Page 25 of The Ruthless and the Strong

His lips twitched before he took the lead and walked to a local steakhouse with Hunter in his arms.

I should probably have taken my son. It wasn’t right to make Max carry Hunter around. Especially so when Max had been looking after Hunter all morning while I looked at cars. But I liked the way he took control, liked the protective way he held my son, and I liked feeling as if nothing could ever harm Hunter—or me, because Max was around.

We walked into the ambient restaurant and I liked the cozy feel of it right away. It almost felt… romantic.

What a silly thing to think. Max probably picked this restaurant because it was close to the house. The hostess stood by the podium and greeted us as soon as we walked in.

“Hello. Table for three?”

“Yes, please,” Max answered. “And a booster seat for the little guy.” Max shot Hunter a wide smile, as my son moved his bright green eyes over to Max. I could already see the forming of hero-worship on Hunter’s part, and I didn’t know how to stop it, or even if I should. I looked away and turned back to the hostess.

I watched as she took us in, her eyes lingering on Max a bit longer, then turning to Hunter, before they briefly connected with mine and she looked away, a small blush on her cheeks. I didn’t say anything, but I knew she had been checking Max out, though she tried not to let it show. She probably thought Max was mine, and Hunter was our baby.

She hastily grabbed two adult menus and a kid’s one, which came with a package of crayons, before moving away from the podium, stumbling a bit on her feet. I watched as the poor girl grew even more flustered before she uttered, “Right this way.”

Max frowned after her, and I rolled my eyes as I walked past him. It wasn’t like he didn’t know how he looked. I bet he got this sort of reaction from women and men everywhere he went.

I could feel him walking closely behind me, so close I could feel the heat of his body. I could feel a small shiver working its way up my spine, and I resisted the urge to turn around and look at him.

I was just as bad as the hostess, but hopefully, I was better at hiding it than she was.

We sat at a corner booth far away from the restaurant crowd, just the way I liked it. It wasn’t so crowded now, but I didn’t want to feel like we were on display with a middle table.

I smiled at the hostess, and Max waited until the hostess placed the booster in the inside booth before placing Hunter down on it and letting me take a seat next to Hunter. Max took the seat across from us.

Like this, I could almost imagine we were a small, happy family, out for a nice lunch.

I shook away the thought when the hostess placed the menus down and walked away, shooting one last glance at Max, who seemed to be oblivious to her.

His eyes were focused intently on me, and I fought against the urge to fidget in my seat.

I tuck a strand of red hair behind my ear. “What?”

Max shook his head. “Nothing. You’re beautiful.”

He said the last part so softly, I wasn’t even sure if I heard him correctly. But my cheeks felt hot, and I hated how my pale skin made my blush obvious.

Max cleared his throat, and I was saved from saying anything when our waitress came by the table, a gorgeous blonde with expressive blue eyes, long legs, and a flirtatious smile.

She was probably younger than me by a few years, and I tried not to feel self-conscious. Twenty-six was not by any means old, and though Hunter was my pride and joy and I would never give him up for anything in the world, there was something about being a young mom.

I missed out on a lot of my early twenties.

I couldn’t even remember a time when I tried to be flirtatious, much like how our waitress was with Max… even with me sitting at the same table.

“Good afternoon. My name is Lucy. What can I get started for you?” She looked a little longer at Max than necessary, and I tried not to let it show how much it bothered me.

I probably wasn’t successful, considering Max shot me a weird look from across the table. “Actually, we haven’t looked at the menu yet. Why don’t we start with drinks?”

Max directed the question at me and I nodded a bit.

We both ordered a sweet iced tea, and I got Hunter a strawberry lemonade.

“Coming right up,” Lucy said, and I looked down at the menu, feigning interest. The words blurred together in a confusing mess in front of me. I could feel the heat of his stare on me.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

I nodded. “Yes. Why wouldn’t I be?” I looked up and shot him a smile, trying to ignore the way my heart flipped-flopped at the sight of him.

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