Tell Me You Want Me (Search and Seduce 2)

And she didn’t mind that the seats in his truck were dusty, or that the engine rumbled too loudly when he threw it into second gear. She smiled and hummed to the music and…hung out with him. Like it was the easiest damn thing in the world to just be around him. And he liked that idea. A lot.

But this wasn’t about hanging out. This was about him getting recertified and her getting those lists she liked so much checked off. He had a way to accomplish both today. He just had to take care of his mama first, then the fun would start again. Because that’s what this was, what he offered, what he was good for: fun. Nothing more. And they both knew it.

He wouldn’t think too much about how, between the frozen food section and the yogurt, she’d stolen a little kiss that left his chest pounding. He wouldn’t delude himself into thinking she wanted to spend time with him. Beyond the training, beyond the sex. They needed certain things from each other, and once those needs were satisfied, this was over. He’d gotten caught up in a high-class woman before. He wouldn’t make that mistake again.

When he turned down the dusty road to his mama’s trailer, nervousness set in. It was the first time he’d ever brought a woman over to his mother’s place. Michelle didn’t look horrified when they pulled up or even taken aback. She just looked at him and smiled.

Would she still be fine with this when she actually met his mom?

He killed the engine. “You’re in a good mood today.”

“You know, I really am. Who thought that starting the day off with an orgasm would be life changing?”

“Ah, if memory serves, it was two orgasms.”

She smiled and blushed. Oh yeah, he’d gotten her there twice in the shower. A wave of pride came over him, and he gave himself a mental high five.

But the way she looked at him made him think it was more than the sex. Like she’d actually enjoyed her time with him, not just his body.

It’s not! Stop thinking that way now, asshole.

He’d been internally yelling at himself all morning.

He hopped out of the truck and rounded it to open her door.

He helped her out and grabbed the grocery bag of things and the prescription his mama needed.

He didn’t make it three steps before his mother was coming through the front door welcoming him.

“There you are,” she said with a smile and hugged him. The grocery bag crinkled between his chest and his mother as she squeezed tight. She noticed Michelle right away and looked her over. “Well hello, dear.”

“Good afternoon, I’m Michelle. So nice to meet you.” Michelle was all manners and even shook his mother’s hand. Of course, his mama shot him a warning look that hopefully Michelle didn’t see, because he knew what his mom was thinking.

Her son was getting involved with another upper-class, high-maintenance woman, and clearly his mother was wary. But she was a kind woman. For the most part. He just hoped today she’d be kind enough not to say anything that hurt Michelle.

“My goodness, look at you,” Mama said, looking over Michelle. She was sweet, but he knew his mother well. She was analyzing. And Michelle seemed to know it, too, because she squirmed a little under his mother’s insistent scrutiny. Dex had to clear his throat to make the silent judgment stop.

“Well, I wasn’t expecting you to bring company,” his mother said to him, then looked back at Michelle. “But would you like some sweet tea?”

“I’m okay, but thank you for the offer,” Michelle said.

He saw his mother’s small glare and knew what was going through her mind. How dare a city girl turn down southern hospitality? But Michelle wasn’t being rude. She simply didn’t like sweet tea, and unfortunately she didn’t know his mother expected you to drink it whether you liked it or not. Even turning down the tea, Michelle was perfectly polite, perfectly pleasant, and it was that perfection that his mama was zeroing in on.

And her looks could kill.

“So you said the door was broken?” Dex asked, trying again to break his mother’s silent judgment of Michelle.

“Yeah.” She pointed to the entrance of her trailer. “The outer screen one isn’t shutting tight. Those pesky mosquitos keep coming in and eating me alive.”

“Let me put these down in the kitchen, and then I’ll take a look at the screen door,” he said.

“Thank you, son.”

Dex headed inside, and his mother stayed out in the front talking with Michelle. He couldn’t really hear what they said, so he put the groceries away quickly and started to look at the door. The sooner he finished and got Michelle out of there, the better. Because a heaviness was settling in his chest like wet cement. A heaviness that felt like…reality.

He knew what this

was, what Michelle and him were. They were nothing. They were a one night at a time kind of good time. That’s it. Well, more like he was her good time and she was his trainee. But still. He knew she was wrong for him, and he was way wrong for her. But seeing his mother’s expression made that fact sting a bit more.