Page 70 of The Sweetest Chirp

I get out and hand my keys off as the valet opens the door for Audrina. He takes her hand and coos, “Good evening, Mrs. Orlov.” Her eyes widen, and she shoots me a look that I just grin at. I take her hand as he says, “Enjoy your night.”

We make our way up the stairs, and I check out her thigh every time it appears from the slit. While it’s normal for me to skate backward on the ice, I don’t think it would be acceptable for me to walk backward to catch a glimpse of my girl’s thigh. It’s a pretty sexy thigh, though. Surely people would understand.

We reach the entrance, saving me from looking dumb as I pull open the door that leads to the entry foyer. A hostess in a formfitting black dress and with a wild mane of purple curls greets us. “Good evening, Mr. and Mrs. Orlov. Welcome. We are so excited to have you here at Jennings.”

We thank her as she hits the elevator button, and it opens for us. When we step in, Audrina shoots me a look. “Come here a lot, Mr. Orlov?”

I snicker. “Nope. Been waiting to bring you here, Mrs. Orlov.”

Her eyes narrow as she teases, “Lying on our first date, such a shame.”

“Is it lying, or is it me showing you what I want?”

I flash her a smug smirk when she narrows those eyes at me. The door opens, and I press my hand to her back to guide her in. The dining room takes up the whole floor, filled with black tables, some for two, some for four, and even a few booths along the cement walls. Large bulbs hang over each table, but none of the tables have patrons at them or have been prepared for the evening dinner service. Only one is set. It sits in the corner by the floor-to-ceiling windows that look out over South Carolina in all its beauty. A low-burning candle flickers on the table with a single white rose. I look over at Audrina as she stares at me, surprise apparent in her hazel depths. “Thatcher?”

I smile, pressing into her back as I guide her to our table. “It’s funny. I’ve known the owner of this place since I played with the Mighty Mites in Minnesota. I don’t know if you remember Jennings Kirkwood, but this is his dad’s place.”

“Yeah, I remember him,” she says, her voice full of awe.

“Well, when I called to cancel our night three years ago, he told me not to give up. And then he sang a really bad version of the chorus of ‘Meant to Be’ by Florida Georgia Line and Bebe Rexha.” The trill of her laughter runs down my spine as I pull outher chair. “When I called him yesterday, he gloated, of course, and afterward, he told me the place was mine.”

“The whole place?” she asks while she looks around for anyone else as she lowers herself into the seat.

I lean in when I push her chair in, my mouth right by her ear, as I remind her, “I wanted a place to talk to you privately, but also where there are no distractions. Where I don’t have to share you with a soul.”

I kiss her pulse point, rewarded with a gentle sigh before I grin against her heated skin. She leans her head into mine and whispers, “You planned this all those years ago?”

I nod, kissing her neck once more, her body trembling under my lips. “Yeah.”

She lengthens her neck. “Why?”

I trail my lips up until I’m right at the spot below her ear. “Because I wanted to enchant you and show you that me as a best friend is cool and all, but me as your man? That’s way better.” I kiss her there. “And those are still my intentions.”

“They are?”

I nod, my nose moving along her skin as I breathe her in. Before, I wouldn’t have been so straightforward, but now, I know I have to be. I will not allow any more miscommunication with her. There will be no more “Maybe I should have told her.” I’m throwing everything out there, and I won’t ever feel regret again.

With my voice as steady as I can manage, I promise her, “Not only tonight, but forever.”

CHAPTER THIRTY

Thatcher’s confession has heat building in my gut as I watch him move away from me to take the seat in front of me. He had the perfect opportunity to kiss me, but he didn’t. My need for his lips on mine is actually causing my eye to twitch. How many almost-kisses will we havebefore I get what I’m finally admitting to wanting? I almost ask, but that seems a little too eager, doesn’t it? Maybe I should make a move? Or else I’ll be waiting years for another song to prompt that kiss.

When his dark-brown eyes meet mine, the warm glow of the candle making them seem darker, I blurt out, “Why haven’t you kissed me yet?”

His lips lift at the side as he leans back in his seat, unbuttoning his jacket with one hand like he doesn’t belong on the ice, but the runway. “Because if I do, I won’t stop.”

He says it so confidently, so effortlessly, leaving me stupefied. Breathless, I ask, “And the problem…?”

Thatcher chuckles, and my clit throbs at the huskiness in his voice. “Have you gotten into exhibitionism since you’ve been gone?”

I snort a laugh at that. “That would mean I’d have to actually hook up with someone.”

He raises his brows at that. “Is that right? Been busy?”

I curve my lips. “Yeah, being a mom.”

“The best mom,” he tells me, opening his napkin in his lap. “You know that, right? You’ve done a great job with her, Audrina.”

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