We arrive at the restaurant, and I pull up to the valet. Maren’s eyes grow wide, and she stares at me in horror, ignoring the man waiting to open her door and help her out of the car.
“Hayes, this is too much. This place is so fancy! This is like, where my grandparents went for their fiftieth wedding anniversary.”
I nod and give her a reassuring smile. “And this is where you and I are having dinner tonight.”
“Are you sure?”
“They have this crème brûlée that I’m almost positive will be your new favorite dessert.”
She pauses, chewing at the inside of her cheek. “Okay, fine. But I really wish you would have told me we were going somewhere so nice. I would have worn better shoes.”
“Dove, you could be wearing a trash bag and still be the most beautiful girl in the entire city. These assholes are lucky to have you inside their establishment.”
She blushes again, and this time I’m fortunate enough to watch the flush spread over her. God, she’s fucking gorgeous.
Down, boy. Pacing is going to be harder than I thought.
We’re escorted inside the lavish building by the doorman, and once inside, are met with a bustling dining room full of white tablecloths and a view of the city I haven’t seen in a while. Twinkling lights of the buildings in the distance, and beyond, the dark water of the lake.
Maren lets out a soft gasp, and I place my hand on the small of her back as a hostess leads us to our table next to the floor-to-ceiling windows, just as I requested. We order a bottle of wine for the table, and the server nods before setting a basket of sliced bread between us. When he leaves, Maren looks at me, her eyes still wide and slightly glazed over, a small, pleased smile forming on her lips.
“This is . . . exquisite,” she says softly, looking wistfully from the basket of bread to the view beside her.
“Well, don’t speak too soon. We still have to see if they get the steaks right.” I grin.
“No, Hayes,” she says, taking my hand over the table. “I—I want to thank you. I haven’t had a night like this in a very, very long time. So, thank you. Really.”
I give her fingers a gentle squeeze. “You’re welcome. Really.”
We lean in and kiss over the table, and I can just catch the sweet vanilla scent of her perfume. I didn’t realize that being here would mean so much to Maren, and it makes this night all the more important.
“Well, in that case, please tell me that you’re hungry.”
She smiles and arches a challenging brow. “Starving.”
We have what’s probably the best steak dinner I’ve had in years, complete with all the classic sides. I order us the crème brûlée for dessert, as promised, and just as I predicted, it’s immediately Maren’s new favorite dessert. She groans around the spoon, and her eyes sink closed.
Everything is going exactly like I hoped it would. Luckily for me, our night is only just getting started.
I drive us back to my place for a nightcap. A soft smile settles on Maren’s lips on the drive home, while my hand rests on her knee, my fingers wandering idly over her thigh. When we park, it takes everything in me not to drag her into my lap and kiss the daylights out of her.
Patience, Hayes. I have to remember what I have planned for us.
Once inside, Maren looks at me expectantly. She glances around the kitchen, whispering, “Is Rosie . . .”
“She’s asleep,” I whisper back. “I’ll meet you in my bedroom. Can I get you anything? Water? Wine? Whiskey?”
She shakes her head and pulls me in by my lapels. We kiss, and she rubs her hand along the growing bulge at the front of my pants. “Don’t be too long.”
Don’t have to tell me twice.
She slinks away to my bedroom, untying the straps to her dress before slipping behind the closed door. Such a little tease.
I pour myself a glass of water, and before heading into the bedroom, I go to the linen closet by the bathroom. There, behind neatly folded piles of towels and bedsheets, I find what I’m looking for—a sleek black box, about the length of my forearm. I pull it down from the shelf and take it into the bedroom with me.
When I close the bedroom door behind me, I find Maren sprawled out on the bed in nothing but a pair of lacy pale-green panties. My cock’s instantly rock hard and in a fight with my pants to get to her.
I let out a low whistle between my teeth. “Fuck, dove. You’re going to give a man a heart attack.”
A coy smile curls on her lips. “I wanted to surprise you. And thank you properly.”
I set the water glass on the desk in the corner and hold the black box behind my back. “I have a surprise for you too, dove.”
“Oh?” She props herself up on her elbows, her perky breasts teasing me.
I sit on the edge of the bed at her feet. She watches me closely as I lay the box on the bed in front of her.
“What is it?” she asks.
“Open it.”
She takes the box in her hands and lifts the lid, her brows raising as she appraises its contents. “Oh,” she says as she pulls a long curved cylinder out of the box and holds it in her hands.
The deep crimson silicone is striking against her pale skin, and a pulse of excitement courses through me at the sight of the toy in her hand.
Understanding washes over her face. “Oh.”
“It’s one of our newest models,” I say. “When I saw it, I immediately thought of you.”
She nods, still staring at
