by Linda Verji
By the time they were ready to head into shore, the sun was setting. Snow changed back into her street-clothes but the moment she came up on deck, she discovered that her dress was a little too light for the cool evening breeze.
“Here.” Greyson came up behind her to drop a thick sports jacket over her shoulders.
“Thank you.” Smiling, she turned her head only to find him tantalizingly close to her, close enough to kiss. Her breath immediately caught in her throat.
Almost as if he had the same thought as her, he lightly touched his lips to hers before helping her put on the jacket. Immediately, she was suffused with warmth and his clean, masculine scent. As if she wasn’t already drunk on him, he surrounded her waist with his arms and pressed his chest to her back. Snow sucked in a deep breath as a nervous flurry started in her belly and her hands automatically settled on his arms.
His lips moved close to her ear until she felt the caress of his breath as he murmured, “So was it a pass or a fail?”
She was so lost in the solid feel of him that all she could mumble was, “Hmm?”
“Was the date a pass or a fail?”
She smiled and rubbed her palms over his arms. “Definitely a pass.”
“Good.” The smile in his voice was obvious as he tightened his hold on her. That sudden movement had the effect of bringing their lower bodies closer and soon his groin was cradling her ass. Snow couldn’t suppress a small gasp at the wild heat and hardness of his body and the immediate need it sent pulsing through her. Desire prickled at her nerves, lanced through her body and pooled low in her belly. Without conscious thought, she pushed her ass back harder into his groin.
She could tell that she wasn’t the only one turned on. Greyson’s shorts and her dress were thin enough that she could feel the burning shape of his length growing against her lower back. He didn’t try to hide his erection from her and she didn’t try to pull away from him. All he did was murmur, “You okay?”
He met her shy nod with a rumbling chuckle then pressed his lips to her temple. If they were alone on the boat, maybe they would’ve gone further. But Andy was around, so Snow had to make do with the physical pleasure of being intimately held in Greyson’s arms the whole sail back to shore.
By the time they arrived at the harbor, darkness settled in. With a thank you and goodbye to Andy, Greyson and Snow set off for home. She was jumpy and nervous all through the drive. Her body was still strumming with the aftereffects of being in his arms for so long, and several questions kept swimming in her head. It was obvious that Greyson wanted her. Did that mean that he expected the date to end with more than a kiss? Did she want the date to end with more than a kiss?
Hell, yes. Her answer was automatic.
But was it right to end the date with more than a kiss? Oh, who cares!
As soon as he brought his car to a stop in front of her building, she unbuckled her seatbelt, leaned forward to close the space between them and kissed him. It was a slow yet demanding kiss, a pull on his lower lip that whispered her need. Greyson needed no further urging; he unbuckled his own seatbelt then took full control of the kiss.
He cupped her face and tilted her chin so he could slant his lips firmly over hers. She responded willingly, eagerly. Her tongue slid and engaged with his, fencing aggressively within the confines of their tightly sealed together mouths. The kiss was long and stimulating and with each moment it turned more ravenous, more frantic, more fierce.
Snow slid trembling fingers behind his taut neck as she tried to get a deeper taste of him. That taste was sweet, oh so sweet, but instead of slaking her lust it made her desperate for more. It took everything in Snow not to cross the space between them and straddle him where he sat.
It was Greyson who finally ended their kiss. He ripped his mouth away from hers with a low grown, and his lust-ridden eyes raked over her face. After the successful date, that sweltering kiss and the sexual tension still throbbing between them, his next move should’ve been obvious. She expected him to ask to come into her apartment so they could continue this in a more private space. Instead he rasped, “We… we need to stop this. If we don’t, we might end up regretting it.”
What? What the hell was he talking about? Who’d regret what? Before she could convince him that there was no reason to stop, he opened his door and stepped out of the car. In wide-eyed shock, she watched him circle the car to open her door. Was he really ending their night here? He couldn’t be serious - not after he’d teased her with his erection then kissed her like that? No way!
But apparently Greyson was serious. As soon as she clambered out of the car, he lowered his head for a brief touch of their lips before whispering, “Goodnight, Snow.”
What is this? Shock and disbelief held her silent as she watched him get back into his car and peel off. Had her signals not been clear enough? Or was he playing with her? She stood outside her building for a couple more minutes after her left to see if he was coming back. But Mr. Greyson Teller never came back. He was really gone.
I’m sorry, what the hell just happened?
CHAPTER 11
Come morning, Snow still wasn’t sure what had happened last night and was too embarrassed to confront Greyson about it. Seriously, how was she supposed to start that conversation? Greyson, why didn’t you sleep with me yesterday? The thought of asking that question and revealing how much she wanted him was enough to make her blush.
Usually it was the woman who wanted to delay getting intimate – and usually two dates was way too early to be going there. But theirs wasn’t a usual situation – there was just too much sexual tension between them. Or was it all in her mind? Greyson was certainly acting like it was. On the drive to work, he acted like nothing had happened yesterday, like he hadn’t turned her on then left her hanging like a lonely sheet in the wind. And in the kitchen, he was his usual get-to-work self.
Damn, this man had her confused, nervous and horny.
Snow was still mulling over her Greyson-dilemma when she and her friends left the restaurant during the lull between lunch and dinner service and went to their favorite hang-out park. As soon as they settled on one of the benches, April confronted her. “So, Snow, what were you doing yesterday that you couldn’t come to the flee-market with me?”
“I told you. I was busy,” Snow retorted as she watched three kids tossing a Frisbee disk to each other.
“Busy doing what?” April persisted.
“My own stuff.”
“What kind of stuff?”
“Busy stuff.”
“Why don’t you want to tell us what you were doing?” Vina jumped in. Her eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Or is it something illegal?”
Snow laughed. “You have an over-active imagination.”
“Then tell us what you were doing yesterday,” April prodded. “I know it isn’t sleeping cause you sounded wide awake when I called you. And I know you weren’t at your parents’ place because I called Yvonne too.”
Snow had every intention of sticking to her don’t-talk policy and she even lasted for several minutes. But her friends were determined to pluck the truth out of her, and eventually she confessed, “I was out on a date.”
“On a what?” Both her friends gaped at her.
“On a date,” she repeated.
“With who?” Vina asked.
“Charlie?” April asked.
“Nooo.” Real horror flashed in Vina’s eyes. “Please tell me Charming didn’t worm his way back into the castle.”
“No, it wasn’t Charlie,” Snow reassured.
“Phew!” Vina heaved a sigh of relief. “Jesus lives.”
April’s expression was more guarded as she asked, “Then who did you go on date with?”
Snow was about to say that that was none of their business but before she could, Vina asked, “Greyson?”
Snow didn’t say a word, but apparently the look in her eyes was answer enough. Vina grinned. “Yesss.”
April stared at Snow in
wide-eyed shock. “You went out on a date with Greyson? Really?”
Snow nodded, sending Vina into fresh celebration. If they were alone in the park, the woman would’ve probably broken into song and dance. April’s response was more muted – just a chuckle. Whether the chuckle was in response to Snow’s announcement or to Vina’s celebratory antics was up for debate.
“Ooh! She went on a date with Greyson.” Vina nudged Snow’s shoulder with her own. “Girl! Good for you.”
“Thanks. I guess.”
Snow expected April to launch into a diatribe about how this would affect Snow’s ‘relationship’ with Charlie. Instead all she asked, “So how did the date go?”
Her response was surprising enough that even Vina noticed it. “Wait? You want to know how the date went? I thought you were on Team Charming?”
“He brought that woman to Tellers,” April returned simply. Apparently, even she had a tipping point. Before her friend could question her change in attitude further, she said, “Besides, Greyson is an okay guy if you’re trying to move on. He’s stable, responsible and dependable.”
“Wow! The one time we’re on one team and somehow you manage to make the guy sound as boring as a washing machine.” Vina shot April a disgusted look before turning to Snow. “Maybe you should try dating someone else. I hear Roman’s available.”
That was enough to earn a sharp look from April that sent both Vina and Snow giggling like naughty school-girls. Ignoring their laughter, April asked, “So how did the first date with Greyson go?”
Snow bit her lip before confessing, “Actually, it wasn’t our first date.”
“What?”
At her friends haranguing, Snow ended up confessing all the dirty details of her ‘sins’. Including the heated kisses and the way Greyson had left her hanging. Vina was just as outraged as Snow was at Greyson’s unwillingness to put out, April on the other hand was more understanding. “Maybe, he’s trying to take things slow so your relationship doesn’t burn out too quickly.”
“You need to stop watching soap operas,” Vina quickly retorted. “Men never think about taking things slow. If anything, they’re always the ones trying to get us to drop our panties faster. I bet this is some weird, freaky type of foreplay. He’s trying to get you so hot that you’ll do anything he wants when he finally gets you into bed.”
“What do you mean anything he wants?” Snow questioned.
“Mr. Grey-type crap.” Vina waggled her eyebrows and amusement lit up her slanted eyes. “Twenty dollars says that on your first night together he’ll whip out handcuffs, a paddle and a butt plug.”
“Eeew!” Both Snow and April made face. “You’re disgusting.”
Their reaction only made Vina tease further. “Snow, how do you feel about spanking? I hope you’ve got tough skin – if you know what I mean.”
“Stop, stop, stop!”
Of course, Snow didn’t take Vina seriously. But her words did bring up an interesting question; what exactly was Greyson playing at?
* * * * *
GREYSON WASN’T PLAYING at anything. He just didn’t think that he and Snow were ready to move into the next stage of their relationship. Everyone knew that having sex was the best way to introduce complicated emotions into a relationship. Having those emotions between two people was knotty enough, add in a third person and bad things were bound to happen.
He wanted to make sure that it was just him and Snow when they finally introduced sex into their relationship. Right now it felt like Charlie was still between them, like he was the ghost haunting their relationship. But Greyson was a patient man. He could wait until she exorcised the man completely from her life.
As soon as Snow and her friends emerged from their trip down to the park, Greyson noted the funny looks Vina and April kept giving him. April was subtle about it, but Vina kept giving him sly smiles like she’d just uncovered a secret – a secret about him. It left him feeling unsettled and more than a little curious.
When Snow went into the pantry to get flour for Ed, Greyson made sure none of the other chefs were watching him before sneaking into the pantry after her. He found her measuring out the flour into a bowl and crept up behind her. When he tapped her on the shoulder, she inhaled sharply then quickly turned around.
On seeing that it was him, relief crossed her features. “You scared me.”
“Sorry,” he apologized. Folding his arms over his chest, he asked, “Hey, is something up with your friends?”
“Something like what?” She spun to face him fully.
He took a guess. “Do they know about us?”
The instant guilt that flashed across Snow’s features said that his guess was spot on. She offered him a sheepish smile. “I’m sorry, I know you didn’t want anyone here knowing about us…” Her words trailed into silence as she waited for his response.
On the inside, he was smiling. Now that her friends knew about them it felt less like he was sneaking dates with someone else’s woman. However, he didn’t want to scare Snow with how eager he was to make their relationship official so he kept his features impassive and just watched her.
“Are you angry?” Anxiety glittered in her eyes.
Just to tease her, he scowled.
“I’m sorry.” She took a step closer to him and latched onto his chef-coat. Playing with its large buttons, she mumbled, “I didn’t mean to tell them but they kept pushing and pushing.”
He stared at her bent head before heaving a faux-sigh. “It’s okay.”
“Really?” She raised her face to meet his eyes.
“Really.” He nodded, then because he couldn’t resist that small pout of her mouth he lowered his head towards her. Their lips were tantalizingly close, just about to meet when they heard a sudden shuffle outside the pantry. They quickly jumped apart – just in time too because Oscar chose that moment to stroll into the room.
“Hey, Princess, Ed is asking for his-” Oscar’s words and steps came to a halt when he saw that Greyson was in there too. “Chef?”
“Yes.” Greyson arranged his expression into a mask of impassivity. “Something the matter?”
“No, I was just-” Oscar’s gaze swung between Snow and Greyson once, twice, then turned suspicious. “Did I interrupt something?”
“No. Of course not,” Snow rushed to allay Oscar’s suspicions. “He’s just getting a… a… some pepper. Um… Ed is waiting for me… for his flour.” She grabbed the half-full bowl from the table then scrambled out of the pantry before Oscar could ask anything more.
In Greyson’s opinion, Oscar was just fishing for gossip - as was his habit. The man probably thought that Greyson was berating Snow for some mistake in the kitchen, but Snow’s stammering and rushed exit were enough to make anyone get suspicious. No wonder her friends had caught on to their relationship so easily. Greyson shook his head and laughed as he strolled past the still curious Oscar.
Since it was a Tuesday, the restaurant wasn’t fully booked, and the staff didn’t have to rush around too much. In fact, it was slow enough for Greyson to break for a chat with Roman who was at his usual table. But what his cousin had to say was enough to dampen his mood.
Roman’s serious expression belied his usually carefree demeanor as he said, “Your mom is flying in on Thursday.”
Greyson’s chest constricted painfully at the news, but all he said was, “I see.”
His cousin studied him for a long quiet moment before adding, “My mom wants me to go pick her up at the airport. Do you want to come with me?”
Greyson didn’t understand why his cousin bothered asking. They both knew the answer to that question. So Greyson returned with a question of his own. “How long is she staying this time?”
“I’m not sure,” his cousin said. “You could ask her if you came to visit.”
They both knew there was no way that was happening. Greyson had to wonder why Roman even bothered. Maybe it was because he had a good relationship with his mother and therefore expected
that everyone wanted the same thing. Well, Greyson didn’t. Lana Teller was hardly mother material, and Greyson didn’t have the stomach to pretend to be filial after everything she’d put him through. He preferred their relationship exactly as it was – no seeing each other, no communication. Like strangers!
Unfortunately, the news about his mother was enough to ruin his mood. Even driving home with Snow wasn’t enough to yank him out of his irritation. He would’ve preferred that the trip home be silent but Snow had a lot on her mind.
Anxiety creased her features. “Do you think Oscar knows?”
“No,” Greyson responded shortly.
“You’re probably right.” She sat back in her seat, but a moment later straightened again. “But did you see the way he was looking at us? Like he was suspicious or something.”
“Oscar always looks like he’s suspicious of someone,” Greyson said.
“Yeah, that’s true.” Snow sat back again but barely a second later, she erupted, “What if he saw you about to kiss me? What if he’s told everyone at the restaurant?”
If it was any other day Greyson would’ve been more patient. But he was already on edge and her nervousness and constant questions only grated on his already raw nerves. He snapped, “So what if he saw us kissing? So what if he’s told everyone at the restaurant? What’s the big deal? We’re both adults living in a free country and there’s nothing weird or wrong with us dating.”
It was only after he completed his speech that he realized how sharp he must have sounded. But the damage had already been done. Snow stared at him in surprise before meekly murmuring, “Okay.”
The car descended into an awkward silence.
Greyson stared at the road for quite a while before sighing. “Sorry.”
“It’s okay,” she said but he could feel her watching him. Her gaze burned into the side of his face for quite a while before she finally spoke. “Is something wrong?”
He wanted to tell her about his mother’s arrival, wanted to tell her how irritated he was that Lana hadn’t even sent him a message to let him know that she was in town. Sure, he would’ve ignored the text but for crying out loud she was his mother. Even as these thoughts circled his mind, he realized that he was being unreasonable, and he was afraid that Snow would think the same thing so he simply sighed. “Nothing’s wrong.”