deserted her for the jungle gym.
Standing, she brushed the dirt off of her butt and almost jumped out of her skin when Hunter’s hands playfully grabbed her ass.
“Oh, my God!” she quietly hissed. “What are you doing?”
“Just being helpful,” he teased and gave her a quick kiss.
She desperately wanted to sneak off and kiss him properly, but she thought of her earlier conversation with Kate and figured it was now or never.
“So,” she began, hoping she sounded casual. “I was wondering if there was any chance of us going out just the two of us this weekend.”
And then she held her breath and waited.
“Funny you should mention that,” he replied, moving in closer. “Courtney and Dean have asked if Eli could sleepover tonight.”
She knew her eyes went wide. “Really?”
Nodding, he said, “Really.”
“Wait, did they ask you or did you ask them?”
“What difference does it make?”
Her conscience hit her hard. “Because, Hunter…Eli’s your son and I don’t want to be the reason why he’s getting sent to sleep at some stranger’s house.”
“Okay, for starters, Dean’s my brother. Eli’s his nephew. No strangers involved. Secondly, he and Courtney are getting married next month and already talking about kids and want him there to practice.” Rolling his eyes, he added, “It’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard, but considering it gives us the entire night to ourselves, I wasn’t going to complain or question it.”
And basically, neither was she.
“Alrighty, then. What’s the plan?”
Closing the distance between them, his breath was warm against her ear. “Pack an overnight bag and be at my place at seven. I’ll handle the rest.” His tongue traced the shell of her ear and she shivered.
Swallowing hard, Violet forced herself to pull back slightly. “I don’t even know what to say. I was hoping we’d have this opportunity, but now that it’s happening…”
His finger was back over her lips. “No big plans, Violet. Just us, all alone. If you’d rather go out to dinner or a movie or…”
Gently pushing his hand away, she mimicked his pose by putting her finger over his lips. “There’s nothing else I’d rather do and anyplace else I want to go. If anything, I want it to be seven o’clock right now.”
“It will be. Soon enough.” He kissed her soundly before turning to go and get Eli.
Cooking was something Hunter did out of necessity. He had a few dishes that he made well, but for the most part, he stuck to the basics. For tonight, he opted to play it safe and ordered Chinese takeout. It had taken just a few minutes to grill Katie on all the things Violet liked, and then he decided to be bold and order for her so the food was here and waiting when she arrived. And glancing at his watch, he saw that would be any minute.
Glancing around the house, he made sure everything was neat and clean. All Eli’s toys were put away; every surface had been dusted, there were clean sheets on his bed and fresh towels in the bathroom.
When the doorbell rang, he had to remind himself not to pounce.
They had all night.
There was no reason to hurry.
But when he opened the door, his little pep talk went right out the window.
Standing on his front porch in a baby blue halter dress and carrying a small weekender bag, stood Violet. Her dark hair was loose around her shoulders and she was all curvy and tanned and…perfect.
Wordlessly, Hunter took her by the hand and led her into the house. He took her bag from her and together they carried it into his bedroom. Once he placed the bag on the floor next to the bed, he realized how this all looked.
“Um…I was really just putting the bag down,” he began nervously. “I seriously wasn’t implying that this is where our date is starting or…or…”
Violet moved in close, got up on her tip-toes, and silenced him with a kiss. When she moved away, she gave him a flirty smile. “Good to know. But for the record, I would have been more than okay if this was where our date started.”
Damn.
He looked at the bed and then back at Violet before he shook his head. “Come on. I got us Chinese food, and it’s all set up on the table waiting to be served.” With her hand in his, he led her to the dining room, held out her chair for her as she sat, and felt himself start to relax.
“Ooo…it looks like you got us quite