Chapter 14
Michael
I let myself spend two more nights with Grace, then made myself go home. I didn’t want to overstay my welcome and I doubted Grace would kick me out even if she was sick of me.
After that first night there had been no more confessions, or even much conversation. The next night, Grace made us flatbreads for dinner then we watched the Monday night football game. On Tuesday I brought us food home from the pub, and we laughed our way through a crime thriller so bad it was unintentionally funny.
It had been different, but not in a bad way. It had made me think about what it would be like if instead of sitting on the floor – which was better than the couch – while Grace curled up in the chair, we were sitting together...on a new, comfortable couch, my arm around her, tangled together while we cheered on our team or groaned at the cheesy lines in a terrible movie.
It had been hard to keep my hands off Grace. Seeing her in her own space, in comfortable shorts or sweats and a t-shirt, her hair piled up with a clip and her feet bare or in fuzzy socks, she was damn near irresistible.
Her confession that she’d used me to keep Travis at bay didn’t make it any easier. In fact, it made me laugh that she’d thought I’d be mad about it.
If only she knew it had made me want to kiss her senseless for admitting that she thought of me that way.
You didn’t talk about a man like he was your boyfriend – imaginary or not – if you couldn’t and didn’t think of him that way, at least at some level.
I’d played it off, but Grace’s confession had lit me up. It had given me hope and something to build on.
I just needed to figure out how to go about it without moving too fast.
As it worked out, I had a lot of time to think about it. Business was great at the pub and with several big events hosted in the event space in addition to the crowds in the main dining room we were all hands on deck in the kitchen most days. If it continued, we planned to hire an additional cook, maybe two, but for now it meant one long shift after another.
Great for the pub and my bank account, not so great for spending time with Grace.
She and I still texted almost every day but after nearly two weeks I was anxious for in-person time with her. Finally, I got a break – a chance to leave early when the Monday evening crowd eased up a couple of hours before closing.
I checked my watch as I walked out to my car. It was eight o’clock, not late. I pulled my phone from my pocket and called Grace. It was last minute, but I was going to take the chance that she’d let me spend some time with her.
She picked up on the first ring.
“Hi, Michael.” I could hear her smile in her voice. “Are you on your break?”
“I’m actually getting in my car. We got a little bit of a breather tonight and Jamey cut me loose. Any chance I could come hang out with you for an hour or two?”
There was a tiny pause, then... “Of course. I’m not doing anything special. I just made popcorn and I was going to turn the game on if you’re interested in that.”
“That sounds perfect.” I’d watch paint dry with Grace at this point – that’s how much I wanted to see her. “I’m going home to shower quick, then I’ll be over.”
“You can shower here if you want. If you have your gym bag in your car.”
Heat shot through me at her soft words.
Down, boy. She offered to let you use her shower, not shower with her.
“I do. You’re sure you don’t mind?”
“Not at all. It’s not like you haven’t showered here before.”
I tried to remember which clothes I had in my gym bag. Was it the ratty cut off sweats and t-shirt or the decent ones? Whichever it was, I knew they were clean. That was all that mattered. Grace wouldn’t care and it would give me more time with her.
“I’ll see you in a few then. I’m looking forward to it.”
With her sweet “me, too” in my ears, I started my car and headed toward the one place I wanted to be.
––––––––
T HREE HOURS LATER, I pushed myself up off the floor at Grace’s. The game was over, the popcorn she’d made was long gone, and it was time for me to go.
I’d asked for an hour or two and she’d given me more. I needed to get going before I overstayed my welcome.
I turned and offered Grace a hand to pull her to her feet. When I’d arrived earlier, I was greeted by something new - two huge pillows sitting on the floor in front of the couch. When I’d looked at Grace she’d shrugged.
“This way we can both be comfortable,” she said simply.
So, we’d sat on the surprisingly cushiony pillows – Grace within easy reach of me – resting back against the couch, the bowl of popcorn between us, and my mind on anything but the game being played on the TV in front of me.
Namely, anything to do with Grace. Her light scent. The way she ate her popcorn one single kernel at a time. Her soft scoff of frustration when the team she was rooting for made a bad play or did something dumb. And the way her arms shot in the air and a beaming smile lit up her face when they scored a touchdown.
For fun, I’d chosen to root for the other team, and I’d groaned as they fell further and further behind in the score.
“Regretting your choices in life?” she’d smiled over at me, looking mischievous and relaxed.
“Some more than others,” I’d responded, fighting a grin of my own.
I had some regrets, yeah. Like choosing the losing team. And sitting so close but so far from Grace for the past three hours.
And not kissing her those times in the past when it seemed maybe I’d had the chance.
I thought of those times now as she let me pull her up and I followed her to the kitchen, carrying our drink glasses as she carried the popcorn bowl. She washed them out as I took the big pillows up to loft and stacked them in a corner as Grace had asked.
I jogged back down the stairs to find Grace kneeling on the kitchen counter, straining to place the glass popcorn bowl on the highest shelf of a cabinet. I picked my pace and hurried to stand behind her just as she eased the bowl onto the shelf with her fingertips.
“Maybe we...”
As the words left my mouth, Grace squeaked, surprised. She started to whirl in my direction, but overbalanced, falling to one side.
Without thinking I grabbed her, scooping her up and setting her down on her butt on the counter so she was sitting securely.
Sitting with my hands on her waist, hers gripping my forearms, and her legs on either side of my hips.
Our eyes locked and whatever either of us had been about to say died away.
For a few seconds we were suspended, frozen together in time and space.
Then I moved. I slipped a hand around the side of her neck, tipped her chin up with my thumb, lowered my head, and kissed her.
Her lips were soft, warm, her skin like silk under my hand. I kept the kiss light, almost sweet, not wanting to spook her. I brushed my lips across hers, pressed a kiss to the corner of her mouth, then covered hers with mine fully again, wanting desperately to run my tongue along the seam of her lips and demand entry, but holding back.
I drew back a little, leaned back in for another press of my lips against hers, then straightened.
Grace looked up at me, eyes wide and soft, and my heart thumped hard in my chest.
“Should I apologize?” She’d kissed me back, had held onto me, but still, I’d taken her by surprise.
She shook her head. “No.” Her voice was just above a whisper. “No, don’t apologize.”
“Good. I’ve been wanting to do that for a long time.”
She dropped her eyes to my chest, then back up to meet mine again. “Maybe we can do it again sometime. Soon.”
I tightened my hand on her waist, loving the feel of her as my face split into a huge grin at her words, holding nothing back from her.
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.” She nodded slowly, her lips curving slightly in a little smile of her own.
“I’d like that.”
“I would, too.”
“I’ll hold you to that,” I told her as I forced myself to take a step back from her, my body and mind screaming in protest.
What I wanted to do was to hold her to me , to unleash everything I wanted to do to and with her.
She wasn’t ready for that. I needed to take this one step at a time. No matter how sweet and warm and sexy she looked sitting there, her lips pink and pouty from my mouth on hers, she wasn’t ready for everything I wanted from her.
I was playing the long game, and she was worth the wait.
I lifted her off the counter, snagged her hand, and held it as I walked us to the door. I turned to face her and lifted her hand to my lips, pressing a kiss to her knuckles as she looked up at me.
She was so much smaller than I was, yet she held so much power over me.
“Thanks for letting me come over.” My voice was rough, husky with everything I was feeling.
“Thanks for wanting to.”
That sweet smile would be the death of me one day.
I let myself have another small taste of her, dipping my head again while she tipped her own face up to mine this time. Heat surged through me as our lips pressed together – once, twice, a third time – then I made myself stop.
Any more and I’d have her pressed against the wall with my tongue down her throat and my growing erection pushing into her soft belly.
I brushed her hair from her face as I stepped back and cracked open the door. “Have sweet dreams for me, okay?”
“You do the same.”
Using the last of my willpower, I walked out, shutting the door behind me. I waited until I heard Grace flip the locks, then jogged down the steps and out to my truck, hoping one of these nights soon I wouldn’t have to make myself leave.