Breaking Through (Atlanta #3) (7 page)

"Everything looks different when you're not trapped behind a windshield," he smiled like a quiet philosopher. "So what do you think of riding?"

"I love it," she said with genuine honesty and a warm, excited smile. "This is amazing."

"Good." He seemed relieved and happy she liked being out with him on his bike.

"I'm really glad I got a chance to ride. Thanks," she said to make sure he understood how much she appreciated the time together so far.
 

"You're welcome," he grinned again with his boyish smile. He turned as far around as he could and asked, "Where am I taking you to dinner? Sorry it's so late. I got carried away on our little trip."

Jenna paused and then laughed awkwardly before she could answer. The look on his face when she laughed made her laugh a bit more. He studied her with inquisitive eyes, trying to figure out what was so funny about his dinner invitation. She giggled again and appeared embarrassed.
 

"What?" he asked, perplexed by her amusement.

"Well, I was thinking about that cool retro drive-in downtown,
The Varsity,
…but I don't think you can hang a food tray on a motorcycle."

Luke chuckled warmly. "Probably not. Besides, I'd rather not do fast food, even if it's something as good as muggets."

Jenna giggled at his easy sense of humor. "Then I have no idea. It took me forever to come up with that idea."

He seemed perplexed again. "It did?"

Jenna's shyness kicked into high gear all of the sudden. She didn't mean to confess how much she obsessed over their date, or how unsure she was about herself sometimes. Being confident on their ride was easy, but not for the two days leading up to the date, and suddenly not now, either.

"Um…" was the brilliant response she came up with.

He looked at her with a gentle smile. "Don't be shy. Just tell me where you want to go. Don't over-think it."

The warmth in his eyes melted her all over again, and allowed some of his strength and confidence to soak back into her mind. "Honestly, Luke, it makes no difference. I'd like it better if you picked. Please don't do anything too expensive, though. I'd be uncomfortable with that."

He seemed confused. "Why?"

Jenna shrugged. "Because you don't have to spend a lot of money," she said. Then, in the boldest move she ever made on a first date, she added in a shy voice, "I like being out with you either way."

His expression shifted so slightly, and then he smiled a calm, sweet smile. Luke Baylor looked her right in the eyes, then leaned in for one gentle kiss on her cheek. Jenna smiled at him as the butterflies did excited flip-flops in her belly. He told her to get the helmet on, then sped them to the city. She held on tight again and thought over and over about that amazing, simple kiss. His lips were warm and the sensation nearly knocked her over, but the
inspiration
for the kiss sent her into an all-consuming state of wow-ness. He kissed her because he appreciated what she said. This whole night was off-the-charts amazing, and they hadn't even gotten to dinner yet.
 

After their beautiful, quiet moment on the side of the road, Luke wanted her more than ever. His need vibrated through his arms as he drove them toward Atlanta again.
 
To allow himself a moment with his lips on her soft skin, and then keep himself from diving in…that was torture. She was amazing. Her body on his, her appreciation of the mini road-trip, and her shy confession that dinner made no difference. The beautiful angel was there for him only.
 

How was he supposed to hold himself back? The answer was easy even if the restraint wasn't: Jenna was not a
take-her-home-and-fuck-her-on-the-first-date
kind of girl. Of course, that's why her shy beauty was so rare. Most of him loved her sweet nature. One guess which part didn't.
 

None of that made a difference, because this night would only go one way: he'd have a nice dinner with her, then after their sweet, no-sex evening, he'd have to go home, take a
very long
cold shower, and probably jerk off anyway.

He'd have to worry about his alone-time later, though. Right now he had to figure out where to take her for dinner. Truthfully, he offered her the choice because he had no idea how to have a proper date with someone like Jennalyn Roche. From what she said, she had no idea either. Luke found their shared ineptitude almost endearing, but that didn't help with dinner plans.
 

His apartment was too small to enjoy take-out, and he didn't trust himself in Jenna's. Losing his self-control would be far too easy surrounded by so many of her subtle influences. So he was back to square one. At this point, Sophie's suggestion seemed like a pretty good idea. But then a sort of inspiration struck.
 

As cheesy as the idea was, he pictured Jenna enjoying a stroll in a park, walking hand-in-hand with a strong man beside her. She fit beautifully in his imagined scene, and he wanted to make it real. He was happy to play the role of
strong man
for the evening. So how could he mesh his vision with dinner?
 

He was annoyed with himself for being unable to figure out how to take her on a date like she deserved. The puzzle was infuriating, until he realized how simple the answer was. Jenna already admitted dinner
didn't matter
. The walk-in-the-park scene would be more special to her than any restaurant choice. This was such a beautiful evening, so why not keep it light? He smiled to himself and guided his bike to a grocery store near a park he knew in a very good part of town. He pulled his Harley into the lot and smiled at the confused look on her face when she realized they were at Kroger's.

"Work with me here," he smiled. "Come on."

She took his hand again and squeezed.
Hell yeah, she did
. He walked her into the grocery store, grabbed a shopping basket, and went to the produce aisle.

"Apple or pear?"

Jenna smiled when she understood. He was taking her on a spur-of-moment picnic. The light shone from within her more brightly in that moment than in any before. She was so fucking beautiful, he could barely stand to be beside her without pulling her body against him to feel every curve.
 

Instead, he controlled himself again and bought fruit, cheese, crackers, and bottled sweet tea. He took their selections straight to the check-out with few words at all. He smiled at her a lot, and she returned each smile with one even brighter. He walked her to the Harley with his one small bag of dinner provisions.

Jenna pulled the helmet over her head while he tucked their groceries into the saddlebag at the back of his bike. He mounted up and helped her on behind him.
 

"You ready?"

Jenna nodded and pulled herself tight against him once again.
Shit, that felt good.
He drove them a few blocks to a small, well-lit park. They found a picnic table by a small pond and set out their simple dinner on the plastic grocery bag.

"This is perfect," Jenna grinned as he used his pocket knife to cube their cheese and wedge their apples.

"Not bad for short notice," Luke said with a shrug. Jenna smiled again and he forced himself not to jump across the table and tackle her straight to the ground.

"Don't sell yourself short," she smiled. "This is great. So tell me about your Harley. How long have you been riding?"

And just like that, she had him talking again so easily. She offered him the same loving attention she did to Sophie, and most likely to anyone else fortunate enough to spend time with her. He rambled longer than he meant to, but she listened attentively to every word.
Fucking unreal
.
 

"And what about you, Jenna? How do you spend your free time?"

The conversation continued just as easily. He heard about her two years of study for her associate's degree, her jump into the world of apartment living at age twenty-two—
she's twenty-two—,
her efforts to decorate her apartment with almost no money, and her close friendship with two other girls named Cassie and Erin.
Wait…who?

"Ok, this is going to sound strange," Luke started, "but did you say you have two friends named Cassie and Erin?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Does Cassie happen to have a twin brother…who lives with Erin?"

"Wha…how did you know?"

"Holy shit," Luke laughed as he swore without meaning to, but he was too shocked to hold it in. "You've got to be fucking kidding me!"

"What?" Jenna laughed along with him, trying to figure out his reaction.
 

"You know how I told you I work out a lot?"

"Yeah…" Jenna hesitated. Realization suddenly showed on her face. "No way!"

"Yep. Marcus is my trainer. He's getting me started on MMA fighting."

Jenna laughed. "I can't believe that! To think we have such close friends in common. Wait…
you're
the angry protégé? I can't believe that's true. Cassie calls you Marcus Junior, you know."

This time Luke had to laugh. "Yeah, I guess the title fits. I even live in his old apartment now, and I work for the butcher he used to help out."

"This is nuts," Jenna laughed, and then her eyes changed from amused to pensive. "But I have to say I'm surprised you're the one I've heard about. You don't seem very angry at all. Even when Sophie's mom was so nasty."

Luke's face fell and his brow furrowed further than he wanted it to.
Damn it
. He didn't want the conversation to turn in this direction at all. He didn't want Jenna knowing all his internal darkness, especially on the first date. She might run for the hills.

"Well, I guess I can hide it pretty well most of the time. Marcus keeps working with me on focus and control," he uttered with a little frustration sneaking into his voice. "But yeah, I've got anger issues, I suppose."

His shoulders slumped and he stood to clear off their dinner remnants into a nearby trash bin. He didn't want Jenna in on any of this. He didn't want to go there. Not tonight, not with her.

"Hey, it's ok," she said with warm kindness in her voice. "That doesn't change anything. I'm having a great night. I mean, think about it. I rode on a Harley! Me, on a Harley. Who'd have predicted that?"

He glanced up to see the sweet, understanding face of an angel. He couldn't help but smile again. The anger which bubbled up so fast dissipated as quickly when he saw her smile. She didn't care he was the angry 'Marcus Junior'.
 

"You don't want to run screaming?" he half-joked.
 

"Nah. I don't like running much anyway," Jenna reassured him with a teasing smile. "But how about a walk?"

How did she do that? Luke was now back to feeling calm and having fun. He helped her up off the picnic bench and kept her hand in his. Her skin was so soft, and he could smell her fresh, natural scent again. Everything about her drew him in completely, and she didn't run screaming.
 

Jenna's butterflies wouldn't take a rest. They fluttered through her inner-gooeyness with more agility than should have been possible. Luke was a part of her circle of friends and the darkness she noticed behind his carefully shrouded eyes was confirmed. She noticed that darkness the first time she saw him, but dismissed the thought after watching him with his daughter. But tonight, she knew for certain she hadn't imagined his deep burn at all.
 

That poor man, she wanted to think, but she already knew him well enough to know he'd hate pity. So instead, she opted to think of him with caring and understanding. Those emotions came to her without effort, and would hopefully keep Luke relaxed and close to her…because she wanted more time with him. A lot more time.
 

When he asked her if she wanted to run screaming, she almost laughed at him. What a ridiculous concept. Thank goodness she suggested a walk instead, because in that very moment, she was wandering casually with Luke along the paths of the park. His large, strong hand surrounded hers with gentle pressure and he kept her very close to him.
 

They didn't talk much as they strolled. She could tell he was brooding over confessing his angry side, but she didn't care. She stayed beside him, desperately wanting to make this date last forever. She'd never had this kind of full-body involvement when holding someone's hand.
 

Intensity from him flowed directly into her fingers and kept her body in a state of extreme awareness. Everything affected her powerfully when he touched her. Even something as simple as the air offered an intense new sensation as the warm breeze tickled the skin of her eyelids. Background sounds, like the crunch of minute debris under her feet, turned into music by the time the sound reached her ears. Heat from his hand lazily swirled up her arm and rested comfortably in her shoulder. Every detail of the evening wrapped her up in Luke Baylor's world.
 

Then with renewed intensity, the atmosphere shifted. In slow motion, Luke eased their pace until they were at a complete stand still. He turned to her and looked deep in her eyes. She saw the darkness within retreat behind a sweet, smoldering intensity in the sea-glass green of his eyes. His hand, even more slowly, moved to her shoulder and traced her collar bone until his fingers skimmed around and rested at the nape of her neck.
Did time just stop?
 

His other hand moved to her waist, resting so gently above the curve of her hip while he kept his gaze locked on her eyes. The butterflies made room for more butterflies by pushing her heart up into her throat. He gazed for a long time before his eyes dropped to her lips.
Yes, please
. Her hands moved to rest on his strong chest. Luke appeared conflicted, maybe apprehensive? Jenna didn't want him to question the moment. She offered him a slight nod, giving him the permission he wouldn't grant himself.

The edges of his mouth curved up in the tiniest hint of a smile. Oh-so-slowly, hesitantly, he leaned his lips down to hers while he pulled her body a little closer. And then a magical moment happened. He kissed her with a brush of his lips along hers. What a beautiful touch.