20. Darcy
Chapter 20
Darcy
I ’M WORKING on the finishing touches to the pool table for Anthony’s loft on Sunday morning when Amanda FaceTimes me.
“Hey, gorgeous,” I say, propping the cell up so I can keep sanding.
“Come with me to yoga,” she answers. “You know it’s fun.”
I frown at the phone. “Define ‘fun.’”
“Come on. You owe me.”
Snorting, I put down the sheet of sandpaper and look around to be sure everything is turned off and safe for me to leave it. “And what, pray tell, do I owe you for?”
She grins. “Me getting wasted enough on July Fourth that you ended up hooking up with Anthony Hall.”
“You’re delusional,” I laugh. “But I’ll see you there.”
“Starts in an hour.”
We’re laying our mats out and Amanda waggles her eyebrows. “So…how are things going with Mr. Hall anyway?”
I sigh happily. “It’s so good.”
Amanda squeals with delight. “Yeah?” She leans closer and drops her voice to a whisper. “How’s the sex?”
“Better than any of the guys I’ve been with before. By infinity.” I practically swoon as I say it. “But seriously, I gotta give it to him. Maybe it’s an older guy thing? But there’s no drama, he’s so straight-forward and he lets me know exactly where we stand.” Except for the part where I want so much more than he’s willing to give.
Suddenly the tap of nails on hardwood has me turning around, and Killer, the most adorable cream chihuahua on the planet, is making his way mat to mat as we all get settled.
“Killer!” Amanda coos with a grin. Then she points. “And there’s Midnight.”
The black cat haughtily surveys the space as she picks her way through the mats. The pets’ owners, Goldie and Matty, and Willa and Reid, walk in behind them.
“Holy shit,” I whisper, because who comes in right behind them but Anthony.
Amanda looks to the front, then back at me, a delighted smile on her face. “Now you definitely owe me. Did you tell him you’d be here?”
“Of course not. But I’m not mad about it.”
“Yeah, you owe me.”
There’s no room for him to put a mat out beside me, so I keep stretching and waiting to see if he’ll come over. Sure enough, he stalks over after unrolling a mat near his friends, his thigh muscles flexing with every step he takes. By the time I finish ogling his legs and raise my eyes to his, he’s in front of me.
“Hi.” The barest hint of a smile plays around his lips, the cocky bastard.
“Hi.” Of course, I sound like a breathless toddler.
He full-on smirks, and it’s sexy as hell. “Come here often?”
I swat his stomach without thinking, and he grabs it. “That’s a terrible line.”
Still holding my hand, he retorts, “And yet, you’re still talking to me.”
“Might have something to do with the fact that you’re holding my hand.”
A thick eyebrow raises. “And here I thought it was because I fucked you so well.”
I nearly choke on my tongue as he drops my hand with a wink and returns to his mat. Beside me, Amanda laughs outright.
“Damn, that man does not play, does he?” she asks quietly, still grinning.
“No. No, he does not.” I fan my suddenly hot face.
All throughout class, I’m distinctly aware of the stares coming my way from damn near everyone. Amanda keeps snorting every time our eyes meet, and I have no doubt that literally everyone heard what Anthony said. Willa and Goldie, in particular, seem to keep looking over, but it’s not in a mean way at all, more like they’re curious.
After class, we find Anthony waiting outside. I grin lazily at him, too stretched out to care that the entire yoga class knows he fucked me.
Goldie and Willa come up and introduce themselves, and I smile back. “Hi.”
Reid gives us a nod and turns to Anthony. “Wanna walk with us?”
“Nah,” is Anthony’s response.
Willa grins at him before turning to me and Amanda. “Come by the diner sometime and let me know you’re out there. Meal’s on me.”
“That’s so sweet, thank you! I love your fries.”
She grins. “It’s the beef tallow, but I’m glad to hear it.” She turns and tugs on Reid’s arm. “Come on, Officer. Leave him alone.”
“But it’s so much fun ,” Reid whines, widening his eyes at Anthony as he’s led away.
Matty chuckles. “See you later, man.”
Amanda gives me a hug and steps away. “I gotta go, too. See you soon!”
I look at Anthony, his hazel eyes clear and amused as he gazes back. “You didn’t want to go for a walk with them?”
“No.”
“Do you ever go for walks with them?”
“No.”
“Are we in one-word answer territory again?”
His lips twitch. “No.”
I smile. “You’re the worst.”
“Come over.”
“I…can’t,” I say with a squirm. “I want to, believe me, but I have some work to do at the shop.”
“Hardware store?”
“No. My shop.” Why is my heart racing as I say it? I blame yoga.
His eyes soften, and his voice is gentle when he speaks. “Go, then.”
“You’re not mad?”
He cocks his head. “Why on earth would I be mad?”
“I don’t know.”
“Come here,” he says gruffly.
I’m not sure if it’s a request or demand. I’m also not sure I care, because I do it regardless, stepping into his space and tilting my head back to look at him. He’s so damn beautiful . Eyebrows that slash down as he stares at me, his hazel eyes flinty with what I now know isn’t anger, but something more like frustrated kindness. His beard, perfectly trimmed, framing surprisingly soft and kissable lips that have brought me to orgasm more times than I can count.
He palms my hips, the wide expanse of his hands feeling more like home than ever before. “You have a life, Darcy. One that doesn’t revolve around me. With passions that you should pursue without hesitation. I don’t know what kind of assholes ever made you feel like you weren’t able to stand on your own two feet without them, but I’m not that man.”
Man. God, yes he is. I blink at him, letting the words sink in. They’re a balm I didn’t even know I needed. “Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me,” he commands.
“I’m going to anyway.”
“Brat.”
I smile. “Maybe you can punish me later.”
His eyes darken, making my heart race even faster. “Count on it.”
He tips my chin up and leans down to kiss me, and I don’t hesitate. A moment later, he pulls away, a satisfied smirk on his face.
“You do that a lot more now, you know.”
Instantly, the smirk is replaced with a frown. “Do what?”
I hip-check him, then back away from him while grinning like a fool. “Smile.”
“I don’t smile,” he grumbles.
“Yeah, that’s a lie,” I shoot back, still backing away slowly. “Because the left side of your mouth will twitch just a bit, and that’s your version of an amused smile. But that smirk you just gave me? That’s your happy smile.”
His frown deepens. “Is not.” But I can see him fighting a bigger smile even as he says it.
“Sure thing, Mr. Hall,” I say, then twirl around to my car.
He doesn’t say a thing, but when I glance back for a quick peek, he’s still watching me, one hand scratching at his beard absent-mindedly.
If I didn’t know any better, I’d say he might actually like me.
I swat the thought away, unwilling to let myself get lost in the fantasy. Whatever we’re doing, it’s temporary. How else could it be anything but that?
Chill out, Darcy , I admonish myself. It’s not even been two weeks. I need to relax and let it just...be.
Even though that’s so far beyond my style it’s not even funny, and we all know it.
Back at my shop, I get back to the pool table. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen as far as pool tables go, but to be fair, I spent precious little time looking at my competition. I watched a shitload of YouTube videos, that’s for damn sure. But once I knew what I was doing, I was off and running.
Agatha appears an hour later, a glass of iced tea in her hand.
I take it with a grateful smile and put half of it away in one go. “Delicious. Thank you.”
She nods and looks at the table. “It’s beautiful. Who’s it for?”
“Anthony.” It’s hard not to mumble the name, which is stupid. But suddenly I feel like a little girl with the cool older teenage sister. Which might be weird but given what I’ve surmised from the few stories Agatha’s started to drop, I think she was pretty amazing back in the day.
And the way she’s appraising me right now tells me she has a good feeling about what’s going on. “Anthony Hall, huh?”
I squirm. “Yeah.”
She gives a decisive nod. “Good. I like him for you. Way better than Chad, if I’m being honest.”
I snort. “I was never going on a date with Chad, Agatha.”
She lifts a dainty shoulder. “I promised his grandmother I’d try.”
“But you—you like Anthony? For me?”
She studies me. “Girl, I have never seen you want someone’s approval. What’s going on?”
With a grimace, I admit, “It’s just...he’s older.”
“And?”
I stare at her. “He’s closer to my dad’s age than mine.”
She crosses her arms. “And?”
And, she’s right. “Damn, Agatha. You’re a real ball buster, you know that?”
Pointing at me, she says, “I learned from the best. Stop doing whatever you’re doing. I’ve never seen you second-guess yourself, and I sure don’t want to see you start now. Understood?”
I smile at the stern expression she wears. “Yes, ma’am.”