Chapter 4 #2
“What’s weird?” Storm asked when she didn’t elaborate.
“Having someone be concerned. I mean, I’ve been on my own for so long, coped with whatever life has thrown my way by myself, that it’s just a bit odd to have someone else be interested in my well-being.”
“I’m interested,” Storm reassured her. “I know we’re still getting to know each other, but I wouldn’t have asked you out if I didn’t want to see where things between us can go. And I can’t get to know you if you drop dead in the middle of the workday, can I?”
He loved it when Jane laughed. “True.”
How he’d missed “seeing” her for so long was beyond him. Now that he had, he couldn’t seem to take his eyes, or his thoughts, from her.
“Come on, if we sit out here much longer, someone will wonder what we’re doing,” she said.
“We could give them something to wonder about,” Storm suggested before he could stop himself.
It took a second for her to react, but then she laughed again. “I don’t kiss on the first date,” she told him with a wink. “But maybe tomorrow.”
With every word out of her mouth, Storm liked her more and more. He figured she was also warning him not to expect anything after their date tonight, which was smart of her, and fine with him. He was enjoying their courtship…even if it had only been a day.
“I like you, Jane Hamilton,” he blurted.
She blushed and said quietly, “I like you too, Storm North.”
Then they both got out of his car and walked side by side into the building to get to work.
Work had sucked.
But it wasn’t the first time, and it wouldn’t be the last.
Jane was busy from the second she’d walked into the room they’d been given to use for the day until the second she’d walked out at five in the afternoon. Normally she’d work late, trying to get caught up, but her head hurt…and she had a date to get ready for.
Storm had texted her a few hours ago to make sure they were still on, and she didn’t have the heart to tell him no.
Besides, she wanted to go to dinner with him.
Wanted to get to know him better. The more time she spent with him, the more time she wanted to spend.
He could definitely break her heart, way more than Jake had.
But nothing ventured, nothing gained. And this was Storm.
The man she’d lusted after for what felt like forever. She wasn’t going to say no.
The mail room should be ready for them to go back to tomorrow.
NCIS had concluded their investigation today, and it had been cleaned from top to bottom to clear out the lingering stench of the CS gas.
Jane was more than ready to get back to normal, even if they’d be on high alert for quite a while, watching to see if there were any more bombs delivered to the base.
But for now, Jane was looking forward to her date.
It had been way too long since she’d been on one, and as she stood in front of her closet, she wondered what the hell she should wear.
She didn’t want to look like she was trying too hard, but then again, she didn’t want to look like she didn’t care either.
In the end, she decided on her favorite pair of jeans and a long-sleeve black V-neck top with her shoulders showing.
It made her feel sexy and confident and not over or underdressed.
She had no idea where Storm was taking her for dinner, but she figured she couldn’t go wrong with what she had on no matter where they ended up.
Storm had offered to pick her up, and even though she felt bad he’d been driving her all over the place recently, she’d agreed.
She wasn’t surprised when he knocked on her door five minutes early. She was always early, no matter where she went, and liked that he seemed to be the same.
“Hi,” she said as she opened her door. “I’m ready, I just need to grab my purse.”
“You look beautiful,” Storm said as he eyed her from head to toe.
Jane knew she was blushing but didn’t care.
“You do too. I mean, look handsome, that is.” And he did.
He also had on a pair of jeans, which clung to his muscular thighs.
She was used to seeing him in his uniform, and there was just something extremely sexy about seeing him “dressed down” in denim.
He was wearing a light blue polo shirt that seemed to make his hazel eyes look even brighter.
He took a step toward her and put his hand on her waist and leaned in. He briefly kissed her on the cheek before pulling back.
“You smell good,” she blurted, then wrinkled her nose.
But he simply smiled. “Thanks. I worked out with one of my teams this afternoon and didn’t think you’d want to be anywhere near me with the way I smelled, so I had to shower before I came over.”
“I appreciate it,” she teased. “I mean, some girls might like the au natural smell, but I’m not one of them.”
“So noted,” he said. “And you smell good yourself.”
“Thanks. It’s my lotion.”
They stood in the entryway to her apartment staring at each other for a long moment before she said, “I should get my purse so we can go.”
Only then did Storm take a step back. As Jane fetched her purse, she couldn’t help but think about how thrilling their chemistry was.
It also seemed as if, once he’d decided to pursue her, he was one hundred percent in.
He was intense and focused, and it felt good to be on the receiving end of his attention.
And somehow she had a feeling the crush she’d had on him for so long was nothing compared to how much she could come to care for him. If she felt this pull toward him after only a day, she had no idea how powerful the feeling would become if they continued to date.
Shaking her head and deciding to just enjoy the moment, Jane grabbed her purse and headed back to where she’d left Storm.
Like a gentleman, he hadn’t come farther into her apartment and was still waiting at her door.
It was warm enough outside that she didn’t need a jacket or sweater since she wore a long-sleeve shirt, and so they both exited her place and she locked the door behind them.
Storm took hold of her hand as he led her to the elevator, and she couldn’t help but feel all tingly inside at the contact. When they were inside his car and on their way, she broke the comfortable silence to ask, “So, where are you taking me tonight?”
For the first time, Storm looked nervous. “About that…I thought about what you said this morning, about being tired and having to work double time to keep up with the mail, and I figured you might be okay with something low-key tonight.”
“That sounds great,” she said honestly.
“You have any issue with the media?” he asked. “I didn’t see anyone outside your apartment.”
“No issues. Media relations gave a briefing today and my name was mentioned as being the one who got the face full of tear gas. There were a few reporters hanging around when I got home, and I gave them a brief statement, and that was that. I think they’re more interested in the rear admiral, since he was the target of the bomb.
I feel bad for him, but I’m glad for me,” Jane said with a smile.
“Dag will handle the press. Don’t worry about him. I’m glad you won’t be harassed.”
“Me too,” she told him.”
It didn’t dawn on her that Storm hadn’t told her where they were going for dinner until they turned into a parking lot of a series of upscale townhouses not too far from the base.
He pulled into a parking space, shut off his car, then turned to her.
“I might be overstepping, but I thought I’d cook for you tonight.
You can relax and not worry about anyone interrupting us while we eat. ”
“Does that happen a lot?” Jane asked curiously.
“What?”
“Being interrupted while you’re on a date?”
“Well, I haven’t been on a date in a very long time, but yeah, it’s been known to happen a time or two. I just wanted you to be able to completely relax tonight. It’s been a tough couple of days for you. But if it makes you uncomfortable, we can definitely go out somewhere.”
Jane was shaking her head. “No, it’s fine. But I have one question before I agree.”
“Of course. You can ask me anything,” Storm said.
“Can you cook?”
He grinned. “Yeah, Jane, I can cook.”
“Good. Because I suck at it. I’d love to spend the evening with you at your place. But, I was serious earlier…I don’t kiss on a first date.”
“You’re safe with me,” Storm said seriously. “I’d never push you into doing anything you don’t want to do.”
“Thanks. I might be old, but I’m still safety conscious,” she told him.
“You aren’t old, and I have no problem with you wanting to be safe. Is there anyone you want to tell where you are tonight? Just in case?”
Jane appreciated him bringing it up. “I’ve already told my daughter that I’d be on a date tonight.
She knows your name, rank, and where you work.
I’ll text her in a bit and give her your address.
She might not care, but at least I’ve told someone, so if I end up chopped into tiny pieces and sprinkled around the city in various trash cans, someone will know who I was last with.
” She smiled, letting him know she was teasing… sort of.
Instead of being offended, Storm smiled even bigger. “Good. Come on, I’ve got some meal prep to do. I didn’t want to start before I picked you up in case you wanted to go out somewhere instead.”
Jane didn’t give him a chance to come to her side of the car and open her door, but he was waiting for her when she got out, and he took her hand in his once more.
It was crazy how quickly she was getting used to that.
To him holding her hand as they walked. He kept half a step ahead of her, as if protecting her against anything that might come at them.
He led her to a unit on the end of the row and didn’t drop her hand as he unlocked his door. He pushed it open and tugged her inside. He dropped his keys into a bowl sitting on a small table in the foyer and turned to her. “When you get tired, let me know, and I’ll take you home.”
“Thanks.”