“It must be hard on you, raising your son basically alone.”
She shrugged. “I’m not going to lie and say it’s all a cake walk.” Ryann quickly snagged the bottle of soya sauce Tyler had managed to grab off the table before he dumped it everywhere. “Having a three-year-old to chase after can be tiring. That’s why I’m really happy to work for you. I can spend more time with Tyler and not feel as though half my wages are going for a sitter.”
“Good save on the bottle,” Dirk said with a smile. “You were the best candidate for the position.” He glanced at Tyler. “Will he like anything here? We could have rescheduled for a better day. ”
“Thanks, and he’ll eat fried rice and noodles. No, it’s fine. You have no idea how much I’ve looked forward to this. I don’t get out to do a lot of adult things, so I don’t let the opportunity slip through my fingers when it comes along. I know, pretty pathetic, huh?”
Dirk chuckled. “Actually, no. I’ve been looking forward to this meeting as well. I feel as if I’ve known you for a long time through our phone conversations. And now that we’ve met, I also look forward to getting to know you even better.”
Ryann forgot to breathe as Dirk stared at her as if she were a piece of sushi on the menu. Her body instantly went up in flames, her pussy clenching, aching to be filled. It had been so long since she’d been intimate with a man. The last one she’d slept with had been her ex-husband. And having a guy like Dirk actually showing interest in her was waking her sex-starved body from its extended hibernation.
Her lungs protesting the lack of oxygen, Ryann let out her breath and yanked her gaze from Dirk’s. She focused on the menu in front of her. “So, do you see something that’s turning your crank more than others?” She realized what she’d just asked could be taken in another context, and quickly added, “I mean the food.”
“I know what you’re asking. Yes, there is.” Dirk paused. “And I don’t mean the food.”
Ryann jerked her head up to find Dirk giving her a sexy grin. Oh, shit. Was he hitting on her? Because if he were, she was so out of practice it wasn’t even funny. She racked her brain to think of something to say in return when Tyler reminded her she didn’t just have herself to think about.
“Mommy,” he whined. “I’m hungry.”
“I know, buddy,” she said. “I’ll order something for you in a minute.”
Dirk shifted his gaze to her son and held out his hand, palm up to him. “I never did say a proper hello to you, Tyler. I’m Dirk.”
Tyler smiled and slapped Dirk’s hand. “You’re a lot bigger than my daddy.”
Ryann groaned to herself. Tyler didn’t have a lot of interaction with the male gender, except for his father and grandfather, her father. So he tended to compare other men to his dad. If Dirk were interested in her, he didn’t need the constant reminder that she’d been married before. Some guys didn’t like the baggage an ex-husband entailed, especially one she’d had a child with. Not that she’d even dated a man since divorcing Mack. Raising Tyler had become her number one priority.
Dirk grinned at her son. “I am, am I?”
Tyler nodded. “Uh-huh. You’re super tall. I want to be really tall like you when I grow up.”
“Well, then you’d better make sure you eat lots of lunch to help make you grow.”
Tyler turned to Ryann. “Mommy, order me lots, so I’ll get bigger like Dirk.”
She laughed. “All right.”
Dirk filled out the slip of paper as she told him what she and Tyler wanted. Once a waitress grabbed it, silence reigned, except for the sound of Tyler playing with his toy car on top of the table, after she’d fished it out of her purse to keep him entertained.
“So—” she started.
“What—” Dirk said at the same time.
They both laughed. “You can go first,” she said.
“I just wanted to know what you would be up to tomorrow afternoon.”
“Nothing much. Why?” Ryann’s heart beat a little faster. Was this Dirk’s way of asking her out on a date? The idea that he might be sent a little thrill rushing through her. But then, he answered her and she felt a bit letdown, not that she let it show.
“I’ve decided you need to have a better computer. The one you said you have really isn’t up-to-date enough for the type of work you’ll be doing for me. At least, it won’t be fast enough. So I’ve decided that a new desktop comes with your job, at my expense. If you’ll be around tomorrow, I’ll buy one and bring it over. I’ll even set it up for you.”
“Really? You want to buy me a new computer?”
“Yes. I was thinking of an all-in-one with a twenty-three inch touch screen. I recently bought myself one and I love it. It’s nice not having a tower and a ton of cables to deal with.”
“I guess I can’t turn down one of those. And if for some unforeseeable reason I have to leave my position, I’ll be sure to give it back.”
Dirk shook his head. “No, it’s yours to keep.” His gaze met hers again, and Ryann felt as if she were falling into it. “Though I really can’t ever see letting you go.”
She stared back at Dirk, feeling as if his gaze were eating her up again. An ache throbbed deep inside her pussy. God, he turned her on with just one look. If they weren’t in the middle of a restaurant, and she didn’t have Tyler with her, Ryann would be so tempted to throw herself at him. Professionalism be damned. She wanted him. Wanted to have some hot, dirty sex with him, something she’d been sorely missing in her life. Sometimes she wanted to feel like a sexy woman, instead of a mommy. And she had a feeling Dirk would be more than willing to give her exactly what she longed for.
The first plates of their food arrived, and the spell that had taken her over, broke. While they ate, the conversation centered more on Dirk’s online dating service, which the whole lunch meeting had been originally planned for. Ryann kept an eye on Tyler, thankful the mess he made with his food wasn’t hers to clean up. And she had to hand it to Dirk—he didn’t bat an eye when some of Tyler’s rice ended up flung to his side of the table.
Even though Ryann considered herself a big eater, Dirk put her to shame. She had reached her limit long before he did. The last two rolls he’d ordered had just been placed on the table. He picked one piece up with his chopsticks and popped it into his mouth, sighing with pleasure. It sent of shiver of desire down her back. She wondered if he’d make the same sound in bed. She quickly pulled her thoughts from that topic before they got out of hand.
Dirk swallowed before he asked, “Are you sure you’ve had enough?”
She shook her head. “Definitely. I eat another bite and I’ll blow up, but you go ahead.”
He plucked up another piece. “Oh, I will. I’m addicted to this stuff. When I come here, I make sure I get more than my money’s worth.”
She laughed. “I bet you do. And I bet they’re happy to see you go.”
“Well, being so big,” Dirk winked at Tyler, “I have a healthy appetite.”
“I’m glad I’m not responsible for feeding you. You’d eat me out of house and home really quickly.”
“To make sure that never happens, you’d just have to move in with me. That way, I’d be the one who’d have to feed you instead.”
“What about me, Dirk?” Tyler chimed in. “Would you let me move in with you too?”
“Of course I would. I’d make sure you had your own room, and I have a huge backyard you could run around in all day, if you wanted.”
“Really?” Tyler asked excitedly. “Can my mom and I move in today?”
Ryann felt her face heat. “Tyler, Dirk was only joking. We really can’t move into his house with him. Dirk’s my boss. It’s because of him I don’t have to leave you during the day.”
Tyler’s face fell. “Oh.”
Dirk reached across the table and ruffled Tyler’s hair. “How about you come over for a visit. Would that be okay?” He then looked over at Ryann. “If that would be all right with your mom, that is.”
“You don’t have to feel as if you have to,” she quickly said.
“I know. I want to. Besides, there could be times where we might have to work in person. Tyler is welcome to come along.”
“Are you sure you want a three-year-old running around your place? He can get pretty rambunctious. I’d feel bad if he ended up breaking something.”
Dirk laughed. “You don’t have to worry about that, and you’ll see why when you come for your first visit.”
“All right, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
After finishing the last of his rolls, Dirk asked, “How does sometime in the afternoon sound, for me to come over tomorrow? I’ll give you a call when I’m on my way.”
“That’ll be fine. I guess I’ll see you tomorrow then.”
“Yes. Don’t worry about the bill. I’ll take care of it on my way out.”
“Okay.” Ryann slid out of the booth and took hold of Tyler’s hand after he stood beside her. “Thanks for lunch. I’m glad we could finally meet face-to-face.”
“You’re welcome. And same here.”
Not able to think of something else to add, Ryann turned Tyler toward the restaurant’s entrance and walked away. As she pulled open the glass door, she commended herself for not turning around and looking at Dirk one last time. Even though he’d given her a couple of toe-curling looks, that didn’t mean anything. As gorgeous as he was, Dirk didn’t need a divorced woman who came with a child.
* * *
Dirk waited until Ryann and Tyler walked out of the door before he signaled one of the waitresses to bring him the check. He slightly relaxed the hold he had over himself. He thought he’d done a great job of acting as if nothing out of the ordinary was happening while he’d sat across from Ryann. But on the inside, that had been the furthest thing from the truth.
His mating urge rode his ass, hard. The whole time he’d been with Ryann, her scent had filled his head. But what ramped it up even more was when he’d caught the perfumed smell of her arousal a few times. He was glad they’d been seated with a table between them. He swore he spent the entire meal with a hard-on, one that was just slowly starting to go down. Not that his cock would behave, now that Ryann had left. Until he claimed her as his mate, he had to look forward to walking around with an erection, or at least being semi-hard.
He took a deep breath. He already missed Ryann. When he’d at first thought she was married, he’d felt as if the fates were playing a cruel trick on him. She couldn’t belong to another man and be his. And with a child involved, there was no way in hell Dirk would’ve tried to come between Ryann and her husband. Regardless of how badly it would affect him.
But when she’d said she was divorced, a sense of relief had surged through Dirk. There wouldn’t be any other man standing between Ryann and him. His would-be mate already having a child didn’t bother him in the least. He loved kids. That he’d have an instant family once he became mated to Ryann was fine with him.
After leaving enough money to cover the bill and tip, Dirk left the restaurant. Once in his car, he headed in the direction of Marin County. There wasn’t much point in returning to Roxie and Beowulf’s place. He wasn’t on duty to watch over Roxie today. She’d actually forced him to take a few days off, since he’d spent more time over at her place working on his online dating service than doing anything else.
Arriving at the Protectors’ mansion, Dirk parked his car in the large detached garage before going inside. Standing in the foyer, he heard voices coming from the living room. And from the fresh scents in the air, he knew Leif and Jaden were home, and Jaden’s father, Miles, was around as well.
Dirk stepped into the living room and found all three of them there. Leif and Miles were laughing at something, but quickly stopped when he walked into the room. Jaden sat on the couch next to her mate, taking turns scowling at the men. He had the sneaky suspicion the two males had been laughing about something to do with him.
His thoughts were confirmed when Miles said with a grin, “Jaden and Leif were just telling me about your latest…endeavor. Did you get bored with your online trading before deciding to do something so…so different?”
Dirk stared at the other man and scowled a bit. He still wasn’t used to the idea of Miles being in his home whenever the man felt like it. As Saskia’s true brother, Miles had been a Protector at one time. Then he’d gone to the dark side, wanting to find the foretold one himself, and then use whomever it was as a figurehead so he could rule over the werewolf packs. They’d considered Miles the enemy for a very long time. Now that Miles thought Jaden was that foretold one—knowing nothing about Roxie—he seemed to have turned over a new leaf. He also wanted to take on some of the duties of protecting his daughter. If Miles were to ever find out Jaden was only posing as the one they were to watch over, Dirk had a feeling it would all end very badly.
“I figured my service would be something a lot of male werewolves would find useful,” Dirk said. He wasn’t about to give more of an explanation than that, especially when Leif and Miles started to laugh again.
“Enough, the both of you,” Jaden said over their laughter. “You’re acting like two teenage boys, instead of men who’ve lived to see a thousand years. I think Dirk had a great idea when he came up with this. He hopes he’ll be able to find his mate through it.” She looked directly at Miles. “And, Dad, I think you should be signing up to use it as well.”
Miles stopped laughing and gave Jaden a shocked look. “What? You can’t be serious.”
This made Leif laugh even harder. “Miles, you should see your face,” he said between gales of laughter. “It’s priceless.”
Both Miles and Jaden ignored Leif. Jaden sighed and rolled her eyes before she said, “Yes, I’m serious, Dad. We both know Mom was never your mate. You loved her, yes, but you never had the mate bond with her. That means there’s a woman somewhere out there who’s meant for you. I’d like to see my father happily mated as I am. You’ve been alone for too long.”
Miles looked even more shell-shocked. “You want me to go on the internet to find my mate?”
All this mate talk played havoc with Dirk’s nerves. He was already having a hard time being apart from Ryann, knowing what she was to him. Having to wait twenty-four hours to see her again was going to be damn tough to go through. Though he had to admit, Miles’ reaction to Jaden telling him she wanted him to sign up for Mate Connection was humorous. Dirk decided to keep his mouth shut about it, figuring it would only set Leif off again.
“What’s wrong with that?” Jaden asked. “You’d be surprised how many people meet their future husbands and wives that way.” She looked at Dirk. “You’d have no problem signing my dad up, would you, Dirk? That way, both of you can hopefully find mates.”
“Sure,” he said. “If he’d be willing to fill out the questionnaire. And I won’t force him to do that.”
“Then I choose not to,” Miles interjected. “I’d rather do it the old-fashioned way by letting it happen all on its own.”
Jaden shook her head. “So you’d be willing to wait years, maybe hundreds of them, to find her? Well, I think that’s stupid when Dirk’s service could help even the odds in your favor.”
“Still not interested.”
“But what if it works?”
“Then you’d have to prove it to me.” Miles looked at Dirk. “If he finds his mate through his online dating service, I’ll sign up the very next day.”
“You’re on, Dad,” Jaden quickly said.
Dirk knew he couldn’t not say something. “Ah, Jaden, I’d hold off on that, if I were you.”
“Why? Please don’t tell me you’ve changed your mind about finding your mate that way.”
“It’s not like that.” He paused. Just thinking about Ryann was ramping him up again, making his mating urge dig its claws harder into him. “Well, you see, I’ve already found her.”
“What? You did? When? Who is she? Is she from your site?” Jaden barraged hi
m with questions as she got off the couch to stand in front of him, wearing a wide smile.
He chuckled. “Slow down. One question at a time. First of all, she isn’t one of the women who signed up for the service, though she’s connected with it. It’s Ryann, the woman I hired to assist me with running it.”
Jaden scowled. “Wait a minute. Are you saying you’ve walked around this entire time in the throes of the mating urge and no one noticed? You hired Ryann a couple of weeks ago, at least, that’s what you said.”
“No, it hasn’t been like that. And yes, it was that long ago that I first “met” Ryann.” Dirk made air quotes. “But remember, I didn’t meet her face-to-face until this afternoon when we had lunch together.”
“I guess I’m off the hook then,” Miles said with a smile.
Jaden sighed. “Darn. It’s too bad Ryann never filled out a questionnaire. Then, we could’ve at least compared it to the one you did, Dirk, to see if the outcome would’ve been the two of you being a good match.”
“Actually, she did,” Dirk said.
“She did?”
“I wanted someone to test the site as if they were someone signing up. Since I hadn’t told any of you about the service, I asked Ryann to do it. Once she did, I only looked it over to make sure everything had worked.”
“Let’s go look at it then,” Jaden said excitedly.
“We’d have to go upstairs to my room to use my computer.”
Jaden hooked her arm through his. “That’s fine.” She looked back over her shoulder. “Come on, Dad and Leif. And no backing out now, Dad.”
Leif stood, then came over and tugged Jaden away from Dirk, tucking her under his arm. Miles also gained his feet before he followed them out of the room. Dirk heard him mutter under his breath, asking what he’d gotten himself into.
Upstairs in his room, Dirk walked over to the desk he’d set up in the corner and sat behind it. He moved the mouse to turn off the screensaver, then launched his browser. It only took him a few clicks to get into Mate Connection and his profile. He clicked on the link that would take him to his possible matches. Since he really hadn’t gotten the service out to the public yet, seeing Ryann listed hadn’t made him think anything of it. He thought it was a glitch he’d have to work out, that the program had put her there because she was the only female who’d signed up.
Dirk's Love (Roxie's Protectors) Page 2
