Page 98 of Surrender

“Where are we going?” I ask asI drive us into the center of Fairview Valley.

“Patience isn’t your strong suit, is it?” Whitney bites back a smile.

“I’d say I’ve done pretty well so far. Except now I’m about a mile from town and need to know where you want me to take you, baby.”

“Maybe if you hadn’t insisted that you drive, I could be taking you where I want to take you without having to give instructions.”

It’s my turn to bite back a smile. I did do that. Because when the woman I’m seriously into wakes me up by whispering in my ear to meet her in the kitchen so I can fuck her gently while we wait for our coffee, and while I’m inside her she tells me she’s taking me out for the day, I might be willing to give her just about anything. Except letting her drive me around town in her little sedan.

“It’s winter driving,” I say by way of explanation.

“It’s sexist.”

“In all the ways you’ve let me take care of you over the last month, and this is the one you want to throw a fit about?”

“It’s ruining my surprise,” she pouts.

Reaching across the console, I settle my palm on her thigh. “It’s definitely not since you still haven’t told me where we’re going.”

She huffs and turns to look out the window as I roll up to a stoplight.

“Baby, I need to know which direction I’m going.”

She laces our fingers together and sets them back on her thigh. “Straight. There’s a white canopy tent and parking on the right-hand side.”

As I roll down Main Street, the banners draped across the street make our destination clear. Unease awakens in my gut.

“We’re going to the Fairview Valley Winter Festival?”

“Have you ever been?”

I shake my head as I turn into the lot. “It always felt too coupley.”

She grins. “Good. I haven’t, either. I thought you and I could spend the day together since I have the day off and the kids are at daycare.”

I lick my lips, closing my eyes slowly before opening them. Face carefully blank. “What about your ex?”

Whitney blows out a breath. “I can’t let him control my life. He’d be really stupid to show up and try something at a festival crawling with witnesses.”

Fuck, I don’t like it. But how can I let her down when she’s looking forward to this with so much excitement?

“Come on. I hear they have the best hot chocolate.”

The creaking of her door opening snaps me into motion. I hop out of my seat and meet her at the hood. She smiles up at me, the cold already pinkening her cheeks. I adjust the cream-colored knit hat on her head while she pulls on a pair of black gloves. Using the action to soak in her beauty.

“Ready?” I ask. She nods.

I lift her chin enough to kiss her, not even noticing that I did so in public for the very first time with more than a few pairs of eyes on us. Then I take her gloved hand in my bare one.

“Aren’t your hands going to freeze?”

“Hot chocolate will warm them up.”

What I don’t say is that if I need to fight someone, I want to make sure my punches hurt a fuck of a lot, and they won’t do that if the fabric hides my knuckles.

Hand in hand, we walk to the hot chocolate stand at the start of the block. The black lampposts have silver and gold garland twisted around them. Vendor booths covered in holiday decor line the sidewalks on both sides, and the crowd spills into the middle of the street. Holiday music sounds crisp and clear overhead.

We snag our drinks after waiting in a short line and meander hand in hand. Once the piping-hot steam diminishes, I take a tentative sip.

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