Wallbanger(95)

“Honestly, I can’t handle any more,” I protested, dragging a piece of crusty bread through the olive oil. He smiled as he watched me

shamelessly enjoy another piece of bread before final y pushing back from the table with a groan.

“Best meal ever?” he asked.

“It real y might be. That was insane.” I sighed, patting my ful tummy. Ladylike, schmadylike, I’d pounded that meal down like someone was

going to take it away from me. A waiter appeared with two smal glasses of a local wine. Sweet and crisp, it was the perfect after-dinner drink. We

sipped slowly, the breeze coming in through the windows lightly scented with the sea air.

“This was a great date, Simon. Real y. Couldn’t have been more perfect,” I said, taking another sip of my wine.

“Was this a date?” he asked.

My face froze. “I mean, no. I suppose not. I just—”

“Relax, Caroline. I know what you meant. It’s just funny to consider this a date: two people traveling together, but only now on a date.” He smiled, and I relaxed.

“Hmm, we haven’t real y fol owed the traditional rules so far, have we? This might even be our first date, if we wanted to get technical.”

“Wel , technical y speaking, what defines a date?” he asked.

“Dinner, I suppose. Although we’ve had dinner before,” I began.

“And a movie—we’ve already had a movie,” he reminded me.

I shuddered. “Yes, and that was definitely a ploy to get me to snuggle with you. Scary movie, so obvious,” I scoffed.

“It worked, didn’t it? In fact, I do believe I slept with you that night, Nightie Girl.”

“Yes, I’m cheap and easy, I admit it. I suppose we real y did do this whole thing backward.” I grinned, sliding my foot across the floor under the

table and kicking him lightly.

“I like it backward.” He smirked.

I narrowed my eyes. “Not touching that one.”

“Seriously, though. As I’ve mentioned, I have no experience with this stuff,” he said. “How does this work? What if we were doing this…not

backward? What would happen next?”

“Wel , I suppose there would be another date, and another after that,” I admitted, smiling shyly.

“And bases. I’d be expected to try to round some bases, right?” he asked seriously.

I spluttered my wine. “Bases? Are you for real? As in, cop a feel, over the shirt, under the shirt, those bases?” I laughed incredulously.

“Yes, exactly. What am I al owed to get away with? As a gentleman, I mean. If this were truly a first date, we wouldn’t be going home together,

would we? Dating now, not hooking up. Remember, apparently I give good woo,” he said, eyes twinkling.

“Yes, yes, you do. We wouldn’t be going home together, that’s true. But to be honest, I don’t want you sleeping in the bedroom down the hal . Is

that weird?” I could feel my ears burning as I blushed.





“It’s not weird,” he answered quietly. I slipped off my sandal and pressed my foot against his, rubbing lightly along his leg.

“Nooking is good, right?”

“Nooking is most definitely good,” he agreed, nudging back with his own foot.

“As far as your bases are concerned, I think you could definitely plan on a little under the shirt action, if you were so inclined,” I answered.

Internal y, Brain and Backbone gave a little cheer, while LC and Wang kicked a few chairs. Tatas were just glad someone was considering them for

once, instead of being just a stopover on the way to points south. Heart? Wel , she was stil flitting about, singing her song.

“So, we go a little traditional, but not total y traditional. Take it slow?” he asked, his eyes burning, the sapphires beginning to do their little

hypnotic dance.

“Slow, but not too slow. We are grownups, for goodness sake.”

“To under the shirt action,” he announced, raising his glass in toast.

“I’l drink to that.” I laughed as we clinked.

Fifty-seven minutes later we were in bed, his hands warm and sure as he slipped each button through, revealing my skin. He went slowly,

purposeful y, and he let my shirt fal open as I lay beneath him. He gazed down at me, his fingertips lightly drawing a line from my col arbone to my

navel, straight and true. We both sighed at the same time.

I can’t explain it, but knowing we’d set some boundaries for the evening, sil y as it may be, made it so much more sensual, something to be

truly savored. His lips hovered around my neck, whispering tiny kisses against my skin, below my ear, under my chin, in the dip between my neck

and my shoulder, and working his way down to the swel of my breasts. His fingers swept out, lightly, reverently, ghosting across the sensitive skin