Seduce Me by Jo Leigh Page B

lot. He wished she was going with him to the party. It would have made him more at ease. Not that he was worried. He just would’ve enjoyed having her there.
    By the time he’d eaten enough to take off the edge, he started getting nervous again. His plan had worked, though. Natalie was a great distraction.
    “It’s almost time for you to leave, and we haven’t talked about M at all.”
    A glance at his watch confirmed that the car would arrive in the next few minutes. “You’re right. I wish we had longer.” He folded his napkin and thought about finishing his second glass of wine, but passed. “We’ll have to try again.” He looked at her. “Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoyed tonight, but I was serious about the movie. I’m very interested to hear your thoughts. My exposure to old films is limited, and I’d like to learn more now while I have the chance.”
    “You mean before you get this promotion?”
    “Yep. Whether I stay where I am or go with another firm, I’m going to be swallowed whole. No time for much fun at all.”
    “A promotion should be a reward. That doesn’t sound like much of a win.”
    That stopped him for a moment. She had a point, but it was all leading to an endgame that was more important than time to relax was now. “Worth it, though.” He checked his watch again. “You think we can find someone to give us the bill?”
    “There won’t be a bill tonight. Not after that nonsense at the table. If you haven’t noticed, they’re still going at it. I swear, it’s like coming to the circus.”
    After putting a twenty on the table for Zoya, he stood and was about to say thanks again when the kitchen door swung open. It was Ivan tugging along a dark-haired guy Max hadn’t seen before. The kid had curly hair, black-rimmed glasses and an attempt at a soul patch, and he looked as if he’d rather jump off the Brooklyn Bridge than be dragged into the dining room. Before they reached the table, a very unhappy-looking Victor made his own appearance.
    Natalie stood up, tossed her napkin on the table and took Max by the hand. “We’re leaving. Now.”
    Feeling like Clyde to Natalie’s Bonnie, he hurried with her to the front door. When she stopped, it was to turn around, hold out her hand to the crowd still following them, and say, “I’m not kidding. Stop.”
    She didn’t let go of him again until they were up the stairs and standing by the curb. With uncanny timing, the limousine sent by the recruiting agency pulled up in front of the loading zone. He opened the back door but kept his eyes on her. “Next time, we’ll go somewhere else.”
    She glanced at the backseat of the limo, then back at him. “I—”
    A half second later, he had his hand behind Natalie’s neck and he was kissing away whatever she was about to say. The move surprised him, but not half as much as the fact that the impromptu kiss went from friendly to scorching in the space of a breath.
    It was awkward with the door between them, with the car idling in the red zone, with the city buzzing around them. But it also filled him with the taste of her, the scent of her perfume and then the feel of her hand gripping his shoulder, holding him steady.
    The sound of an obvious throat clearing brought him back down to earth. Natalie’s eyes were as dark and wide as they could get, and he hadn’t felt this flustered in years. He’d kissed her. He hadn’t planned to, but he’d done it.
    “Excuse me.” A familiar woman’s voice came from behind him. From the backseat. “Max? We don’t want to be late.”
    Stella. She was supposed to be meeting him at Parlor.
    “Sure,” he murmured to her before turning back to Natalie. “We have to, uh...”
    “Right,” she said. “Okay. Um. Have a...good time?”
    He nodded and leaned forward to say, “You still owe me a movie night,” then slipped into the limo. Natalie closed the door after him. The limo surged forward into traffic before he could make sense of any of