And he wanted more. Wanted to know her more. Wanted her to finish all the things she’d ever stopped herself from telling him. Wanted to hear her mind when she spoke and watch her eyes when she laughed. He just wanted…more.

“Ever think about adding ice cream to the menu at your restaurant?” he asked.

She smiled and took another lick of her cone. “Are you kidding? I could never beat the creamery.” She moaned around another long lick of the ice cream, and the sight of her tongue made Gage’s cock take notice. But he stuck to his mission. Getting to spend time with her outside of bed. If this worked, it would be all the more satisfying when they fully gave in to their desire.

“Besides,” she finished, “Natalie would kill me if I had a direct dessert competition.”

He nodded. Time to push just a little bit. “So it’s safe to say that the dish you’re trying to make for the anniversary isn’t a sweet one?”

Her stride slowed and she glanced at the ground. Gage knew that look. Like if she could turn her vanilla cone into chocolate right now, she just might. But when she looked at him, there was a different light sparkling behind her eyes. Like she…trusted him. At least wanted to see if she could.

“I’m trying to make crab cakes. My mother’s epic, amazing, can’t-be-replicated-ever crab cakes.”

“I see,” he said. And he wanted to help. Because of all the times he’d seen Chloe, he’d never seen something be so important to her. “There are only so many ingredients in crab cakes. Did your mom get creative and use a difficult recipe?”

“No,” she said calmly. “That’s just it. It’s not putting them together that’s hard, it’s how she cooked them. The ingredients I can handle, well…for the most part. But no matter what I do, I can’t cook them right. It’s really annoying.”

She huffed and took another lick of her cone. But she kept holding his hand. Kept talking to him. And damn, Gage wanted to keep that rhythm going. She was opening up. Trusting him with more.

“I always end up burning them. Even when I turn the stove down.” She shook her head. “I swear the stove just hates me. It’s secretly a robot out to destroy anything I bring near it.”

“That’s a valid hypothesis,” he said.

She laughed and nudged him. “Yeah, evil robot stove is way more plausible than me not being able to boil water.”

“Surely you can boil water…” he said with a wink. “Just don’t go too crazy and put an egg in it or anything.”

“Oh God no!” she teased. “My luck, the damn egg would turn into a chicken, flip me off, and fly out of the pot.”

“Now you sound magical.”

“Not in the kitchen, I’m afraid. Which is hard, because my mom was so good in there. Like second nature. I can still remember how it smelled with her in it. Like she could create anything. There was always this smell of…love.” She didn’t make a sound, but her grip on his hand tightened, and Gage waited a breath and silently begged for her to continue. Finally, she said, “Sounds stupid, doesn’t it? The smell of love.”

“Not at all,” Gage said. “It’s how you know her. How you remember her. It’s comforting.”

She stared at him. “It really is. The clicking sound right before the burner lights or the soft sway of a kettle before it whistles are like triggers. For a second, I can almost see her. Forget that she’s gone. And it’s in that tiny moment, I have her back.”

Gage squeezed her hand. “It’s like she’s still with you.”

The corner of her mouth trembled. Just barely, but he couldn’t miss it.

“But those moments are getting shorter and shorter and fewer and further between.”

“You miss her,” he said.

“Yes. So much. Even when she was alive I missed her.”

That made him frown. “What do you mean?”

She shook off that last question, and with one last lick of her cone, she dropped the rest into the trash can as they approached her restaurant. Gage did the same thing and walked her toward the entrance of her place.

Their talking time was over. He could sense it. He wanted to know more. Wanted her to dive deeper, but he would take what he could get. Besides, she’d already given him quite a bit tonight. He was grateful for that small step.

“Well, this is me,” she said as they rounded the restaurant to her door around the back of the building.

“Nice place,” he said, falling into the role of her new date. A role he was liking. “I hear this is a pretty special restaurant.”

“It is…” She glanced away, as if mulling something over. Then she turned back to him and said, “The twentieth anniversary of this restaurant is happening next weekend. You should come. If you want.”

Holy hell, Chloe was inviting him to the anniversary event? That was an invitation not just to a date. That was an invitation into her world.

Hope spread from his chest to every other part of him. He’d brought her into the great outdoors and she’d passed with flying colors—not that he’d been grading her. But she was an A+ no matter what. Now maybe their worlds could merge—or at least, maybe they could step in and out of each other’s worlds with minimal issues.

“I’ll be there,” he promised.

She smiled and swayed, playing coy, and his body went on alert.

“I sure had a lovely time, Mr. McGraw.” She batted those long lashes, playing the cute and not-so-subtle role.

Now he would play, too.

“I had a mighty fine time myself, ma’am.” It went against his New York accent to drop his vowels and coat his words with the North Carolina twang, but it made Chloe smile.

“Would you like to come up for a cup of coffee?” she asked sweetly and leaned in. “And by coffee, I mean sex.”

He grinned. “Absolutely.”

She rushed up the stairs. Gage didn’t get two feet into her apartment before she slammed the front door and plastered him against it.

Nothing ever felt as good as Chloe wanting him.

“Anxious?” he said between bites at her lips and deep tongue thrusts into her mouth.

She drove her hands into his hair and tugged him closer. “You have no idea.”

“Oh, I think I do.” He scooped her up, and her legs locked around his waist as he carried her to the couch. With her wrapped around him, he sat and let her straddle him. She wasted no time tugging on his shirt, freeing the buttons, and trailing her hot mouth down his chest.

“Jesus, you feel amazing.” He reached up beneath her dress, grabbed her ass, and groaned. “No panties?”

“They get in the way.”

“All damn night you were walking around without panties on?” he growled.

“Yep.” She rocked against his jean-clad cock. “Now what are you going to do about it?”

And wasn’t that the question of their entire relationship? He ground her against him, and her breath hitched against his chest. She bit down on his pec and reached between them to unfasten his belt.

“Now,” she said. “I can’t wait anymore.”

“Whatever you want.” She’d fulfilled his request for romance and the date, now he’d more than meet every desire she had. Time to remind her exactly what he was good at—pleasuring her.

He unzipped the back of her dress as she unzipped his jeans. The material covering her plump breasts fell down her flat stomach and pooled at her waist. With one arm wrapped around her lower back, he palmed the perfect handful of her breast and sucked hard.

“Yes, please, more,” she cried to the ceiling. He gently bit the tip of her nipple and pulled her closer until her wet heat pressed against the throbbing crown of his shaft. He scooted enough to peel his jeans down his thighs, finally baring his entire length.

So close. They’d been skin on skin a few times now this visit, the chance for him to again be inside her, and he’d resisted every time after he’d first seen her at the bar.

Except tonight would be different. Tonight, he was taking everything. No more playing. No more games. He’d bury himself inside her until neither of them could move.