s the sexy smile, which is more of a smirk, where the left side of his lips lift up higher than the right. I’m not really sure what he’s thinking when he’s got that sexy smirk on his face, but that’s the smile he’s giving me right now. My low belly pulls and I can feel my arousal dampen my panties. Yikes, by the time he actually touches me it’s going to be a slippery slide down there.
“I didn’t want to miss what comes next,” he says.
“Yeah?”
The diner is open twenty-four hours, and with it being so close to the trendy downtown bar scene, it’s starting to fill up with the post-bar crowd searching for a late-night snack before they call it a night. Carla is taking orders out in the dining room and Cassie, another waitress, has appeared to help with the influx of diners.
He steps closer and I can smell him, masculine, a hint of aftershave, but even more I can feel his warmth, the heat pulsing through his body, and it makes me shiver.
When his lips lower to mine, my body melts against his hardness. His kiss is slow, exploratory, and I love the way his five o’clock shadow scrapes against my chin. One large, firm hand slides over my hip, pulling me closer until our bodies are aligned, his other hand finds its way to the base of my neck and gives the smallest squeeze, making me putty in his hands. My hands start their own exploration, the thin material of his scrubs leave little wonder about the chiseled body underneath.
Okay, wow.
There’s a moment where I think I could just make out with this guy all night, forget sex, this is really hot. But then, Cole’s hand slides to the hem of my dress, his fingers caress the inside of my thigh, just inches from what is quickly becoming my damp center, and I decide sex should not be forgotten. I’m optimistic that Cole is the guy I’ve been looking for. The last sex before I get pregnant with Ellie and Josh’s baby. And if his deep kisses and firm hands are any indication, sex with Cole is going to be amazing.
Carla’s throat clearing in the background pulls me out of my Cole-induced sexual trance, and we break apart on a gasp. My eyes widen and we both suppress a laugh. We are officially like horny teenagers who suck face in public. The ones that make out after school at a park or bus stop because they don’t have anywhere else to go. The good news is we’re adults and we have options like our own apartments and beds.
Cole comes in close again, his lips trailing kisses down my jaw, until they are right next to my ear.
