Expect Me (Rivers Edge Book 3) (12 page)

“It might be my place, but this is a date and I will do this accordingly. You look amazing, Joss,” he says as he runs his eyes over my body once more. I feel the heat from each touch of his eyes. It’s like my entire body is branded, tattooed from his intense gaze. “Are you ready to go?”

“Yes. Just let me put these flowers in water and grab my purse.” I open a few cabinets in the kitchen looking for a vase. “I don’t suppose you have a vase, do you?”

“Uhhh, no. I’ve never had flowers in this apartment,” Travis replies. “I guess I should have thought of that before I grabbed these, huh?” he asks as he pulls a water pitcher out of the cabinet. He throws me a questioning glance as he holds it up.

“That’ll work,” I tell him as I arrange the sweet smelling roses in the pitcher. As soon as the water is added and set in the middle of the kitchen table, I head into the living room to grab my purse.

Once outside, Travis opens the passenger door of his pick-up for me like he always does. He extends his hand out to help me up in the truck. He seriously has the best manners of any man I’ve ever met. He’s the perfect gentleman. Unless he’s naked in the bedroom. My mind is instantly filled with the images of Travis from that night. Naked. Sweaty. Hot. There was nothing gentlemanly about him that night.

“Where’d you go there? You looked so distant, like you were lost in another world,” he says as he stares at me. He’s standing so close, close enough that I could touch him, pull him into the open door of the truck, and kiss the hell out of him. Hormones. They are totally messing with my mind, turning me into some crazy sex fiend.

Travis gives me a knowing smile. He knows. He knows exactly where my mind was. I blush slightly but hold his gaze. Travis leans forward and places a tender kiss on the corner of my mouth. I can smell his cologne or aftershave. It makes me want to rip off my clothes and do dirty things right here in the cab of his dusty work truck.

“You look so fucking amazing. I can’t control where my mind keeps going,” he mumbles against my lips.

“Where does your mind keep going?” I ask knowing that I’m flirting with fire now.

“To that night. To you and me. Naked. As soon as you opened the door, I was instantly hard and ready for you. I’ve been hard and ready for you for months. Months, Josselyn. Ever since I woke up alone that morning, I’ve been hard and ready for you. You. Only you. And by the look in your eyes tonight, I think you feel the same way,” he says as he places a kiss firmly on my lips. Not a gentle or tender kiss either. This one is full of passion and promise. This one is a sign of more to come.

After a few moments, Travis pulls away from me. “But, this is our first date. So, I won’t act on my feelings tonight. Tonight, we are going to go to dinner and have a good time. But, I promise you. Soon. Soon I won’t be able to control myself any longer. I won’t be able to hold back, Josselyn.”

My mind is completely freaking blown as I listen to the unbelievably hot words coming from his sexy lips. The thing is, I don’t want him to hold back. I don’t want him to feel restrained. I want to hear him talk dirty to me more. I want to feel his heat and his mouth against my entire body. I want more.

Travis gives me another kiss and then backs out of the open door, closing it behind him. As soon as he’s around to the driver’s side and inside the truck, he starts it up and pulls out of the parking lot.

“So what do you think? Italian or Laverne’s Steakhouse?” Travis asks with a glance over from the driver’s seat.

“Either. Actually, let’s do the steakhouse. A big slab of beef sounds heavenly right now.”

Travis laughs. “Whatever baby wants, baby gets,” he replies as he steers the truck towards the steakhouse.

It’s pretty busy which I’ve come to realized is normal for a Friday night. Travis gives our name to the hostess with the wandering eyes and the too tight shirt. When he turns around to return to me, I see the hostess with the nametag Lauren glance down and smile at Travis’s rear.
Back off, bitch. That’s my ass
, I scream loud and proud in my head. Of course in my head. I’m not about to start a scene.

Travis and I make small talk as we wait the thirty minutes it takes to get a table. As soon as Miss Flirty announces Travis’s name, she leads us to the back of the restaurant to our table. She’s smiling at him suggestively and completely inappropriately, if you ask me. Seriously…back off! “Is this table okay?” she asks with a sexy, flirty smile.

Travis doesn’t even pay any attention to her as he turns to me and raises an eyebrow as if asking for my thoughts.

“It’s fine,” I tell him.

Travis pulls a chair out for me, not even giving the hostess any more thought or glance. She seems taken aback by his dismissal. Apparently, she’s not used to being ignored. The hostess slinks off without another word as she heads back to her post at the front of the restaurant. I can’t help but feel completely vindicated by her reaction…and Travis’s.

“Hey, guys, I’m Keith. What can I get you to drink?” our server asks as he sets a basket of rolls down on the table.

“Water for me, please?” I say.

“I’ll take a Budweiser draft,” Travis tells the server.

“I’ll be right back with your drinks and to take your order,” Keith says before turning and walking away.

“So, what looks good?” Travis asks.

After perusing the menu, I say, “I’m going with the sirloin and steamed vegetables.”

“The house sirloin is amazing. You won’t be disappointed,” Travis tells me.

When Keith returns and takes our orders, Travis turns his attention back to me. “So, I’ve been thinking, we have something to talk about and decide on.”

“What’s that?” I ask as I stuff a slice of delicious bread into my mouth.

“Dr. Freeman said that the next appointment is a gender appointment. We can find out what we’re having. If you want to know, that is.”

He’s right. Dr. Freeman did mention that. Do I want to know?

“Do you want to know?” I ask.

“Honestly, yes. But it’s up to you. If you don’t want to know, then we don’t have to find out. We can wait and be surprised when the baby is born.”

Always the gentleman.

“Actually, knowing would probably be best, don’t you think? This way, we know what to shop for and we can get gender specific stuff, not just neutral colors.”

“That’s what I was thinking. We can prepare the nursery specifically for a boy or a girl,” Travis says before he bites off a healthy piece of bread.

“What do you want? Boy or girl?” I ask.

“Doesn’t matter to me. I know everyone says that. As long as the baby is healthy, that’s all that matters. And that’s true. I don’t care either way. Though, if I had to pick myself, I’d pick a boy. At least for the first one. Then a girl for the second. This way, the girl has an older brother to protect her,” he says so casually, like he didn’t just comment on not only a future, but more children.

My heart rate spikes dangerously as the thoughts of more kids - more kids with Travis - takes root in my brain. Do I want more kids? I didn’t really expect the first one, but life doesn’t always ask you what you want.

“I guess I feel the same way. Either will be great. And I think we should find out,” I tell him, ignoring the weird butterfly-like fluttering that’s been in my stomach since the moment Travis started talking about the future. A future with me.

When Keith delivers our food, we turn our attention to the new house. Travis has been working non-stop on the house in all of his free time. His brothers and his friend, Clint, whom I’ve met several times have been helping on the weekends and even some after work in the evenings. I’ve had more dinners and lunches at the jobsite this past month than I ever imagined.

“So, what time do you think you’ll be out to the house in the morning?” Travis casually asks before he takes a bit of his steak.

“Actually, Avery invited me to go to the mall in St. Charles tomorrow. She’s picking me up at eleven. I think we’re doing lunch before the shopping. Erin and Holly are going too,” I tell him as I take my first bite of my steak. And holy hell. This steak is amazing. It’s like fireworks of flavor exploding in my mouth. I don’t think I’ve ever had anything so delicious.

Travis is staring at me with a small smile. “Good, isn’t it?” he asks. All I can do is shake my head. “That’s good that you’re going shopping. I was talking to Ave earlier in the week and mentioned that your clothes were starting to get tight.”

I instantly tense up. My clothes are too tight? Travis thinks I’m already getting fat, doesn’t he? The thought of Travis not being happy with my body makes me surprisingly uncomfortable. I’ve never, ever cared what a man thinks of me or my body, but the thought of disappointing Travis is almost sickening.

“What? Why did you just get all tense?”

“Nothing,” I mumble.

“Joss. What?”

“I didn’t realize my clothes tightening was that noticeable,” I tell him as I look down at my steak, unable to meet his gaze.

“Hey. I didn’t mean anything hurtful by that. I just noticed that your stomach was growing. The baby is getting bigger. It’s nothing more than that,” he says, concern laced in his voice.

I finally look up and can see it clearly in his eyes. He means the words he just said. Maybe I’m just being paranoid about gaining weight. Maybe I’m just as insecure as those other girls who are always eating salads and drinking water for their meals. Either way, I don’t like it. Not one bit.

“Seriously,” Travis says as he leans forward over his plate. “You are the sexiest woman I’ve ever met. You were sexy as hell before, but, now, the thought of you getting bigger and rounder with my baby is actually more of an aphrodisiac than you can possibly imagine. If we were sitting next to each other right now, I’d grab your hand and show you exactly how much your body turns me on,” he says with lust in his eyes. I can tell he means every word he said again. His eyes are so open and so clear. He wants me just the way I am.

I clear my throat, not really knowing what to say after that confession. I go back to eating my steak and give Travis quick glances under my eyelashes. He returns to eating his steak too, but the desire is still there in his eyes.

When the check arrives at the end of our meal, I grab my purse and pull out a few bills.

“No. Put that away. You are not paying for dinner,” Travis tells me firmly as if there is no room for discussion. Case closed.

“Travis, I can help pay for dinner. You’re already paying for my rent, a new house, and my doctor bills. I can’t let you pay for this too.”

“First off, I invited you to dinner so if you think I’m going to let you pay or even contribute in the slightest way, you are sorely mistaken. Second, I am not paying your rent. You are staying with me. You are my guest, not my roommate. Third, I have been saving up for my new house since I was in college. I am in no way a rich man, but I have enough to cut the loan I’m taking out on the house into a small fraction of what it could be. And finally, that baby is mine too. Paying for your doctor bills is the only thing for me to do. It’s the only thing I can do right now until I can hold our baby in my arms.”

Travis has a fierce look on his face. Loyal. His beliefs and his manners only make him hotter, if that was even possible.

“Okay,” I mumble. “Thank you for dinner. And for everything else.”

“You’re welcome. Now, let’s head back home so I can score a good night kiss,” he adds with a cocky smile.

I can’t help but laugh at his confidence. “Modest much?” I ask with my own smile.

“Confident, sweetheart. I’ve been imagining continuing our kiss since the moment we broke the kiss earlier. I’m not leaving without a good night kiss.”

“You’re not leaving at all,” I add.

“True. But, I’m not usually this pushy on a first date. You bring that out of me,” he says as he stands up and helps pull my chair out.

“You are making me consider breaking my own rule,” I add as we walk towards the front door. Miss Perky Boobs - that I’m pretty sure are fake - is still standing at the hostess stand. She sends Travis another flirty smile as we walk by with our fingers linked, but he doesn’t even give her a sideways glance. She instantly pouts as we keep walking, straight out the front door.

“So, what is this rule that you’re considering breaking for me?” he asks as we slide inside the truck.

“Technically, I’ve already broken it for you,” I tell him as we pull out of the parking lot and head towards the apartment.

“What rule?” he asks curiously.

“I have a unspoken three-date rule. I don’t sleep with anyone until after the third date.”

“Really? Three dates, huh?”

“Yep. But I pretty much blew that out of the water the moment you slid into my car back in March,” I say with a sly grin.

He takes his eyes off the road for just a moment as he looks over at me. “I’ve broken every rule I’ve ever created with you, too,” he says before he returns his eyes to the road.

“What rules are those?” I ask as we pull back into the parking lot of the apartment building.

Travis turns off the engine and turns to face me. “Well, first there’s the one night stand. I’ve never had one before you. I’ve never been a fan of casual sex, even back in college. I like relationships and commitment. I like to feel trust for a woman and be trusted,” he says with a piercing gaze of those striking blue eyes. “Plus, there’s the no kissing on the lips on the first date rule. Technically, I’ve already blown that one out of the water, too,” he says with a slight lift of the corner of his mouth.