Pacific Northwest Werebears(47)

“Oh, okay,” she replied looking down to her hands in her lap. Jinger suddenly realized she was sitting on his lap. Dear lord, she was probably crushing him! She moved to get up off his legs before he needed an amputation.

“Please don’t, I like you here,” he pleaded.

Looking at him she saw he was serious. He was probably lying about losing sensation in his legs. She figured he was being chivalrous. Although sitting on his lap, surrounded by his big strong arms felt like she was in the safest place in the world. Jinger didn’t know why, but she felt like this was her normal spot. Like they had assumed this position for years and it was their go-to cuddle spot. Odd, she knew, but something seemed right about it.

“Aren’t you hungry,” she asked, knowing he didn’t finish his dinner.

“Not really, but we should finish, after all I did cook just for you. How about I make you a deal, we move back to the counter to eat, maybe talk. Then after I’ll start a fire and we resume how we are right now? What do you think,” he asked quietly. His bear rumbled in his mind approvingly at the excellent game plan Wyatt thought up.

He watched Jinger chew her bottom lip in contemplation. Wishing he was the one chewing on her lip, he couldn’t stand the temptation. He reached up and used his thumb to pull her lip out of her teeth, running his thumb over her soft skin.

“Don’t tease me, Jinger,” he said with a low growl.

“Tease you,” she asked in confusion.

“Those plump lips are too tempting as they are. You chewing on them and making them even plumper makes me want to feel just how soft they are,” he admitted.

“You do?” Jinger was stunned by this declaration. Hot, sexy Wyatt Rochon wanted to kiss her. She was sitting on his lap, in his house after having known him for one day and he wanted to kiss her.

She knew she should be freaked out that this was happening so fast. But she wasn’t nervous around him. Confused yes, but not nervous. Normally she was awkward and kind of a spaz around men. With Wyatt it seemed easier, being with him seemed natural. Maybe it was just him, he made it easy.

Wyatt was watching her mouth, she noticed. Like he was going to lean forward at any moment and actually kiss her.

“I do, Jinger. But I think we should slow down and finish dinner. Then we can revisit this,” he said letting go of her lip. He groaned when she ran her tongue over the spot he had rubbed with his thumb.

Jinger didn’t think before her tongue swept out and tasted the spot he had rubbed. Maybe he was right, they needed to slow things down.

“Dinner, might be good,” she agreed.

Wyatt and Jinger made their way back to the bar to finish their meal. Wyatt, Jinger noticed, kept his eyes on his plate most of the time. Although he was true to his word from their conversation that morning. He let her ask him all about his family and his upbringing. He told her about going to school in Oregon and that he took years to settle on a major. He chose accounting, not that he liked numbers, but that the class was easy.

They both laughed about it, as it seemed to fit Wyatt. Jinger thought he was more a free spirit than a stodgy accountant. He talked of his family, how close they were. How much he liked his soon to be sister-in-law. Jinger could see how genuinely happy he was that his brother had found love. It made her wonder what it would take for Wyatt to fall in love.

Thoughts that she knew she shouldn’t ponder too deeply. But she couldn’t help but let the little ember of what if… float in the background.

Wyatt finished his meal and was leaning on the counter, his head propped up in his hand. He was finally looking at her. Even gazing it seemed. Jinger was lulled into the softness of his eyes. Maybe it was the wine, or the food, or maybe just the sweetness with which he was looking at her. She let that little ember burn a tiny bit brighter. Hope.

“Are you finished,” he asked.

Glancing to her plate she realized they had both been done for a while. Their conversation more interesting than the food. Now nerves were setting in and her agreement to relocate herself back to his lap didn’t seem like such a bright idea.

“Well…” she started, rubbing her hands together.

“Jinger, let me hold you. I just want to be close to you. You can call all the shots. But believe me when I say this. I like you a lot. Even that doesn’t seem the right thing to say. I’m drawn to you in a way I have never been to any other women. I can only hope you feel the same pull towards me. Do you? Feel anything for me?”

“Wyatt, we just met. Yesterday in fact. You want me to decide how I feel about you right now? Thirty-six hours after I met you,” she asked incredulously.