I’m a fucking idiot. I finally get Willa on a date and all I can talk about is the size of my dick and how much I want to do her.
Brilliant.
Well, played.
Fuck.
Willa was looking like if she could think of an excuse to flee from him she would. He didn’t blame her. He wasn’t a hormone-crazed teenager anymore. He dated women on a regular basis, but none of them could shut down his brain with a single look.
He’d promised her they’d take it slowly. He’d spent the night charting out how that would likely manifest. He’d been prepared to drop her off at her place, kiss her briefly, and walk away.
He needed to rethink that plan.
He didn’t trust himself alone with her.
Whenever their eyes met, the attraction they shared sizzled. It wasn’t that he thought she would turn him down. He imagined having her half undressed before the elevator made it to the floor of her apartment. He could have her panties gone and be joyfully, intimately tasting her before they made it a foot in the door. He would use everything he learned about pleasing a woman and see what sent her out of control. Her pleasure would be his. Again and again until he finally fucked her against the wall, or the couch . . . whatever was closest. He knew she would welcome him inside her as she had before. Only this time, she’d be calling out in orgasm as he pounded into her. He wouldn’t come until she had more than once.
And then?
He remembered how she’d looked tucked against him, declaring that she loved him. His gut clenched with guilt. He’d hurt her once. And given how she had bolted from his office yesterday, she wasn’t over it. Yes, they had begun the process of clearing the air, but they had a long way to go. This wasn’t just any woman. This was Willa. She had always held a precious part of his heart. Her gentleness, her sincerity, her loveliness.
I won’t hurt her again.
This wasn’t about having her body. He wanted all of her.
That would take self-control.
In a strangled voice, he asked, “Are you working tomorrow?”
She looked as confused as he felt. “What is tomorrow? Saturday? No.”
He took her hand in his again. “Spend the day with me.”
Her mouth parted, and her tongue wet her bottom lip in the most delicious way. “What do you have in mind?”
“I don’t know yet.” Because I have no fucking idea what we can do that will keep my hands off you, but I’ll find something.
She looked uncertain. “What should I wear?”
His dick throbbed as a hundred suggestions came to mind that he dismissed as inappropriate. “Something casual. Jeans. It’s the season for outdoor art festivals. I’ll see what’s around. We can start at the south end then find someplace for dinner. Maybe walk around Faneuil Hall afterward.”
A huge smile spread across her face. “Sounds perfect.”
Perfect? Maybe not, but safer than anything else I could think of. “Have you been to Emily’s museum?”
“Yes, but only briefly with Kenzi.” Willa’s blonde curls shone beneath the café’s lighting that turned on as the sun set, giving her an angelic glow. “I don’t fangirl over much, but I am in awe of her. And her mother? I wish I could have met her. Have you experienced her works? I thought I understood what three-dimensional art was until I touched hers. Somehow she captured the essence of moments in time. That’s the only way I can describe it. You don’t know what the piece is about, and then, suddenly you do. It rips through you, pulls an emotional response out of you, and leaves you different than before you touched it. Better somehow. Emily has the same gift.” She stopped, looking self-conscious. “Sorry. I guess I have a strong opinion.”
“And I have somewhere to take you on Sunday. If you’d like, I’ll ask Emily to give us a private tour. She loves that.” Two dates. Say yes, Willa.
“She offered one to me, but she’s so pregnant I declined.”
“I’ll see how she feels. She really does enjoy explaining the process and telling the story behind each work. It would be good for me to hear some of it again. I’m looking for inspiration for the Capitol Complex. They accepted my initial proposal, but I want to add to it. It lacked—” He stopped. He almost said warmth, but he didn’t want to spook her again. “Depth. You could help me rectify that.”
Willa’s eyes widened again as if he’d offered her a chance at something she wasn’t ready to believe was possible. “I could try.”
They fell into an awkward silence.
A man with a huge dog walked by. Lance chose a safe topic. “I never thought much about dogs, but my sister loves the one she adopted.”