When It Hooks You (It #1) by Nicki Elson Page B

midst of a humid Chicago day he smelled fresh and clean, with just a hint of a pleasant, natural musk. Somehow the warmth of his body was soothing against the uncomfortable heat of the external temperature.
    He threaded his fingers through her hair and guided her face up so it was only a few inches from his. “I don’t believe you’ve ever failed at anything.” The deep intonations of his voice vibrated through her, distracting her enough that it took a moment for the actual words he’d spoken to sink in.
    Her eyes creased at the corners in question. “That’s an odd thing to say, considering our very first interaction.”
    His hand trailed down her cheek, tickling as it went. He stopped at her jaw, cupping the side of her face. “After hearing my unconventional thoughts on baseball, I’m not sure why my saying odd things would continue to surprise you.”
    She let out a small laugh but was careful not to move too much and disturb his gentle hold on her. She looped her arms around his lean waist, staying silent as they stared at each other. Through the darkened lenses of her sunglasses, she tried to peer through the reflective surface of his. She hoped to see more of the heated desire she’d detected outside the stadium.
    Though they stood in the middle of a bustling plaza, the moment was ripe for a first kiss. With every tingling cell of her body, Trish willed him to chance it.
    “Where are these famous cheese fries you told me about earlier?” he asked, lowering his hand and killing her hopes.
    She let her arms slip from his waist, forcing her tone to stay upbeat to mask her disappointment. She usually wasn’t shy about making the first move but deemed it wise to proceed cautiously with this one. She’d let him set the pace. “They’re not cheese fries—they’re Irishnachos.”
    “Please tell me there’s no corned beef on them.”
    “Nope.” She laughed. “But you’ll go home with a tacky souvenir mini-helmet.”
    They located the counter selling the loaded fries and brought them back to their seats, arriving at the bottom of the sixth inning. The game got exciting in the seventh with a three-run homer, giving the Sox back the lead. Adam grinned when the multicolored candies above the scoreboard whirred. Daytime fireworks banged in the background. Trish wondered if perhaps she hadn’t failed at showing him a good time, after all. During the next inning, they watched the home team pull further ahead.
    By the top of the ninth, Trish didn’t want to push Adam’s intro to baseball any further. “Do you want to hit it before this mass of humanity swarms the exits?” she asked.
    “You sure?”
    “Yep.”
    Adam grabbed the tiny helmet, still half filled with potatoes and gobs of unnaturally yellow cheese, and they trotted down the steps. As they rounded the corner, he deposited the souvenir into a trash can. Trish hadn’t realistically expected him to carry the disgusting thing around with him, but when she heard it crunch against crumpled wrappers and other discarded waste, she realized she’d wanted him to want to keep it as a reminder of their day together.
    She was putting out all her signals, giving him every indication that she was into him, but he remained at a distance. This wasn’t a situation Trish was used to. By this point she’d have had most guys leashed up and fawning over her like grateful puppy dogs. Adam’s indifference made it impossible for her to let the date end just yet. He obviously had an interest in her or he wouldn’t have bothered texting from the street after he’d left the office the other day. And she knew she hadn’t imagined the hungry look he’d practically devoured her with right before they’d entered the stadium. All she needed was a little more time to bring that look back.
    “Are you up for going out to get some real food?” she asked.
    He pulled out his phone and looked at it. “Don’t you have somewhere to be at seven? It’s after six