Chapter 9
CHAPTER NINE
Cade
“You smell nice.”
I glance at my twin brother and smile. “Thanks, sweetheart, but I’m still not putting out tonight. I have plans.”
He shakes his head as he pulls up behind my personal truck, clearly used to my inappropriate humor and understanding I’m joking. “All I was saying is you don’t smell like ass.”
I snort, reaching for the door handle. “That’s because I showered. I do tend to do that nightly after I get home from work.”
“Yeah, but,” he starts, leaning over and inhaling, “I smell cologne.”
Pushing against his shoulder, I grumble, “Quit hitting on me! I’m your brother, sicko.”
He chuckles and rolls his eyes. “You’re dumb. And here I thought Cam was my dumbest sibling.”
I bark out a laugh. “I’m telling him you said that.”
“I’m sure he’ll believe you,” Collin replies. “Anyway, just here picking up your truck?”
Rolling my eyes, I shake my head. “Just ask what you want to ask. Quit beatin’ around the bush.”
“You going up to the door?”
“Yes,” I reply, glancing toward said front entrance. I know she’s home. I see her Cherokee in the driveway.
“Well, have a good night, but I’ll be busy with Lizzie later, so if you need another ride home, call Camden. He’s a loser and probably not doing anything.”
I bark out a laugh and open the passenger door. “I’m telling him you said that too.”
“I won’t deny it. Have a good one,” Collin adds, waving as I close the door and head for the porch.
I wait until he backs away from my truck and drives off before walking up the steps and knocking. Oaklee answers the door wearing light blue scrubs and a smile. “Hi,” she says, the faintest hint of a blush on her cheeks.
“Hello,” I state with a beaming smile. “I know you just got home from work, but I thought we could discuss our options for dinner.”
She nods and steps back, granting me entrance. As I pass, I press a light kiss to her cheek, subtly inhaling the scent of her skin and hair. “What was that for?” she asks, a bit of humor laced in her question.
“That was just a simple hello, beautiful.”
Narrowing her humor-filled eyes, she asks, “You kiss all your friends hello?”
“Only the hot ones,” I reply with a wink. “And I only have one in that class.” I clap my hands together and give her my complete attention. “Now, let’s talk about dinner. Any preferences?”
“Not really.”
“Pizza?”
“Love it,” she says, her eyes seeming to light up just at the suggestion.
“Well, let’s go,” I insist, turning to the front door. “I’ll drive.”
“Wait, I need to change.”
I give her a once-over, committing every curve of her body to memory. “You look great.”
Her brown eyes narrow. “I’m in scrubs.”
“And no one wears them better than you do, Oaklee.”
She rolls her eyes dramatically and shakes her head. “That was the cheesiest line I’ve ever heard.”
“Not a line when it’s the truth.”
She exhales dramatically. “Still, I’m going to change. Give me five minutes.”
“Whatever.”
Before she disappears down the short hallway that leads to her bedroom, she sasses, “Don’t touch anything.”
My eyes brighten with mischief. “Because you’re hiding things? Like what? Bodies? Hustler magazines? Men?”
That gets the result I was looking for as she rolls her eyes once more. “Yes, I’m hiding men all over the place. I keep them chained up in the closets.”
“I knew it.” I wave two fingers between us. “You and I…we’re in sync.”
A single eyebrow shoots toward the ceiling as she asks, “Because you also keep men chained up in your closets?”
“Not since the last one got away,” I reply with a tsk. “Anyway, pizza. Go. Change. Or don’t. I think you look beautiful just the way you are.”
She spins around and continues on her way, but I don’t miss the way her cheeks turn pink before she goes.
I move around the living room, noting nothing has changed since I was standing here last night.
There are still a few boxes needing to be unpacked, but for the most part, the living room is comfortable and homey.
Spotting a closet behind the front door, I almost open it, just to make sure she’s not hiding anything—or anyone—but I don’t.
Everyone has secrets, and it’s not my place to snoop around to try to discover hers.
I have plenty of my own skeletons, that’s for sure.
No need to poke around in someone else’s closet.
Glancing at a side table, I catch a framed photograph.
I’m not sure if it was here last night, but I notice it now.
Picking it up, I take in the three people smiling at the camera.
The middle is clearly Oaklee, donning a white hat and white jacket and holding a small pin and rose.
On either side of her is an older gentleman and woman, most likely grandparents.
They seem happy, proud even, as they grin for the camera.
“Those are my grandparents. They basically raised me.”
I glance over my shoulder and find Oaklee standing there, watching me.
She changed into a purple top and a pair of blue jean capris, and on her feet are a basic pair of slip-on sandals.
She doesn’t look like she stepped off a runway or that she spent her week’s salary on her outfit, but she looks…
beautiful. Stunning, really. Her hair is still up in a ponytail, though she has adjusted it and brushed it out following a long day at work.
“This was the day you became a nurse?”
She nods, stepping closer until she’s beside me.
I catch a whiff of something fruity with a hint of jasmine.
“My pinning ceremony. Honestly, I was surprised they came. I hadn’t expected it, though I had secretly hoped.
They both worked at that time, and I knew it wasn’t going to be easy for them to get off work to attend. ”
“But they did.”
She flashes a grateful smile. “They did.” Looking up from the photo, she meets my gaze once more. “Ready?”
“For pizza? Always,” I state. Placing my hand on her back, we move to the front door and step outside. “I’ll drive.”
“I can follow you,” she offers. “This way you don’t have to go out of your way to bring me home.”
I just flash her an easy, charming grin. “You think bringing you back here would be a hardship? Beautiful, any chance I get to spend a few extra minutes with you is pretty good, if you ask me. Plus, this gives me a chance to try to steal a kiss at the end of the date,” I state with a wink.
She stops in the middle of the sidewalk. “Is this? A date?”
“Of course,” I reply, grabbing the passenger door and pulling it open.
“First off, there’s the fact we’re going to get food.
Food constitutes a date.” After she climbs inside, I add, “Two, I showered. If I was just grabbing a bite or a beer with my friends, I’d jump in my truck and head straight for our destination, not caring if I smelled like a sweaty construction worker. ”
I shut the door and jog around the front end to the driver’s door.
As soon as I climb inside, I fire the truck to life and crank up the air-conditioning.
Then, I turn in my seat and meet her gaze.
“And finally, three, because you’re beautiful, and I’d be an idiot not to take advantage of all opportunities as presented. ”
Again, cue the blush. It’s cute as fuck.
She clears her throat. “What if I’m looking at it as just grabbing dinner with a friend?” There’s a hint of humor in her eyes as she waits for my reply.
I put my truck into gear and state, “We can start there, but at the end of the night, you’ll be admitting it’s a date.”
Her soft chuckle fills the truck cab. “And why is that?”
I glance her way and smile. “Because at the end of the night, you’ll be begging me to kiss you.”
“Hmm,” she hums, keeping her eyes on the road in front of us. “This must be some pizza.”
“The best. You’ll be so appreciative of my expert second date skills, wooed by the Italian delicacy we’re about to feast on, you’ll be dying for a kiss.”
I don’t miss the way the corner of her mouth turns up in a faint smile. “Second date?”
“Tequila equals a date, beautiful.”
She barks out a laugh. “I didn’t know that.”
I shrug. “I don’t make the rules, only follow them.”
She snorts and shakes her head. “Something tells me you don’t follow any rules.”
I toss her a wink and pull my truck away from the curb. “You may be right about that.”
It doesn’t take long to drive the few blocks to the main drag and pull into the lot adjacent to the pizza place.
Before the doors are even open, the scent of Italian hangs in the air, enticing you with garlic and rich marinara.
The moment I turn off the truck and release my seat belt, I ask, “Ready?”
“Definitely.” Jumping out, I meet her around at the passenger door and close it when she exits. “I can already smell the deliciousness.”
“Have you had Mario’s yet?” I ask, leading her to the front entrance.
“Only their Sicilian sub sandwich. Allison and I ordered them last week for lunch.”
“Mmm, those are good,” I reply, my stomach already growling with hunger. “I haven’t had one in a while though. I’m more of a large pizza man, myself.”
She shakes her head, reaching for the door handle and pulling at the glass door. “Of course you are. You probably eat the whole thing and then run a mile afterward without so much as gaining a single ounce.”
I bark out a quick laugh. Rubbing my hand over my stomach, I reply, “I’ll have you know it takes two miles of running to keep this belly looking this flat.
Lord knows if the beer and pizza had its way, I’d look like a forty-five-year-old soccer dad, wearing grass-stained athletic shoes and bitching about moles tearing up my yard. ”
She covers her mouth and giggles. “Wait, you’re not forty-five, are you?”
“Thirty-two,” I reply, just as Mario walks around the corner. “Cade! Welcome! And you bring a pretty lady.”
“I sure did, but she’s mine. Keep your pizza-making hands off my woman,” I tease the man I’ve known most of my life.