Page 5 of Wolfish Hunger
"By the way," I say, "if you haven't been eating properly lately because the kitchen is difficult to cook in, please don't be shy about scarfing all of this down. We can easily order more. Heck, we can also grab some takeout, so you have breakfast in the morning?"
She places her hand lightly on my forearm in a subtle but sweet gesture that lights up my heart. "Thank you. I'm ravenous but was worried about having to eat like alady."
I turn to grin at her as I set my hand on top of hers. "Sammie, you don't have to do anything like a lady around me if you don’t want to. Wear dirty jeans and army boots. Curse like a sailor. I can bring my biggest truck next time, if you’d like to drive it?"
Her eyes light up as if I’d just handed her a puppy. "I assume you're kidding, but I've never driven a truck before. I've always wanted to, though."
"And you will. But only if you finish every single taco on that plate, cutie."
Sammie’s eyes dance. Her nerves are settling and she’s becoming more comfortable around me the more she eats. We chat about favorite foods, restaurants we loved as children, then somehow end up talking about grocery stores.
“It was always so weird there,” she laughs. “It’s where all the moms would stop and chitchat, even with total strangers.” Her smile fades. “It was also a place where people loved to play a round ofstare at the twins.”
“That sounds irritating.”
She shakes her head. “It was downright creepy sometimes. Like… why do total strangers need to stare like that? And why do mothers have to share every detail of their children with strangers?”
“Because families are weird?” I suggest. Then I chuckle. “I can just picture you in pigtails, glaring at people to make them stop looking at you.”
“Tried it. It never worked. People just thought I was tired and told me to take a nap.”
“I remember being at the grocery store when I was around seven, and Mom sent me to get a few things from the fruit section. A woman was staring at me like I had three heads – maybe because for once I wasn’t with my brothers. So I picked up a banana like it was a phone, said hello, then held it out to the woman, saying the call was for her.”
She tries to hold back a laugh. “And what did she do?”
“Backed away as if it were a grenade and ran to the next aisle. The next time I saw her there she avoided us.” I laugh so hard that I’m grateful that we’re not at that window table.
“So, that’s the way to scare people off? Be a lunatic?”
“Apparently, yeah.”
Sammie laughs, then nods. “Maybe I’ll have to take lessons from you.”
“I’d be honored.”
We both look down. When did we start holding hands? Something locks into place when our eyes meet again, a brand-new sensation that feels like a waterfall of sparks down my spine, pooling in my heart.
Leaning closer, my lips barely miss hers as they move toward her ear. “I thought you were beautiful when we first met, but seeing you laughing like this is like food for the soul.”
She leans in slightly, so my mouth brushes her cheek. I kiss softly along her cheekbone, then pause. “Is it wrong for our first kiss to be in the back of a restaurant? I feel like I should be a proper gentleman and take you to a moonlit beach or something.”
“Hey, I don’t have to be a proper lady. Why should you have to be a proper gentleman?”
“Touché.”
I’ve tasted fine food from all over the world, yet the taste of Sammie’s soft lips against mine is more delicious than any of it. Her warmth, her gentleness, her airy sigh as we shift, my arm around her… The incredibly light kiss hovers, neither of us wanting to let this perfect moment go.
As we part, her shy smile burning into my mind, I feel like I’ve learned something.
We belong together. Simple as that. I’ve never had this sort of hunger for anyone or anything else.
4
SAMMIE
This is definitely the best date in history.
It's often difficult for me to make small talk with strangers, so I was nervous about being alone with Kane for so long. Yet here we are, chatting about the best parts of terrible action movies as if we've known each other for much longer than a day.
