Her Way (6 page)

“Sure.”

“Do you have plans tomorrow?”

“Furniture shopping. The girls are planning a housewarming party next weekend and I figured I should have something other than bedroom furniture and a mismatched kitchen set.”

“Good idea.” Though, really, he thought she had the essentials. Somewhere to eat and a bed. Yeah, the bed—he couldn’t think of any other piece of furniture he’d rather see her on. “Your friends going with?”

“Nope, just me. “

“Is that how you want it, or do you want some company?”

“Depends on the company. You offering?” she asked quietly.

“Yes, ma’am.”

“I’d love company. Do you want to do dinner after? Something you don’t have to cook yourself?”

“Are you gonna cook for me, sweetheart?” he drawled.

“I believe we’ve discussed my culinary skills—the nonexistent ones. I meant we could go out.”

“I know. I’d love to. Should I pick you up?”

“Do you have to work at all?”

“Early in the day, but I’ll be done by one, one-thirty. I can pick you up at two-thirty. Plenty of shopping and eating time.”

“Sounds good to me. Though if it’s too much trouble, I can meet you somewhere,” she offered.

“No trouble at all. You get some sleep, now.”

“Okay, thanks for calling.”

“I enjoyed it. Sleep well.”

“You too.”

“Night, Emma.”

“Night, Will,” she said sleepily before hanging up the phone.

Will sat there, in the dark, for several minutes. The feelings he had for a woman he barely knew were odd and overwhelming. He wanted her, no doubt about that. His body vibrated with it since he’d seen her staring at him from across the bar. But it was more than that. How much more? Hell if he knew. But he was certain finding out was going to be interesting. Very interesting.

Chapter Four

Emma stood before the mirror, head tilted to the side. Khakis and a green billowy blouse—surely that was good enough for furniture shopping and a bite to eat. Wasn’t it?

She glanced at the clock and grimaced. No time to change now. Will would be there any minute.

With a shrug, she turned and headed downstairs. She had just slipped her shoes on when her cell phone rang. The sound had questions swimming in her head as she grabbed her purse and pulled out the phone. Was it Will? Did he have to work later? Did he change his mind completely? God, what the hell did a guy like
him
see in
her
?

She glanced at the caller ID and relaxed instantly when she saw Lynn’s name on the display.

“Hello?”

“Hey. I want you to call me as soon as you get home. I mean it, girl.”

Emma laughed “Even if it’s late?” Though she highly doubted it would be.

“I don’t care what time it is. The only way you are excused is if Will Calonen is making your toes curl and bringing you to orgasm again and again. Got it?”

“Yeah, I got it.” The doorbell rang. Her stomach suddenly clenched—from nervousness, anticipation. “He’s here.” She winced at her wobbly voice. “Oh Lynn—”

“Emma, calm down. Take a deep breath. Will likes you. Just as you are. Just be yourself. Can’t go wrong with that.”

Emma snorted. Being herself—not the greatest way to secure a hottie hot guy like Will. She was convinced of that.

“Open the door, Emma,” Lynn directed her.

She walked over and opened the door. There he was, looking hot and relaxed in jeans and a black T-shirt. She slid her gaze from the top of his head—his damp hair curling slightly—down to his toes and back up again. Admittedly lingering in a few choice places. And there was the
twitch, twitch, twitch
of her clit. Oh God.

“Say, ‘hi, Will’,” Lynn said with a laugh.

“Hi, Will.”

He grinned at her. “Hi. Almost ready?”

“Say, ‘bye, Lynn’. And remember to call me.”

“Bye, Lynn.” She pressed end and slipped the phone in her purse. “Ready.”

Will waited until she closed and locked the door to grasp her hand.

“Doing okay?” he questioned.

“I’m good. You?”

“Better now.” He opened the passenger door and, without asking, grasped her waist. As he lifted her into the truck, he slid his lips across her cheek. Tingles ran through her body—from his lips, his hands. Emma sucked a breath in at the sensation. She turned in the seat and studied him.

“I’m not drunk, Will. I could’ve gotten in myself.”

He winked at her. “I know.”

She bit back a smile as he shut the door and rounded the front of the truck. Her stomach fluttered, and she forced her breathing to even.

“So, where do you want to go shopping? Fancy place or the furniture warehouse?”

“Oh, they probably have good bargains at the warehouse. Let’s go there.”

“You’re a bargain shopper?” Laughter tinged his voice.

“Oh yeah. Drives Ana nuts. She says I have money—I should spend it. But I don’t see the point in spending thousands of dollars on clothes, let alone furniture that looks like crap. Give me something comfortable at a decent price and I’m happy. That goes for clothes and furniture.”

“So the housewarming—are they planning a small party or a big one?”

“I’m sure it’ll be bigger than what I’d plan. Then again, I’d probably just invite them.” She looked at him out of the corner of her eye. “And you.”

A smile curved his lips and he reached over, covering her knee with his hand. “Good to know I’m on the A-list.”

Silence reigned in the cab of the truck as he drove the rest of the way to the furniture store. Emma was acutely aware of Will’s hand on her leg. He moved it up and down the length of her thigh slowly. A simple touch—coming nowhere near the twitching area—but it was sexy as hell and stole her breath. If he could make her respond by doing so little, what would it be like when they made it to bed? She closed her eyes.
Getting a little ahead of yourself, aren’t you, Emma girl?
They hadn’t even been on a date yet. Though this might technically count as one. And she’d had the sexy man in her bed the other night. Though all she had managed to do was fall asleep and probably drool on him. She shook the thoughts from her head. Obsessing over it wouldn’t make any difference.
Just relax and enjoy being with him.

He pulled into parking lot adjacent to the large furniture outlet store and turned the truck off. As he got out and walked around, Emma grabbed her purse and pushed the door open. He stepped up and put his hands on her waist again. With a smile, he lifted her out of the truck, sliding her body down his as he put her on her feet.

“Ohhh,” she drew the syllable out a moment, feeling like a complete idiot though Will grinned down at her.

He leaned down and pressed his mouth to hers. Sliding his tongue along the seam of her lips, he silently asked entrance. She ran her hands up his chest and around to rest behind his neck and opened to him. His taste, the feel of his lips and tongue, and the heat of his hands as they ran down to her hips and around to cup her ass consumed her senses. Every lucid thought flew from her brain and all her focus was on him.

He pulled away and lifted his hand to brush her hair back from her face, cupping her cheek. He just looked at her a moment, rubbing his thumb over her mouth. “Ready to go find you some furniture?”

“Mm hmmmm,” she murmured then let her arms fall to her sides.

Grabbing her hand, he pulled her toward the store and shut the truck door behind them. Emma bit her lip and tried to focus on the task at hand.
Stop the twitching, damn it,
she silently directed between her legs.
So not helping the situation right now.

For a while, they walked through the large store quietly, hand in hand. Emma stopped a couple of times to examine dining room sets. She had no clue what to look for. A large one? Small one? Who the hell knew?

“What do you think?” she asked Will, gesturing to a large wooden set.

“Well, will you be entertaining a lot?” He knelt down and looked over the chairs and legs of the table.

“If you count the girls, yeah. I don’t know how often I’ll be giving dinner parties or anything, but I guess I should be on the safe side, huh?”

He stood and pushed on the surface a few times. “It’s sturdy enough.”

She laughed. “All it has to do is hold a few dishes. Do I need something super-sturdy?”

He turned and caught her gaze, eyebrow lifted. “You’d be surprised.”

Her mouth dropped open as he moved on and examined another table farther on. Just what did he have in mind for the table? Images flowed through her mind—all involving
nekkid
loving and the “sturdy” table. Her cheeks heated as she followed behind him.

They continued shopping, choosing a smaller table and chairs for her kitchen, desk and chair for the smaller bedroom designated to be her office, and finally ending up in the area with what seemed to be endless choices of living rooms sets.

“So what will it be, sweetheart? Leather? Floral? Solid?” He flopped down on a leather sofa, arm stretched across the back.

She sat beside him and he dropped his arm and pulled her close.

“I don’t know. Leather looks nice, but I don’t want to be sticking to it. Not that I’ll be sitting around naked or anything…but you know in the summer…in shorts.” She rolled her eyes. “I think we’ll skip the leather.”

He laughed. “Gotcha.”

Standing, he grabbed her hands and pulled her to her feet. They wove their way through the displays. When she saw the chocolate colored sofa and loveseat set, she rushed forward. Sinking into the large cushions of the loveseat, she sighed.

“I think this is it. It’s comfy and the sofa is long enough to really stretch out on. Even for you.” As soon as the words were out of her mouth, she could’ve kicked herself. She was pushing it. Moving too fast, right? Assuming the man would be hanging out at her house.

Will went over to the sofa and stretched out on it, looking at her. The intensity of his stare had her squirming. He lifted a hand and crooked his finger, beckoning her over.

Holding his gaze, Emma stood and crossed over to him. She knelt down next to him and savored the feel of his hand as he slid it around her waist.

“You inviting me to lounge at your house, sweetheart?” He kept his voice low, the deep rumble skittering over her nerve endings.

“I guess I am. If you want to.” She put a hand on his abs and ran it up to rest on his chest.

“Are you going to be lounging with me?” He ran his gaze down her body and back to her eyes.

“Yeah, I think I will be,” she whispered.

He lifted his other hand to her head and pulled her down to kiss her. Another simple kiss. And one helluva complicated reaction. Her hand trembled on his chest, her stomach clenched, and she squeezed her thighs together as heat coursed through her.

“We’re in the middle of a furniture store,” she whispered against his lips.

“Yeah. Not the ideal place.” He released her and they both stood. “Let’s go take care of your order and go get some food. You hungry?”

“Yeah, very.”

She talked with the sales associate, gave him her credit card and arranged for delivery.

“Ready to go?” Emma turned to Will when she was done.

“Did you get everything you needed?”

“I think so. I’m not bothering with guest rooms or anything. I do need to get a TV and electronics to fill the entertainment center I just bought, but that’ll wait.” She laughed.

“We can stop for that after dinner if you want,” he offered as they left.

“We’ll see. Food, first.”

* * * *

Will pulled the truck into Emma’s driveway, cut the engine and turned in his seat to glance at her. She stared at him, a slight smile curving her lips. Need slammed through him—not for the first time that day. Hell, he’d been at least semi-hard since he’d met her. His fierce reaction to her baffled him. Sure, he’d wanted women before, desired them, but this was different somehow. Most of the time, after he’d spent a considerable time with a woman—no matter how hot or how likeable—he was ready for his own space. But now, even after shopping and dinner, he didn’t want to leave her. Not in the least. Though if she knew the intensity of his thoughts, Emma would probably balk.

“I had a great time, Will.” Her voice was soft, slightly raspy. “I suppose I should get my things and let you get going.”

It pleased him to hear the reluctance in her words.

“Um…unless you want to come in for a bit? I don’t have much in the way of drinks—just some soft drinks and a few beers,” she offered apologetically.

“Why don’t you go unlock the house and grab a couple of cold ones. I’ll unload this stuff.”

“Oh, you don’t have to carry all of that,” she protested.

“Eh, it’s not much. Just make sure a cold beer is waiting for me when I’m done.” He winked at her before opening the door and sliding out. She already had her door open by the time he rounded the front of the vehicle. One of her small hands braced against his chest as he grasped her waist and lifted her out of the truck. He didn’t release her when her feet hit the ground, rather his fingers stayed tight around her middle. She looked up at him, eyes wide. Her hand slid up to rest on his shoulder.