“A picnic?” I asked as we got out of his car. “There’s no basket.”
I half-expected him to open the trunk and pull one out. Instead, he just took my hand. “Burgers,” he said, and I laughed. “Is that bad?”
I shook my head, still laughing. “I went out for burgers on my very first date. And I was feeling some of those first date nerves when I was waiting for you. I guess it just struck me as funny. What?” I added, noting the intense way he was looking at me.
“You just surprise me. There are things you’re holding back—no, don’t worry, I’m not going to press you—but then there are times when you’re disarmingly honest.”
“Not usually,” I admitted. I didn’t say that I felt comfortable with him. Too comfortable, perhaps.
I didn’t say it, but I was certain that he knew it.
“Should I point out that we’re in a park?” I asked brightly, hoping to signal a change of subject. “Unless you’re planning to grill, that’s not the traditional location for a burger and fries.”
“I thought you already realized that I’m not the traditional sort.”
I narrowed my eyes, but he didn’t explain further. Instead, he led me across the plaza, the Fountain of Rings shooting water high into the sky as children watched and ran and splashed in the jets. “Want to?” he said, eyeing the streams.
“Tempting,” I admitted. “But I like this dress too much. And I’m starving.”
“Then let’s get you fed.”
We turned, strolling the tree-lined plaza until we reached the grassy area and the Visitor’s Center—and the funky-looking hamburger stand.
“Googie Burger,” Jackson said, pointing to the angular building that reminded me of both the old Jetsons cartoon and Tomorrowland at the Disneyland Park in Anaheim. “Opened here not too long ago.”
“That’s really its name?” I asked, studying the walk-up hamburger stand and the tables that surrounded it.
Jackson eased us into the line. “Yup. Do you know why?”
I cocked my head. “Is this a pop quiz?”
He laughed. “Guilty as charged.”
“I can hardly have grown up in Los Angeles, love architecture, and not know about Googie,” I said. “It’s like a subset of futuristic design. Very Atomic Age. Starbursts and roofs that slope up. And lots of boomerang shapes. The building at LAX, the iconic Las Vegas diamond-shaped sign, about a zillion car washes. It’s all over the place. Do I pass?”
“Flying colors.”
“But the really important question is, how are the burgers?”
“As excellent as the building,” he assured me. And he was right. Soft buns, perfectly cooked meat, crisp lettuce and tomatoes, and French fries to positively die for. We chatted while we ate, talking about everything and nothing, and when I reached over to wipe a bit of mustard from the corner of his mouth, I was struck hard by the realization that though I barely knew him, being with him was so easy that it felt as though we’d been together forever.
That perceived familiarity didn’t lessen the heat, though, and when he caught my finger and drew it into his mouth, I gasped aloud, as much in surprise as from the sudden explosion of sparks that originated at my fingertip and then pooled, wild and needy, between my thighs.
He kept his eyes on mine, then so slowly I thought I might just melt, he teased my finger with his tongue before dragging his teeth gently over my skin as he released me. “Tonight,” he said. “I’m going to taste the rest of you tonight.”
My lips parted as if to respond, but I couldn’t manage words.
He smiled, a little smug and very sexy. Then he stood and held out his hand to me. I took it willingly.
“Where are we going?”
“I thought I’d show you some of my favorite places. You said you grew up in LA, right? How long have you been in Atlanta?”
“Not long. I came right after I graduated in August. I met my boss out there—he was brokering a deal for Damien Stark, so I knew that Reggie was legit. Reggie Gale,” I added. “He needed an assistant, I wanted real estate development experience, and so it just worked out.”
“Stark,” Jackson said, his voice flat.
“You’ve heard of him, right? Retired from the tennis circuit not long ago, and he’s exploded onto the business scene. He made a huge profit with some real estate investments before he retired, and he parlayed that into a tech company and a whole bunch of other ventures.”
