He invites me to sit on the tailgate, helping me hop up. His legs are so long, all he has to do is lean to sit inside the hatchback. For several lengthy minutes, I nosh on the candy and my Schande almost melts away. There must be something magical in chocolate. I feel remarkably better.
Ignacio downs one of his green drinks and then takes a long, deep breath through his nose and lets it out through his lips, cleansing whatever bad mojo mucked up his day. I wonder what that must be.
“Better?”
He’s watching me expectantly, sharing more than a candy bar—he’s sharing a moment of camaraderie.
“Yeah, actually,” I say, smiling into his gloriously handsome face. “Thank you.”
Oy gevalt. His beauty is almost blinding. “Do you always keep chocolate bars in your little lunch box? For, you know, emergencies?”
He snorts. “No. I never eat sugar.”
“So you had a pretty bad day, too?” I ask.
He slides off the tailgate, wiping his palms on his thighs. “Shall we?”
It’s not lost on me how he’s completely dodging my question. Not that it’s any of my business, but he did just share his emergency candy bar.
He helps me down from the tailgate and closes the hatch. “Rosa will close your last two tables. You can wait in my office until the ex is gone.”
I’m a little disappointed our little tailgate party is over so soon, although I will admit to being surprised it happened in the first place. My grumpy boss does have his moments. And I am more than curious about his bad day—I find I’m a little concerned for him.
Then I see Aaron and Eyebrows walking through the parking lot.
“That won’t be necessary,” I say, jerking my head in Aaron’s direction.
I will not cry again.
Ignacio growls—he’s actually baring his teeth. Then he scoops my hand in his, drawing close enough that I can feel the heat of his body.
“Do you trust me?” he asks.
Gulp.
“You just fed me chocolate. Of course I do.”
“Good.” He gently but firmly pushes me until my back hits the SUV. The tips of his shoes tap against mine and he leans in extremely close, still holding onto my hand. “Is he looking this way?”
My eyes shift over Ignacio’s shoulder. Aaron’s steps have slowed almost to a stop and he’s definitely looking at us.
“Yes,” I say, shifting my gaze up at Ignacio’s ash-gray eyes. “He’s watching with great interest.”
Ignacio leans in closer, his nose a half-inch from mine, and his eyes dance over me.
“Play along with me,” he says, right before his lips fall onto mine.