Something More (4 page)

“Where at?” he asks.

“You mean to tell me
that you haven't stalked that out yet?” I ask with a fun, sarcastic tone.

He pulls out into light
traffic on this beautiful Saturday morning. Quickly hitting the interstate, we
head west to the shore. I take a mental inventory to remember that I, in fact,
packed my camera. I guess there is always my cell phone if I had forgotten it. “Such
a smart ass you are. Not at all how you appear,” he quips.

“Better than a dumb
ass, I always say. How long does it take to get to the beach?”

“Not too long. A couple
hours maybe, if we hit any traffic. Why? Are you fed up with me already?”

“Getting there, but I
enjoy a challenge as much as the next guy. Shall we get to know each other, or
do you just want to joke around all day?”

“I didn't just ask you
on a date for your witty comebacks.”

“You didn't? Shocking.
Why did you ask me out then?”

“At the deli, you
intrigued me. You seemed so shy and nervous. No one is usually like that with
me until I approach them,” he says.

“Cocky, are we? Why
would you think that my actions had anything to do with you? You know the
saying about assuming, don't you?” I say with one eyebrow raised.

“I wasn't sure of it at
the time, but the next time I saw you, I felt the same energy from you as
before. And the night we bumped into each other, there was a more intense feeling
when I was near you. I know you felt it, too, because your heart started
beating faster.”

“That could've just
been from running into you....twice…or the alcohol.”

He let out an
exasperated laugh. “You know, you can say you felt something. I won't hold it
against you.”

I stare out the window
for a minute before saying anything else. The scenery really is beautiful here.
Very green. A lot different from the flat land and sand of Florida.

“Okay. I did feel
something, but I thought it was only on my part. I had a few drinks and I
didn't know if it was imagined or whatever.”

“Thank you,” he
replied. “A little seriousness from you is nice. But I also enjoy your witty
comebacks.”

“Okay. We'll mix it up
a little. A little serious now, but I can't guarantee a little sarcasm won't
slip in there. But the same goes for you.”

“Deal.”

“I will be working as
an office manager at a doctor's office starting on Monday.”
See? I can do
serious.

“Is that something you
enjoy doing?”

“It will pay the bills
and that's all I need.” Drew gives me a look as if he doesn't know what I'm
talking about. Maybe he doesn't. Maybe all he thinks about is money. I think I
might ask him that as part of our “getting to know each other” question and
answer period.

“Are you passionate
about anything? Or anyone?”

Well, as a matter of
fact, I am.
“Yes,” I answer, and hesitate before
continuing. “My daughter and…uhhh...reading.” His eyebrows shoot up. I laugh.

“You look shocked. What
part is shocking? That I have a child? Or that I can read?”
Oops...there's
that sarcasm again
.
My bad.
He doesn't look concerned at my snarky
comment. “Sorry. I told you my sarcasm slips out. I made no promises.”

That beautiful face
looks at me with a sincere smile. “That you have a child. A daughter. You don't
act like you have a child, nor look like you have one. I am just surprised.
Where is she? I haven't seen you with anyone, other than Alyssa.”
Damn
gorgeous stalker that he is!

I return his smile. He
has so many different smiles, but this one is truly amazing. How can anyone be
so perfect to look at? I try to sigh quietly.

“She's a freshman in
college back in Florida. She left to go grow up, and I left to go be happy. Or
happier. I don't know. I wanted to try something new for a change.”

There’s another look of
shock on his face. “She's in college?” His voice is louder than it needs to be.
“You do
not
look old enough to have a daughter in college. You must have
been a teenager when you had her.”

A giggle escapes me,
then turns into full-on laughter. “Like I haven't heard
that
before. I
had her when I was twenty-two. Not a teenager, but still young enough. It was
great, though. I was still young enough to do all kinds of fun things with her
and not have to worry about looking like an idiot doing it. We kind of grew up
together. Might I add that you don’t look old enough to have a very successful
business.”

His brows furrow when I
turn it around on him. “I am old enough,” he says coldly, keeping his questions
coming. “So if your daughter is a freshman, that should make her about eighteen,
right? And you had her at twenty-two, so that makes you...?”

“Forty. You have a
problem with age or something?”

“No, no, no. You are
just not the age I thought you were. You look so much younger. And you hang out
with a college student. I guess it all just threw me off.”

I wanted to roll my
eyes so badly, but I just smirk. “Look, if you have a hang up or something, you
can just take me back home. I am okay with it.” An emotion crossed over his
face. Was it anger?

“No, I don't have a
hang up. It does bother me, however, that you are so quickly willing to go home
because of a misunderstanding. I won't be taking you home until we are done
with our date…maybe not even then.” Oh, there's that wicked grin. Naughty man
coming out to play.

“Oh, really?” He
reaches over and grabs my hand.
Oh, my god
. There it is again. That
feeling that shoots through my entire body and lights it on fire. My core
tightened. Bringing my hand to his mouth, he gives the back of it a light kiss
and looks at me in the process. Oh. Sweet. Jesus. Then he entwines his fingers
with mine.

“You should breathe. It
really is quite good for you,” he says sarcastically. I exhale quietly, trying
to play off that I was holding my breath…unbeknownst to me, I might add.

Gathering my thoughts,
I simply ask, “Why are you holding my hand? We barely know each other.”

Drew looks at me,
curiously. “I wanted to. Do you not want to hold my hand?” Was that a sad look
in his eyes?

“It's not that I don't
want to. I thought maybe it might be too soon or something. Unless this is a
typical Drew Chambers kind of thing on dates.”

He raised a mischievous
eyebrow. “You think I date a lot, do you?” He laughs. “I hardly ever date. All
the girls I meet are usually just after money or publicity. Or just to say they
went out with me. Never a real relationship.” I wonder if he has commitment
issues. I'm sure a guy of his status does, especially when he can pretty much do
whatever he wants.

“How old are you, if
you don't mind me asking?”

“Thirty-two.” Now
I'm
the one with the shocked face. He smirks. “You have a problem with age or
something?” Using my own words against me, he laughs harder.

I give him an evil look.
“I don't have a problem, but I see why you acted the way you did when you found
out my age. We have a bit of an age gap here. I will completely understand if
you don't want to pursue anything with an
older
woman.”

He whips his head in my
direction and has a nasty look on his face, and a fire in his eyes. I tense up,
a little scared. He’s still holding my hand, but with a little tighter grip. My
pepper spray is just in my backpack at my feet, easily accessible.

All of a sudden, his
face calms. He takes a deep breath, I'm guessing to choose his words wisely. “I
thought we already established that I didn't have a problem with your age. The
connection between us has nothing to do with age. You are a beautiful,
independent woman with a good head on your shoulders. Also working in your
favor is the fact that you had no clue who I was when we met.” A sly, cocky
grin appears across his face.

I am tempted to test
the waters to see what the fuck is up with his emotions. Quickly, I debate on
this in my head.
Yep, I'm going to do it
. “What was that?” I ask.

“What?”

“Your face just showed an
array of emotions in a matter of seconds. Do you have anger issues?”

“You read my emotions
pretty well. Usually, I hide them and no one is the wiser, but you can see it
all. Interesting.”

I whip my head towards
him and say, “You didn't answer the question.”

“I don't like being
doubted. Definitely not more than once on the same issue. But yes, I can
get...testy.” All the tension and being cooped up in this Hummer is starting to
get to me so I'm a little edgy now.

“Are we almost there?”
Another laugh roars out him. A hand on stomach, head back kind of laugh. Awww,
his playful side. I think he would have dropped to the floor and let the laugh
roll him around if he could. So cute. I like him this way. It's infectious and
I start to laugh.

Minutes later when
we've calmed, he says, “Thanks for that. I needed it. You sounded like a little
kid on a long road trip. I don't know why it made me laugh so hard, but it did
and I'm grateful.”

“I like this side of
you. It's very sweet and endearing.” He pulls my hand to his mouth again and
gives another kiss. “So…are we there yet?”

After another look and
a giggle, he replies, “Yes. We are taking the next exit, then it's another five
to ten minutes.”

“Can we stop and get
some drinks and use the restroom before we start our hike?”

“Yes, ma'am.” His eyes
dart to me, searching my face to see if I'm offended.

Looking at him with a
comforting look, I raise his hand to my mouth and kiss it. “I know you weren't
being a smartass that time.” I chuckle. He looks surprised that I kissed his
hand. Hey, two can play that game. Not to mention the closeness is soothing. This
is going to be fun.

*
* * * *

Drew and I finish up at
the convenience store, getting refreshments and taking a restroom break. To my
surprise, he opened all the doors for me, coming and going. Well, except the
bathroom door. That would just be weird and creepy. I wonder how long this
chivalrous behavior will last. He also let me pay for my own goodies but, then
again, he did say he would at least try to let me pay for some things.

Once back in the
Hummer, we are back on our way. He grabs my hand again and places a gentle kiss
on it, then intertwines our fingers as if that is how they are meant to be. We
grin at each other, and then both look back out through the windshield. “How
far from here is the place we are going again?” I ask.

“It's just around the
bend, actually.”

A couple minutes later,
we pull into a little gravel parking area and he picks a parking spot in the
shade. I can't even imagine how hot this car gets in the sun with it being an
all black exterior with the dark windows.

I open my door and I
hear a slight growl. Not knowing exactly where it came from, I quickly shut the
door, keeping myself inside. Never having been here before or knowing what kind
of wild animals are around, I was a little frightened. Then I hear him snickering.

I whip my head to look
at him and see him grinning from ear to ear while he's gathering up his
backpack. “What the hell are you grinning about?”

“Me? Oh, nothing.”
Another snicker escapes him.

“Hey! Don't make fun of
me!” I yell. “I've never been here before and I don't know what lurks out
there. That wasn't a gator hiss so I'm clueless as to what critters can come
after me.” He grins even wider. “What is so damn funny?”

Drew tries to
straighten his face, but fails. He does manage to get out, “You're so funny.
That was
me
growling, you knucklehead.” My eyes narrow and then I look
for something to throw at him. Nothing that will injure him, just a little
something. I spot a pack of gum and zing it at his chest.

“What were you growling
for? You scared me!”

He laughs
enthusiastically. “I growled because you opened your door and that is my job.”

I roll my eyes and open
my door again. “Well, I like when you open my door but, in this instance, you
would just be standing there waiting for me to gather my belongings. This way,
we can be getting our stuff together at the same time.”

Now he rolls his eyes
at me. “I don't mind waiting for you,” he says. “Plus, I can check you out in
those sexy jeans.”

I raise one eyebrow at
him. “So I guess you need to be walking ahead of me on this trail?”

“That won't be
necessary. These trails are wide enough to walk side by side,” he says, with
yet another grin. He's got his pack on now and he comes around to my side of
the car. I watch his lithe movements. So sexy.

“Do you mind if I leave
a few things in your Hummer to lighten my pack?”

“Sure. Go ahead.” He
watches me unpack two pairs of shoes, a beach towel, and pepper spray. I hold
the pepper spray up to him and ask with an evil grin, “Am I going to need this
on the trail?”