Page 41 of Heartless Boss
As he stands in line to order his food, he scans the restaurant. When his eyes land on me, I avert my eyes to the half-eaten food. Several moments later, Gunner places his plate of grits and shrimp on the tablecloth.
“Hey.” His voice is gravelly. No matter what I do, I can never stop blushing around him. I grab the glass of Coke to take long, slow sips, gluing my eyes on the ice clinking together, before I set it down on the table.
“Hi.” My voice is low.
“You can look at me, Rainbow. I won’t lick you in public unless you want me to.”
I press my thighs together as the memories of last night bleed through my mind.
I hear the smile in his voice. Slowly, my eyes lift to his.
“How’s your head?” I ask, changing the subject.
“Good. I didn’t drink enough to have a hangover.”
Great. So much for him forgetting last night.
His fork scratches against the plate as he scoops grits in his mouth and eats in silence.
What is he thinking about? Does he regret what happened last night?
His Adam’s apple bobs as he swallows his shrimp. My gaze rests on my favorite part of him, his jaw. He has a small cut on his chin like he cut himself shaving.
“Are you gonna sit here and eye-fuck me? Or are we gonna address the elephant in the room?”
“Let’s forget about it,” I murmur, averting my eyes to a woman who’s breastfeeding her baby while she fusses at her toddler. He regrets it and is probably going to tell me he doesn’t want to sleep with me. He was caught in the moment. Plus, he probably only wanted me because I was convenient at the time. “You didn’t mean it, we’ll forget it ever happened.” For some strange reason, I wanted it to be real. For him to want me for me and not look at me as some hooker on the street.
“Gia, shut the fuck up.” His tone is calm, causing my eyes to snap back to his. “I meant every word I said last night.”
I smile on the inside at that. It’s true what people say about drunk people.“A drunk mind speaks a sober heart.”
“I’m willing to break my rule for you.”
“You mean the one where you sleep with a woman only one time?” I blink rapidly.
“Yeah.”
People leave the restaurant and a busboy in a white uniform picks up the dirty dishes, placing them in the black bin, removing the cloth, and wiping down the table.
“No, Wolf. I need something more than just sex. I don’t want to feel like I’m being used,” I say.
“Okay, we’ll date. Or whatever you want to call it.”
“Really?” Surprise slices through my face. I don’t believe people change overnight, let alone in a few minutes.
“Do you want me to do a blood oath? Or spit on our hands and shake?”
So sarcastic. I roll my eyes at him. “Why the change of heart? We all know relationships are not your jam.”
“I need to get my psychiatrist off my back about dating.”
“I’m an experiment.”
“Looks that way.” His voice is flat like a board, and he smooths out his black tie, looking bored.
“You’re not going to say something along the lines of ‘don’t get attached because I might break your heart?’”
“You know exactly who you’re dealing with. You dance with a wolf, expect to get eaten, sheep.”
