Daniel’s surprised gaze shot to Story, who’d frozen and visibly paled underneath the bright hospital lighting. He watched closely as she hesitated, started to speak, then stopped. Flustered, she dug her phone out of her purse. “Oh, um. Sure. Okay.”
Daniel reluctantly keyed the number into his phone as Story read it off quietly, and filed it under “Never.” She refused to look at him as they left the room, but Daniel could practically feel the tension radiating from her. With the manufactured crisis averted, he finally took the chance to drink her in. Everything about her was soft and inviting, begging for his touch. She wore a pale-yellow T-shirt tucked into a lightweight floral skirt. Near her neck, a red string peeked out over the neck of her shirt.
Unable to stop himself, he reached over and toyed with it. “What’s this?”
“A bathing suit,” Story answered brusquely. “Hayden and I are road-tripping to the beach today.” Impatiently, she pushed her hair over her shoulder. “Do you want to come with us? I promise to make myself scarce.”
With considerable effort, Daniel hid a pleased smile. “You can’t really be jealous. You’re acting like I asked you for Hayden’s number. That was all Jack.”
“You didn’t hesitate taking it.” They breezed past the vending machine where they’d met. The first time they’d been in that spot, he’d been willing to do anything to get her alone, beneath him. Now, he was doing everything he could to keep his hands off. Give her time to view him as more than a rebound. Daniel wanted to laugh at the irony of it, but he was in too much pain for it to be funny. Story punched the button for the elevator. “There’s no need to wait until I leave New York to call her. Don’t let me cramp your style.”
They stepped into the empty elevator. Daniel stood in front of her, looking down into her upturned face. Damn if her irritated little pout wasn’t turning him on. But the last thing he wanted was her feeling insecure. Especially over him and another woman. That was the very thing he wanted to avoid. Daniel took her wrist, drew circles with his thumb on the delicate skin. “Do you honestly think I’d use it?”
She shrugged one shoulder. “I don’t—”
A hand shot out to stop the doors from rolling closed. When Nurse Helen poked her head in and smiled, Daniel wanted the ground to open up and swallow him. He edged closer to Story in the hopes that she would get the message. No dice. He’d obviously done something to offend the universe, and now it was making his life hell.
“Hi there,” she greeted him cheerfully, without a single glance in Story’s direction. “You haven’t used my number yet. What’s taking you so long?”
With a tight smile, Story answered for him. “He’s lousy with numbers at the moment. I’m sure he’ll get around to it.”
“I’ll be waiting,” Helen sang as the doors rolled closed.
…
Story stood in line at the crowded bakery, Daniel directly behind her, mentally berating herself for acting childish. She didn’t have any claim on Daniel, nor did she have the right to dictate whom he chose to date. The night he’d asked her to stay through the summer in New York, she’d told him she didn’t want him to change. And she’d meant it. Right? The alternative would be him seeing only her and she couldn’t possibly be ready for that kind of commitment so soon. It still didn’t make the idea of him with the cute nurse or Hayden any more tolerable.
On the uncomfortably silent walk to the bakery, she’d come to a startling realization. She was scared. Scared to even consider the option of staying in New York to see where things went with Daniel. Scared of her reaction to the very thought of him with someone else.
Fisher’s revelation that he’d met someone else hadn’t cut her as deeply, and she’d spent three years with the man. Her ex-fiancé hadn’t managed to shatter her heart, but his dishonesty had blasted her full of insecurities. Insecurities that would make it difficult to be with a man like Daniel. If she let herself slide down that slippery slope into a relationship, one that went beyond the physical, she would open herself up for a world of pain.
More customers piled into the already-jam-packed bakery, forcing her and Daniel closer together. Every inch of her body tingled with awareness as his chest made contact with her back. Obviously, her body vehemently disagreed with her brain’s decision to slow things down. She wanted him so badly, it felt like a constant ache that refused to dull. Her body didn’t care that he’d been with too many women to count, that they’d all benefited from his skillful touch. How he made her feel was all that mattered.
The only problem? She was starting to have a hard time separating the physical from the emotional. Somewhere along the line, he’d gotten to her. Bad. And right now, having him this close, she craved him like oxygen.
Involuntarily, her head tipped to the side to expose her neck to him, and a moment later she felt his breath there, warming her skin. Her eyelids fluttered. Goose bumps broke out along her bare arms. One of Daniel’s arms curled around her waist hesitantly, pulling her back against him when she didn’t protest. When his warmth cradled her completely, she sank back against him with a sigh. Daniel’s head dropped down onto her shoulder as if in relief.
“Sunshine,” he murmured near her neck. “I can’t see past you to anyone else. Please believe me.”
“It’s not a matter of me believing you. I’m just not ready,” she whispered shakily. “I like being with you. I want to spend time with you while I’m here. Can’t that be enough?” Daniel’s answer was cut off when they reached the front of the line. “Give us the healthiest thing you have, please,” she instructed the baker, making Daniel raise a questioning eyebrow. Story pursed her lips. “Oh, he’s not getting away with this.”
Daniel thankfully didn’t bring up their earlier conversation as they left the bakery. Wanting to ease the tension, she started to ask him about work but her phone rang, interrupting her. Her mother. She ignored the call and groaned upon seeing that her mother had called three times since this morning.
“I’m curious about your mother.” Daniel’s mouth quirked up at the side. “I can’t imagine Jack getting married. She must be one hell of a lady.”
Story smiled, relieved at the casual topic. “She is. I don’t remember much about them being married, though. I was so young.” She sent him a mischievous look. “Although I do remember the day my mother and I refer to as The Reckoning, if you’re looking for blackmail material.”
“Always.”
“I had a feeling.” Her laughter cut off when Daniel took her hand, then steered her off the street into a park. She looked at him questioningly.
Daniel shot a quick look at their joined hands and shrugged. “This is nice. Just a little longer, okay?”
Swallowing the lump in her throat, Story nodded. “It was a Monday. My mom always made French toast on Mondays, which is how I remember. Jack had forgotten their five-year wedding anniversary.” Her heart skipped when Daniel linked their fingers and squeezed. “My dad came home to find my mother outside, passing out his very rare, very expensive Cuban cigars to the entire neighborhood. The pool boy, mailman, and dog walker included…some of them had already started smoking them, including my mother. It was like a giant community smoke-out.”