She worried a lot about the pressure she felt to want children, but him taking her for granted had never crossed her mind. “No, I don’t. Where did that come from?”
“I don’t know. Katie asked if we’d gone on a real date yet and, when I said no, she said I should take you on a picnic or something to make you feel special, so you don’t think I’m taking you for granted.”
“I spent a lot of years with a guy who did take me for granted. Trust me, if I ever think you are, you won’t have to ask. You’ll know.”
“I’m making you cheap frozen burgers on my grill instead of taking you someplace decent.”
“I just want to spend time with you, Drew, and not in a car, even if it is the Mustang. I’d rather sit here and eat burgers. Besides, this is kind of a landmark date. It’s the first time you’ve had me over to your place.”
“I didn’t know if it would bother you being here. You know, because it was Mallory’s house.” He pulled a knife out of a drawer and sliced the plastic wrapper on the beef. “I bought her out, though, so it’s all my house now, but still...I didn’t know if you’d be uncomfortable.”
“It’s just a house. And it’s your house, so I’m comfortable.” When he rewarded her with a warm smile, she grinned. “It needs some fun, though. I could lend you some of my pool chairs.”
He grimaced. “They’re a little bright for my taste. And inflatable. When it gets cold enough to have a fire in the fireplace, they could melt. Come outside while I fire up the grill.”
Liz followed him out the back door, to a small patio area. There were a couple of chairs and she curled up in one to watch him work.
*
It did something to Drew, listening to Liz chatter about her day at the diner while he grilled the burgers. They had dinner together a lot, but it was different tonight because she was in his house.
They’d had their share of domestic bliss recently, making dinner and cleaning up together before settling in to talk or watch television. But this was the first time here, where he spent so much time imagining the future he wanted them to have. Even as he recognized it might be a small step in that direction, he had to tamp down on the desire to rush it—and her—toward making that dream come true.
When the burgers were done, they went inside to eat because the mosquitoes had realized there were humans outside and called in reinforcements. After pulling a bag of potato chips out of the cabinet to round out the romantic meal, they sat at the bar and ate.
“We should do this more often,” Liz said after she’d pushed her empty plate away. “You made a good burger.”
“Now my secret’s out. I should have pretended helplessness to keep your expectations low.”
Her laugh was low and sexy, echoing through his barren house and somehow seeming to fill it. “I’m not that easy to fool.”
Since he was done, he shoved the paper plates in the trash and the chips back in the cabinet. Cleanup complete. “You want to see the rest of the house?”
A smile played at the corners of her mouth, and he knew he wasn’t as subtle as he thought. “Sure.”
After leading her up the stairs, he realized his come-on line wasn’t the best idea. He didn’t want to show her the smaller two bedrooms at the top of the stairs—the ones that were supposed to be for the family he didn’t have. One had been made into a home office he almost never used. The other Mallory had used as a craft room and now it sat totally empty.
Instead he led her straight to the master bedroom, but she didn’t seem to mind. He watched her look around the room, with the solid maple dresser and the king-size bed covered in plain blue linens. He wasn’t much for decorating and had simply grabbed the first bed-in-a-bag set in a man’s color. But at least he was good about picking up after himself and the room was neat.
“Bed looks comfy,” she said, backing toward it with a come-hither look.
“Feel free to try it out. The sheets are really soft, too, so you might want to ditch the clothes to get the full experience.”
Laughing, she yanked her shirt over her head and then grabbed his hand to pull him close. “Now we know why you went into law enforcement instead of real estate.”
They got naked in a hurry, but he made love to her slowly, every touch and every kiss lingering as he explored her body. Having her in his bed triggered some primal desire in him and he wanted it to last as long as possible.
“You’re killing me,” she said, panting after the second orgasm he coaxed out of her.
He kissed her, his hand sliding between her thighs to see if he could get a third, but she had other ideas. She pushed at his shoulders, rolling him to his back and going with him. Once she was straddling him, she grinned.
“Enough playing around.”
He reached under his pillow for the condom he’d snuck there while they were undressing, and put it on. “You in a hurry?”