by Haley Travis
He nodded, relieved. “Thanks, Katy. You obviously understand.”
I nodded, quickly trimming his hair and rounding out the shape across his back. “Hair grows slower for some people, I know how it is. I’ve heard some people swear that taking a multivitamin and biotin helps.” I shrugged. “If you really want to grow it faster, it might be worth a try?”
“Thanks – that’s a great idea.” He flashed me a huge grin as I finished, shaking out the cape around him.
“Hello, little one.”
I jumped a mile at the dark voice that appeared directly behind me. Spinning around, Dan was standing there in a tight black longsleeved t-shirt and black jeans that fit him so perfectly it was distracting.
“Hi,” I said, hearing my voice instantly get quieter. “I’m just finishing up.”
Dan nodded to Pete. “I see that my girl did another fabulous job.”
“Yeah. I think she’s going to become the go-to stylist for a couple of bands that I know.”
Dan’s jaw tightened almost imperceptibly, but I also saw the tension in his eyes. “That’s great,” he said curtly.
I went to the register and rang Pete through, giving him a card for the salon. “Please tell any of your friends to ask for Katy if they need a careful trim,” I grinned to him.
“Thanks so much,” he called out, giving Dan a nod as he left.
I cleaned up my station, grabbed my purse, and headed for the door with Dan quickly leaning to open it for me.
“Thank you,” I said quickly.
He took my arm and led us east. “How was your day?” he asked.
“Tasha seemed very impressed by my work. And it was pretty busy, thank goodness,” I said. “I don’t have my own clientele yet, so I have to depend on the walk-ins. Pete was my very first referral.”
“And you like those musician types?”
He couldn’t actually be jealous, could he? I laughed lightly. “I like any polite paying customer, but especially the ones who know precisely what they want.”
Looking up at him hopefully, he chuckled as he took my hand. “I’m sorry, Katy. I know it’s too soon to have feelings like this, but I just don’t like the thought of you caring for other men like that. You know, with your hands all over them, and your…” He glanced at my cleavage. “Body so close to him.”
Turning to Dan, I put a hand on his chest. “I need to tell you, I can’t handle the jealous thing. I really can’t. It was the first thing that began to tear apart my parent’s relationship when my mother began working closely with an all male team at her office.”
Dan moved me back a few steps on the sidewalk until I was leaning up against a building, his arms caging me as he brought his face closer to mine. “Go on,” he whispered.
“Um,” It was very hard to breathe with his lips so close. “I don’t know much about relationships, but you can’t expect me to never talk to other men. Especially when we haven’t even had a date yet.”
He paused. “You’re right. I’m sorry.”
My eyes grew wide. I could tell from the tone of his voice that he very rarely said those words to anyone.
He grinned, giving his head a shake. “I’ve never had this reaction to a girl before, Katy, and it’s making me a bit crazy. So please, I beg you, just bear with me for a bit while we figure this out, okay?”
I nodded, but his lips were already gliding against mine. His arms wrapped around me as he pulled his entire body tight, and I swear I felt flames licking up my thighs.
Only having kissed two other boys in my entire life, I certainly didn’t have much experience. But this was no boy. This was a huge man who obviously wanted me. Dan kissed me as if he had been studying the art of it for years. His fingers curled around the back of my neck, then ran all the way down my spine to gently squeeze my rear. A tiny moan escaped me, and he clutched me tighter against him. My lips parted as his hungry tongue entwined with mine.
I suddenly felt absolutely needy. I’d never been this aroused in my life, and the twitching desire flooding me required an outlet immediately.
But then he pulled away. His thumb ran down the side of my cheek as he stared at me intently. “Little one, as much as I would love to take you somewhere we can be alone immediately, I think we should make sure that you have dinner first.”
I nodded, nearly dizzy from that kiss.
“What kind of food do you like?” he asked.
At the mention of food, my stomach rumbled. He laughed. “I guess lunchtime was a long time ago?” He must have noticed that I turned away suddenly. “Katy, did you not have lunch?” I shook my head. “Did you have breakfast?”
“No, well, you mentioned dinner, and I’m not making a lot of money yet, so I thought maybe I could just eat once,” I admitted sheepishly.
His arm slid around me and he pulled me in for a little cuddle. Then he took my hand and turned us north. “Let’s get you fed immediately then,” he said.
Dan took me to a lovely bohemian café that had quite a wide variety of options, and amazing paintings all around. He slid in to sit beside me, instantly moving close. I decided on the special, and he ordered a simple steak and salad.
“I hope it’s okay if I steal one of your ravioli,” he grinned. “Unless it’s your favorite, of course.”
I smiled as he took my hand, holding it against my leg under the table. “I don’t know, I’ve never been here before. But someone once told me that it was almost always a good idea to try the special, since that’s the dish the chef is the most excited about today.”
His eyes widened, and he regarded me carefully. “So you like to try new things?”
I nodded. “When it’s something easy like food, or movies, or music, yes.”
“What about new experiences?”
I nodded, thinking. “That’s where I have a bit of trouble. I like to know what’s expected of me. So if I’m put on the spot, or don’t know how I’m supposed to behave, I get nervous.”
His thumb was running along my skin, making me melt. “Does it make a difference if you have someone with you?” he asked. “For example, if you had a rather large man beside you, his arm around you, would you be able to handle things more easily?”
I giggled, and wasn’t sure why. “I think so,” I said honestly. “Maybe. I mean, I’ve never tried it, but logically I could see that would help.”
His head tilted to the side. He was probably just thinking, unaware that the light was catching his cheekbone and jawline perfectly. This man was distractingly attractive.
“You’ve never had a man by your side?” he asked, his low voice suddenly quiet.
I shook my head.
“No boyfriends at all?” I shook my head again.
He gave my hand a squeeze. “I can see that you’re being honest with me, obviously, little one. But I just can’t believe you. How could you not have been hounded by men?”
I felt myself blushing but tried to stop it. “I’m from a small town where everybody knew everyone’s business. I wasn’t interested in anyone there. I don’t think any of those guys were interested in me, either.”
Dan shook his head. “Then they were blind, baby.”
He leaned in to nuzzle my throat, kissing in a slow line up to my ear, pushing my earring out of the way with his nose as I giggled. “Katy, you are the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen.”
I wanted to tell him that he was absolutely nuts, but there was something in his expression that I didn’t dare disagree with. Then he released my hand, slipping his hand under my skirt to rest on my knee. His fingertips trailed in tiny circles along my inner thigh, and my breath immediately became unsteady.
“You’re so sexy,” he murmured, patting my knee and returning his hand to the table.
Our food arrived, and it was sweet how he instantly wanted to share everything.
“So, Dan, what is it that you do?” I asked.
He took a sip of his water before answering. “Most of the time it’s pretty bor
ing corporate stuff, actually.”
“Then what do you do for fun? What are you really into?”
His eyes lit up. “A new division has been working on some education software that’s really promising. It’s not going to make very much money, but I actually don’t care. We want to create more of a sharing environment across school systems, so that books can be more readily available, while still paying the authors fairly.” He stopped suddenly. “But that’s probably not very interesting to you.”
“Of course it is.” I reached out to set my hand on his arm. “I want to hear about all of the little things. What’s the most interesting thing that happened at work today for you?”
“I thought about you all day long,” he said gently, picking up my hand and kissing the back of it slowly. “I pictured your gorgeous face, your sweet smile, and I wondered if there was any way I could talk you into taking me home with you tonight.”
I realized my mouth was hanging open for a split second and snapped it shut. “I sort of… Haven’t thought that far ahead yet,” I stammered.
“Something to think about then. So, what was the most interesting thing that happened to you at work today?”
I nodded, trying to focus. “It was pretty steady. The walk-ins all seemed happy with my work. I likely won’t see them again for six weeks, so it’s going to take some time to get my own appointments. But things are looking up, I hope.”
“That’s great,” he said brightly. “I have to say, Katy, I don’t know a thing about hairstyling, but the cut you gave me seemed very precise. It was exactly what I asked for.”
“Good,” I grinned. “It makes me incredibly happy when people walk out of the shop with the haircut they wanted.”
“You also made me very happy when you agreed to have dinner with me,” he chuckled. “But I hope you don’t do that with too many of your customers.”
“No, just every single one of the men,” I said saucily while shooting him a dramatic wink.
He leaned in for a kiss, surprising me. His arm slid around me, and I gasped as he pulled us together. The seductive way his lips moved against mine made me shiver, and I was pretty sure he felt it.
“I want you,” Dan said simply. “Take me home and show me your new apartment.”
“Okay.”
There’s nothing else I could possibly say. He was so confident, or cocky, or demanding – I wasn’t even sure. Yet I wanted him so badly I could feel my thighs rubbing together, my breath hitching in my chest. I didn’t know what he expected, but I had this overwhelming urge to give him every single thing he wanted. Even... things I wasn’t quite sure about yet. Maybe.
He paid our bill quickly, and I noticed that he left a rather extravagant tip. “Thank you very much for dinner,” I said.
Dan leaned in to kiss me gently. “I want to give you everything I can, precious.”
Something in the way he said that made my stomach flip. “Hey,” I suddenly thought to ask, “Have you been coming to my salon for a long time?”
An odd grin fluttered across his lips. “For about a year now.”
“Why? I mean, the barber side isn’t that well known.”
He shrugged. “I checked it out one day when I needed a new barber. Max made me laugh, so I came back.”
I nodded. “Yeah. There are days when he really cheers me up.”
“Good,” he said softly, nuzzling my neck again. “I don’t want you to ever be less than one hundred percent cheery.”
As soon as we were back out on the street, he wrapped an arm around me. “I was going to take you to an art gallery opening a few blocks away, but I’m sorry Katy…” his eyes blazed down at me. “I need to be alone with you.” I nodded, not caring that he saw how eager I was. “Where do you live?”
“It’s about a twenty-minute walk,” I said, starting to turn down the street. His arm shot out to hail a taxi, and we were at my place in moments.
“You live here?” he asked, as I led him down the uneven steps to the side door of a rundown house.
“Yeah.”
“This is better than an apartment building?”
I laughed, unlocking the door. “Maybe not better, but cheaper. Watch your head on the way down.”
Once we were in my space with the lights on, I kicked off my shoes and he followed suit. It was just one room, plus a tiny bathroom. The kitchen area was at one end, with a table and chairs in the middle, an easy chair for reading, and my bed on the far side. It was fairly small, but it was clean.
I reached down to hit two power bars. I’d brightened the place with a selection of antique-looking crazy mismatched lamps with multicolored light bulbs along one wall shelf and the floor beneath. There were also a few bright blankets as wall hangings.
Dan grinned at the lamps. Then he looked around as if analyzing the building. “Are there bars in those windows?”
“Yes, and they’re ugly. That’s why I have thick curtains.”
He came over to me, his huge arms immediately circling my shoulders. “I love your lamps,” he grinned.
“Thanks. I got most of them in junk stores, or on the large trash days.”
His eyes grew wide as he looked down at me. “Seriously?”
“Yeah. I brought them home, and if they worked, I just scrubbed them.”
His sharp gaze softened. “I love that you’re so independent, baby. And resourceful. I just worry if you’re safe.”
“Safe enough, I think.”
His big warm hands were wandering around my back, and it struck me that we were finally alone. I had no idea what to expect, and my heart began fluttering.
CHAPTER FOUR
* Dan *
There were so many things that I had mixed feelings about. I didn’t know if this was a good neighborhood. I didn’t know if she was making enough money to pay her rent if she could barely afford food. I didn’t know who lived upstairs from her, and if they were good people.
My gut instinct was to move her into my house immediately, but who was I to march in and disrupt her entire life? As much as I had already fallen for this amazing girl, I couldn’t yet reasonably guess her reactions.
Kissing her gently, I tried to sense if she was as excited and exhilarated as I was. I was pretty sure that she was feeling this connection as well.
“Katy,” I murmured against her lips, “I have no idea what it is about you that is driving me this crazy, but I want you. I want you to be my girl.”
She looked up at me in surprise, giving me an adorable smile. “Well, I’m nobody else’s girl right now.”
“I should warn you, sweet thing, I always get what I want,” I grinned.
Katy looked very thoughtful. “What is it?” I asked.
She shrugged, her nose crinkling while she made a face. “It’s funny how some people really do just get everything they want. Spoiled children, people with circumstances where they don’t need to work very hard. I’ve never really known anybody like that before.” She looked up at me with a grin. “Maybe if you’re one of the lucky ones, my luck will change.”
Everything she had said so far had led me to believe that her life had been a bit rough. That she’d had to work like hell for every single thing. The overwhelming urge to give her absolutely everything began with wanting to relax her completely.
Leading her over to her easy chair, I sat her down, then knelt at her feet. “What are you doing?” she asked with the cutest giggle.
Picking up her bare foot, I began running my thumbs along the sole. “You’ve been on these little feet all day. I don’t want you to be tired for work tomorrow.”
She melted into the chair, a soft moan escaping her lips as I massaged her foot carefully. By the time I switched to the other one, she was practically a puddle.
“Dan, you’re amazing,” she said softly. Then she leaned forward, wrapping her arms around my neck and kissing me deeply.
My always accurate gut reaction pointed out that this was the first time she really kissed
me, without my having made the first move. It also informed me that we were in her home, where she should feel relaxed. We were also only three feet from her bed.
“Katy, I have a tiny angel on one shoulder that says that I should kiss you for another few minutes, then leave. On the other shoulder, a little devil is telling me that I should strip you naked, lie you on the bed, and make love to you until you’re shaking.” Kissing her gently for another moment, I pulled back to ask, “Which one should I listen to?”
She stared at me, biting her bottom lip enticingly. “Oh. Um, is there maybe somewhere in between?”
I could feel that her shoulders were trembling. “I’m so sorry, baby, I didn’t mean to make you nervous.”
“I just… I haven’t… So I don’t know.” She looked so uncomfortable it nearly broke my heart.
I stood up, picking her up and setting her in my lap as I sat in the chair, resting her head against my shoulder. “Relax, baby. I don’t want to do anything you’re not ready for.”
“I want to,” she whispered, “I just you know, haven’t.”
Realizing what she was saying, I was struck with a wave of lust that could have knocked me over. “What if we snuggle, baby, and you let me play with this incredible body of yours? We don’t have to do absolutely everything.”
Her smile appeared like the sun coming out from behind the clouds as she nodded eagerly. I wondered if she was relieved that I didn’t expect sex, or that I didn’t make her say it out loud.
I had been with a few attractive women in my time, but never with a truly fascinating little jewel like Katy. She was unearthing feelings inside me that made me almost nervous for the first time in years.
She was such a good, sweet girl, the kind I’d wanted for my very own for as long as I could remember. I hated that I wasn’t ready to tell her the truth about my life, and my world, but I really didn’t think that she was ready to hear it.
Kissing her gently at first, I adored how she wrapped her hands into the back of my hair, pulling our bodies in line. A soft whisper of a moan floated through her throat as I began caressing her large, tender breasts.