Now that was where things got dangerous. She knew better. Dating was not in her short-term career goal. But what the hell, no? Charlie’s Deux was now out of the running. Maybe getting a drink and some food with the sexy giant would soothe her sadness.
“Alright, I give. But only because I’m starving, and you’ve managed to mess with my ability to say no.” She grabbed her keys and wallet from the drawer she’d shoved them in. It was probably not a smart idea to be going anywhere with He-Man, but she needed food. “We can go to a spot around the corner. It’s a hole-in-the-wall, but the steak is to die for.”
“I know the place. Casey’s Diner?”
She nodded and waited for him to leave the shop before she locked up. “Yeah. I guess word gets around how good their steak is.”
“Let me tell you, I eat a lot of steak, but Casey’s has to be one of my favorite places. She sends me my lunch daily.”
Really? Somehow the idea of him and the pretty blonde who owned Casey’s didn’t appeal to her. But Casey was nice. She was one of the few shifters Emi had come across for more than just a business transaction. Casey was always there when Emi went over for lunch or to grab something to take home for dinner. Living alone meant sometimes not being in the mood to cook, especially when she’d had a long-ass day with crazy flower orders.
The weather at night in Vegas could drop dramatically from the heat of the day. That evening it was warm enough that she didn’t need her sweater. Walking beside Zander felt nice, even if she really didn’t know him. But at this stage in her life, after thirty years trying to be the good girl who followed her life plan, she found that breaking one of her rules wasn’t making her feel too bad.
FOUR
Casey’s Diner’s neon “Open” sign blinked, welcoming them inside. He reached forward and opened the door for her, something she immediately took notice of. Men weren’t rude with her, but rarely did one take the time to actually hold a door open for her. And with a smile like the one he had on at the moment. His gaze locked on to hers.
They walked into a quiet Casey’s, which was unusual. It being a 24-hour diner meant there was always a crowd.
Tall, blonde Casey came out of the back with black shirt and a pair of slacks on, looking better than should be legal in the crazy weather they were having.
“Ooh! My two favorite customers.” She grinned, her bright blue eyes dancing with mirth. “Emi, I had no idea you knew Zander.”
She opened her mouth to speak, but stopped when he lifted her hand to his lips and grinned. “Some things aren’t for the world to know, Casey.”
Emi bit her lip to stop herself from drooling on the floor. Lord have mercy, this man was dangerous. She hadn’t noticed he had a dimple that showed when he gave a full-blown smile, like the one he threw her way.
“You two are so cute! Come on, I have the perfect, private booth in the corner for you. We just got rid of a huge group of people, so things are pretty quiet for the moment. Take advantage before the crazy comes back,” Casey said, as she guided them toward the right side of the restaurant and placed menus on the booth that was partially out of view from the adjoining tables.
“I don’t need a menu, Casey,” Emi said. “I’ll have my usual with some iced tea, please.”
“You got it,” Casey said, glancing at Zander. “What about you? The usual?”
He nodded, not once looking away from Emi. “Yes. Same as always.”
“That was easy,” Casey said, picking up the menus she’d just placed on the table. “I’ll send some iced water for you Zander,” she said and marched away.
“What’s your usual?” He asked.
“Petit filet with vegetables.” She smiled at the waiter placing her drink on the table and turned to face Zander. He was so close. So warm. She wanted to lean into him and rub her nose on his neck. “You?”
“Porterhouse with mash.”
“We like us some cow, huh?” She laughed. “Sorry, that sounded weird.”
“We do seem to like it. At least we enjoy it from one of the best places there is.” He drank from his water and stared deep into her eyes. For a second there, she wasn’t sure what to say, but she was happy staring right back at his. They had been going from bright gold to dull yellow to blue for a while.
“Do you work around here?” she asked, hoping he wasn’t some gambler looking to strike it rich.
“I do. At Striped,” he replied.
“Oh, so you’re, um, a shifter, huh?” From what she’d heard from Vanessa, Striped employed mainly shifters, because they understood the needs of their guests. It was what distinguished the hotel amongst the larger ones on the strip.
He nodded. “And you’re a human. A very, very lovely human with a scent that’s driving me crazy.”
She picked up her glass and took a sip. It was getting hot in there. “Are you always this good at giving compliments?”
He smiled wide again, showing that dimple she now wanted to lick. “I don’t give compliments. I tell the truth.” He leaned forward, his arm brushing over her bare one. “Your scent is such a seductive perfume. It’s driving my animal wild.”
Wow. She sniffed. “You smell really good yourself. What is that you’re wearing?”
“Nothing.”
Holy crap. Did he mean he was commando? The images that put in her head were some of the dirtiest she’d seen in a long time. She needed to go to confession, but wait, she never went to church, so she was in twice the trouble now. “I don’t mean if you have, um...something under your clothes. I mean what cologne are you wearing?”
“I’m not. Wearing cologne, that is.”
“Oh. Well, you still smell good.” Which was strangely true. She didn’t usually like a man to smell like nothing. But he did smell like something. He had the scent of a day in the forest and mud and rain all emanating from him. It reminded her of when she’d been a kid, and her parents took her camping in the woods. She’d loved it. She hadn’t had any brothers or sisters, so being an only child meant she was spoiled with her parents’ attention.
“Thank you. My father would probably try to bribe you down the wedding aisle if he heard you say that,” he joked.
“Why? Why would he want you getting married?” She asked and moved her tea out of the way for her plate of food to be placed in front of her.
“He’s got it in his head that all his kids need to be mated. Like we’re running out of time or something.” He laughed. “But I leave him alone. He’s gotten both my brothers mated, and I’m not going to allow him to interfere in my life.”
She nodded. That had to suck. Her parents had always been good about letting her make her own decisions. They’d supported her, and when they didn’t agree with something, they’d calmly given her advice without trying to sound dictatorial. They ate quickly and barely spoke a word until the food was finished. It was that good.
“What are you having for dessert,” he asked after they’d finished their food.
She laughed and shook her head. “How’d you know I’d want some?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know. Something tells me you’re a caramel lover.”
“I am. I’ll have the vanilla ice cream over the warm chocolate brownie, drizzled in caramel. All my favorites in one plate.”
“I have to say, that sounds great. I’m not usually into dessert, so I’ll enjoy watching you.”
When her dessert was brought out, she picked up a spoon and bit into the decadent brownie covered in caramel with gusto. She moaned at how smooth and silky it was in her mouth. His hand on her leg brought her back to reality. She glanced at him as she put the spoon down and swallowed.
“Do you want a taste?”
A naughty smile spread over his lips. “Don’t mind if I do.”
He cupped her neck and pulled her toward him. It took all of two seconds to realize he’d decided the taste she offered meant her. Instead of arguing over his inappropriate behavior—something she’d have done with anyone else—she met his
lips halfway and let him taste her.
He brushed his lips lightly over hers, sweeping his tongue and parting her lips to glide into her mouth. Her breath hitched, and heat seeped through her pores, warming her from the inside. She lifted her hands to grasp at his shirt. Good god, he was strong. Strong and muscled. A small whimper left her as she traced his arms with her fingers. He slid closer, his body all but pressing her into the cushion. Her mind shot straight down to the gutter. Instinct told her to get him naked.
Some part of her heart, one she hadn’t used in too long, called out that she was in over her head. Emotions surfaced: desire, lust, need, ache. Everything she kept at bay when dealing with men suddenly came free, and it urged her to give in to him. To let him take more. As much as he wanted.
The sound of someone clearing their throat jerked her out of her lust-induced coma. She took deep, choppy breaths and glanced at Casey. She stared at them with a grin a mile wide.
“Sorry to interrupt, but things are going to get crazy. We just got a call for a large party. If you want to get out before the insanity begins, now’s your chance.”
Emi nodded. What in the world was wrong with her? She knew what. She’d been working so hard to achieve her dream of opening up the club that she’d slowed down doing the fun things in life. Like dating. Kissing a hot man. Hell, even having good sex. Though to be fair, she’d never really had great sex. Decent sex? Yes. Great? Not outside her dreams.
She glanced at Zander and met his gaze.
“Ready to go?”
FIVE
To bed? Heck yeah! She nodded, worried if she opened her mouth she would say that in front of Casey.
“Let me take you home,” he offered, as they walked out of the restaurant. “I promise it’s just a ride. I’ll feel better knowing you got there okay. It’s late.”
She licked her lips and thought for a second. She didn’t know him from a can of paint, but her instinct was usually spot on when it came to men. He didn’t give her any weird vibes. Though she hadn’t dated shifters before, she knew enough to know he wouldn’t mess with her emotions. Apparently they hated to sense a person in pain. What did she have to lose? Nothing. Dammit, she hadn’t had sex in too long. She wanted someone to hug her, kiss her, and maybe fuck the living daylights out of her. Was that so wrong?
“Okay,” she replied. She wasn’t far from there, and most of the time she tried not to drive in or she’d find herself stuck in traffic. The traffic from the strip during busy months was not something she wanted to go up against.
He led her to the private parking behind Casey’s. “I’m guessing you were planning on coming here anyway?”
He laughed. The sound made her heart skip a beat. “Yeah. I was going to pick something up on my way home.”
“No going to Mom’s for dinner?” she joked. “Or are you too worried they’d have a line of single women waiting for you?”
He pressed the alarm on a super sexy, low-hung silver Bugatti. Even her panties sighed when she looked at it. “That is one gorgeous car.”
“Do you like it?” He opened the car door and held it for her to get inside.
“It’s sex on wheels,” she replied. “But I don’t know if it’s comfortable enough for you to do it with how big you are.”
He winked and leaned down to bring his face to hers. “Is that a challenge?”
Um, maybe. She glanced at his mouth and forgot what she was going to say. “If you say so.”
What? If he said what? She didn’t even remember the question. He pulled back and shut the door. Her fingers shook on her lap. She slid her hands on the buttery leather of her seat. It was soft and warm.
“I don’t know anything about cars, but this car is a lot more comfortable than I would have thought looking at it from the outside.”
He chuckled and asked for her address, inputting it into the GPS device. He started the engine, driving them into the nighttime traffic on the strip. “It was custom-made for me. I’m a big guy, so it needed to be more comfortable.”
The guy had money. For once, she was kind of glad about this. That meant she wouldn’t get calls in the middle of the month from him, asking to borrow a hundred bucks until his next paycheck. It had to take way more than a hundred to maintain that car’s gas alone. Buying her groceries for the month was probably cheaper.
“Tell me about you,” he said as he drove. “I already know you’re beautiful, but I want to know what you like to do when you’re not at work.”
She snorted a chuckle. “Who says I do anything? As is, I have a pile of laundry that needs doing, and I’ve stopped using the dishes, because I don’t want to wash them.” Wow, that didn’t sound sexy at all. “I bet that’s not what you wanted to hear, but as a person who works long hours, this is really what I do most of the time.”
“I want to hear anything you want to tell me about you. Why would your preferences be shocking? You’re a busy person. Work can make it more difficult for us to do anything, like laundry or cooking.”
She grinned. “You don’t do laundry either, do you?”
His laughter made her heart sigh. “No. I don’t have time either. But to be fair, laundry is overrated. If we were meant to do it, why would there be places to take it so they can do it for you.”
She nodded. “You are such a smart man. I have to agree with you there. Same thing with food. And cleaning.”
He lifted a brow, his smile showing off that dimple again. “Uh-oh. Is your place going to be ten pounds of dust?”
“No. I clean. Sometimes. Okay, I hire people to do it, but like I said, I’m busy.”
They were both laughing hard after that. She hadn’t ever felt this comfortable with a man before.
“So, television show. What do you like to see?”
“You’ll laugh at me,” she said.
“Come on, try me. Can’t be that bad.”
“Oh, yes it can. I find humor in the weirdest things.” She had been told by previous men that she needed her head examined. And not over her television preferences. They said it because she had no filter. “I like to record food shows. Then I think about all the places I want to go eat.”
“Nothing wrong with that. I like food shows, too.”
“There’s this one chef who always has the best food, and whenever I watch it I have to eat or I end up hungry.”
They passed an intersection, and a guy on a bike drove though their light. She gripped the side of the seat, waiting for the car to hit the guy, but Zander’s reflexes were amazing. He turned the vehicle at the last second, moving out of the guy’s way and then returning into the lane without missing a beat.
“Holy shit!” she screeched the words out, slapping a hand on her chest. “You’re amazing with this car.”
They were only a few blocks from her house, so he continued driving, and then brought the car to a full stop in front of her place. He turned to her with a worried frown. “Are you okay?”
She nodded, pushing down the nerves making her hands shake. “I’m fine. I should probably offer you something to drink after that. Wow. I’ve been in two car accidents, and this is the first time I ever felt like we were going to hit the person for sure.”
He got out of the car, came around, opened her door, offered a hand, and helped her out. “The past accidents were minor?”
She nodded. “Bumper to bumper stuff. And they were not my fault, so I barely had a chance to know what was going on. This time, I swear I saw you hitting that guy.”
“I’m a careful driver. I have a sharp eye, and my instinct is always on point when it comes to what’s going on around me.”
Well, hell. She wished she had some of that. The last time she’d gone to the casinos to spend an hour of fun with some friends, she’d ended up losing fifty bucks and decided it wasn’t her night. Ten seconds later, someone got on the machine she’d stopped playing and hit the jackpot. Sometimes it just wasn’t for you.
They headed into her house, and for a second she w
orried that she might have a mess inside, but she remembered she’d had the cleaning lady visit that morning. She glanced around to be sure and smiled when she all she saw was neatness.
“Come in,” she said. “Do you want some coffee?”
What she really wanted to do was suggest he take off his clothes and get comfortable, but that would probably not sound right just walking in. She so wanted to push him up against the wall and kiss him like she’d never seen a pair of lips that sexy before.
“Sure.” His voice was so close. She continued on her way to the kitchen and tried to stop her hormones from dancing the mambo. The hairs on her arms rose with her nerves. The cleaning lady had left fresh flowers and set up the coffee on automatic to brew. Emi loved that about her. Whenever the cleaning lady came over, she found a fresh pot of coffee, a clean house, and fresh flowers. It was the reason she paid for the service more than anything. She felt so relaxed coming home to a clean house.
“I thought you said you didn’t have time to clean,” he said from right behind her. She flipped around and bumped into him. She glanced up, her throat going instantly dry from how good he looked this close.
“I have a cleaning woman.” She licked her lips and stared in fascination at his eyes. “She, uh, came today.”
The lighthearted atmosphere changed to something dark and sexy in the blink of an eye. She walked backward until her back hit the kitchen counter. She raised her hands, pressing them to his chest and almost moaning at the warmth caressing her palms. “You’re hot.”
His lips tipped up in a sensual grin. “No, baby. You’re the hot one here.”
SIX
Before she got a chance to explain what she meant, his lips came down over hers, tasting everything she willingly wanted him to take. Lust engulfed her in a cloud of need. She gripped his shirt, yanking him closer and pressing herself into his body. The feel of his erection, rubbing her belly, let loose a desperation she wasn’t familiar with. She moaned loud. Raw. She hadn’t had sex in a while. The fire he started in her core warmed her to a fiery blaze.
Stripe-Club: BBW Paranormal Shape Shifter Romance (Furocious Lust Shorts Book 6) Page 2