Ren allowed her to lead the way to their table. He settled her into her chair, unable to miss the way the silky little skirt she wore clung to the perfect curves of her ass.
Hooyah.
Yep, that was his cock twitching again.
This might shape up to be an exercise in torture, but he was game to see it through. Once he’d taken his place across from her, he reached out to take her hands but was immediately interrupted when a young waiter approached with water, menus, and a welcoming smile. He ordered another glass of white for the lady and a cold beer for himself then pushed the menu aside. “So how are you, Doc?”
“Your mom told you that I finished med school and started a practice, huh?”
Clair Ramsey lived in Arizona now but kept up with the gossip network, and she’d wasted no time in telling him that Sadie had opened a pediatric practice with several other doctors. It hadn’t surprised him she’d chosen that field, and he knew she loved kids. Damn, he was proud of her. “I’m happy for you, Sadie. You’re living the dream. From the time you were just a little squirt you’ve wanted to be a doctor. Do you like it?”
He knew that her affluent parents had expected no less than for their only child to excel in all aspects of her life and, being a dutiful daughter, she had accommodated them and then some. Ever the realist, Ren never planned to have kids of his own but suspected that, if he’d ever had a daughter, he would want the same as Mr. and Mrs. Ballew.
She nodded, smiling. “Yes, I love it. The practice is small but growing.”
“Heard you got married.”
“And divorced.”
“He’s a damn fool.”
Sadie shook her head. “Naw, he’s not. Not really. Tom and I are still the best of friends. It wasn’t his fault that I lacked a particular body part that he happened to need.”
Ren’s brows shot up. Thanks to his mom, he was aware of the marriage, but this was a new twist. “Too bad he didn’t tell you about that before the wedding.”
She laughed. “No truer words, Ren. For a few years after the divorce, I found myself asking every guy I went out with if he was gay. Not a positive thing in the dating world. Good way to find yourself labeled a little nuts.” Sadie shrugged. “Stuff happens, and if nothing else, I’ve learned that things aren’t always what they seem. I’m more careful, sure, but I’m happy.”
Once dinner was served and they dug into their meal of grilled shrimp with all the trimmings, Ren continued to ply her with more wine and some questions, too. As always, what you saw with Sadie was what you got. She was honest and endearing in every way, and he couldn’t help thinking that it would forever be this way between them. Honest. Open. Real.
By the time dessert rolled around, Ren ordered another beer as she bit into a fat slice of Key lime pie. A spot of whipped cream dotted her bottom lip, and he paused, his glass halting halfway to his mouth, as he watched her slowly lick it clean. Instincts long denied rolled sharply through his veins as he imagined the tart yet sweet taste of her. They’d never kissed, never touched, at least in a sexual way, and Ren wasn’t dumb enough to want to ruin a perfectly good friendship despite what his testosterone screamed at him.
Long ago, he’d given up on dreaming. Dreams were for fools, but that didn’t prevent him from wanting to haul her beautiful body close and lay her down on the nearest bed. But Sadie was a forever kind of woman. In his line of work, a guy didn’t mess around with someone like her.
“Mmm. Key lime pie in Key West.” Sadie wore a satisfied smile on her lips as she briefly closed her eyes and dabbed at her lips with a white linen napkin. “I’m so glad Clair told me you’d be here and that you agreed to meet me. A vacation and you all at once. I’m a lucky lady. How long do you have here, Ren?”
Ren tried his hardest to concentrate, but her innocently seductive ways were killing him. He cleared his throat and leaned back in his chair as he studied her. The freckles she’d always hated were still there. Thank God. Like small soldiers, they marched enticingly across the bridge of her pert nose and decorated her cheeks. Most folks would describe her as cute, but she was so much more than that.
Sadie was vibrant. She was all light and energy. In a word, she was special and he’d always known it.
When she smiled, Ren focused on her lips. Big mistake for a man who needed to remain firmly in the friend zone. The image of that lush mouth devouring his cock swam through his mind. Now wasn’t that just downright poetic?
Feeling like the worst kind of lech, he forced himself to return to the conversation. “Only a few days. SEAL Team Arapaho is stationed in Little Creek, Virginia. We just finished a mission and the powers that be gave us a few days to rest up. The group of us flew into NAS Key West and they were kind enough to loan us a couple of vehicles as a courtesy. We’re all staying at a big mansion near here. The place belongs to a movie star who is filming in Spain so the place is ours for as long as we’re here.”