One Funeral (No Weddings #2)(9)

The intensity sparking in his eyes startled me, stuttering my heart. I smiled up at him. “I am too. By the way, I scheduled my first therapy appointment for tomorrow afternoon. Hopefully some sessions there, plus our non-dating, will help us get to the actual dating.”

“I’d like that.” He gave me a gentle smile. “Could we clarify something?” His expression held a rare vulnerability.

In support, I tightened my hold on him. This was the kind of therapy we needed. To be real with each other when necessary, and to know the other one had your back. “Of course.”

“Let’s promise not to non-date anyone else.”

My lips twitched. “So we’re exclusively non-dating.”

A broad grin lit up his face. “Exactly.”

I pretended to think about it for five seconds, then gave a nod. “I’m down with that.”

“Good.” He leaned down, holding his hands firmly at my shoulder blades, the strength and maddening male scent of Cade surrounding me. He stared at my lips, like he wanted to kiss them, but raised his gaze to my eyes. His warm mocha-coffee breath fanned across my face. “Because I’ve never non-dated before, and I don’t like to share.”

Sudden heat rushing through me sent my head spinning. Unable to stop myself, I leaned up and ran my lips across his clean-shaven jawline. I pressed a soft open kiss there and flicked out my tongue. He groaned, then turned his face, dropping his forehead to mine.

I closed my mouth and savored his salty taste. “You’re so possessive, Cade. I’m beginning to like that.”

On a hard laugh, he pulled back. His eyes glittered with amusement. “Only beginning? You knew me and liked what you saw from day one. You’re only now beginning to admit it to yourself.” He stared down at my lips again.

I took a deep breath. “You know, just because we’re non-dating doesn’t mean we have to be non-kissing.”

The corner of his mouth kicked up as his gaze met mine. “I’m not sure I can handle much contact and still be able to restrain myself. Our first kiss was…”

“Mind-blowing? Body-trembling? Panty-melting?”

“I melted your panties?”

“Well, my thong. I’m fairly certain it burst into flames.”

He sucked in a deep breath that made me think he had pictured the territory that thong covered.

“We are in a semipublic place. One little kiss couldn’t hurt anything.”

He shook his head. “I’m not kissing you until I get the sense that you’re ready for more. Because I’m ready. Very ready. Like zero-to-sixty ready. Not sure there are any gears in between.”

Part of me wanted to tempt him, to tease and take him there to see how much control he had. But the bigger part of me wanted whatever was developing between us to have a chance. And after our semi-disastrous first date, restraint seemed the wiser course.

I gave him a slow nod. “Okay. But that doesn’t mean we can’t be thinking about it.”

“Oh, I’ll be thinking about it. And your melting panties.” His gaze dropped down to my lips in clear hunger.

At that moment, Chloe walked in on us from the back. We broke away from the hold, trying to look nonchalant.

Chloe gave us a hard look. “Don’t try to pretend like nothing’s going on. You two look guilty as shit.”

I shook my head. “We were…”

He backed up. “I had…”

I pointed at him. “He had an eyelash in his eye.”

“And she was helping to get it out.”

Chloe narrowed her eyes, her gaze flicking to Cade. “Uh-huh. With her tongue on your face?”

Okay. So Chloe had been spying. I straightened my crooked apron. “We’re non-dating.”

Chloe paused as she slid a row of cupcakes from the long transfer board into the display case. “Run that by me again? You’re not dating.”

I glanced at Cade, but he’d abandoned me. He’d already taken up residence in the corner of the couch again and began typing away at his assignment. Even though he wasn’t looking at me, he saw me, the twitch of lips telling me he was dying inside, trying not to laugh. I glared his way in silent contempt.

“No, we are non-dating. Together. It’s apparently a thing.”

She snorted. “Bullshit. There is no such thing.”

“Well there is now.” I shooed her into the back, amazed to be defending the excuse Cade had devised to spend more time with me. When I thought about it from his perspective, it was brilliant, actually.

Chloe shook her head as she went to the far side of the kitchen. She loaded another section of cupcakes onto the board. “You two give f*cked-up a whole new meaning.”

“Tell me about it.” I grinned, somehow proud of our unique f*cked-up-ness.





The therapist’s waiting room seemed harmless enough. There was a collection of toys scattered in a corner. A handful of women’s magazines were fanned out on a table. Potted plants filled two corners, and along the wall, upholstered chairs that had seen better days were lined up in a row with adjoining wooden arms.

As I stared at the unbroken line of empty chairs, a children’s game chimed into my brain: Red Rover, Red Rover, can Hannah come over?

Snorting, I shook my head. I stood in an empty room, playing games with inanimate objects. The shrink would have a field day with my randomness, which was my way of coping. I took a deep breath. Nothing in the room threatened me. The jumbled mess inside of me was a different story.