Dixie Under Siege (A Warrior's Passion #2) - Natasza Waters Page 0,13
mouth-watering aroma of Chinese food filled the cab and made his stomach grumble with impatience. Skirting the tourist area of Old Town, he reduced speed and drove along a street lined on either side with nice homes. Dixie had rented a tiny bungalow just east of Old Town. A neighborhood with trimmed hedges and palm trees dotting the sidewalks. Manicured front yards without motorcycles parked on the lawns or bars over the windows, indicated an area of middle-class folks. A mix of new architecture and old, post-war, white-washed stucco homes with adobe roofs, fronted each lot.
Slowing down, he turned into her driveway. He nudged the nose of his truck to Dixie’s dated BMW back bumper.
Josh surveyed the area once he’d gotten out, waiting for any cars to show.
Nada.
The front room lights shined through the window, revealing the interior of the small home. He sighed. “Close the damn drapes, woman.”
He knocked once on the front door and turned the knob.
Dix met him in the tiny entry, only big enough to turn around in.
“Shoes off,” she instructed and took the take-out bags from his hands.
“I didn’t just run the ‘O’ course, Dix. Need to keep them on in case your anonymous lover shows up.”
“Fine,” she grumbled and headed for what he suspected was the kitchen.
The place smelled like coffee, leather, and something a little spicy, the last part probably being Dixie. Before following her, he stopped and closed the fabric drapes over the front window.
“Ling’s Emporium,” she said, reading the bags as he wandered into the brightly painted kitchen with white cupboards and appliances. A small, wooden dining table, big enough for two, sat next to a window facing the backyard.
“Great chow,” he confirmed.
“You eat out a lot?”
He shrugged. “Not exactly fond of cooking. Easier to eat at the base or grab take-out.” Josh joined her at the table, where she’d set two plates and cutlery.
“What do you want to drink? I’ve got juice, water…” She shifted to the fridge and opened the door. “Can of Dr. Pepper and one can of Coke.”
“Water’s fine, thanks.”
She poured two glasses from a counter-top filtration system and added ice.
“Smells good,” she said, depositing a glass by his plate.
He opened the broccoli and beef container and tipped it her way. “Healthy enough for you?”
She snorted. “I’m starving. I’d eat anything.”
All day he’d been struck with flashbacks, especially one evening in particular. Him and Dixie in his parents’ barn.
He’d just finished feeding the family’s six horses and was sweeping the breezeway. At the time, Dixie worked after school, cleaning the local Baptist church where her father preached.
She’d strolled through the open barn doors, the June sun setting behind her. White cut-off shorts gripped her curvy hips, showing a hint of her tanned, taut stomach, and she wore an off-the-shoulder blouse. With Dixie’s long, dark hair cascading past her shoulders in soft waves, she captured the image of sweet and sexy, and owned his heart.
The early summer evening sweltered with heat. He’d taken his shirt off to work. When they’d laid eyes on one another, the air crackled between them.
Teenage hormones sprinted into the red zone when she’d stopped inches from him, her defined chin tilted upward and her pretty green eyes glued to his body. Dix had always made him feel good about himself.
Until that night, they’d kissed and touched, but something broke in that moment. Why wait? Least, that’s what he’d thought.
Dix’s hormones must have whispered in her ear too, because she’d blown his mind. Backing her into a bed of hay in an empty stall was all the privacy they needed to get naked. Tracing her soft skin with his fingertips ripped reality from under his feet. Her full breasts filled his palms and he loved her moans of pleasure when he teased her nipple. Every touch came natural to them. But man, when his tongue traced her sweet pussy for the first time, she’d lost it—and so had he.
Even now, the heat they’d shared soared back with vivid color and sensation.
“Josh?”
“Huh.”
He focused his attention on the adult version of his teenage fantasy.
“I said, are we going to eat or are you going to stare at me all night?”
“Right. Sorry.” After dishing out the food equally onto their plates from all the containers, he finally got his first mouthful. Flavorful without the grease. “Mrs. Ling wants me to bring you by for dinner sometime.”
Dix nodded while tasting the curried vegetables. After washing some down with water, she said, “It’s seriously good food.”