“Ashley said you two were getting back together.” Savannah tipped her chin in Rhett’s direction.
“Ashley doesn’t know what she’s talking about.” If Rhett heard this, he’d think I said it. I didn’t know what was going on with us. We hadn’t even talked yet. “I never said that we were getting back together.”
A throat clearing came from behind me. I closed my eyes briefly and turned to face him. The look of hurt in Rhett’s eyes made my heart pinch, but it quickly disappeared.
Taking a step away from me, he said, “I have paperwork I need to do before the end of the day. I’ll be in my office. If anythingimportantcomes up, let me know.” He nodded at his sisters and walked in the back.
“Crap, sorry. We—” Hattie sounded genuinely apologetic while Savannah snickered.
“I gotta get back to my tables.” I walked away, wanting so badly to go to him and tell him how much I wanted what Ashley said to be true, but the embarrassment of the situation kept my gaze locked on the floor instead.
After the lunch rush was over and my tables were cleaned, I saw Rhett exit from the back hallway, moving through the dining room to the front doors. Was he leaving? I threw my towel down and maneuvered around the tables to get to him. We needed to talk. I didn’t think he saw me, but he picked up his pace and all but ran out to his car. He was gone by the time I pushed through the doors.
What the hell? Did he literally run away from me like I have the plague?
Miranda was right. Maybe talking wasn’t what we needed.
Chapter Seventeen
Rhett
The heat fromthe small fire warmed me as I sat watching the embers pop and slowly fall back down around the fire pit. I took another swig from my beer, slamming it down as I clenched my hands into fists, resisting the urge to head straight to my parents’ house and demand Bella tell me why she didn’t want us to get back together. We hadn’t talked yet. I got that, but I thought after yesterday that was where things were headed. This whole week had been riddled with so much shit that I still had to unpack. I rubbed the ache in my chest and closed my eyes. What I did know was that I wanted to be with Bella, and I had to make her understand that.
Fucking hell.
I couldn’t go back to the way things were, not after what happened between us. Not after how she responded to my touch, the way she offered herself to me in the truck. My heart raced, and the blood in my body coursed through my veins as I thought about her. I took another drink to extinguish the heat that now radiated from me.
A car door slamming pulled me from my thoughts. I opened my eyes to peer around the far corner of the cabin.Damn. Here she was, in front of me. My throat went dry when I took in the sight of her.
I ran a hand through my hair as her black stilettos appeared on the sidewalk, heading straight for me. I slowly trailed my gaze up from her long shapely legs to her hips in a short, tight black dress. It was like a second skin, taunting me with all her curves. Bella’s hair flowed down around her shoulders, falling over her breasts. Those luscious curls were always front and center in my fantasies. My dick grew hard as I drank her in.
I couldn’t tear my gaze away. Her eyes, though, almost brought me to my knees. The green in them blazed bright as she came closer and the light from the fire illuminated her face.
I shook my head, jolting myself back to the moment. “What are you doing here? Is everything okay?”
I set my beer down, but before I could stand, she wedged herself between my legs and placed her hands on my shoulders, pushing me back against the seat.
Straddling my lap, she positioned herself against my hard cock.
What the hell?
A woman on a mission. I stared intently into her eyes, searching. For what, I didn’t know. But I couldn’t do this and risk ruining everything.
A sigh that came out sounding a bit like a groan left me. My hands found her hips as I forced out the words I needed to say. “We should ta—”
She put a finger over my lips and shook her head. I tamped down the urge to pull her finger into my mouth.
Focus. I needed… noweneeded to lay it all out once and for all. Thenifwe were on the same page, I could fuck her senseless.
“Shh,” she hushed. “We’re done talking.Showme how you feel.”
Sometimes it unnerved me that it felt like she could read my mind. But when she bit her lip and a flash of vulnerability crossed her face, my resolve almost crumbled. My hands gripped her hips a little tighter, like I was afraid she was an image I’d conjured up.
“Please, Rhett. I need you.” She leaned forward, her hands moving into my hair, tugging slightly as she rocked against me. My hips bucked instinctively, causing a small moan to escape Bella’s mouth.
That’s all I could take. Fuck it. It had been a long time coming, and neither one of us could wait any longer. But she’d better be ready to be mine, because I wasn’t settling for just tonight.
My hand fisted into her soft curls, pulling her closer. The scent of her coconut shampoo hit me hard. I tugged gently, tilting her head as our lips collided, rough and desperate. A gentle stroke of my tongue deepened the kiss as it grew more urgent. My cock ached, and need coursed through my body as I struggled to take it slow.