Shaw (Alpha Geek #6) - Milly Taiden Page 0,20

He had to remind himself to keep his mouth closed. It wouldn’t be good manners to drool all over her. It would be tough, though. Poppy was draped in a soft pink dress. The contrast against her tanned skin and dark hair was stark. She blinked her big hazel eyes at him, a smile pulling at her lips. She was wearing some kind of lip balm that made her lips shimmer enticingly. He took a giant step toward her, needing to be close to her.

“Poppy.” Her name was an exhale. She was so beautiful, it left him breathless. “How are you? You look amazing.”

He went in for a hug, not being presumptive enough that there would be more contact. As their bodies intertwined, he felt the soft brush of her lips against his cheek. He took a deep breath. She smelled like fresh flowers, mixed with something fruity. He wanted to commit the scent to memory and never forget it.

“I love your hair,” she said as she tugged one of the curls playfully. “I’m happy the beanie is absent tonight so I can see the full effect.”

Shaw patted down his curls. “I’ve tried to tame this mane so many damn times, but nothing works. I just got to let it fly and be freaky.”

“You should.” Something danced in her eyes as she spoke.

He was pretty sure it was some kind of sexual innuendo. Her flirting game was way more solid than his. He blushed, cleared his throat, and gestured to their booth. Shaw helped her slide into the thick leather seat, happy to hold her hand for as long as he could.

Poppy settled with a whispered and shy thanks. Shaw took the seat right in front of her. It was then that he saw Dakota settling into her own small table a few feet away. She would be able to hear their conversation because she was a shifter and had that super-powered hearing. In any other situation, that would have made Shaw entirely more nervous. It was fine, though. Dakota was Poppy’s friend, and he was confident that they would have a good time, even with the audience. Besides, if Poppy needed security, who was he to judge her?

“I’ve got to say, this is the first time I have actually had a dinner date in a restaurant. I feel like I’m in a romantic comedy or something,” Poppy said as she leaned ever so slightly onto the table. It made put her subtle cleavage on display, and Shaw had to force his eyes to ignore the delicate curve of her breasts. He couldn’t sit there, thinking about what it would be like to squeeze the lush orbs or taste the creamy skin.

He struggled to replay her words in his head. She had never had a real dinner date before. That didn’t seem right.

“What?” His shock was genuine. How was it possible that a woman like Poppy had never been wined and dined before?

“Well, in college, I dated other nurses. We were all broke college kids, so it was more a Netflix and chill situation.” She shrugged. “Then I dated a couple of doctors. Such a cliché, am I right? The nurse and the doctor?” Her laugh had just a touch of self-deprecation. “They never just took me out for dinner. It was like, oh, come and play tennis with me at the club. Or let’s go for a wine tasting. I don’t know if you have ever gone wine tasting, but that shit is boring. You get the serious side-eye judgment if you decide to swallow the wine instead of spitting it out. I felt like a tactless idiot. But I mean, if you’re going to give me all of this good wine to taste, I’m going to want to swallow the damn thing, you know? If not, what’s the point?”

“Had I realized that the bar for dating was that high now, I would have planned something different.” He tugged at one of his curls at the nape of his neck.

“Don’t.” One of her hands reached out to close around one of his. “Seriously. I am out of my scrubs, and I’ve meant to try out this place for a long time. I just never seem to have the chance. This is great, seriously. It’s super normal in the best possible way. I swear.”

Shaw nodded but made a mental note. He needed to up his game if he was going to be a real contender for Poppy’s heart in the