Page 63 of Isolated
Her lips parted, a hint of surprise taking hold, but as she tucked her chin toward her chest, her brilliant green irises darkened. “That long?”
It was an effort to hold back a second groan. Did she have to work to be this seductive, or did it come naturally? Nodding, I confirmed, “It hasn’t been easy, and I knowthis is only our first official date, but you’re already worth the wait.”
“I still can’t believe we’re doing this after all this time. It’s a little crazy to think we were both holding ourselves back for so long. As upset as I was about what happened at work, I’m kind of grateful for it now. Otherwise, you might have wound up on a blind date, and I’d be home working right now.”
I reached for her hand and gave it a squeeze. “I’m not sure if I could have followed through with the blind date.”
“Really? You wouldn’t go on one?”
Shaking my head, I explained, “It’s not really my thing. But beyond that, even if I had agreed to go, I think I might have spent the entire time comparing her to you. It wouldn’t be fair.”
Iris tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear and took a sip of her drink. “You better be careful, Landen.”
“About what?”
“If you keep saying all these wonderful things to me, I might not want this date to end.”
My laughter filled the air around us again. I couldn’t think of anything I wanted more, and the reality left me just a touch disappointed with myself. Whether she could sense the mood shift, I didn’t know, but I sent her an apologetic look. “To be honest, I’m feeling a bit of regret.”
“You regret coming out with me?”
“No.” I released her hand and lifted my glass to my lips. After swallowing the cool liquid, I said, “I regret that I didn’t plan anything to do with you after dinner because, like you, I’m not sure I’m going to be ready for this date to end once dinner is done.”
She studied me, her eyes roaming over my face. Orthat’s what I thought she’d been doing. A moment later, I learned she’d been thinking up a solution. “Tomorrow is Saturday.”
“Right.”
“So, if you take me home tonight after dinner, you can come back in the morning, and we can go on another date.”
Relief swept in.
I’d already been thinking about the next time I’d be able to spend more time with her. It was a huge relief to know she was just as eager for it as I was. “I like the way your mind works. Do you have anything special you’d like to do?”
“Nothing specific yet, but we can brainstorm a few options and decide before we leave here tonight.”
Easy.
So easy.
Everything with Iris was just simple. Peaceful. And fun.
She made me laugh, and she didn’t take things too seriously. I’d struck gold with her, and I was convinced I’d never want to let her go.
We spent the rest of our time at dinner coming up with ideas for a fun date tomorrow, and we wound up splitting a dessert at the end.
Before I knew it, long before I wanted it to happen, I was standing outside Iris’s front door with her.
“I had such a wonderful time with you tonight, Landen.”
Instinctively, my hands went to her hips and tugged her toward me. The desire was swirling in her eyes, and I didn’t think I’d be able to walk away from her looking at me like that a second time without kissing her.
“I’m glad. I enjoyed myself as well, and I’m looking forward to spending more time with you tomorrow.”
Her lips parted. “We have a lot of time to make up for.”
Sliding one arm around her waist, I brought my other hand up toward her face, where I pinched her chin lightly between my thumb and forefinger. “Yes, we do.” My thumb drifted along her bottom lip, that lip I’d been distracted by for longer than I cared to admit. “Can I make up for some lost time in another area? Can I kiss you?”
Iris whispered, “I was hoping you would.”
