He raised an eyebrow. “What?”
“I’m sorry. It’s just…well, think about it. Your name is Charming and your arm was broken by a horse-riding Prince Charming! That’s so ironic.”
Chad let his head fall back, and he groaned. “Oh, God. Are you seriously that geeky?”
She laughed. “Yep. And speaking of your Prince Charming, how are things going?”
He pinned her with a hard stare. “What do you mean?”
“I mean, you guys see each other all the time. I assumed you were dating.”
“No!” He barked, then realized how loud he had been when heads turned his way. “I’m sorry,” he saida little quieter. “I mean, no, we aren’t dating. I don’t do relationships.” Except maybe I do.
“Why?” she asked, her eyes wide.
“I just don’t. Love isn’t something I believe in. At least not for me. I believe in reality, not fairy tales.” At least not until he met Jeff.
“Charming?”
“Yeah?”
“I hate to break it to you, but you’re in a relationship. It’s even worse than that.” Lydia grinned.“You’re in love.”
Was that what this was? Love? God, I was an ass last night.
He stared at her, incredulous. “You’re nuts.”
She shook her head. “No, you are. You need to face reality. Your fairy-tale prince has arrived and is wooing you.”
Wooing. There was that word again. Fuck. It made him sound like a damsel in distress and it pissed him off. He gritted his teeth and tried not to bark at her. Especially since he wanted her help now. He breathed in deeply, calming himself.
“Speaking of dating,” he began sheepishly, “do you know of a nice restaurant where I can make reservations for tonight?”
Her eyes widened and she smiled. “Tonight? Gosh, I just don’t know, Chad. Maybe if I knew who you were taking I could come up with something.”
He rolled his eyes as his face heated. Shit. “I’m taking Jeff out.” Like you don’t know.
“Jeff? On a date?” she asked, feigning innocence. “Well, what a surprise!”
“Lydia!”
She laughed and sat on the corner of his desk. “Okay, I’ll lay off. Does he like seafood?”
“We had Long John Silver’s one night and he liked the shrimp.” It was fast food, but it was still seafood, right?
“Good. Have you ever tried AG’s Ocean of Seafood Grill?”
He shook his head.
“It’s fantastic! A little pricey, but the food is amazing. It’s on the east edge of town. Small. Quaint. And private,” she added with a knowing smile.
He was already looking it up on his phone. “Thanks. Sounds perfect.”
“You need to wear something other than sweats or jeans. Dress up for him.”
Shit. He hated dressing up. And when he was off duty, he lived in sweats. Especially when he was working on a household project. Although that was all on hold until the cast came off.
He made reservations for seven-thirty and spent the rest of the day alternating between excitement and nausea. A real date changed things, and this was all new to him. By the time his shift ended, he was a jumble of nerves and couldn’t stop sweating.
* * * *
First thing Chad did when he got home was jump in the shower. He couldn’t stop worrying about the night, but every time he imagined sitting across from Jeff in a nice restaurant, his heart stuttered. The fact that he might get another chance at kissing Jeff was driving him crazy.
He groaned as his dick agreed with him. Fuck. He was going to be hard all night. Just one look at Jeff and he always got hard. Chad wrapped his soapy fingers around his shaft.
Brown eyes filled his mind as he stroked himself, reliving their encounter on the sofa. If he was honest, that was the hottest sexual experience of his life and he’d been with enough guys to admit thatwhat had happened between him and Jeff was more than just physical.
He closed his eyes and began sliding his soapy hand up and down, harder and faster, and he moaned as he imagined Jeff’s hand joining his. An image of Jeff on his knees in front of him, naked and wet, was all it took for Chad’s cock to explode. His release rolled through his entire body and he moaned Jeff’s name as he rode the waves of pleasure.
His head fell back, and he braced himself against the tile with his good hand while he caught his breath. Maybe now that he had gotten that out of the way, he wouldn’t be thinking about Jeff’s cock all night.
Chad rushed around getting ready, and settled on a black pair of slacks, a blue button-down shirt, and black dress shoes. He hoped he looked presentable, but he felt a little stiff as he made his way to his car. At least there was enough room for him roll up the sleeve over the cast so it wasn’t pulling at him.