Chapter 9

CHAPTER NINE

Francis

Finishing off my shower, I open the curtain and grab a towel. As I start to dry off, it dawns on me that eventually Grace will see all of me without the barrier of clothes. Then again, she has already seen me without my shirt when she stitched my side. The thought still paralyzes me instantly. From my neck down, I'm a canvas of massive scars. Only thing on my body not cut is my dick. And I'm grateful ‘cause the thought of that pain almost brings me to my knees. Never thought I would find something from that time in my life to be thankful for.

My mind reminds me, in the time I've been around Grace, she has never had a negative thought about my body or me. In fact, in all of her thoughts, she seems to be physically attracted to me .

After drying, deodorizing, and putting on some cologne, I head to my bedroom to get dressed. I grab clean jeans and one of the few long-sleeved, distressed denim shirts from my closet. Then grab a colored T-shirt, putting it on first, and then slip my arms through the shirt and button up.

As I look in the mirror, I think to myself, not too bad . I add some more cologne to finish up. After I grab my keys, leather cuffs, and wallet, I head to the garage to get the SUV out. I'm not gonna take Grace out in the truck or on the bike our first time together. Brick told me women like flowers, so I have to get some before going to Grace's. Not sure what type, have no idea about that kind of shit, and forgot to ask Brick if one was better than the next. Also want to make a stop to get some books for Damien. I've learned he loves to read.

Again I'm nervous as a fuckin' fifteen-year-old kid on his first date. What the fuck is the matter with me? I'm a grown man for Christ's sake, not to mention a badass biker and fireman. I push the garage door button and watch it open, thinking about Grace and our upcoming evening together. As usual, when I open my mind imagining her, I hear Grace's crazy thoughts and finally I laugh. Yeah, this is gonna be fun. She is as nervous as I fuckin' am. From the looks of her bedroom she might even be a bit more anxious than me. Great, it seems like we are two peas in a pod. I'm smiling as I head out for my date.

Grace

Across town, the chaos is continuing in my bedroom. After trying on so many outfits, they are literally all over my bed and beginning to cover the floor. Finally, both Damien and I settle on jeans with a shimmery black top. Adding some dangly earrings and a three-layered silver necklace, along with my watch and bracelet, I head to the family room. Damien has just come out here and is watching one of his shows. Seeing me, he gives me one of his cute, little boy smiles. God, I love his smiles.

"Momma, you look beautiful."

"Awe, thanks, kiddo. You will be okay with Donna, right?"

"I guess, just don't get why I can't come on this dinner thingy with Francis. He is my friend, too. Was mine first, before you even saw him. Why doesn't he want me with you and him tonight?"

Watching my little guy's eyes tear up, I quickly sit next to him, pulling him close. He is such a good boy. I am truly blessed. It has always been just Damien and me. And he did meet Francis first, so I can see why he is upset. Now I feel like an idiot, as it was me who told Francis we should go without Damien. Now it's time to fix my blunder.

"Damien, let's see when Francis gets here. We can ask if maybe we can do a family date with all of us. He probably won't mind, but let's give him the choice, okay?"

Nodding his head, he again is absorbed back into his kids' show on the TV. I grab my Kindle and sit back, trying to read which is a waste of time as my nerves take over. What if he doesn't show, or worse, wants to go out with only me? That would really hurt Damien's feelings. And if he hurt my kid, would I even want to go on this date? Probably not I'm thinking. Why did I agree to this at all? As anxiety and a million questions run through my head, I hear a knock on the door.

Before I can do anything, Damien is off the couch, running to the door, screaming at the top of his lungs, arms in the air, the whole nine yards.

"Francis is here, Francis is here!"

I actually feel it rise in my throat, and before I can contain it, my laughter bursts from me loudly. My kid is a frigging nut. Just like his mama.

Damien knows he isn't supposed to open the door without knowing who is there, and I can see him looking out the side glass, arms waving like a lunatic. I have the deadbolt engaged so he can't reach it. He gives, I assume Francis, the one finger, for I guess one minute.

"Come on, Momma, Francis is outside. Let's go, he's waiting."

I ruffle his hair, laughing as I unlock the door and pull it open. Right outside the screen door is Francis with a huge bouquet of flowers and a bag from the local bookstore. I'm shocked. No man has ever bought me flowers.

"Francis, just push Momma out of the way. Come in, I'll show you around. Wow, those are some pretty flowers. Aren't they pretty, Momma? Guess those are for you. Come on, Francis."

Grabbing his fingers that are looped through the bag, Damien pulls the big man into our home. I wait until they are clear before closing and reengaging the lock. Before I can turn around, the huge bunch of flowers comes into my view.

"These are for you, darlin'. I hope you like them, tried to get a little of everything as I didn't know your favorites."

Leaning forward, I take a whiff of them, letting out a deep breath. I love how mixed bouquets smell. The bouquet is a mixture of all different kinds of flowers. And it is huge. I am speechless that Francis would even think to bring me flowers .

"Thanks, Francis, they're beautiful. I'm just going to put them in a vase with some water. Be right back."

Turning, not realizing how close he is standing to me, I have to reach out a hand to his chest. A chest that is hard as a rock. My lady parts start to tingle. It has been so long since I touched a man let alone was with one intimately; it's playing havoc on my senses.

Needing a minute to catch my breath, I go around this hunk of man and work on the flowers. Tingles run up my back, letting me know someone is watching me. I turn to see Francis leaning against the doorway to the kitchen. I catch his eye, giving him a shy smile. One minute he is in the doorway, the next he is right in front of me, his arms caging me in against the countertop.

"Grace, you look...goddamn…gorgeous. You take my breath away, darlin'."

He doesn't say anything else but looks intently at me. His eyes are full of emotion and desire, which makes my heart beat a bit faster. What is wrong with me? It isn't like I don't see good-looking men at the clinic, for God's sake. As I'm trying to get myself under control, his hand comes up and his finger traces my hairline to my ear, pushing my hair behind it. Then his finger rolls over my lips softly. The callous on his fingertip feels awesome on my skin, and I let out a soft moan. Immediately his eyes shoot to mine. I see the same intensity in his, as I am sure he sees in mine .

There is so much chemistry between us; it is combustible, has been every time we have met at the hospital for a quick bite, but that was in public, now it is private. He leans into me and lightly touches his lips to mine for just a second. When he pulls away my lips follow, as I don't want him to stop. He moves back, but his hands stay where they are.

"Grace, would you be upset if I asked Damien to come with us tonight? Since we both work tomorrow, it's going to be an early night, and I don't want him to feel left out. Don't get me wrong, I want to spend time with you, darlin', but I kind of need Damien's okay, since he is the man in your life. You okay with that?"

I feel my heart blossom at his words. God, he is such a treasure. And as crazy as it sounds, again I feel like he can read my thoughts and desires. All I can do is nod my head. Francis gives my hands at my sides a squeeze, and then he turns and goes looking for Damien. I hear him ask my son if he is interested in joining us for dinner.

From the loud burst of joy Damien shouts out, I assume he is letting Francis know that he would indeed like to go out with us.

With that part handled, I reach for the phone to let Donna know she is off the hook for tonight.

Dinner went just fine. Watching Francis and Damien together my heart melted. Francis was patient and allowed Damien to just be himself. And my son seemed fascinated with Francis. He had a ton of questions for him, who I'm shocked answered each and every one, even the ones which were a bit intrusive.

After arriving back to my house, Damien got ready for bed and then asked Francis if he could show him his room before he went to sleep. They were in there for quite a bit of time before my son came out to say goodnight. He then fist bumped with Francis than thanked him for the books he brought him. Then he gave me a kiss and headed to his room. My eyes were on him until I lost sight, then I turned to Francis.

"Would you like to stay for a bit? I can offer you beer, wine, soda, or water."

He smiles my way and takes a seat on my couch. Stretching his arms to the back of it, he seems to make himself at home.

"Sure, darlin', I can go for a bottled water. Ate too much tonight, full as can be. Would love to continue our conversation from dinner. Loved hearing about how you single handedly put yourself through school while holding down a job, then graduated and found a position at the hospital, and bought this little house for Damien and you. Please, grab some waters and take a load off. "

I smile in his general direction and walk to the fridge, grabbing the waters and doing exactly what Francis said…taking a load off and spending some time further getting to know him.