A smile spread across her beautiful face. God, those plump lips he wanted to own with his own mouth, his cock, his…
Stop. He had to yank his head out of her pu**y, at least figuratively. If he ever got there literally, he probably wouldn’t come up for air for a long f**king while.
“Never,” she admitted softly.
But she’d wanted to torture him a bit for forcing her to eat and make him regret bending her to his will. This place definitely wasn’t his speed, but he wasn’t going to wish he’d left her hungry.
“But I always wanted to come here. It looked…interesting.”
Caleb frowned. “Then why didn’t you?”
As soon as he asked the question, he knew the answer. Carlotta merely confirmed it.
“Gordon would say it is stupid to waste money on food I could cook better. He would say that the place is silly with its lace and dolls and the singer.” She shrugged. “I would not want to come to such a place every day, but every so often would be nice.”
And the ex-douche bag had been unwilling to bend for her, even just to make her happy. Caleb was more than glad he could fulfill this desire for her. He’d be glad to satisfy any other she might have, too.
He took a calculated risk and reached across the table for her hand. He heard her little indrawn breath when he curled his fingers around her. She tensed, but she didn’t let go.
With a squeeze, he met her dark eyes. “Why did you stay with him for so long?”
“He put a roof over my children’s heads and food in their bellies. I came to him with three kids. Whatever else I say about him, he provided for them.”
“And treated you badly.”
“I was not important. The children were.”
Ah, damn… Her heart was so soft and sweet, and Gordon had taken advantage of it so badly that she feared trusting anyone again. Caleb knew damn well that he wasn’t easy to get along with, but he’d never neglect or tear her down as Gordon had. He wondered if all her experience with love had been awful.
“Tell me about your first husband.”
Carlotta looked surprised by his question, but happy for the change of subject. “Eduardo was a good husband and father. He was a police officer and died in the line of duty while breaking up a domestic dispute. The children were all young. I was a widow before thirty and a poor one at that. I had very much hoped that Gordon could fill all the voids in our lives, but…” She shrugged. “The nine years Eduardo and I shared together were lovely and wonderful. Even knowing how it would end, I would not change a thing. My children are the world to me, and I treasure my memories with their father.”
And Caleb was actually glad to hear that. He just hoped that having something good in the past would help Carlotta believe that she could have something good in the future with someone else.
“You deserve to be protected and pampered, Lottie. You deserve someone who will be happy to indulge your whims every now and then just for the pleasure of seeing you smile. And you need someone willing to make sure you take care of yourself properly.”
Carlotta seemed to hold her breath. She blinked at him. “I am too old now for matters of the heart. I have two beautiful grandsons and—”
“And if you finish that sentence, you won’t like what comes next. You are not old.” He gritted his teeth, his palm itching to meet her backside. Hell, he hadn’t felt an urge to punish a woman this way in years… None of them had mattered enough to try. “Do you hear me, Lottie?”
“Caleb, stop. I know that I am no longer young. Once I was pretty, like my Kata.”
“You’re still so goddamn beautiful it makes me hurt to hear that you think otherwise. If you’d give me half a chance, I’d exhaust myself proving over and over how incredibly lovely I think you are.”
A pretty rosy flush crept up her cheeks. “I am far too old for sex.”
Caleb snorted. Is that what she thought? “Wanna bet? I guarantee you that I could make you think otherwise.”
As soon as the words were out, Carlotta withdrew her fingers from his. He smothered a curse. Damn it, he was coming on really strong again, saying exactly what was on his mind, whether it would scare her or not.
If she was going to fall for him, didn’t he have to be himself? Yes, but how could she get to know him if he constantly came on too strong and alarmed her?
Circular f**king argument. He had to play this cooler. The fact that he genuinely believed they could have something special shouldn’t be a factor. Hunter had pushed Kata into marriage and nearly lost her. Caleb knew he had to be smarter.
Into her silence, he swallowed. “I’m sorry if I’m making you uncomfortable. I’m the kind of man who doesn’t dance around the truth well. If there’s something to be said, I say it. I’ve held this in for too long as it is. I’m sorry if I frightened you when I kissed you on our second date. I wanted you and I wasn’t good about taking things slowly. I know Gordon hurt you. I didn’t do so well with Amanda myself. But if you’ll talk to me, share your concerns, I think we could…” What? Ride off into the sunset? Live happily ever after? What were they supposed to do at this stage in their lives? “Try again.”
Her little hands curled inward to something nearly like fists, hiding her short red nails. “You scare me.”