Page 13 of Unexpected Forever
We walk a little farther before I speak again. “Why didn’t you invite Grace and Amelia for this sibling get-together?”
“I found out all I wanted to know about them when we danced.”
My heart flutters at his words, but I try not to get too caught up in feelings involving that organ.
At the end of the path, I guide us toward a large, dimly lit gazebo. The surrounding darkness makes it feel like it’s just the two of us, ratcheting up the tension in me.
The gazebo is empty and we step inside.
“I need to take these shoes off.” I set the glasses on the long bench lining one side of the gazebo, grabbing his shoulder with one hand and using the other to slip off my heeled sandals.
I groan when my bare feet hit the cool wood. “Ahh…much better.”
Other parts of me need relief too, but it won’t be as simple as slipping off my shoes.
Nate picks up the glasses and pours two fingers of whiskey in each before handing one to me. He holds his up for a toast.
“To landing your dream job,” he says.
I press my lips together as warmth expands through my chest. The more I’m around him, the more my man sabbatical is becoming a distant memory.
“To new beginnings,” I say.
He clinks his glass against mine and we watch each other over the rim while we sip. The liquor burns my throat and lands in a warm pool in my belly.
Or maybe it’s the stare he gives me that makes me feel feverish.
His face is partially in shadow from the moonlight slanting into the open-sided structure. With his dark hair and five o’clock shadow covering his strong jawline, he looks a little sinister and a lot intimidating.
I can only imagine what pitchers think when he stares them down right before he hits a home run off their best pitch.
Son of a bitch, he’s sexy. I clench my thighs and pray he doesn’t notice.
“What’s this about a man sabbatical?”
Interesting icebreaker.
“It’s to keep me from being distracted while I’m getting my career started.”
He makes a noncommittal sound. “When do you start your new job?”
I look down into my glass. “Two weeks.”
“Are you nervous?”
“As much as I hate to admit it, yeah. I am. I’ve been in the same place for ten years and know the job like the back of my hand.”
“If Megan’s party is any indication, I think you’ve got what it takes to be successful at event planning.”
I smile. “Thanks. What about you?”
“What about me?”
“How does it feel to be retired?” I ask, sipping the dark liquor.
He huffs out a laugh and looks toward the open field bathed in moonlight. “It’s just now starting to hit me. This is the first March in many years I haven’t been in spring training.”
“That’s a long time to do one thing.”
