Page 26 of Please, Stay

“Did you want to go for a ride, Jules?” Maybe he could speed up the goodnight kiss.

She glanced at her watch. “I want to, but I have to get to work. I still have two articles to finish.”

“Tonight, at eight.” He blocked her path until she nodded. She brushed past him, leaving that vanilla smell to occupy his mind, and body, until tonight. He’d given her fair warning. Without some type of protest between now and tonight, he planned for that kiss to happen. Didn’t matter if her dad stood on the street corner and watched.

9

“You’re thirty-one, get a damn grip.” Juliana stepped out of her small, red coupe. Her high heels wobbled with her first step on the gravel parking lot. She’d begged to wear flip-flops, but Becky’s demands won in the end. That and Becky had taken and hidden all of Juliana’s flip flops. And sneakers.

The dark jeans didn’t leave a lot of room for Juliana to breath. Becky insisted she wore them. In fact, Juliana didn’t choose anything she currently wore. The fuchsia silk tank top dipped so low, Juliana startled herself every time she looked down. But she had to take advantage of the current heatwave. At least that’s what her best friend had argued. But that was at five-thirty when the temperature was at sixty-eight. At barely sixty degrees now, she regretted not bringing a jacket.

But she’d done her own makeup. Becky droned on and on that most women wore makeup every day. Juliana limited it to mascara, brown eyeliner, blush, and lip gloss. Although she’d left the lip gloss at Becky’s house on purpose. She would not kiss Grayson with sticky lips.

She pushed open the door and stepped in. A statue of a motorcycle-riding Santa Claus with a windblown beard greeted her first.Life in the Fast Laneplayed in the background. Fitting for Rhonda’s Roadhouse.

A warm hand skimmed down her arm, leaving goosebumps along her cool skin.

She turned. Grayson stood so close. A shadow hid his eyes, but the magnetic energy between them still made her heartbeat thump louder.

Breathe.

“I was worried you’d back out.”

Juliana swallowed. His husky voice made her mentally lick her lips in anticipation. She tilted her head up as he stepped into the light. So that’s what it meant for someone to devour you with their eyes.

After his threat of how he expected the end to the date, she’d done nothing but obsess over kissing him. She hadn’t kissed a guy in a year or so since her last boyfriend, who wasn’t even in the same league as Grayson. What a way to knock the dirt off the tire by kissing a movie star.

But he was paid to knowexactlyhow to look at a woman. She’d seen him do it dozens of times before. God, being on the other end of that, though…

“You’re not wearing black, so I don’t suppose old Hugh has died.” Rhonda nudged Juliana’s arm, bringing her out of her trance. “But how in the hell did you manage to get here with a date?”

“It took some scheming.” Juliana gave the older woman in leather pants a quick hug. “Hi, Ms. Rhonda.”

“Hi, baby. I don’t have to ask if Becky was involved in the plot, do I?” Rhonda smiled up at Grayson in appreciation. “I definitely think it’s worth it. Follow me, sweeties.”

The warmth from Grayson’s hand soaked through Juliana’s silk blouse as he guided her through the restaurant and to a corner booth. He waited for Juliana to sit before sliding in across from her.

She accepted the menu from Rhonda, forming a barrier between her and Grayson. The words looked like gibberish. Grayson Moore sat across from her. She chewed on her bottom lip before grimacing at the sticky feeling. This was why she didn’t wear lip gloss.

A long finger hooked over the top of the menu. Slowly, he pulled it down. “What’s wrong?”

“This is just hard to believe.”

He shook his head. “What I can’t believe is you having to sneak around.” He pried her fingers away from her shield, setting the menu to the side. “You look so serious.” He began tracing each of her fingers, watching their hands together. “What are you thinking, Jules?”

About crawling over the table and doing justice to every woman’s fantasy. “Oh, um, I was thinking about getting the chicken sandwich. What about you?”

“I’m not going to let you leave until you tell me about yourself. That’s the middle part of the date, remember?” He kissed the inside of her wrist. Electricity shot straight to her stomach. “I usually get my way.”

“I bet you do,” Rhonda said with a smirk as she walked up. “What will you have to drink, sweeties?”

Grayson motioned to Juliana.

“Sweet tea.” She’d never sounded so breathless before. If she couldn’t keep it together when he held her hand, how would she handle a kiss?

“Bud Light.”

Rhonda pointed her pen at him. “I feel like I need to see your I.D.” Grayson slipped it out of his wallet. She nodded her head. “I thought that was you. My granddaughter has a picture of you up on her wall. I told her James Dean was better looking.”

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