Page 21 of Protecting Maggie
This man was avirgin? It was unbelievable. He was…gorgeous. Stacked. Handsome. Beautiful, in fact. But more importantly, he was kind. Generous. Nice. A great friend. Loyal.All the adjectives.
How in the world could he be a virgin?
Shawn sighed. “Your reaction is exactly why I don’t share that with many people. I just don’t see the appeal in having sex simply for thesakeof having sex. I’ve got some toys, so I’m not ignorant about how it all works. And I have a healthy sex drive. I just usually take care of it myself. I don’t rely on women to satisfy my needs. I want a connection with someone before we share something as intimate as sex.”
The more he spoke, the more flabbergasted Maggie became. And the more interested. It was somewhat ironic that him admitting he was a virgin made hermoreattracted to him, not less.
“So…you want to go to the library or not?”
He sounded so calm. Not at all worried that he’d told her something extremely personal and private about himself. Yes, he was trying to reassure her that he wasn’t out to get into her pants, but still. “Yes,” she found herself saying.
“Great. How’s Italian sound for dinner? There’s an awesome little mom-and-pop place not too far from here. I know the owners. They’re amazing. And I guarantee you won’t leave hungry.”
“Is it possible to leave an Italian restaurant hungry?” she asked.
Shawn smirked. “You’d be surprised.”
They started walking again, and as they did, her hand accidentally brushed against his.
“Sorry,” he said with a small shrug as he looked down at her.
In that moment, Maggie realized she was seeing Shawn in a brand-new light.
She’d painted him with the same brush as her ex. They were both in the Navy, were very alpha, were comfortable in their skin. But Shawn and Roman were so different, it wasn’t even funny. Yes, if they were lined up side by side, they’d seem very similar. But now that she was getting to know Shawn, she could see that they were like night and day.
Roman was the dark night and Shawn was the light of day. And she actually enjoyed being around Shawn. Wanted to get to know him better.
“What do you like to read?” she asked as they walked.
The smile he gifted her with made tingles shoot up the back of her neck. She liked when he looked at her like that. Liked it a lot.
Preacher’s heart felt as if it was beating out of his chest. He couldn’t believe he’d admitted that he’d never been with a woman to Maggie. She had to be thinking he was the mostpathetic man she’d ever met. Who was a virgin at thirty-three? But he’d needed to dosomethingto reassure her that he wasn’t being nice simply to get her into bed.
Thankfully, his admission did seem to make her relax, which was his goal. But he was still second-guessing himself. His offer to take her to dinner and to the library truly came with no strings. He simply wanted to prolong their time together.
And it seemed as if she wanted that too. Their conversation flowed and they hadn’t had one moment of awkwardness where they didn’t know what to say to each other. He’d told her about his family in Maine, how he became interested in the SEALs, and even about some of his less top-secret missions.
In return, he’d heard about her adoption as an infant, and how she’d later found her birth mother, who’d died about a decade ago, before Maggie actually had a chance to get to know her. She had no siblings, adopted or biological. She told him stories about some of the things she’d done in college, and he couldn’t remember laughing so much.
After eating too much, and rolling out of the restaurant, they spent over an hour at the library. He could’ve spent at least another hour but Maggie was looking tired, and she didn’t protest when he asked if she was ready to go. She had a stack of books in her arms when they left, which for some reason made Preacher feel proud.
The only dark moment to their evening was when her phone rang. She’d answered it, and then, without saying a word, ended the connection with whoever was on theother end. She refused to tell him who it was, but it was obvious to Preacher that she was rattled by the call. He hated that she didn’t trust him enough to talk to him, but it had only been a day since they’d met, even though it seemed way longer than that.
“I’m sorry I don’t know anything about your car yet,” he told her when he’d pulled into her parking lot.
“It’s okay. I’ll call tomorrow.”
He made a mental note to make sure to get a hold of the mechanic first thing in the morning. He had no idea what was wrong with the car, but he wanted to make sure Maggie could afford whatever it was. He’d already worked out a deal with the guy that he’d charge half of whatever the cost was to Preacher, but he also wanted to make sure the fifty percent that was left was something Maggie could swing.
He hadn’t lied when he’d told her earlier that he knew what it was like to have money issues. He was in a good place now, but he wanted to pay forward the favors he’d gotten back then to Maggie.
“I had a good time today,” Preacher said…and immediately felt stupid. This hadn’t been a date. Not even close. And yet it was still the best time he’d had with a woman in years.
“Me too,” Maggie told him.
He wanted to prolong the moment, see if she wanted to do something with him again. But he wasn’t sure how to bring it up. He just wasn’t very good at this kind of thing. Dating.
“Thanks for introducing me to Julie. And for giving the others my number. Since I’ve been out, I hadn’t realized how isolated I’ve become.”
