Chapter 27
Chapter Twenty-Seven
DANI
“Daddy!” Rylie squealed as she ran across the kitchen and leapt in the direction of her father.
Lucas caught her easily, swinging her into his arms and smoothing her dark hair away from her face before pressing a kiss to her forehead. “Hey, sweet pea. How was your afternoon?”
“Good!” Rylie proceeded to reel off a list of everything she had done with me this afternoon.
I had volunteered to let her hang out with me in the kitchen since Valentina had a deadline to meet with some accounting paperwork, while Jade had been tied up with some appointments and unable to babysit for the afternoon.
Lucas eased her down as Rylie continued chattering. “So, it sounds like you had fun,” he commented once she paused to take a breath.
Clinging to his hand, Rylie nodded. “Dani can babysit anytime,” she said with an earnest nod.
I dusted my hands on my apron before turning to wash them quickly in the sink across from the stainless-steel table where I’d been working with Rylie. “We had a great time together today. Rylie knows I’ll be backup anytime,” I offered with a wink as I turned back to face them.
“Thanks again,” he said as Rylie broke away to meander over to pick up her cup of water and take several gulps.
Right then, the back door to the staff kitchen opened again. Wade stepped through, bringing a gust of chilly air with him as he closed the door. My heart did a little dance before taking off at a wild gallop.
Wade opened his mouth to say something but looked away when Rylie squealed his name and went dashing across the kitchen again.
She spilled her water on the way over when she knocked her foot against the edge of the small stepladder.
It had been serving as a shelf for her cup and various baking items, including the green and red sprinkles we’d used to decorate a batch of holiday cookies.
“Wade!” she repeated when she skidded to a stop in front of him.
Wade dropped one of his big hands on her thin shoulder. “Well, hey there, Miss Rylie. Looks like you spilled your water. Do you need some help cleaning it up?”
When Rylie’s eyes widened, it was almost comical. “Oopsies. I made a mess. I can handle it,” she said as she looked back toward the stepladder and the small splatter of water beside it.
With a warm smile, Wade nodded down at her, nudging her between her shoulder blades. “Why don’t you go take care of it? I knew you could handle it yourself.”
It was a testament to just how freaking bad I had it for Wade that watching this little interaction made me want to hand my ovaries over to him on the spot.
While Rylie gathered up too many paper towels to wipe up her water, Lucas and Wade approached me where I stood by the baking prep table.
“Please tell us you have some snacks,” Wade said bluntly, the teasing glint in his eyes sending my belly into a tumbling routine, with a shivery feeling racing through my body.
“I always have snacks. With you boys usually coming by when you’re starving, it’s to my benefit to keep the complaints to a minimum,” I replied.
Turning, I walked over to the oven mounted on the wall, opening it and sliding out a large pepperoni pizza. Pizza was an easy favorite, and I could leave the oven on warm and have it here for anyone who happened to pass through.
“This one was only ready about twenty minutes ago,” I explained. “I’ve just been keeping it warm.”
Wade let out a groan and snagged a stool to pull it by the table. I left the pizza on a tray and fetched plates, napkins, and silverware. He took a slice and bit into it before leaning back and closing his eyes with a satisfied sigh.
“Geez, man,” Lucas murmured. “Don’t forget you have a six-year-old audience.”
Wade’s eyes snapped open. “I’m just enjoying food,” he mumbled in between bites.
Lucas chuckled. “Yeah, I know. Mind if I take some home?” he asked, his gaze cutting over to me.
“Of course not. I know you need to get home. It’s already dark, and I’m sure you need a little time to get Rylie ready for bed.”
“That I do. More than that, I need a shower,” Lucas said.
Both men had muddy boots and looked tired. One of Wade’s cheeks was decorated with a little dirt for good measure.
“I’ll get you a take-home box,” I said as I turned to do just that.
“Do I get a piece?” Rylie called as she ran back after putting her cup in the dishwasher rack and tossing the paper towels in the trash.
“I don’t know. How much did you eat this afternoon?” Lucas asked.
“She just had a snack of peanut butter and apple slices. I’ve been mostly working on bread and holiday cookies. Rylie was a big help,” I explained as I returned to the table with a pizza box.
“Dani said she didn’t want me to ruin dinner,” Rylie said with a pleased smile
Lucas grinned. “All right then. One slice of pepperoni for you. Do you happen to know what time Valentina will finish up?” he asked.
“I do. She texted me to tell you when you came for Rylie to head over to the clinic. She said she just finished up, so she doesn’t need to catch a ride with someone else later.”
Rylie clapped her hands together. “Yay!”
Within a few moments, Lucas had a pizza box in hand and Rylie trailing behind him as they waved good night.
“Dani!” Evie called as she poked her head through the swinging door into the restaurant kitchen.
“You need me?” I returned, experiencing a shaft of disappointment. I had wanted some time alone with Wade. Because, yeah, I was a little crazy about him. Against my better judgment.
“Just for a sec,” she replied quickly before swinging back into the front. The noise from the restaurant kitchen increased in volume and then muted as the door swung closed behind her.
Glancing to Wade, I said, “Be right back.”
He was already picking up another piece of pizza and taking a bite, but he nodded.
Hurrying to the front, I walked through the hustle and bustle of the kitchen, my eyes reflexively scanning the room.
Everything appeared to be running smoothly, like the well-oiled machine I strove for when I was training staff.
Stepping from that organized chaos into the front area of the restaurant, I glanced around, wondering where Evie had gone.
When I walked through the archway toward the reception desk, I saw the exact problem.
Grace was handling hostess duties tonight and had one of my least favorite customers at the desk.
John Burton was an asshole. A rich asshole.
He was also older and cranky, and liked to come in and complain.
I didn’t even bother finding out what the specific issue was before striding to the desk.
“Hi, John, what can I do for you?” I asked, just as he repeated my name to Grace.
“Dani,” he said, his bushy white eyebrows raised. “I know I made a reservation, but this young lady is telling me that you don’t take reservations this time of year. I am not interested in waiting.”
I smiled sweetly. “John, it’s impossible for you to make a reservation because it’s exactly as Grace explained. We’re so busy during the holiday season that we do not take reservations. I’m sure you’d like to have your dinner right away, but you’re going to have to wait.”
“Dani, I’m not gonna keep bringing my business here,” John said with a huff and a wag of his chubby finger in my face.
“I’m sorry to hear that, John. If that’s the case, I’m sure you’ll take your business somewhere else.”
This was John’s routine. Bully, pressure, and bully. I personally didn’t care one iota if he chose never to come to our restaurant again. We had more than enough polite customers.
He stared at me, and I knew this was the point where he expected me, or whoever was on the other end of his cranky attitude, to cave. I held his gaze, and my ground.
“Fine then,” he finally muttered. “We won’t be eating here tonight.” He marched out, his wife trailing behind him without so much as a glance in our direction. I couldn’t even imagine being married to him.
As soon as he was gone, I said to Grace, “Don’t ever worry about him. If you need me and I’m here, just come get me.”
Grace looked slightly frazzled and was already fielding a request from someone else, so I squeezed her shoulder. “You got this?”
“Of course. Thanks for coming to deal with John.”
I hurried to the back, relieved no one else intercepted me. When I pushed through the door into the staff kitchen, I came face to face with the recognition a tiny part of me had worried Wade would gobble up his pizza and leave. That shouldn’t have been a big deal, but it sure felt like one.
When I came through the door and the busy sounds muted behind me, the thud of my heartbeat echoed in my ears as I crossed the kitchen to where he sat on the stool beside the table.
Oblivious to my internal distress, he finished off a slice of pizza and flashed a crooked grin.
“That was fucking delicious,” he said bluntly.
His presence eased the anxiety spinning inside me, and I managed a breath.
“I aim to please,” I replied, unaccountably pleased with his comment.
I did love to cook, and I was quite proud of the success of the restaurant.
Yet, more than anything, it meant a lot to see that warm smile on his face.
As I stood there, maybe two feet away, I felt caught in the beam of his gaze.
That familiar fire that never died inside flared hot.
He reached out, catching my hand in his and giving me a little tug. In a flash, he had me right close. Caging me between his knees, he rested his hands on my hips. “You succeeded,” he said simply.
I bit my lip to keep from smiling like a loony girl. “Did we already say hello?” My voice came out breathy, and I thought maybe I sounded ridiculous.
“There’s two kinds of hello for you.” His smile unfurled slowly, sending my heart into another happy dance and heat sliding like lava through my veins.
I cocked my head to the side, genuinely curious. “What do you mean?”
“There’s a regular hello. Then, there’s the it’s-been-too-many-damn-days-since-I had-a-few-minutes-alone-with-you-and-I-missed-you hello.”
His dark eyes softened as he explained this. One hand shifted on my hip, the backs of his fingers brushing along the dip in my waist as he tugged me even closer before cupping my chin in his palm.
“Oh.” That was barely a word, more of a breath and almost a moan. This man, only this man, had the ability to set my pulse to racing and fiery electricity scattering like sparks through me.
I was trying to be reasonable, trying to do things in a measured, rational way. But that was the thing with Wade. Nothing was measured, nothing was rational. I was beginning to think that all the time I’d tried so valiantly to hold my feelings at bay had been nothing but irrational.
“You’ve had a busy schedule, and so have I. But I’m free tonight. Actually, just so it’s perfectly clear, for you, I’m free every night,” he murmured. I could actually feel the gruff edge to his voice skittering over the surface of my skin, goose bumps rising in its wake.
Our teasing conversation had gotten suddenly dead serious.
While my heart did cartwheels inside my chest, kicking my ribs with every turn, I stared into his ebullient gaze and tried to breathe, tried to quell the sense of panic welling inside.
I was beginning to come to terms with just how much Wade meant to me. And it absolutely terrified me.
Exacerbating my anxiety around it was the fact that I hated not being in control. But I’d had a little chat with myself and promised myself I wouldn’t be stubborn and get in my own way. I did try to listen to my mother, after all.
Swallowing, I asked, “Even when you’re on call?”
He nodded slowly. “Of course. I might have to go out, but there’d be nothing better than coming back to you, darlin’.”
Before I could think that through, he was kissing me.
The thing about kisses with Wade was he kissed in the absolute best possible way.
The moment his lips met mine, my ability to think went completely offline.
For me, that was a necessary thing. Thinking generally didn’t help me in moments like this.
As he pulled me closer and drew back a whisper, I took a shuddery breath and let it out. There were some things that felt completely right. Kissing Wade was at very top of that list.