Night Heat (Forged of Steele 2)

The young woman nodded. She then turned her complete attention to Bas. Jocelyn couldn’t help noticing that the waitress had undone the top button of her uniform and was now showing a lot of cleavage. And it was plain to see she was wearing a push-up bra.

“And what will you have?” the waitress asked Bas, all but purring the words.

Jocelyn had always thought that jealousy was a complete waste of time and energy, but watching the woman in action was almost too much. She glanced over at Bas while he gave his order. He either didn’t see how the waitress was coming on to him or he was choosing to ignore it.

Feeling a little agitated, Jocelyn was about to excuse herself to go to the ladies’ room when Bas reached over, squeezed her hand and said, after looking at the waitress’s name tag, “And if you don’t mind, Stacy, my fiancée and I would like to be served as soon as the cook can get it ready. We’re in a hurry to get home.”

Jocelyn saw the disappointment in the woman’s eyes before she nodded and left. Jocelyn shook her head and slowly pulled her hand from Bas’s. She didn’t want to think how good his hand felt encompassing hers.

“That woman had some nerve coming on to you that way with me sitting here. For all she knew I could have been your wife.”

Bas smiled. “She probably thought you weren’t since you aren’t wearing a ring.”

Jocelyn frowned. “That shouldn’t mean anything. The mere fact that I’m here with you should have garnered respect.”

“Yes, it should have.”

“You should not have had to pretend anything was going on between us.”

“No, I should not have.”

Jocelyn glared. The way he was agreeing with everything she said irked her. “I’m not amused, Bas.”

His expression turned genuinely serious. “Neither am I, Jocelyn. We can always leave if she offended you. And if you want to stay we can request another waitress.”

She shook her head. Another waitress would only drool like the last one had. In the woman’s defense, though, she had to admit that cleft in Bas’s chin was patently masculine and completed the total sexy package. Not that she’d say it aloud. “No, I’m fine. It just bothers me how brazen some women are. I would never be that bold.”

And a part of Bas appreciated that she wouldn’t. He couldn’t imagine Jocelyn ever handling herself inappropriately. However, on the other hand, she could put you in your place if she felt the need.

“I think you’re going to enjoy your baked chicken,” she said a few minutes later.

Bas glanced over at the table next to theirs where a man had ordered fried chicken and seemed to be enjoying it. Bas felt his stomach whine. Sighing deeply, he said, “I really hope so.”

Bas had to admit his food was delicious. He had been careful while ordering to stay away from the items on the menu that Kylie had told him were a nono. He couldn’t help but smile, thinking about how his sister-in-law had encased herself in his and his brothers’ lives.

Once she had found out that he needed to make a change in his eating habits, she had taken it upon herself to educate him on the proper food choices. It was a good thing he was here in Newton Grove. Had he remained in Charlotte he would be starving on some strict menu Kylie thought best for him.

“You’re smiling. Does that mean you think the food tastes good?” Jocelyn asked.

He glanced up and the smile on his lips widened. “Yes, it tastes good, but that’s not why I’m smiling. I was thinking about my sister-in-law.”

“Your sister-in-law?”

“Yes. Kylie,” he said, tossing his napkin down and leaning back in his chair. “She’s a very nice person and the best thing to ever happen to my brother in a long time. They’ve only been married eight months.”

“Which brother is this? You mentioned you had three.” From Bas’s smile Jocelyn could tell that he and his brothers shared a close relationship.

“Kylie’s married to Chance, the oldest at thirty-seven. Then there are Morgan and Donovan. Chance is the only one of us who’s ever been married. He was a widower for seven years and has a sixteen-year-old son named Marcus.”