Just after lunch time, Erica’s phone rang. Although she would be seeing him in a few hours, she still hoped it was Linc.
“Where were you this morning?” Veronica asked.
“Hi, I’m fine. Thanks for asking. What about you?”
Veronica giggled. “Sorry. I’m good. So… where were you?”
“Out to breakfast.”
“Why didn’t you call me? I would’ve gone with you.”
“First of all, you’re never up before ten on Saturdays, and second, I wasn’t alone.”
“Who’d you go to breakfast with? Your mom or your dad?”
Erica didn’t even pretend to be offended by the assumption. It was a well known fact that her love life was sadly non-existent. With any luck, that was about to change.
“You’re stalling. Why are you stalling? Don’t tell me you had a hot date.”
“Not exactly, but I was with a guy.”
“What guy? Wait, the guy from last night? The hot Marine with the killer blue eyes and buns of steel?”
Erica laughed. “I thought the same thing the first time I saw his ass.”
“So, it was him then?”
“Yes, and his name is Linc.”
“Link? Like The Missing Link?”
“Linc, like his last name is Lincoln.”
“That sounds better. So, why don’t you tell me all about him when I come over tonight?”
“Can’t. I’m having dinner with Linc.”
“Then I can’t wait to hear all about him tomorrow,” Veronica replied. “Maybe over really expensive coffees with way too many calories?”
Erica laughed. “Sounds like fun.”
“Cool, how about if I call you tomorrow when I’m up and we’ll go from there?”
“Deal,” Erica agreed and hung up the phone.
Less than fifteen minutes later, her phone rang again. She didn’t have to answer it to know it was Cory. Veronica would have had just enough time to update her on Erica’s activities of the morning.
“Are you sure about this guy?” Cory wasted no time in getting to her point.
“We just caught him off guard last night. He’s a really good guy.”
“Are you sure? Abs for days and a sexy ass does not a good guy make.”
Erica laughed. “I’m sure.”
“So, is his name really Linc?”
“It’s short for Lincoln, his last name.”
“Oh, okay, I guess that makes more sense,” Cory said. “Anyway, you can tell me more about him when we all grab coffee tomorrow.”
Erica couldn’t wait to tell her friends all about Linc. Cory was going to die laughing when she found out he was the son of a minister.
* * *
At exactly six o’clock that evening Erica’s doorbell rang and she smiled at Linc’s punctuality.
“I brought this to go with dinner.” Linc held up a bottle of sparkling cider. “Perfect for two non-drinkers.”
“I hope you like chicken,” Erica said as she reached for the bottle.
“I will if you made it.”
“Dinner’s about ready if you want to go ahead and sit at the kitchen table.”
“Sure, if you don’t need any help.”
“No, it’s all ready.”
When he turned and headed toward the kitchen, Erica sent up a silent prayer of thanks for the blessing that was Linc’s ass. That sight alone was enough to make her reconsider her no sleeping with a guy on the first date policy.
Come to think of it, this wasn’t their first date. Technically, it was their second date. If she wanted to stretch that technicality even further, she could say it was their third date if she counted their meeting at the club. Yeah, that probably didn’t count.
Erica waited until he was seated at the table, taking that fine ass off display, before she moved to serve their chicken and pasta.
“Thanks,” Linc said. “This smells really good.”
Erica smiled as she poured the cider for them. “Thank me if you actually like it.”
“I’m sure it’s awesome, especially for a guy that’s used to eating in the mess hall.”
“Thanks a lot,” Erica said, though she laughed as she sat down across from him.
Erica held her breath as he cut off a piece of chicken. The moan that followed his first bite made her relax, but not much since it also made her wonder if that was close to his sex noises.
“Man, this is really good,” Linc said. “Where’d you learn to cook like this?”
“This is my dad’s recipe, but both of my parents are really good cooks.”
“That’s cool. My mom does all the cooking in our house.”
Erica smiled, not at all surprised by that nugget of information. Linc’s religious family was no doubt their generation’s version of the Cleavers.
“My parents are divorced so if both of them didn’t know how to cook, they’d either starve or live on takeout,” Erica said. “Something my dad did for about a year after they divorced which drove my mom crazy since Aaron and I always ate fast food at Dad’s house. She swore he was doing it to make her look like the bad parent.”
“Was he?”
“I think he was just trying to figure out the single dad thing.”
“How long have your parents been divorced?”
“Forever, seriously, I think they’ve been divorced longer than they were married.”
“I can’t imagine my parents getting divorced. They’ve been married almost thirty years.”
“Thirty years? I didn’t know people stayed together that long. That’s really cool.”
“Yeah, it is.” Linc smiled. “So, what do you do?”
“You mean my job?” Erica guessed, and he nodded. “I’m a medical records clerk for a doctor’s office.”
“Do you like it?”
“Yeah, I do. The office is small, and the people are nice. Plus, there’s enough work to keep me from being bored, but it’s not super hard.”
Erica liked the way he watched her as she spoke. Like he really cared about what she had to say rather than pretending to be interested in the hopes he would get laid.
Maybe it was the religious upbringing that made him so attentive. Between the selfless job, killer body, gorgeous face, good manners and easy going demeanor, Linc was damn near perfect.
Seriously, there had to be a flaw in there somewhere.
Maybe he had a small dick. Yeah, probably not given how tall he was and how huge his hands were. So, maybe he was a bad lover. Again, not likely given how polite he was. Linc was no doubt the kind of guy who made sure his partner got off, at least once, before allowing himself to do the same. At least she hoped so because she damn sure wanted to find out, but she wondered if that would be possible.
He was the preacher’s son so he could have been saving himself for marriage. Maybe this dinner had nothing to do with wanting to sleep with her. Maybe he was one of those Bible thumpers that weren’t happy until everyone was converted to his way of thinking. Or maybe he was one of those people who thought being the minister’s son made him better than everyone else.
Erica wasn’t without her flaws, but she considered herself a mostly good person. Sure, she lied to her parents, especially when she was a teenager. And yes, she’d had her first alcoholic drink before she was twenty-one and her first sexual experience when she was still in high school, but it wasn’t like she was a raging alcoholic or the town slut or anything.
Maybe he didn’t have any major flaws. Maybe he was just one of those mythical guys who was as sweet as he was sexy, the kind of guy who would lay his jacket over a puddle for a woman or save a crying kitten being chased by a playful puppy.
“Thanks for making me dinner,” Linc said, pushing his plate away. “It was really good.”
“You’re welcome. I’m glad you liked it.”
“I did. Did you want help cleaning up?”
Seriously! Erica wanted to shout at him. You can’t be this perfect! “Thanks, but I don’t really feel like cleaning up now. What do you say we take our cider to the living room where it’s more comfy?”
Linc gave a shy smile. “Sure, sounds good.”
Erica rose from the table to refill their glasses before leading him into the living room. They sat on opposite ends of her couch, neither one speaking as they faced one another.
As the silence stretched between them, Erica thought maybe she had her answer to the burning question of; what is Linc’s major flaw? The man wasn’t good at small talk. As far as flaws went, that was pretty minor, definitely something she could work with.
“I thought the purpose of this dinner was for you to tell me exactly how I make you feel different,” Erica reminded him.
Linc grinned. “You sure you can handle it?”
“I can if you can.”
He looked thoughtful for a moment. “You make me feel like a man.”
“I heard that part already,” Erica teased.
“When I met you I felt like the person I was meant to be.”
“What do you mean?”
“I don’t call a girl I just met beautiful. I don’t ask for girls’ numbers, and I don’t call and ask a girl out twice in one day.”
“How does that fit in to me making you feel like a man?”
“Because I know you’re the reason I suddenly found the confidence to do those things,” Linc answered. “I wasn’t worried that you would shoot me down because I felt like you understood me.”
Understood him? Erica didn’t know whether she should be impressed or run for the hills. In her limited experience with the opposite sex, she’d never had a guy pull out that kind of romance novel hero worthy speech.
“Erica, why do you think I haven’t kissed you?”
“I ate all that garlic bread?” Erica joked.
“Nope.”
“Okay, why?”
“I’m scared.”
“Scared of what?”
“I’m scared that it will feel so right that I won’t be able to stop.”
“With lines like that, it’s a wonder you don’t have more girls jumping into your bed.”
Linc glanced at her shyly. “I don’t have any girls jumping into my bed.”
“Because you’re the preacher’s son?” Erica teased.
“No, because I’m a virgin,” he answered softly, not meeting her eyes.
No way! Son of a preacher or not, there was no way this guy was saving himself for marriage. Unless…
Erica narrowed her eyes. “Are you really, or is that a line?”
“I’ll make you a deal.” Linc’s gaze snapped to hers. “I’ll always tell you the truth, and you’ll quit thinking I’m a liar.”
“Sorry, but that’s an awfully personal thing to say to someone you just met.”
“I know, but I trust you.”
“So, would I sound like a whore if I said I wasn’t a virgin?”
“Depends on how many guys you’ve been with.”
“Only two and I thought I was in love.”
“I’ve made out with a few girls. I even had one put her hand down my pants.”
“And what was that like?” Erica tried not to laugh.
“I was too scared to think about how it felt at the time,” Linc admitted. “But it must have felt good because it gave me a boner every time I thought about it for weeks afterward.”
His honesty should’ve made her blush, but it felt like the most natural conversation in the world. Probably because of his uncanny ability to make it seem like they were the only two people in the world.
“Is it because of your religion that you’re a virgin?”
“No, it’s because of me.”
Erica furrowed her brow. “What does that mean?”
“I never felt ready,” Linc replied. “I also never found a girl I trusted enough to share that kind of experience with.”
“Isn’t that supposed to be my line?” Erica said, and he frowned. “Sorry. How will you know when you’re ready?”
Linc stared at her, as if he was trying to decide what to say. For a moment, Erica wondered if she’d crossed some kind of invisible line.
“Can I kiss you now?” Linc’s voice was so soft it was almost a whisper.
Erica slid across the couch and stopped in front of him. Wrapping her arms around him, she leaned in to kiss him. It was a slow, tentative kiss at first, a meeting of lips absent the play of tongue. His lips felt soft and warm against hers.
As he kissed her, Linc had one arm around her waist while his free hand cupped her cheek in a gentle hold. When Erica licked at his lips, Linc immediately granted her entrance. The longer they kissed, the tighter he held her.
“Jesus,” Linc whispered when they broke apart.
“Aren’t you breaking a commandment?” Erica smiled.
“Yeah, a pretty big one too.” Linc grinned before his expression sobered. “I’ve never felt a kiss like that.”
“Is that good?”
Taking her face in his hands, he began to shower her with soft, feathery kisses. “It’s amazing and intense,” he said in between kisses. “It’s powerful and primal.”
“Linc, we should stop.”
“Why?”
“Because I’m so turned on that I can’t promise I won’t try to take your virginity,” Erica admitted with a shuddering breath.
“Maybe I should go.”
Somehow, she resisted the base urge to beg him to stay; stay and take her straight to bed where she could spend the night deflowering him.
“Erica, ask me again.”
“Ask you what?”
“I didn’t answer when you asked how I’d know when I was ready.”
“How will you know when you’re ready?”
Looking straight into her eyes Linc replied, “Because it will feel so amazing and intense and powerful and primal when I kiss the right woman that I won’t want to stop.”
Warning bells rang in her head. This guy had to be a liar. There was no way in hell someone as hot as him was a virgin, not with those kinds of lines.
“Did you come here expecting to lay the virgin thing on me so I’d give you some sympathy sex?”
“No, and I’ll prove it.”
“How?”
“By walking out of here right now.” Linc stood to go.
“Wait a second.”
“What do you want from me, Erica?”
“I want you to see my side of this,” Erica answered. “You just told me you were a virgin, and then told me you wanted to sleep with me. It doesn’t make sense.”
“I don’t know the rules for a situation like this,” Linc said. “I’m confused as hell. I want to kiss you and touch you so bad it hurts, and I mean physically hurts. I just met you last night, and I’m already in love with you, and I’m scared as hell to hear myself say that.”
Erica stared at him with wide eyes. “What?”
Linc was in love with her? After spending all of three dates with her? Three dates that amounted to less than a full day? Her brain rejected the idea, but the intensity and passion in his voice told her that he believed what he was saying.
“What did you just say?” Erica needed to make sure she wasn’t hearing things.
“Don’t make me say it again.”
“What happened to your confidence?”
“If I had any, it flew out the window when you called me a liar.”
“I never said you were a liar.”
“Tell me what you think then.”
What did she think? Besides the fact that she was pretty sure she was going crazy? She had to be going crazy. It was the only explanation for the things going through her head.
“I think you’re amazing and intense and powerful and primal, and it doesn’t make sense to me, but I love you too.”
“Love isn’t supposed to make sense.” Dropping back onto the couch, Linc reached for her hand. “I want to make love to you so bad, but I’m not ready yet. Too much has happened tonight.”
“Am I going to see you again?” Erica asked, and Linc heaved a sigh.
“Would you please trust me? And please let me walk out of here with a little dignity.”
“What do you mean?”
“I feel like an ass right now,” Linc admitted. “I’m sitting here whining about being scared of sex. I’m a grown man for God’s sake. Please just let me go home tonight with a small piece of my manhood intact.”
Erica didn’t know what to say. This wasn’t the perfect evening she’d pictured. Hell, it was nothing like the evening she’d pictured.
“Can I take you to church tomorrow?” Linc asked.
“Church?” Erica repeated with a frown.
“My dad’s church,” Linc explained. “I want you to meet my family.”
“Oh, okay, I guess.”
Because, church? Sure. Why not throw in an invitation to church to make this the weirdest date she’d ever been on?
Linc got to his feet a second time. “I should probably go.”
Yeah, he should. A little time alone would do her some good right now. Forcing a smile, she rose alongside him and walked him to the door.
“Do you really love me?” Linc turned to face her.
“I love you,” she whispered.
“God help me, Erica, I love you too.”
The door closed behind him, but she didn’t move.
No matter show she tried to reason it couldn’t be true, Erica was in love with a man she had only met last night.