Chapter 5
5
ROM
I was dying to have Layla on the back of my bike, but I didn’t know if she’d ever ridden one before, so it seemed like a better idea to let her drive to dinner.
The school was tight on security, so I couldn’t walk her to class to retrieve her things, but I waited at the door for her. Partly so I could walk her to her car, and the other part was making sure she didn’t change her mind and run off on me.
When she emerged back into the sunlight, she smiled sweetly, and I kept pace with her until she stopped at the driver’s door to her MINI Cooper.
She looked up at me, squinting from the brightness, and licked her lips, forcing me to hold back a groan. “It’s a little early for dinner. Do you want to meet up later at a restaurant?”
I shook my head and plucked her keys from her hand to open her door for her. “The more time I get to spend with you, the better,” I told her. Then with a wink, I added, “Besides, I’m not going to give you any time to change your mind.”
Layla giggled, and the musical sound made me smile. She really was incredible. Although, it seemed like I might need to do a little work to convince her to agree with me. I didn’t like how that other teacher had implied that Layla wasn’t good enough for me. If I were the type of guy to hit a woman, I’d have knocked her on her ass. Layla was fucking gorgeous, even in casual clothes and—I grinned at her footwear—adorable, unique sneakers.
“How about I let you pick the place?” I offered. I wasn’t familiar with the area, so anywhere I chose would have been a shot in the dark. I didn’t want to start off our first date with shitty food.
Layla smiled brightly. “Okay. There’s a little place two blocks from here that has amazing pizza and calzones. It’s the yummiest thing you’ll ever eat.”
I doubt it. I pressed my lips together so that I wouldn’t blurt out the thought. I was willing to bet my hog that her pussy would be the most delicious thing I’d ever eat. But I was trying to take things slow and give her time to get used to me instead of tossing her over my shoulder like a Neanderthal and carrying her off to my cave.
“I’ll follow you.”
I helped her into her seat and crouched down to pull the belt across so that my hand lightly brushed against one of her big tits. She sucked in a breath and shivered. I held back a smirk, satisfied that I affected her so strongly. It was only fair since anytime she had come to my mind over the past week, I’d been walking crooked until I could find a distraction.
She led me to a little hole-in-the-wall joint, and I parked my bike in the space next to her little car. Then I climbed off and opened her door before she got to it. With another sweet smile, she put her soft hand in my much rougher one, and I helped her stand. After she locked the car, I threaded our fingers together, and we entered the restaurant side by side.
The hostess was a young girl—probably in high school—scrolling through her phone with a bored expression as she blew a bubble of pink gum before popping it.
“Two,” I said. My voice startled her, and she jumped, nearly dropping her phone.
“Um, sure,” she muttered as she shoved the cell in her pocket and grabbed two menus. “Follow…um…” She finally looked at us, and when her gaze landed on me, she licked her lips before saying, “Hi,” in a breathless tone that sounded like a little kid whining rather than the seductive voice I was pretty sure she’d been going for.
Her eyes swept over my body, and I mentally sighed. I curled my arm around Layla and tucked her into my side, placing a soft kiss on the top of her head. Layla had been a little stiff, but then she melted into me. I glanced down to see her glaring daggers at the girl and smirked.
“My woman and I are hungry, think you could show us to a table, little girl, or do you want to ogle her man some more and risk her wrath?”
Layla straightened her spine and scowled even deeper. Good girl .
The hostess blinked and took a step back, then spun on her heel. “Right this way.”
She took us to a booth by the big, front widow, and I helped Layla slide onto the bench seat before following her in. When she looked up at me in surprise, my gaze dropped to her lips, and I wasn’t hungry for food anymore.
I bent my head and lightly touched my mouth to hers, then palmed the sides of her face when she let out a tiny little moan. The slap of plastic on the table broke the spell, and I whipped my head around to scowl at the retreating back of the obnoxious brat.
While I would have much preferred to get back to our kiss, Layla’s stomach chose that moment to rumble. I laughed and picked up the two faded menus encased in clear plastic with a bright red edge. After handing her one, I scanned the options, then tossed it away. “What do you usually get here?” I asked softly, bending my head so my lips were at her ear.
I grinned when her breath caught for a second, then she cleared her throat. “Um, I like the pineapple and ham pizza.”
Clearly, my attempt to hide my disgust failed because she threw her head back and laughed. I couldn’t help but smile in return. “Fruit doesn’t belong anywhere near a pizza,” I grumped.
Her eyes sparkled, causing warmth to flow through my body. “How about sausage and green pepper then?”
“Sounds perfect.”
A server had stopped by with glasses of water while we were deciding on our meal, and I took a sip as I put my arm over Layla’s shoulders and relaxed on the bench seat. She glanced up at me with a shy smile, and after setting my drink on the table, I leaned in to kiss her, but we were interrupted by a gravelly voice asking, “Are you ready to order?” Layla jerked back and her cheeks heated, making me chuckle before turning to face our server.
Flo—according to her name tag— couldn’t have been a day under seventy-five, with tight gray curls on her head, deep wrinkles on her face, and bright red lipstick. Though her voice had been low and rough—probably from years of smoking—she wore a pleasant expression. She looked like she’d just walked out of a diner scene in an old movie.
I ordered our pizza and some breadsticks, along with a soda for Layla and a beer for me. Flo smiled and nodded, then walked back toward the kitchen with a spring in her step that belied her age.
Layla giggled, and the sound set all of my nerve endings on alert. I was acutely aware of her lush body cuddled up to my much harder one. “I feel like we almost got caught making out by my grandmother.”
“Almost,” I agreed with a wink. Then I captured her lips in a lazy, exploring kiss. One of my hands slipped into her hair to cradle the back of her skull, and I licked along the seam of her mouth. When she opened, my tongue slid inside and curled with hers, eliciting a tiny moan from her throat.
I wanted to pull her onto my lap, to cup her delicious ass and grind my engorged cock. But a small part of me was still sane enough to remember we were in public. Still, I didn’t pull away until we heard the clearing of a throat. I released Layla’s lips with a soft chuckle. “Busted,” I whispered.
Layla’s face was tomato red, but she fell into a fit of giggles, making me grin as I turned to look at Flo.
“Sorry. Got carried away.”
Flo tsked, but her eyes danced merrily as she placed our glasses and basket of bread in front of us. “Keep it PG, lovebirds. This is a family establishment.”
“Yes, ma’am,” I replied with a contrite smile, making her laugh.
A young guy stood beside her with a tray, and he set it on the table. The aroma was mouthwatering, and I realized I’d been so focused on Layla that I’d forgotten to eat. The only thing I’d been hungry for was her.
But now, with the food in front of us, I was starving.
“Enjoy. And let me know if you need anything else.” Flo bustled off and we dug into the delicious fare.
While we ate, we made small talk, getting to know each other better. The more she told me, the more I was convinced that she was the one for me. Sweet, funny, and fucking gorgeous.
“Just the one brother?”
Layla nodded, and her eyes turned wistful. “I always wished I had more siblings.” She ducked her head, but not before I saw the color staining her cheeks. “Maybe that’s why I teach kindergarten…and why I want a big family.”
My mouth curled up into a gentle smile, and I put a finger under her chin to lift her head. “Nothin’ to be embarrassed about, baby. You just need the right man to keep you knocked up until you have as many kids as you want.” I winked, and she giggled, blushing even harder. Fucking adorable.
“What about you?” Her question came out so quietly that I almost couldn’t hear it.
“I haven’t always wanted a family,” I admitted honestly. “I haven’t even been interested in a woman for a very long time.” Looking her straight in the eyes, I finished, "But the right person can change all that.”
Layla blinked up at me, her emotions playing across her face, confusion, hope, doubt… There still seemed to be a part of her that didn’t believe I could be serious about her. I mentally shrugged. She’d know for sure soon enough.
After we’d eaten every bite, I paid the check—throwing Layla a dark scowl when she insisted that we split the bill—then held her hand as we exited the restaurant.
“I’ll follow you home,” I told her as we walked up to her car.
“Oh, that’s not?—”
I dropped my head to capture her lips in another deep but quick kiss, then growled, “I’m following you home, Layla. I’m going to make sure you are safe and sound so I can get a little sleep rather than stay up worrying all night.”
“Oh,” she breathed. “Okay…I wouldn’t want you to lose sleep over me.”
Too late.
I’d spent a lot of the last week plagued by dreams of her, and while I would rest a little easier knowing she was safe at home and I was in a nearby hotel, I had a feeling that I’d be tossing and turning from the blue balls that were already paining me.
It turned out that I was right. By the time morning arrived, I knew slow was no longer an option.