RISK(21)

"I'll pick up the check if that's what you're asking." His voice is smooth. The crisp notes of each word flow together off his lips. I instantly wonder if there's anything he could say that wouldn't sound sexy to me.

"That's not what I was asking," I blurt out in haste, slightly annoyed that he's finding humor in this.

"What are you asking?" He leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees.

I tug on the hem of my skirt. "This isn't really about a good bottle of wine and a steak, is it?"

"What do you think it's about?"

I call him on his bluff because I doubt like hell he's expecting me to. "It's about us sleeping together. That's really what you want."

"Yes, Ellie. I want to f*ck you."

***

Breathe, Ellie. Breathe.

Bluff called. Nolan Black answered.

"I don't believe I've misread anything between us." His eyes soften, the intensity gone. "The attraction is strong and it's mutual. If there's a reason, beyond your job, that you'd prefer not to act on it, I'm interested in hearing that."

"Do I need a reason beyond that?"

He takes a deep breath. "You're an asset to Matiz. I'm not going to do anything that jeopardizes that. We don't want to lose you."

It's the beginning of a conversation I never had with Tad. We didn't consider what the end of our relationship would mean to my job at his company. Ultimately, he took that from me too.

"Do you find me attractive, Ellie?"

I scan his face. I can tell him honestly that he's the most attractive man I've ever met, but he's heard that before. He knows it. It's evident in the way he carries himself, in the way he's speaking to me now. "Yes, you know that you're attractive."

"Does your reluctance to have dinner with me have anything to do with your date with Liam tomorrow?"

"Why would it be because of Liam?" I shoot back quickly.

His posture changes, his back stiffening. "I have no idea where you two stand. It's not uncommon for people in this city to devote their attention to one person after a first encounter."

I wade through the verbiage to get to the message he's trying to convey. "You think I hooked up with Liam already and I'm now head-over-heels? I met him two days ago, Nolan. Technically, it was less than two days."

His mouth quirks. "So you haven't slept with him?"

My eyes fall to his hands. His right thumb is tracing tight circles over his left palm. I tilt my head to the side, contemplating not only what I'm seeing but what he just asked. "I don't think that's any of your business. I also don't think it's an appropriate conversation for us to be having during work hours."

"Consider yourself off the clock." His fingers thrum over the face of his watch. "You officially have the rest of the day off."

"No," I say with an exaggerated sigh. "Don't do that. Don't influence my job because of something personal between us."

"You admit that there's something between us?"

I can deny it. I should deny it, but I don't. "I'm attracted to you, Nolan. I'm sure most of the women who work for Matiz are, but that doesn't mean anything has to happen between us."

"You're right." He crosses his arms over his chest. "It doesn't mean anything has to happen, but it will. How long do you think we can resist each other, Ellie? I'm a strong man, but you're the type of woman who can weaken a Herculean resolve."

Words. They're all just words meant to seduce and tempt. They roll off his tongue as leisurely as the comments about the weather he directed toward a man in the elevator with us on the ride up to his office.

I look down at the necklace I'm wearing. It's a cheap piece I picked up at a flea market in Las Vegas. It has no sentimental value. The significance of it is non-existent. Once it breaks, as thin silver chains often do, I'll toss it away without a second thought. It's just like his words, pretty in the moment, but once they've served their purpose, quickly forgotten.

"I'll have dinner with you, Nolan."

"Tonight," he says, not asks, in a tone that reeks of victory. "I'll pick you up at eight. There's a place in Hell's Kitchen that I know you'll enjoy."

I rise to my feet at the quiet rap on his office door. "No, not tonight. Tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" He ignores the tapping as he stands. "You're canceling your date with Liam for me?"

My stomach knots at his blatant arrogance. "No. I want you to come over for dinner tomorrow too. Around seven o'clock would be good."

"With Liam?" He scowls.

"Yes." I glance at his office door. "Are you going to get that?"

"No, I'm not." Confusion etches his brow. "You want me to come to your place tomorrow to have dinner with Liam? With you and Liam?"

"Liam will be there," I begin as I rub my forehead. "My roommate Adley and Randy, Liam's friend, will be there too."

"I'll be the fifth wheel?"

"Or sixth." I shrug. "Depending on how you view her."

"Who?"

"The woman who wrote on your palm. I assume she drew the cute heart too." I turn back as I reach the door. "Bring her with you. I'd love to meet the artist behind that masterpiece."