Bidding Wars (Love Strikes)(11)

“There is nothing wrong with chicken fingers and chicken nuggets. I could eat them daily.” She smiled.

“How come you’re not married?”

The question took her by surprise. “I’m picky.” There was no way she was going to share her story with him right now.

“I guess I’m lucky I made the cut then.”

“Just because you got to bat this inning doesn’t mean you’ll be here for a second.”

Luke took a drink of his soda. “I plan to play this right and hopefully not strike out.”

There it was again. A flip of some sort in her chest. What the heck? Why was her body reacting this way to him? “I guess we will see. I have a pretty hectic work schedule.”

“You have to eat at some point, and I’d like to think I make a pretty good dinner companion.”

“As long as you’re not like my cat, who likes to paw my food, then we might get along.”

“You have a cat?”

“Yes, Tigger. I guess she hid when you came over. Tigger isn’t fond of people, except me.”

“I love cats.”

That was good. Steven hadn’t like Tigger, but he put up with her. Tigger was like her child, and her ex hated it. At one point Steven demanded that the cat not sleep in bed with them anymore. She thought he was silly. But he’d been adamant about it, and poor Tigger was put in the living room all alone. But now she slept each night on the pillow above her head. She liked to think the cat was watching over her, making sure no one else could hurt her.

“Do you have any pets?” She smoothed out the top of her scrubs.

“I’d like to. My current landlord doesn’t allow them. Hopefully when I find a house I can get one. I’d like to get a dog.”

It was awkward whenever anything revolving around a house was mentioned. She didn’t want to bring it up, but how could she not? Why had he really walked away? It didn’t make sense. Unless, as he said before, the stress wasn’t worth it.

The waitress returned with their salads, and Molly was grateful. She was at a loss of words. Other than the darn house, she had nothing in common with him. Maybe Luke was wrong. At this rate, there wouldn’t be any more innings. She could see this date either going really well or really badly.



* * *





The date wasn’t going as smoothly as Luke had hoped. Molly still wasn’t opening up, but she would talk about other things, such as movies she hated and books she loved. He had a better understanding now of things that she liked but still didn’t have a solid feel for her.

She’d smiled and laughed a lot. All in all, she seemed to be having a good time. She had a very snarky sense of humor. Always quick with a comeback. She was one of those women he knew could flirt. Everyone could flirt, but she was a natural. He could see cooking with her would be fun. It would be messy, and they’d laugh the entire time. A simple ten-minute-prep meal would turn into a thirty-minute prep. But they’d love every moment of it.

He knew he was getting ahead of himself, but she was different. On top of the desire he had for her, he wanted to know her. He hoped this wasn’t their last time together. That somehow he could convince her to see him again. She was someone he had to be delicate with. He was lucky even to be on this date with her.

The waitress returned with his card. He added the tip and signed his name. He took one last drink of his soda, and Molly returned to the table after taking a restroom break.

“I still can’t believe you brought me here.” She settled back into her seat.

“Why?”

“Everyone’s in business suits and dressed to their best. And I look like Barney.”

“I think you look beautiful.”

She rolled her eyes. “It still doesn’t mean that I’m not way underdressed to be here. Besides, you’re dressed for this place.” She looked over him in his navy pants and white, tucked-in shirt. He hoped she liked what she saw.

“I wanted to impress you.”

“You’re not helping my case on looking like a slob.”

“I guess you’re right.” He stood up and offered his hand again. She took it. The feel of her small, soft hand in his was magical. He couldn’t explain how right it felt when they connected.

As he walked with her through the restaurant, he could see the insecurity in her face, and it hurt him. He pulled her closer, and she tuned to look at him before glancing away quickly. She pulled away from him as soon as they were outside in the bright sunlight.

“Guess I should get you back to work now, even though I have the afternoon off and I’d love to spend it with you.”

“That might be nice, but I do need to get back. I don’t think Dr. Hancock would be too thrilled if I didn’t come back at all.” Molly grabbed the truck’s door handle but he reached out and stopped her.

Luke leaned in close to her ear. “I’ll open that.”

They were momentarily frozen. Her body was stiff as he pressed his into her. His mouth was close to her neck, and when he inhaled, he smelled a light, fruity fragrance. The smell lit up his nose, and he needed to see if she tasted as good as she smelled.

“This isn’t a good idea.” She looked down and spoke in a whisper.

He stayed close. “It’s hard to resist you. I want one taste.”

She was quiet. If she didn’t want it, he wouldn’t force it. Inhaling her scent one last time, he backed away from her. She turned and looked at him, and he could see her eyes were dark with passion. His gut told him she wanted it, but she was scared. What the hell? The worst that could happen was that she’d slap him and he’d have to start all over. Or he could get lucky and she’d kiss him back.

He reached out, took her hand, and tugged her to him. Her body was pressed to his. “Tell me no now or else this is happening.”

When she didn’t speak, he took that as his sign and pressed his lips to hers. Molly turned her head slightly, allowing him a little more access. He tried to keep the kiss soft and sensual, but he couldn’t be gentle; it wasn’t in him when it came to her.

Her tongue darted in and met his, and it was then he thought the world had in fact stopped spinning. Everything was silent and the only thing he could feel was her. Molly gripped his shirt and yanked him closer. He pushed her back into the truck and deepened the kiss more. His hand crept up her side, and, just as he was about to pull her hips tightly against his, a car horn honked, bringing them both back to reality. They were groping one another in the middle of a parking lot, like teenagers.

He gazed at her, expecting a completely different expression than the one he was receiving. She had the most devious smile across her pretty face. “Guess that was quite a show for someone.”

“I guess so.” He opened her door for her. “But I suppose it’s time to end our show until another time where it can be a little more private.” She climbed in, and he watched her ass the entire time. Even in scrubs, she had a nice backside.

Once he was in on his side, they made the drive back to her workplace. He pulled around back and parked. He really didn’t want the date to end. He’d had a great time with her. She looked over at him; it was that awkward moment. Did he kiss her bye?

“Thank you for lunch. It was nice of you to take me out to celebrate.”

“How about we get dinner tonight?”

She giggled. “I don’t think so.”

“Why not? Do you already have plans?”

“I’m working a double tonight. I’ll run home for an hour to eat and then I have to be back, which is probably why Dr. Hancock didn’t care if I took a long lunch.”

He took her hand in his. “I’d like to see you again.”

She bit her bottom lip. “I don’t know.”

“You can’t deny that there is something between us.”

“I’m not. I just don’t know how it would work. And to be honest, I don’t know if I’m ready.”

“You’ll never know if you’re ready if you don’t try.” He studied her face, trying to see if he could pick up anything from her body language.

She was silent, but her eyes spoke to him. He was pushing. And pushing wasn’t going to ease her into it. She needed time.

He grabbed a business card from his back pocket. He flipped it over and scribbled his personal cell phone number on the back. “Call me if you decide you want to get together. My phone is always on.”

She took the card and held his gaze a little longer before she got out of the truck. He hoped like hell as he watched her scurry across the parking lot that this wasn’t the last time he’d see her.





Chapter Nine





Molly sat on her couch, petting Tigger and staring at the empty to-go container. It was Friday evening, and it had been three days since she’d seen or talked to Luke. His card sat on her nightstand in her bedroom, taunting her to call. He’d left it up to her. He made his intentions clear. He wanted something with her. It was in her hands now. She needed to make the decision: get to know him or walk away.