Page 7 of Under the Mistletoe

She looked at me and shrugged. “Are you trying to get rid of me?”

Getting rid of her was the last thing I wanted, but I couldn’t let her know that. I had to be a good guy. I’d known this girl her entire life. Hell, she used to sit on my lap when she was little. Wished she still did.

“No, I just don’t think you should drive in this weather.”

“I can’t. Don’t you remember? I have a flat tire,” she answered, twirling her dark chestnut hair around her finger.

“What about your boyfriend? Surely, he could come pick you up.”

She gave me a gentle smile, still twirling that strand of hair. I prayed she gave me the answer I wanted to hear.

“No boyfriend.” She shrugged, looking up at me with those sexy eyes.

Had she ever had a boyfriend, I wondered. It wasn’t a question I could ask, but my cock instantly hardened when she ran her forefinger across her bottom lip and looked at me, telling me exactly what I wanted to know.

“Never had a boyfriend, no one I’m that interested in. Plus, I like my men…older.” She looked right at me as she said the wordolder.

“Bentley, I’ll settle up now,” I heard the last customer say.

I tore my eyes from her and went over and took care of them, all the while wishing she had someone coming to pick her up. It would be too dangerous for us to be here alone, and too dangerous for me to drive her home. While she hadn’t come out and said what was on her mind, I knew what she was trying totell me. Perhaps she was too shy to come right out and say it, but she had given me the only hint I needed.

The last two patrons left the bar, and I made my way over to the door, locking it before any late-night stragglers came in. I made my way back around the bar and turned the music down.

“I’ll call you a cab,” I bit out, loading the last few glasses into the washer.

“I’m okay,” she murmured, still sipping on her whiskey. “No need to baby me.”

Those eyes said it all. I rubbed the back of my neck. I needed to get her out of here before I crossed a line I couldn’t uncross.

“Trust me Noelle, there is nothing about you that’s a baby. Still, it’s closing time, and I think it’s time for you to go.”

This time when I met her eyes, I saw the disappointment in them. I hated myself for doing that, but it had to be done. I had to convince myself that I shouldn’t go after her, that perhaps I’d not helped the situation by providing her with a couple of birthday drinks.

She placed her glass down on the bar and slid off the stool, grabbing her clutch purse from the back of the chair. She gave me a weak smile, then turned to head toward the coat rack that held her coat.

I looked out the front window, the snow coming down so hard I could barely see across the street. Where the hell did she think she was going to go with it snowing like that, and without a car to drive in? Even if she had a car to drive in, I wouldn’t have felt right letting her go out there. It was too dangerous for an inexperienced driver with the snow falling so hard, the roads no doubt slick with ice.

“I guess this is good night then,” she said as she slipped into her coat.

A flash of lightning lit up the front window.

“Where are you going?” I questioned.

“Home. It’s only a few blocks.” She shrugged.

Another flash of lightning and a clash of thunder made me realize what I was about to let her do: walk home because I didn’t think I was strong enough to be here alone with her until I could take her home. I was a retired Navy SEAL; I had willpower; I was a man of great discipline.

I made my way around the bar, determined to make her stay here, only she was already out the door by the time I got there. I stepped outside onto the snowy walkway and watched her walking away, slipping every third or fourth step she took. There was no way I was letting her leave, so I called out to her, only to have her wave me off.

Five

Noelle

I’d made an absolute fool of myself. I was so stupid to think I could entice a man like Bentley Grey and have him fall like a deck of cards. Kelsey had been right. I needed to be careful. I was playing with fire, and although it was fun, it was also dangerous as hell. Can’t blame a girl for trying, though. Yet I’d somehow allowed myself to actually think he’d be the one to take my virginity…

I shook my head, wondering why I’d been so stupid. I’d been thinking about that moment since I’d realized I really liked men. The only one I’d dreamt about for all these years. Dreaming about Bently taking me and making me his. I’d tried to date others, I’d tried to date the boys at school, but they didn’t hold a candle to him.

The moment I realized it would not happen and that I’d made an ass out of myself, I had to get out of there. I had no other options. I couldn’t sit there and look him in the eye anymore while waiting for a cab.

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