Chapter 9
I pull into the parking lot and smile when I see Teddy’s truck already parked in the corner.
He offered to pick me up, but it’s only our second date, and my family is…
a lot, so I opted to meet him. I wasn’t expecting him to choose Mimi’s for our next date, but if the smorgasbord of a picnic he planned didn’t convince me he’s a keeper, choosing my favorite mom-and-pop Italian shop has me sold.
He told me to come straight inside, and after the picnic extravaganza, there’s no telling what he has planned.
I wouldn’t have been surprised if the entire place was decorated, but at first glance, everything looks normal, aside from the lack of customers.
It’s technically after hours, but some of the staff stay a few hours later to get set up for the next day.
“Ah, Ellie! Are you Mr. Teddy’s mystery woman?” the owner’s son says, smiling at me from behind the register.
“Oh hi, Fredo! It would seem so! You wouldn’t happen to know where he is, would you?”
“Kitchen!” He gestures to the doors I’ve actually been through plenty of times, taste testing for Mimi herself.
I grin and make my way around the counter, stopping to give Alfredo a kiss on the cheek as I pass.
“Oh Ellie, try not to let him burn the place down!”
I walk into the kitchen, and the image of the man waiting for me silences my laughter.
Teddy is dressed in khaki trousers cut perfectly to his leather shoes.
His white button-up shirt is mostly covered by the apron he’s wearing, but I can tell it’s been tailored to his measurements.
He’s broad but lean, and there’s no way a shirt off the rack would hug him like this.
He’s delicious, and I’m glad I decided to go dressier rather than casual again, this time with a looser black knee-length wrap dress.
It’s not quite as special as the dress, but the V-cut makes my breasts look amazing, and the wrap-tie cut accentuates my hips.
Nonna approved, which is really the only test that matters.
“What is this?”
He looks up, giving that lazy grin that makes me melt, and rakes his hand through his hair.
My attention catches on the way his forearm flexes, and I follow his muscular arm up to his elbow, where his rolled sleeves are pushed.
Even under the fabric, I can make out the cut of his biceps, and having felt those arms wrapped around me before has me weak in the knees.
His glasses are nowhere to be found, and I briefly mourn their absence.
“You, um, said you liked to cook. I would’ve brought you back to my condo, but I, uh, didn’t want you to think I was just doing that to get in your pants.
Not that I wouldn’t want to get in your pants.
I mean, I would very much love to, uh…” He momentarily closes his eyes, then looks up at me, flashing me those dimples.
“Sorry. Let me start over. You look radiant tonight. Some…coworkers of mine know the owner and helped me set this up. You said you liked to cook, but if you don’t want to, we can go somewhere else. ”
In a blink, I’m across the room and flinging myself into his arms. “This is perfect. Thank you for setting this up. What are we making?” His blue eyes sparkle under the bright industrial lights as he smiles down at me.
As thoughtful as it is that he chose a public kitchen, I secretly wish we had the privacy of his.
He’s correct about one thing, though. We wouldn’t end up cooking at all.
Nestled against his chest, all I want to do is lie back on the counter and let him take me to heaven.
“Alfredo set me up with everything we need for gnocchi and cannoli.”
Ugh, he doesn’t even know that he chose two of my favorite dishes here. “I love gnocchi! When I was a little girl, it was all I ever wanted to eat. My papa used to tell me I was going to turn into a little potato if I didn’t add variety to my diet.”
“Well, let’s get to it, then!” Teddy grabs a smaller apron and loops it over my head, then ties the strings around my waist. He’s testing my ability not to climb him like a tree in the middle of Mimi’s kitchen, where food will be prepared tomorrow for people of all ages.
Wholesome people who just want to bring home a nice meal to their wholesome family. Okay, reign it in, Ellie.
Teddy grabs the recipe card from the table, but I pluck it from his hands. “I’ve got this. Trust me.”
“Lead the way, captain.”
The next hour is spent in laughter as I attempt to teach Teddy how to cook. Cannoli first, then on to the gnocchi. He’s terrible, but his effort and determination are so endearing. Everything I learn about him makes me fall for him harder.
My heart doesn’t seem to realize that we’ve only known each other for a couple of weeks.
She hangs on his every word, his every action, and begs me to give in to the madness.
Her pleas are relentless for me to surrender myself to him entirely, so that she might finally know if this life she beats for is worth living after all.
Teddy pours the cream over our gnocchi and turns from the skillet.
There’s a hunger in his gaze, and I know as he looks me up and down that it’s not for the dish we’ve been preparing.
Like a predator who’s just spotted his prey, he stalks to where I’m sitting on a clean portion of the counter and stands over me, boxing me in his arms.
“Ellie…” he purrs, staring so deep into my eyes that I swear he must be able to see my soul.
He opens his mouth, and I wait for him to finish his statement, but he brings his lips to mine instead.
The fire in his kiss burns as our bodies melt into each other.
I’m so lost in this man that I don’t realize he’s joined me on the counter and pulled me onto his lap to straddle him until his erection rubs against my clit, sending a spike of pleasure straight to my core.
I squeal involuntarily, causing him to finally break our connection. He refuses my attempts to reclaim our kiss, and the smirk on his face tells me that he might know exactly what effect he’s had on me.
“Uh-uh. Why did you squeak? I won’t give you what you want unless you tell me, baby.”
The endearment makes my eyes flutter. “Youbrushedmyclit,” I whisper, barely audible over the sounds of our breathing.
“What was that? I didn’t quite hear you.”
Holy shit, the way he’s looking at me and talking to me has me practically drooling. I’m not sure where my sweet and shy Teddy went, but I’m certainly not complaining.
This time, I’m loud and clear, driven by frustration and need. “You brushed my clit! You brushed my clit, and you’re so huge and hot and nice, and it’s been a long time since anything that I wasn’t controlling touched it, and I squeaked!”
“Is that where I brushed you, Ellie? Right. There?”
A strained whimper is my only response, and he thrusts up against me.
“Come on, sweet girl. I can’t give you what you need unless you tell me. Do you want to get off on my thigh, or do you want me to touch you?”
My eyes snap open, and Teddy must see when I look to the right, where the door is. I forgot we’re technically in a public kitchen.
“Thigh it is, then.” He pulls my legs around his waist and keeps me firmly in his lap. There’s no hiding his erection, throbbing down his right pants leg. I can tell even through the fabric that he’s no small man.
He captures my lips again, tugging at my lower lip until it’s tender, then demanding entry with his tongue.
I open for him immediately so he can at least be inside me in some way.
His hands trail across every inch of me that he can reach, around my shoulders, down my back, and to my thighs, where he pulls my dress up.
“Teddy, I don’t—”
“I won’t touch you, baby. I just want you to have enough friction for this next part, that’s all. Not that I wouldn’t mind a look. Did you wear anything underneath that you thought I might see?”
Sensing his desperation, I regain enough brainpower to smirk, just a bit. “You can look for yourself and find out.”
As I lean back, hands on my knees, he finally pulls my skirt up and around my waist. “Fuck, Ellie. Did you come here tonight with the intention of murdering me?”
“Murdering you would be counterproductive to the increasing number of plans I have for you,” I rasp, reveling in his approving gaze. I love matching lingerie sets, and the sheer thong with little black roses felt perfect for tonight, even if I didn’t necessarily expect him to see it.
He lets my dress fall back down around our hips but keeps one hand on my thigh, squeezing and letting me know who’s in control. With his other, he wraps my braid around his fist and gently pulls until I’m leaning back again on my knees.
“Who did you buy those tiny panties for, baby?”
My hips start to find a rhythm as I grind against his cock. “Just for me. I like to match, and I like to feel sexy. Even if nobody else sees them.”
Squeezing my thigh, he pulls me closer by my braid and stops my lies with another hot kiss, trailing down my neck, stopping to bite the junction of my shoulder. As I pick up my pace, he moves both hands to my hips to help me.
“They’re for my eyes, now, aren’t they, sweetheart?
You’re gonna get yourself off right here in this kitchen just by grinding your little clit on my cock, and I’m going to think about these tiny fucking panties for the rest of my life.
You have to come, Ellie, or I’m not gonna be able to keep myself out of you.
We’ll go to jail for public indecency. They’ll shut down Mimi’s for being a sex den.
I know you have one in you waiting to explode, baby. Let me see it. Please.”
His plea, and one last, hard upward thrust are all it takes for me to shudder and let out a low, intoxicating moan as I find release. Pulling me into a tight hug, he crushes me to his chest and waits for our breaths to slow. I lean back to face him, and I’m sure he can see the mischief in my eyes.
“That was amazing,” I breathe, leaning in for a soft peck of his lips. “Do you think you could get me off again?”
He stares at me for a solid ten seconds, and I think maybe his brain has short-circuited before flipping us over again and swallowing my echoing laugh. “Do I think I can get you off again? Baby, you must not know who you’re talking to. I—ah!”
I can see flames erupting from the corner of my eye just before he practically jumps off me in his haste to stop the fire.
Except I’m not sure he knows how to put one out, and I didn’t exactly tell him where the fire extinguisher was before we started cooking.
He’s running around frantically when I grab the lid to the pan.
“Calm down, babe. It’s just a little pan fire,” I say as I calmly place a lid over the open flames, effectively putting them out. “Although I think we are going to have to get creative with our main dish tonight since the gnocchi is ruin–”
Teddy pulls me into his arms and crashes his lips to mine, cutting off my tale of disappointment. His kiss is searing. Just like the man himself, it’s soft on the surface, but there’s a promise of darkness lingering inside. The deeper I dig, the less concerned I am about being burned.