20
JAX
Two weeks and a few secretive dates later—spent cooking together, watching movies, and exploring this new connection between us—we’re ready to check another item off her list.
"So what are we doing tonight?" Hailey asks, prancing into my house.
I'm mesmerized by her once again as I take her in her appearance, not just because she's wearing a skirt that shows off her trim waist and gorgeous legs, but because she'sglowingwith happiness.
“So… where are we going?” she asks, shaking me from my thoughts. Her grin is enormous, and she’s practically vibrating with excitement. “What’s on theFuck Steve Listtonight?”
“Uh, hookah bar,” I stammer, still lost in the spell of Hailey. “There’s a Moroccan restaurant in Old City that has a hookah bar inside, so I thought we could go out for some drinks and to hang out a little bit.”
If it’s possible, her face lights up even more. “I haven’t been to a hookah bar since high school.” Her expression fades a bit when a memory takes over. “I could never get Steve to understand that shisha wasn’t a drug. I think he thought of it as kind of a weed-type thing, since it makes you chill out and a little dizzy. Plus, any substance was always a huge no-no.” She rolls her eyes at the last part, all joy vanishing completely in the face of her anger at the idiot ex.
And I’m once again reminded that I’d love to beat the guy’s face in. For more reasons than I can count.
I step up to her and wrap an arm around her waist, lifting her slightly. I play with a strand of hair, once again sucked into her vortex, this time because of her delicious, womanly smell. Part of it is the hint of coconut that follows her everywhere, but the other part is just her personal, feminine essence—that’s tinged with the heat of her arousal now that she’s pressed against my body. As soon as she’s in my arms, her skin flushes and her breathing becomes erratic. My cock hardens instantly at the sight, and it takes all of my willpower to voice my thought instead of taking her to the floor right now.
“We should stop calling it theFuck SteveList,” I tell her, still absently running her hair through my fingers. Anything to take my focus off my anger for that shithead and my desperate need for Hailey. “You don’t need any more reminders. And even though the list was made because of him, we should move on from associating it with him. Why don’t we call it theCarpe Noctem Listinstead?”
Her brow furrows. “Seize the… night?”
I nod my confirmation.
She thinks about it for a second. When she finally answers, she looks like she’s come to a monumental decision. She gives me a stiff nod. “You’re right. I need to stop wasting energy on being mad at him; it’s just going to drain me.Carpe NoctemList, it is.” Her look of determination fades into a pleased grin. And when she pulls me down for a kiss, my heart practically melts at her taking back her life, one step at a time.
I swoop down to steal another kiss from her lips, smacking her ass once for good measure. “Good. Then let’s get out of here and go seize the night, baby girl.”
She doesn’t immediately turn to leave. She has a teasing glint in her eyes, and I swear I’m hard from just that look. I try to remember why I shouldn’t drag her upstairs with me right this second.
“Can I add something to the list for later?” she asks coyly. “I have something I’d like to seize too.”
And when her hand skates down my abs to grab my belt buckle, Ireallystart to have trouble remembering why that’s a bad idea.
I lean down to nip her neck. “Naughty,” I murmur in her ear. “I amthis closeto canceling this entire plan and instead spending the night between your legs.” I hear her moan and feel her hand slide even farther to cup me through my jeans.
The contact is enough to shake me out of my stupor. I pull away so I can look down at her and say, “But I really do want to take you out tonight.”
She looks lust-drunk, barely even registering my words. “Okay. Whatever you want to do.”
I frown.I don’t like the sound of that.
I pull her hand off of me and lift it up so I can kiss her knuckles. “Hailes,” I say gently, bringing her attention back to me. She looks up to meet my eyes. “I don’t want to do anything you don’t want to do. You’d tell me if you didn’t want to do something, right?”
“Of course,” she answers quickly. Maybetooquickly.
My eyes narrow slightly as I study her expression, trying to figure out if she’s lying. I’m not blind to the fact that Steve’s influence made her into the ultimate people-pleaser, and the last thing I want to do is watch her continue that with me.
She squirms under my attention. “I really do want to go tonight, I promise.”
I watch her for a moment longer before nodding and reaching for my coat. I grab my wallet and keys in one hand and Hailey’s hand in the other, and then we’re out the door.
Fifteen minutes later, we’re being seated inside the Moroccan restaurant. Althoughrestaurantmight be the wrong word for it—despite there being a menu for a seven-course traditional dinner—because it’s set up to feel like a Moroccan tent on the inside, with people being seated in lounge areas instead of actual tables. Colorful tapestries hang from the ceiling and on the walls, making it feel like we’re actually sitting inside a tent. Coupled with the couches and small round tables placed all over the tiny restaurant, and it really does give off a Moroccan vibe.
“This place is amazing,” Hailey breathes, looking awestruck. “I can’t believe I never knew this was here.” Before I even realize what she’s doing, she bounces into my lap to wrap her arms around my neck, then plants a big kiss on my lips. “Thank you for bringing me here,” she whispers. “I love it.”
I’m too surprised to do anything more than smile at her. It feels effortless to squeeze her to me and drop a playful kiss on her nose, at which she giggles and squirms out of my lap. I don’t let her go far, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and tucking her into my body.