Candy's Daddy by Cherry Lee Page A

yours?”
    “Bob. When do you get off work, Candy?
I’d like to see you when you’ve got more than a few minutes to spare.”
    Her eyebrows shot up. It wasn’t as if
she’d never been hit on, but the speed with which he shot past the social
charade and went straight to the heart of what he wanted surprised her.
    “A few more hours yet I’m afraid.”
    “That’s all right. I’ll hang around. I
think you’re worth waiting for.” The way he said it and the way he looked at
her made it much more than just a pick up line.
    She grinned. “Well, okay then. That’ll
give me something to look forward to while I deal with these assholes.”
    He raised a cautioning finger.
“Language, young lady.” His twinkling eyes belied his tone.
    Candy gave him a saucy wink then
walked away, her hips swaying perhaps a little more than was necessary.
    The rest of her shift, Candy stole
glances across the room or moments of flirting with Bob at the bar. She learned
he’d moved to the city recently for a job as an account executive for a
research and marketing firm. He liked hiking, sailing, bowling, reading, movies
and concerts, and some of his interests coincided with hers.
    When she had a break, Bob went with
her outside. As she lit up, he shook his head. “You know those things will kill
you.”
    “I’ve heard it said.” She took a deep
drag and let it go in a long, slow breath.
    Bob didn’t say anything else, but she
could tell from his expression he didn’t find smoking sexy in any way. Her own
pleasure in it diminished, as she realized she wanted him to find her sexy.
Candy tossed the cigarette down and ground it underfoot. “I don’t need ‘em.
I’ve been meaning to quit anyway.”
    “That’s good. I don’t mean to be a
bastard, but the truth is I don’t date smokers.” He focused that intimate gaze
on her once more. “And I’d like to date you.”
    “Yeah? Kinda quick on the draw aren’t
you, pardner?”
    He shrugged. “I know what I want when
I see it.”
    Right then Candy knew they weren’t
going to pass go or collect $200 dollars. No casual dates leading up to bed,
they were going straight to his house tonight. And with this guy it wouldn’t be
a one night stand. She didn’t know how she knew all that, but instinct told her
Bob was something special and her life would never be the same after tonight.
    The hours seemed to drag by until the
end of her shift, but at last she hung up her apron, leaving Bets to close. Bob
escorted her from the bar to the parking lot and for a moment they stood there.
    “You want to go for a cup of coffee or
something to eat?”
    She was ravenous, but for something
more than food. Candy shook her head.
    “Use your words,’ Bob teased. “What do
you want to do?”
    “Go to your place,” she answered
promptly, offering him as searing a look as he’d been shooting at her all
evening.
    A smile transformed his somewhat
somber face. “Good. But you shouldn’t go off with strangers. Best call a friend
and tell them where you’re going.”
    “Yes, Dad,” she drawled, both
irritated and touched by his paternal tone.
    He quelled her with a look. Candy took
out her phone and called her roommate to tell her she might not be home. Bob
gave his address and phone number for her to pass along to Deb.
    Candy hung up. “All safe and proper.”
But she knew he was right about the dangers of modern dating, and the fact he
considered her well being made her feel all warm and squishy inside.
    “My car’s in the shop. I’ve been
taking the bus,” she told him.
    Bob nodded and ushered her to his car.
He was a real gentleman, opening the passenger side door for her and even
leaning across her to fasten her seatbelt. Candy enjoyed the chivalrous
treatment. Most of the guys she dated didn’t offer that old world courtesy.
Maybe she should’ve been happy to be treated like their equal. Wasn’t that what
her feminist mother and grandmother had fought for? But there was a deep