Bare Skin (Skin Deep 5)

Chapter 6

Dani

I leaned against the side of the restaurant, cursing myself. What the fuck was wrong with me? It’s not like he’d even said anything wrong, done anything to piss me off, but I couldn’t help it. I’d fought so hard to keep my guard up all my life that it was absolutely terrifying to think that I could let it slip.

Especially with him.

Even worse? How fucking easy it was to do with him.

I sighed and make a quick call to Cara to check in with Kaden. Not that I needed to; we’d only been gone barely forty-five minutes so far, but at least this way I wasn’t making myself out to be a liar, too.

Nope, just a crazy broad who likes to bitch-face people out of the blue for no reason.

I headed back inside, half-embarrassed to face him, but he only gave me a soft smile as I sat down. The waiter appeared right then with our food, forestalling my apology, and I was pleasantly surprised to learn that he wasn’t just a waiter.

“You’ve outdone yourself, as usual, Manny,” Calland said to the man.

Manny laughed and bowed with a flourish. “Of course you say that, Calland. You just want me to send my wife out here so you can try to steal her away, you cad!”

Calland grinned at the man and winked, but he didn’t deny anything, like I thought he would.

“Manny, you know it doesn’t matter what I offer her, she’s never going to leave you for me. She knows which side her bread is buttered on!”

Manny grinned and chortled, bowing once more as he entreated us to eat and enjoy before he walked off, his hearty frame still shaking with laughter.

“Come here often?” I asked Calland, smiling easily. There was no way in hell the tension still remained after that, so I guess that was a good thing.

He nodded, still grinning. “My family has come here for years, and Manny always makes sure that he and Maria, his wife, come out and greet us at least, if they don’t bring us the food themselves. They’re good people.”

“He’s the owner, I take it? The Manny?”

“Yup. The one and only. Now eat before it gets cold. Trust me, you’ll thank me for it,” he said without a trace of smugness.

One bite and I knew why. It was like heaven in my mouth. There was hardly any conversation as we both ate, both of us too busy shoveling food in like it was going out of style. Okay, so I guess it wasn’t that bad, but seriously; we said maybe five words the entire time we were eating.

“Oh, my God!” I groaned, letting my fork drop to my plate with a loud clink. “I can’t! No more!”

Calland glanced up from his plate with a chuckle. “Damn, you managed to eat almost half of it…I’m impressed!” he said with a wink. He looked down at his almost empty plate and made a show of scooping up the last bite of his marsala, moaning exaggeratedly as he chewed.

When he was done, he looked over at my plate and asked, “You gonna eat that?”

I snatched my plate off the table and almost growled at him. “Yes! Maybe not right now, but I’m sure as hell taking it back to the hotel with me and eating it later. Back off, Bucko!”

He raised his hands in surrender, his eyes dancing with amusement. “So, you liked it, huh?”

“Does a bear shit in the woods?” I quipped, shooting a wink of my own at him.

“You sound like my mom. I suppose that’s a yes,” he said, laughing. “Good. I’m glad. Want some dessert? My sister loves the Black Tie Mousse Cake here.”

I shook my head, my hand automatically going to my stomach in a protective gesture. “No, thank you. I think I’ll explode if I eat another bite! Maybe next time?”

He tipped his head and stared at me, his expression contemplative. “Will there be a next time?” he asked, softly.

I shrugged one shoulder helplessly before giving a small nod, knowing that I wouldn’t say no to him anymore. Not as long as I was here…however long that would be.

Shortly after, we’d made our way back out to his car, but before we got in, he turned to me and asked, “Wanna take a walk? There’s a park about half a block down. I know it’s still pretty cold outside since it’s not quite spring yet, but-”

“Sure,” I interrupted him. He took my leftovers from me and stowed them in the car, then took my hand and held it tightly in his as we turned out of the parking lot and moved down the sidewalk, softly illuminated by the street lights.

It wasn’t long before we entered the park, the pathway lit intermittently by old-fashioned looking lamps. We walked in silence, our hands clasped between us, and it felt nice. Right. And a little scary.

I broke the silence first. “I’m sorry. You know, for earlier when I walked out on you.”

I kept my head turned away from him, still feeling ashamed for how I acted.

“Don’t. It’s okay, Dani.”

I stopped walking and turned to him, tipping my head back to stare at his face. “I’m being serious, though. I shouldn’t have acted like a bitch. And I did it for no reason, which is something I find myself doing a lot with you-”

He stopped me with a finger on my lips. “Don’t worry about it. We’re good, I promise. I understand.”

I could see his eyes searching my face. For what, I don’t know, but my breath caught when his hand came up and cupped my cheek, his thumb gently caressing my skin.

“You’re so beautiful,” he whispered.

I automatically shook my head, the reaction completely knee-jerk, but he stopped me.

“You are, Dani. Inside and out. No, I don’t really know you, like you said earlier. Yet. But I will know you. All of you. That’s a promise.”

I gasped at his words, at the feelings rippling through me as he said them, and then gasped again as his head descended and his lips covered mine.

I made a low mew in the back of my throat unwittingly, but I didn’t turn away. I couldn’t. In fact, I crushed my lips to his even harder, taking the kiss deeper immediately. His tongue slipped along my lips and I opened for him, touching it with mine, my hands sliding almost frantically up Calland’s chest to lock behind his head, pulling him almost desperately against me.

He met me move for move, his hands slipping down to my hips and lifting me effortlessly so that my legs wrapped around his waist, locking us together as closely as we could get while still dressed and standing.

It lasted for a moment, our mouths feverishly working against each other’s until he broke the kiss on a sigh. I leaned my head against his shoulder, both of us trying in vain to catch our breath.

“Dani…” he breathed, his hands shifting to squeeze me closer for a brief second before he slid me back down his body. I dropped my legs and stood, trying to distance myself both physically and emotionally from him, but he wouldn’t have it.

“Listen,” he said, sharply, grabbing for me. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have kissed you.”

I let out a curt laugh, his words leaving me feeling like I’d been doused with ice cold water.

He pulled me closer once more, his hand lifting my face so he could look into my eyes. “Don’t do that. Don’t read more into that then there needs to be. I only stopped because I know you’re not ready for this. And neither am I. I’m trying not to run you off, here. Nothing more.”

I nodded, letting myself fall against him again, letting him wrap me back up in his arms. He just held me tightly, slowly swaying, both of us content in the moment, in letting everything in our lives just fade into the background for just a brief second.

But reality intruded all too soon when my cell phone chimed in my purse. I pulled it out and checked to see that Cara had texted.

“Problem?” Calland asked, concern evident in his eyes.