The Muse and the Fairy Tale (New Hampshire Bears #1) (5 page)

He gave a joyful smile. “You want to know more now, don’t you?”

The jerk was right. He had my full attention now. Hell, I didn’t even care about the food in front of me.

“Maybe.” I shrugged, trying to act as if I didn’t care.

“Ask. Ask me whatever you want. You already know my age since you’ve said it ten times in the past five minutes.”

“I’m just—”

He held up his hand. “How about for the rest of this day we don’t think about or mention our ages? Deal?”

I agreed quickly mainly because I was nosy as hell and I wanted to know more about Mr. Kyson Wick.

“Okay. Now, ask.”

“What’s off limits?” I raised an eyebrow, challenging him to see if he would lay down any boundaries.

“Nothing.” His smirk grew.

“Ask anything I want and you’ll be truthful and honest?”

“I don’t lie.” His tone was serious. “And I’d expect the same from you.”

“I don’t lie, either.” Suddenly, my anxiety grew as a million questions into my head. “Do
you
have sex shed?”

Kyson roared in laughter, making me giggle. “No, Meadow, I do not.”

Since I had no boundaries and he liked being blunt, I knew what I would ask. “How old were you when you lost your virginity?”

“Sixteen.” His smile was still on his face. “You?”

“Eighteen. Have you been in a serious relationship?”

His face dropped, and for the first time, his green eyes were sad. “Yes, I have been.”

“What happened?”

“It ended.”

I could clearly see he didn’t want to talk about it.

“Your turn, same question.”

“Right, it’s only fair. I had boyfriends and such, but I’ve never been in head-over-heels love.”

“How do you know?”

“Because I didn’t miss them when they were gone,” I stated plainly.

“Good point. What’s your favorite book?”

I snorted. “You just want one? I don’t think I could pick only one.”

“Try.” He pushed a bit.

“I’d say,” as I quickly thought of all my favorite books, “Jane Eyre.”

“Never read it.”

“You should.”

“Do you enjoy music?”

“I do. I love all kinds. You?”

“It might surprise you but I enjoy the oldies and do-wop. My mother listened to them all the time.” His green eyes shined speaking of his family.

“I am surprised. What’s your favorite movie?”

“
Star Wars
. Kian made me watch it all the time until I completely fell in love with it. I watch it all the time. Do you have one?”

“I watch a lot more TV than actual movies. I’m a
Netflix
junkie.”

Kyson chuckled. “Who isn’t? I just finished
The Office
.”

“I love Steve Carell. I finished
Parks and Recreation
. It’s so funny. I learned quickly if I wanted something to drink I’d have to hit pause.” I wasn’t about to tell him of the time water shot out of my nose from laughter.

“So, what‘s your favorite TV show?” He picked up his water and sipped.

“I’m a 90’s girl:
Full House
,
Friends, Seinfeld, Fresh Prince
. I could go on and on.”

“I know the shows.”

The waitress came and refilled our glasses. She stared down at my untouched sandwich. I told her I’d take mine to go.

“Already tired of our date?” Kyson sounded a bit nervous.

“Surprisingly, I’ve had a good time,” I told him honestly.

“How about next time we have a more proper date?”

“Next time?” My heart skipped a beat thinking of next time.

“Dinner and a movie. You pick the movie and I’ll pick the place for dinner. I leave in the morning, but I’m back on Tuesday. We could do it then.”

I tried my best not to giggle at the words
do it
. Ever since that particular conversation, I laugh at those two little words.

“Are you going to say yes or should I grovel?”

“Grovel? There’s an idea.”

“Is the picture in your head of me on my hands and knees in front of you?” His seductive tone made me clench with pleasure.

“I said nothing of the sort,” I corrected him.

“Dinner. Movie. Tuesday night. I’ll pick you up at your door and be a perfect gentleman.”

He was twenty-five, but he sure didn’t act like it. Sure, he made sexual innuendoes, but hell they were much tamer than Harlow’s. Lunch had been fun. There were no awkward silence, no small polite talk. It was…nice.

“Meadow.” Kyson leaned in.

“Okay. I’ll go Tuesday night.”

Chapter Eight

Kyson

I wanted to kiss Meadow’s plump, pink lips at the end of our date, but I restrained myself. I simply walked her to her car and watched her drive away.

I’ve been stalking her Facebook page, and she’s been telling her fans how excited and busy she was with the new book. She told everyone she would reveal the cover soon. There were a lot of comments that seemed to be happy about it too.

We won both road games; the first official month of the PHL season was over and we were sitting pretty in third place. I was currently fourteenth on the PHL’s assist list. I wanted the top spot so badly, but it was still early in the season.

“Wick,” Remington hollered my name as I headed to my truck. “Wanna go to the bar?”

Even though it was four o’clock, and almost the whole team was going, I needed to get home and get ready to pick up Meadow. “I’ll catch you next time.” I left the guys and headed to my apartment.

Kian was on the couch, clicking away on his laptop. I breezed through the living room on the way to my bedroom. I took a quick shower and was trying to figure out what I was going to wear.

She’d texted me her address yesterday, and I told her it was just going to be a casual date. I’d always hated when Angela made me get all dressed up just to have some fancy dinner. I was more laid back, but I had done it for her.

“Why are you staring at your closet?”

“I don’t have anything to wear,” I told Kian without turning around.

He laughed at me. “You’ve never had issues before.”

“I know. I said casual, so I’ll go with jeans and a shirt.”

“Wow, such a hard decision.” Kian’s sarcasm was clear.

“How’s the girl?” I changed the subject, pulling a pair of dark jeans on and then a dark green polo. I knew I could wear the leather coat.

“Listen, Kyson, we need to talk.” Kian’s voice was shaky.

I stopped and looked at him. “Are you okay?”

“Yes. No. Well, see this person I’m seeing, it’s going great and um…”

“So, what’s the problem?”

“Nothing, it’s just me.” Kian backed out of my room.

I planned on chasing after him, but my brother wasn’t one to express his feelings very well, until he was ready. I went back to getting ready then headed over to Meadow’s house. She was on the other side of town, and it seemed to be a quiet neighborhood. All the houses were one story, small homes. In some ways, it reminded me of a retirement community, but I was certain I was wrong.

I pulled up behind her car in the driveway and inspected the small house. She had flowers outlining her short sidewalk and the front porch. The entire house had stark white siding and white porch.

I knocked on the door and stepped back, waiting for her. A few seconds later, she opened the door, and my breath caught. God, she was beautiful. Her blonde hair was loose around her shoulders and highlighted her pink blouse. My eyes cascaded down her body. She had on black fitted dress pants. They hugged her in all the right places.

I couldn’t help myself, pushing my way over the threshold of her house; I grabbed her and kissed her. Her lips were tight at the abrupt action, but I wasn’t going to let go until she kissed me back. It took about two seconds before I felt her relax, her hands resting on my biceps. She tasted sweet like cherries as I swept my tongue into her mouth.

Her soft moan told me she was enjoying this too. I dropped my hands to her lower back, pulling her flush to me. My cock jerked a bit, feeling her soft body against mine. Her arms rose and she clutched the nape of my neck, toying with my hair.

Finally, I pulled back. We were both breathing a bit heavier, our eyes locked on each other.

“Saying hello is so overrated, don’t you think?” I joked, trying to break her trance. Had she blinked yet?

“Sometimes.” A tiny smile played on her face. “Let me grab my purse.”

She stepped back from my arms and moved to the left. From the quick glance I got, it looked like her bedroom. Oh, I hoped I’d get to visit that room soon. Suddenly, a large tabby cat with a fluffy tail came strolling from the other room.

“Ah, Puckhead.” I bent down and remarkably, the cat came right to me. I stroked his back to tail. “You’re very soft.” I was rewarded with a purr.

“Be careful, he’s shedding, and I don’t want you to have hair all over you,” Meadow said, coming out of the room, shutting the door.

“It’s fine.” I stood up. “Ready?”

She nodded and we walked out. When she finished locking the door, I reached for her hand and she instantly took it. It felt right lacing our fingers together. I didn’t want to let go when I opened the door for her.

“I figured you would have a little sports car,” Meadow said as I buckled my seat belt and backed out of her driveway.

“Nope. I know how winters are, and no sports car is going to get me to the arena.”

“You are quite right.”

“What have I missed in Meadow’s world? You didn’t seem talkative when I texted.”

“I’m sorry. I’ve done nothing but edits and rewrites. As soon as I finish a couple chapters, I send it to Harlow. However, the good news is she’s liking it better, and I’m sending the first half of my book to my beta readers in the morning.”

“What’s a beta reader?” I pulled into the parking lot of an Italian restaurant.

“It’s a reader who pretty much is the first person to read the book after it’s edited. Some authors have them read it before it’s edited, but I’m different. Anyway, they read it and tear it apart. What they like, don’t like, didn’t make sense, what I need to change, and that sort.”

I took her hand as I helped her out of the truck and we walked into the restaurant. “Sounds pretty cool.”

“Um, it’s not. It’s a nerve-racking nightmare. It’s right behind when I hit publish on my books. I click on it then go hide for forty-eight hours.”

I was confused listening to Meadow as the hostess seated us. “Why?”

“There’s nothing worse than putting your blood, sweat, and tears into story and then reading a review on how bad it is.” Meadow studied the menu.

“People hate your books? I’ve read four of them, and I think they’re great.”

Her cheeks turned a light shade of pink. “Well, thank you, but not everyone is a kind as you. I mean, I have great fans, but you can’t please everyone, right?”

She made a good point. “You’re right.”

The waitress came, and we each ordered a glass of merlot. I ordered the salmon and spinach fettuccine while Meadow ordered the peppered shrimp Alfredo.

“You did well on the road. I see you’re moving up in assists,” Meadow commented.

“Yeah. Coach Long was pleased by the news too. He and the assistants are going to work on some new plays to focus on it.”

“I think that’s great.”

I was happy about it as well. “Are you coming to the game tomorrow?”

She thought about it for a moment. “I don’t know. It’ll depend on how much I get done by then.”

“I understand.” I did. I never realized what all went into writing a book.

“What’s Kian up to?”

“Actually, he’s dating someone.”

Meadow giggled. “Why do you sound so surprised?”

“He’s not had a girlfriend in a very long time. I keep telling him to get out and live life, but he just…doesn’t.” I felt like it was my fault. He constantly put me first and I didn’t want him to regret that.

“Maybe he enjoys his job?”

“His job is me, pretty much. I just don’t want him to hold it against me, you know. I want him to have his own life.”

“I get it. I’m sure he does too. But, he’s out and about now.”

“True and so am I.” I smirked at her.

She studied me for a moment as the waiter brought our bread and salads to the table.

“Do you typically start all of your dates with a kiss?” Meadow inquired, taking a small bite of her salad.

I chuckled. “No, I don’t. However, there’s something about you.”

She rolled her beautiful blue eyes. “Laying it on thick, aren’t you, Kyson?”

“Oh, you haven’t even seen thick,
yet
,” I flirted, and she began coughing on her wine.

“You shouldn’t joke about such things, especially when I have liquid in my mouth.”

I was about to say something even more perverted when a young girl, around nineteen or so, came to our table.

“Excuse me, are you Meadow Hylton?” she asked nervously.

“Yes.” Meadow gave her a big smile.

“I’m a huge fan of your books; may I have a picture with you?”

Without missing a beat, she said yes to the girl and stood up.

“Here, I’ll take it for you,” I offered and the girl thanked me. I snapped two pictures of them and then handed her phone back. The girl practically bounced with excitement as she went back to her table.

“Does that happen a lot?”

“Nah. Mostly, it’s local folk that know me, so it’s not a big deal.”

“You’re a celebrity.”

“Ha!” Meadow scoffed. “Hardly.”

I was going to argue, but our food arrived, and I was too damn hungry. The food was deliciously perfect and Meadow agreed. We did the small talk about foods we liked. She didn’t seem to be a picky eater and neither was I. Our conversation turned to hockey, and I realized she was vastly knowledgeable. I had read her books, and I knew she had the basics of the game, but she knew the history of the PHL and of the Bears. It was nice to talk about the sport as a fan. Angela hated talking about my job.

Damn it! Don’t think about her.

I paid the bill, and we walked hand-in-hand to the truck. The drive was short and as we waited in line, I wondered which movie she’d pick. I was betting on the sob-romantic one.

“Two for
Massacre
.”

I planned on buying the ticket, but as I stood there in shock from the movie she picked, she ended up paying.

“You didn’t have to pay,” I whispered in her ear. “And we could have seen any movie.”

She stopped and turned to me. “I wanted to see this, and I picked it, so I buy.”

“Okay,” I took her hand and we strolled into the theater. I guided her to sit in the back row.

“Seriously?” She raised one eyebrow at me.

“What?” I acted all innocent-like.

“Don’t bat those baby greens at me. No making out because I want to see this.”

“Okay.” I held her hand, and a few moments later, the lights dimmed.

As badly as I wanted to make out with her, I just held her hand. I tried to keep focus on the movie, but my mind kept drifting to Meadow. Of course, when a sex scene started in the movie, it made me drift even further to how she would sound under me, on top of me, with me behind her…

I adjusted my position in my seat as I became harder. I tried to clear my mind of naked Meadow and I started thinking about golf. The mundane sport was like watching paint dry. At last, I deflated, just in time as the movie ended.

On the ride back to Meadow’s house, we talked about the movie. Well, she did, and I commented when I could. She seemed to enjoy it a lot, and I was glad.

I still held her hand as I walked her to the door.

“You’re not getting lucky on the first date,” she bluntly informed me.

I held back my grin. “This is our second date.” I closed the small distance between us.

“Doesn’t matter,” she whispered.

I leaned down toward her lips. “You never placed any rules on kissing or making out.”

“Well, you already violated my mouth once.”

“Are you complaining?” I placed my hand on her cheek and caressed her bottom lip with the pad of my thumb.

“No,” she exhaled softly.

“Didn’t think so.” I kissed her tender lips. I so desperately wanted to do more, but I stopped myself. She was shivering. “Cold or nervous?”

“Cold.”

“Well, I’ll see you tomorrow at the game?”

“I’ll text you.”

I chastely kissed her once more. “I’ll look forward to it then.”