Chapter 18
Chapter Eighteen
IAN
I stared into Jane's eyes, willing my need for her to abate. I had suggested dinner with my sister because I hadn't seen her in a month now. I felt a little conflicted about it because I was seeing Jane every weekend. But right here, right now, I just wanted Jane all to myself.
Jane’s lips curled in a sly smile. “You can handle it. We can't cancel. I just talked to her, and we're getting steak.”
I let my forehead fall into the sweet curve of her neck and took a deep breath, inhaling her scent. Lifting my head, I pressed a quick kiss to her lips. Because if I let that kiss linger, my discipline, shaky as it already was, might fail me.
“Steak sounds delicious. Let's go,” I said firmly.
Forcing myself to step back, I turned and lifted the bag I’d dropped on the floor when I came in. “I'll just put this away.”
She nodded as she smoothed a hand over her hair.
I walked down the short hallway off the living room area and dropped my bag in her bedroom.
Occasionally, I experienced twinges of doubt.
Not because I had any doubts about how I felt about Jane and how things were going with us, but because it was so unexpected.
If anyone had told me I'd hand over the key to my apartment to a woman before I'd gone to that much-needed holiday break in Haven’s Bay a few months ago, I'd have told them they were fucking out of their mind.
Yet when I had to work late one night and knew Jane’s train was arriving, she ended up having to wait for half an hour before I could get there.
The next morning, I’d gone to a hardware store and gotten a copy made for her before she even woke up.
Giving up a weekend with her was out of the question.
When I returned to the living room, she was sliding into a lightweight jacket and stepping into her boots.
“You shouldn't have worn jeans,” I commented as I approached her, appreciating the way her hips filled out the denim.
She turned, cocking her head to the side. “What do you mean?”
“They're harder to take off, especially with boots on.”
Pink tinged her cheeks, and she rolled her eyes. “Well, I'm not changing now.”
I shrugged. “Just saying. I'm all about easy access with you.”
She gave me a saucy grin. “It’s a good thing I'm wearing jeans because you need to keep your hands to yourself at dinner with Thea.”
I grinned and copped a quick feel of her sweet bottom. She rolled her eyes again and bit her lip, which meant I had to kiss her before we walked out of her apartment.
“I don't know about the dinner and jeans. Skirts are a better option. You know what I mean,” I said once we were walking hand in hand on the sidewalk.
“Ian!” she exclaimed.
I chuckled and squeezed her hand. I loved teasing her. The last time we’d had dinner with one of my siblings, it had been Dallas, and she’d been wearing a skirt. I might’ve gotten a little handsy under the table.
“Did you wear jeans on purpose?” That thought belatedly occurred to me.
Jane let out a sly laugh before shaking her head. “I wish I could say I thought about that, but it's Friday and they're comfortable.”
The conversation shifted into the mundane of catching up.
We texted and usually talked almost every day.
But I loved seeing her at the end of the week and catching up on the details of life.
It was bothering me that I couldn't tell her what was going on at work. I didn’t like holding anything back from her, and it felt like a tiny splinter in my awareness. There was still plenty to talk about.
“You're liking it here in Boston then?” I asked as we rounded a corner onto the street that would lead us to the restaurant where we were meeting Thea.
She glanced up at me. “I am. It's a good fit. Plus, I have friends here. It’s been really nice to reconnect with Thea, Sasha, and Audrey.”
Although things felt really good with her, the awareness that we might need to make a decision about where we lived occasionally hung in the air between us.
If we took things to the next level, one of us might have to make a change.
I’d already made up my mind that I would move to Boston because I could, but I wasn't sure Jane was ready to hear that.
“This is it, right?” Jane asked, pausing in front of a newer restaurant in Boston.
I shrugged. “You know better than me.”
She tugged me through the doorway. As soon as we stepped inside, we bumped into a crowded area in front of the hostess stand.
“Do you think Thea is already here?” I asked as I glanced at Jane.
Jane nodded. “Yup. She also made reservations.”
My stomach growled. “My sister’s organizational skills are part of why I love her.”
Keeping hold of Jane’s hand, I threaded through the cluster in the front, stopping at the hostess stand. “We have reservations under Thea Tate.”
The hostess smiled at us. “She's already here. Menus are on the table. Follow me.”
We walked behind the hostess through the new space. I glanced around as we made our way across the restaurant, letting out a low whistle. “This is nice. It used to be an old diner, I think.”
The hostess glanced over her shoulder, casting me a quick smile. “It did. The renovation transformed it.”
“It's beautiful,” Jane chimed in.
The server gestured ahead to where Thea was waiting at a booth in the corner. She smiled over at us, waving. As soon as the hostess departed, Thea stood from the table, throwing her arms around me. “Hey, you!” she exclaimed as she stepped back, her blue eyes twinkling.
Thea gave Jane a quick hug, and we sat down across from her in the booth. “You could have brought a date,” I commented as I opened the menu.
Thea shrugged nonchalantly. “No date for me.”
Jane gave her a curious look but said nothing else. I sensed Thea was holding something back. “You never mention if you’re seeing anyone,” I added.
“You never talked to me about your dating life before either. Now, you're with Jane, and I can't get either one of you to say anything about each other,” my sister replied tartly.
Jane’s cheeks went pink as she looked down at her menu. “We're dating. Isn't that enough for you to know?” I returned.
Thea let out an aggrieved sigh. “I want to know everything.”
“Uh, everything?” Jane glanced up quickly.
Thea rolled her eyes. “Okay, maybe not everything, but how is it going?”
“Very well,” I said firmly. I slid my arm across Jane’s shoulders as I leaned back in the booth. “Now, tell me what's up with life, work, and so on.”
My sister shrugged. “I’m busy, and things are okay at work. I’m not loving being at a large law firm. I have a new boss from a different department, and I’m hoping we get along. A good job can turn into a shitty job really fast.”
“Don't I know it,” Jane offered. “You both heard about my old boss. He wasn’t even who hired me, but he was moved over. He was needy and useless all at the same time.”
“It seems like you're happy where you are now, though,” Thea offered.
Jane nodded. “I am. I have more independence, but things can change.”
I simply nodded along. My job had been great until lately. Now, I was seriously considering striking out on my own once the investigation was all over. Fortunately, our conversation moved on to other matters. I didn't have to dwell in my guilt about everything I was withholding about my work.
Every so often, I wondered if Dallas or Noah had caught wind of what was going on.
The FBI was involved in the investigation, but it wasn’t their office.
Even if they knew, they wouldn't be able to ask me about it, and I wouldn't be able to talk to them about it.
Not until the team I was dealing with gave me the okay.
I managed to keep my hands mostly to myself during dinner, and Jane only had to swat my hand off her thigh twice. To distract myself, I asked Thea, “So why aren't you seeing anyone?”
Thea leaned back in the booth and took a swallow of her wine while we waited for dinner to arrive. “I didn’t say I wasn’t.”
I cocked my head to the side. “Okay, who?”
“None of your business,” she retorted.
“Oh, I’ll find out,” I countered.
Jane interjected, “We need to plan to have coffee soon.”
“You’re out of town visiting Ian every other weekend.” Thea gestured to me. “Then he’s here, and I don't want to do coffee with you and my brother every time I see you. We need girl talk.”
Jane laughed softly, glancing over at me. “I've always got work I can do when I’m here on the weekend. I'll just stay at the apartment when you two have coffee,” I offered.
“Tomorrow morning then,” Jane prompted.
“Deal.” Thea lifted her palm to high-five Jane across the table.
A few minutes later, we were eating. “The steaks are chef’s kiss,” I said. “They even got rare right.”
“Well, you don’t make it easy. You practically want the cow mooing,” my sister offered dryly.
A while after my sister had departed, we were walking home on the sidewalk, and I reached for Jane's hand. Pausing for a moment in front of her, I leaned down to catch her lips in a lingering kiss. When I lifted my head, her cheeks were flushed and her eyes a little hazed.
“What was that for?”
“I just wanted to kiss you. I'm feeling really grateful we ran into each other in Haven’s Bay.”
“Yeah?”
“Definitely.”
Her eyes held mine, and my heart kicked faster.
I was getting accustomed to how much I wanted Jane and to the emotion twined within that want, but it still startled me sometimes.
After another moment, we turned and continued walking back to her place.
Being with her was more comfortable than I had ever expected.
I was already impatient to get back to her place so I could have her all to myself.