Chapter 34
thirty-four
There are two additional people seated at our table when we return. A middle-aged married couple by the names of Dawn and Rick. His black hair is starting to turn salt and pepper, and her laugh lines are adorable every time she grins at him. They make a cute couple, and they’re pleasant to talk to. Even Chloe and Brittany are more agreeable after the initial shock of meeting me. They love the fact that I’m a hairdresser and have a million questions regarding the best products available to them without a license.
Chase keeps his hand on my leg, which is mostly exposed thanks to the slit of the dress. As much as I talk and laugh with the people around us, I can’t stop thinking about everything he said on that balcony. His past, how he doesn’t want to be here, how he’s humbled by me. For someone I’ve been talking to every day since meeting him, he’s different from what I thought. There’s more to him than the confident flirt of a man who makes me laugh, and I should have known that. I’m disappointed I didn’t dig deeper sooner. Who knows what I would have uncovered by now?
The conversation at the table shifts to a more work-related topic, and I welcome the break. Taking a sip of my wine, I listen to the chatter and let myself enjoy the steady movement of Chase’s fingers tracing circles along my inner thigh. Heat settles between my legs, and every time his hand inches a fraction higher, my breathing halts. If he keeps this up, I’m going to be completely at his mercy. I’ve never been this turned on by an innocent touch, but every chance I get, I shift to give him more access. And every time, he takes it. It’s a secret dance we’ve been doing ever since we sat down, and it’s been wearing away at my restraint with every torturous brush of his fingertips.
He gives nothing away as he casually sits next to me with his eyes trained on the people in front of me. Occasionally he takes a sip of his drink, but his hand never stops working its way up my leg, and all I can do is sit here and try to keep my breathing even. He has to be at the top of the slit, but I don’t dare move my eyes to check. The table and linens hide anything he’s doing, but my heart rate spikes when his hand moves further. He’s so dangerously close to feeling how much he’s affecting me, and when his pinky grazes my hip, he chokes on his drink before looking me up and down with wide eyes.
He’s figured out I’m not wearing anything underneath.
A series of emotions flash behind those eyes. Shock, curiosity, and a molten heat all gleam before me in a matter of seconds before he tosses the rest of his drink back in one large gulp.
Keeping his voice low, he says in my ear, “Well, I’m getting another drink since you’re trying to kill me. Would you like one?”
I try to bite back my smile but fail. “I would. Thank you.”
He stares at me for a long moment, his knee bouncing slightly like he doesn’t know what to do with me, and I love seeing him unravel. With his voice low again, he says, “Keep sitting there looking sweet and unsuspecting. I’m the only one who gets to know how wicked you are.”
“No promises,” I say with a hint of a smile.
Chase keeps his eyes on me for another beat before blowing out a breath, adjusting himself, and getting to his feet. He walks away, as I shamelessly enjoy the view, and when he looks back at me, he just shakes his head again and runs a hand through his hair.
“You two make the cutest couple,” the woman, Dawn, says fondly. “How long have you been together?”
I blink, trying to remember what Chase and I agreed on. I figured he’d be able to answer these questions, but I’m on my own for this one. “Oh. It’s new. I met him a few weeks ago.”
“Well, he looks absolutely smitten.” Her smile is warm, and I have to admit, it feels good to have someone rooting for Chase and me in this hypothetical relationship.
“He’s a great guy,” I say with a nod, suddenly feeling shyer than I have all night.
“He is,” Brittany says. “I think every single woman in the office has hoped to catch Chase’s attention—maybe some of the married ones, too. I mean, it’s not every day you find a successful, single guy who looks like that.” She nods in the direction Chase went, and I look over my shoulder to find him returning with our drinks. He sets my wine down in front of me as he slides into his seat, his eyebrows slightly furrowed.
“Everything okay?” I ask quietly, and I’m grateful to hear a new topic of conversation pick up on the other end of the table.
He glances between me and the cup in front of him. “Yeah . . .” The corners of his lips dip. “Have you talked to anyone else here tonight?”
I shake my head. “No. I’ve been here with you the whole time. ”
He nods. “That’s what I thought. It’s just . . .” He shakes his head. “My boss thinks you made an interesting choice?”
I frown. “What interesting choice did I make?” Is she judging my dress?
“I think she was referring to me, but she made herself busy before I could ask.”
“You’re my interesting choice?” I ask with a breath of laughter.
He doesn’t answer, just stares at his drink, turning the glass on the table as he tries to piece it all together.
I put a hand on his leg, and he finally looks at me, his hand stilling. “It doesn’t matter what she thinks, right? I’m just here so she can’t drunkenly corner you.”
His mouth quirks. “Oh, you’re doing much more than that.” He lets out a light laugh. “I haven’t decided which is more dangerous. Being cornered by her”—he nods in the direction he came from—“or wanting to be cornered by you.”
I raise an eyebrow. “You want to be cornered by me?”
“Yes,” he says quickly. “Especially now that I know . . .” He gestures toward me with his drink still in hand, pausing when his eyes drop to where the slit of my dress rests. He shakes his head. “I would like that very much.” Taking a sip of his drink, he sets it down on the table in front of him before resting his arm on the back of my chair and bringing his lips to my ear. “I hope you know I won’t be able to think straight for the rest of the night.”
Instead of explaining why I showed up here wearing nothing under my dress, I kiss him. It’s a kiss like any happy couple might share at a table, but the way Chase’s hand grips the back of my neck makes me wish it could be more.
“Good evening! It’s so lovely to see you all here,” booms a woman’s voice over the microphone.
Wait. I know that voice.
I turn to see the speaker at the front of the room, and my heart jolts in my chest. I know that face—that hair. I know that feline elegance and subtle arch to her brow. I know the dissatisfied purse to her lips right before she knows you’re about to cave and give her whatever she wants. I know the power she loves having over people—people like me. People like Chase.
Every bit of heat from that last kiss turns to icy dread. I look at the man next to me. Gone is the playful demeanor I’ve grown to love. In its place, I find a clenched jaw and stern gaze as he looks toward the front of the room.
Nicolette stands in front of the mic wearing a stunningly elegant gold dress practically made of glitter, and even though she just addressed the whole room, her eyes are locked on me.
“That,” Chase says, leaning in, “is my boss.”