“Actually, today.” Dropping his hands, he motioned to the clock.
“When are you coming back?”
“I don’t know. It’s a government contract. I could be back in one week or it could take six.”
“Oh.” She nodded, looking dazed.
His body was still screaming for him to kiss her. To pull her into his arms and crush her mouth to his. But if he’d been worried before about abandoning her, after hearing what he had heard tonight he sure as hell wasn’t going to be the guy that took her to bed and then disappeared. Even if it was for work.
There was nothing he wanted more than to stay here all night and just talk and get to know her better. But, he had a feeling that would be playing with fire. He didn’t trust himself not to do something that he shouldn’t.
He needed to leave.
“Do you want to go to dinner?”
“Now?”
“No. When I get back in town. The first night that I’m back.” It was killing him knowing that he needed to walk out that door and it could be weeks before he saw her again, but this was too special, too precious to mess up. He needed to do this right. She deserved that and so much more.
“Oh.” Confusion clouded her pretty features and she hesitated before answering, “Um, okay.”
“Give me your phone.”
Slowly, she pulled it out of her pocket and handed it to him. He sent himself a text. “Okay, now you have my number. I’ll call when I can, and if you need me, leave a message and I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.”
She still looked bewildered. He wanted to claim her mouth with his and kiss any doubt, any confusion away but he was sure that would lead to other things. Instead he leaned forward and pressed his mouth to her forehead for an all-too-brief peck.
Then using every ounce of self-control he had and some he didn’t, he stood and left. When he stepped into the crisp night air and shut the door behind him, for the first time in his life he felt like he was leaving home. Which meant for the first time in his life he could look forward to coming home again.