Page 33 of When We Burn

“Hmm.” She licks at some sauce on her mouth, but she doesn’t get it all, so I reach over and wipe it away with my thumb, then lick it off myself, and her eyes dilate. “I want to call you a nickname. You call me stuff.”

“Not chief.” I shake my head and bite half of a breadstick. “Picksomething else.”

“Daddy?”

I choke and reach for my tea as she laughs across from me.

Jesus fucking Christ, she’s going to be the death of me.

I’m hard as fucking stone. This whole conversation has turned me the fuck on. When I’ve got my breath back, I stand and circle the table, sit next to her, and lean in so I can whisper in her ear. I brace one arm on the back of her chair and the other on the table, caging her in.

She’s already breathing hard.

“You want to call medaddy, kitten?” My voice is a whisper against her ear, and I love the way she visibly shivers.

I’m going to make her squirm later.

She licks her lips. “It was a joke, Bridger. Obviously, I read too many spicy books.”

That has my eyebrows climbing. “We have so many things to talk about when I get you alone.”

She smiles at me, her lips mere inches from mine. “I can’t wait.”

Chapter Six

DANI

Idon’t think I’ve ever had a better time on a date in my whole life. Granted, between the trauma from Angela’s bullying and my dad’s abuse, studying, and working to support myself through college—trying to heal with a therapist—I didn’t date much. I’m no virgin, but no one has ever made me feel like everything I say is important, or that they’re happy just to be with me. The conversation has never flowed so easily. I’ve never felt so valued. Valuable.

No one has ever made me feel so…good.

I loved teasing Bridger at dinner, and when I made the joke about calling himdaddy, well, I’ll be laughing about that for a long time. The shock on his face was just hilarious. But then he made it sexy by coming around the table to whisper in my ear, and every nerve ending in my body sat up and took notice.

Holy crap, the things that Bridger does to me.

And he stayed there. He didn’t go back across thetable. He pulled his plate over and sat by my side for the rest of the meal. He’d steal a touch or a quick kiss to my cheek, and I ignored the other people there, whether I knew them or not, and simply enjoyed him.

I don’t know why I suddenly felt unsure and self-conscious again earlier today, especially after we had such a nice dinner on Monday, but Bridger put any lingering doubts out of my mind.

And it feels amazing, if not surreal, given I never thought we’d get here.

Bridger pulls into his driveway and turns to me. “Wait for me.”

Happily, I nod and stay in my seat as he walks around the truck and opens my door, leans across me to unbuckle my belt, pressing a kiss to my cheek in the process, and then he takes my hand and guides me out of the vehicle.

I move to walk toward my own house, but he gives my hand a little tug, and I glance up at him.

“Come inside with me, sweetheart.” His gaze is intense, his hand firm around mine, and I absolutely, without a doubt, am not ready to go home.

“Sure.”

He unlocks the front door and then leads me inside his house, and once the door is closed, he crowds me against it. One hand moves up to my cheek and the other leans on the door, and his face is so close to mine, I can feel the heat of his skin.

Finally, this man is going to kiss me.

“You’re so fucking beautiful,” he whispers beforethose lips are on mine, and I can’t help the moan that escapes my throat as my hands cling to his back and his tongue urges my mouth open. He tastes like tea and the ice cream we shared after dinner, and I just want to climb him.

I feel like I’ve waited my whole life for this moment. To be here with this man.

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