Sadness touched her expression, furrowing her brows and leaving her lips perfectly downturned. “You’re talking to someone who’s had two semi-serious relationships and a lot of time alone in her life. There’s no orbit to be sucked into.”
Cupping her cheek, I ran my thumb over her bottom lip. “Beg to differ.”
In the candlelight of our booth, her eyes really did seem to shift from blue to green and back. I wondered if there were thoughts that triggered the change and how long it might take to figure it out. Realizing I wanted to was strange. That was how I knew that whatever magic Sugar held was real. She was putting sappy fucking thoughts in my head.
“I’m sorry to interrupt. Chef Thomas said that he’s handling your menu tonight. Are you ready for your first course?” Phillip, the waiter, seemed nervous and uncomfortable as he glanced at me for a split second. “It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Notaro. It’s my first week, but I’m really liking it.”
I grinned at him and nodded toward the kitchen. “Don’t let Thomas scare you off, Phillip. Unfortunately, the rumors about chefs being assholes are true.”
Phillip laughed before shooting a glance at the kitchen and gathering his composure. “Chef Thomas is not so bad. I couldn’t get hired in the kitchen, but I’m hoping to work under him eventually.”
“Yeah, he’s fully staffed, but let me look into it.” I felt around my pants, trying to find my wallet. “I don’t have a card on me right now, but let me give you my number. Shoot me a message tomorrow about what you’re interested in. No promises, but I’ll see if I can figure something out.”
“Are you kidding?” He ripped a sheet off his order pad and handed it to me with his pen. “That would be amazing!”
I scribbled my number down and gave it to him. “It’s hard to get into some kitchens around here at times. The only reason I didn’t have the same problem was because I was in the kitchens from the time I was old enough to reach the counters. Message me tomorrow. And tell Thomas that I’m going to start throwing shit soon if he doesn’t feed me.”
I watched as he hurried away, holding my number like it was a lifeline. Thinking about where I could put him in one of our kitchens, I turned back to Sugar to find her smiling at me.
She leaned over and pressed her lips to my cheek, lingering there just long enough to wipe every other thought from my brain. Pulling back, just enough to look me in the eye, she rested her hand on my chest and let out a little sigh. “Of course you’re kind, too. Because being hot and wealthy wasn’t enough. It’s unfair.”
I wrapped my arm around her waist to keep her close. “What’s unfair?”
“So many things. The first being that any single man got so many positive attributes. The second being that I managed to get entangled with three men who seem to want to prove that I’ll never find anyone as good ever again. The third being that I’ll never find anyone as good ever again.”
She smiled softly and ran her hand up to straighten my collar and then slipped it just inside my shirt. “The fourth? That despite whatever crap you say aboutmebeing a magnet, here I am, plastered against you. I’m not a weak woman. I can be downright stubborn at times. Yet, I seem to be pathetically unable to stay true to my own word around you.”
The sound of plates settling on the table in front of us spurred Sugar into moving away. She shot me a smile and then turned to look at the food.
Her reaction did nothing to soften the state of my dick. Her eyes widened and she licked her lips like a starved woman. Despite the fact that she’d just been that focused on me and lost interest as soon as food appeared, I couldn’t pretend like it didn’t turn me on to see how much she loved food.
I shifted and grunted as my dick mourned the loss of her attention. I figured he’d relax in no time, but then Sugar let out a moan that had me gripping the table. Watching her as she licked her spoon before digging into another plate, I had to bite my lip hard to keep from dragging her out of there.
“Oh my god.” Sugar met my eyes just as she moaned again. “Heaven. This is heaven.”
A jolt of jealousy struck me and I took her spoon from her. If she was going to be eating someone else’s food and getting off to it, I was going to be involved.
I picked up a piece of shrimp and offered it to her. Without missing a beat, she leaned in and opened her mouth. Her perfect teeth closed down near my fingers and her lips brushed over my fingertips as she took it from me. As another moan left her lips, her eyes fluttered closed and I nearly came at the table.
“What do you say to stepping outside between the first and second course?” The heat in my gaze must’ve made my thoughts clear to her. I was losing my mind with need and listening to her moan with every bite was going to kill me.
She held my gaze, and after a painfully long moment, she shook her head. Before I felt crushing disappointment, she leaned in close and brushed her lips over the shell of my ear. “I’m not leaving this table until I’ve tasted everything. Then, I’d like to step outside with you.”
27
***Holden***
Igrowledundermybreath and gripped her chin. “How is that even sexier? Fuck, woman.”
Whatever she was going to say was lost when I kissed her. I moved my hands to grip her head as I struggled to remember where we were. The smooth roundness of her pearls moved under my wrist as I pushed my tongue into her mouth and tasted her. Her tongue stroked mine in a slow dance and when her hand landed on my thigh, her fingertips brushed the engorged length of my dick and I swallowed another of her breathy moans.
I forced myself to pull away before I lost control. Taking deep, chest-shaking breaths, I squeezed my eyes shut and balled my hands into fists on top of my thighs. I was a grown man. Making out in public wasn’t something I would normally do. I needed to keep my head on straight.
Then, there was Sugar again, pressing her lips to my ear, her breathy voice sending chills straight to my cock. “Feed me. I want to taste you with each bite.”
My fist jerked and banged into the table, rattling the plates and silverware. Sugar buried her face against my shoulder, hiding from the mess she’d caused. I let out a strained laugh and tried to say something to excuse my noisiness, but I wasn’t sure I made any sense. I was fighting a losing battle.
Still, I white-knuckled it. I grabbed another piece of food, that I couldn’t even name because I was so far gone, and grunted at Sugar. I’d gone into caveman territory, but when she looked up at me and opened her mouth, I knew she wasn’t turned off by it.