by Fiona Miers
Why her, though? She was smart, yes. But many women he met were smart. She liked to probe him with rather deep questions, and that was a bit of a rarity. It had been a long time since someone had seemed genuinely curious about him. Reporters always asked the same questions and he barely answered them with any sort of civility.
But with Emily he wanted to share his secrets, which was a dangerous thing. Her obsession with his philanthropic side was probably the most refreshing development. Some of his past girlfriends had liked the idea on the surface, had oohed and ahhed about how kind he was, how thoughtful, how selfless. That was until it had affected what they could have, or how much time he could spend with them, let alone the fact that those women would practically pass out at the suggestion that they volunteer at his shelter, or do anything useful with their time.
Emily, on the other hand, spent every spare moment she had on the charity, and not just helping out, but using her very saleable skills to help women who would otherwise not have access to the assistance she offered.
And why was that?
“Yes.”
He snapped his fingers and reached for the phone, an idea forming in his head.
He was being curious, that was all, about a new employee. He had every right to find out more about her.
He pressed a single button and the phone began to ring, which was quickly picked up on the other end by the woman of his literal daydreams.
“Hello, Emily speaking.”
“Emily, it’s Nathan Johnson. I have a few questions in regards to Eleanor's House and I was wondering if you would join me for dinner tonight to discuss them.”
His belly plummeted to his feet in mortification and his mouth hung open. That was not what he’d planned to say at all. Why was he setting up a date with a woman who would not suit his life?
“Ah, I'm not sure that would be professional, Nathan.”
She’s giving you an out. Take it.
Not a chance.
“Of course it is. We both work too many hours a day anyway, so conducting a meeting while eating just kills two birds with one stone.”
There was silence on the end of the line and he inhaled quickly through his nose. He didn’t usually have to try with women, at all. Waiting like this was rather a novel experience.
“Nathan...I...”
She stopped and he jumped into the silence, knowing full well he was being stupid. Emily was bright and bubbly and passionate. She would pull out a side of him that he’d left behind fifteen years ago. But he’d already exposed his desire to see her, so he may as well put both feet in.
“You said you were interested in knowing more about Eleanor's House.”
“You would answer some of my questions?”
Only if I want to.
He dropped the tone of his voice to sound playful. “You can’t possibly have more questions, Emily?”
She responded to his tone with a gentle laugh. When the sound came through the phone it caused a strange clench and tightening in his chest.
“Oh, I always have questions Nathan, and I would love to know more about Eleanor’s House.”
Her happy vibe transmitted through the phone line and he found himself grinning. He exhaled a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. When she was being charming, all the reasons why he stayed away from women like her went straight out the eleventh-story window. “I have some questions of my own. You happy to answer some of mine?”
“There’s not much to tell I’m afraid, but we don't need to speak about yesterday do we?”
Nathan swallowed a groan. His groin ached at the mere thought of the kiss they'd almost shared.
“No. Of course not, Emily.”
He’d rather just repeat every single breath-stealing moment and change the ending. He still couldn’t believe he’d almost kissed her. He’d sworn to himself not to even go near her and then he’d been pressing her up against the wall like some teenager who couldn’t control himself.
A teenager…that was the reason he wouldn’t be dating her. Because she made him behave like an unruly teenager! But if that were true, why had he stopped? Sure it would have been a monumentally stupid idea, but he regretted his control now. To taste her passion would be a new experience, he was certain.
He wasn’t dating her anyway. He was having a dinner business meeting.
“So I’ll pick you up at seven, shall I?”
“That’s fine. I’ll meet you out the front of my building, if you want. There’re a few good restaurants close by.”
“Good. See you then.”
****
Emily pulled her handbag strap back to the top of her shoulder once again, the leather slipping down in the most annoying way.
I need a new one.
She groaned and turned to her left again, her eyes darting up and down the street. She hugged her arms closer to her body and shivered.
It was getting cold. Where was he?
“Emily.”
She twisted around, her breath catching in her throat as Nathan Johnson stepped closer. His tie was missing, his top button undone atop a crisp white shirt. Her belly turned and her knees literally wobbled at the sight of him.
She cleared her throat and straightened her spine.
Stop being such a girl! And a stupid one, at that.
“Nathan.”
“You can call me Nate, you know.”
Uh, I don’t think so.
She frowned and stared up at him. That would mean she’d have to forget about the other personalities that often made appearances and she wasn’t sure she could do that at the moment. “I haven’t heard anyone else call you Nate.”
He shrugged and they began walking down the street together.
“Not at work, but outside I don’t see why not.”
She considered him for a moment, his relaxed stance and smile making her remember what he had been like the first night she’d met him. Against her own better judgement, she decided to give him the benefit of the doubt.
“Okay, Nate.”
He grinned at her, truly grinned, and her heart fluttered in her chest. He had beautiful, straight white teeth and his blue eyes sparkled like sunshine on a dark pond. He appeared young and happy, an image she’d never seen in any interview photo or magazine article. Why was that? Why did he hide so much of himself?
“In here?”
She glanced at the ritzy restaurant he had indicated and shrugged. “Yeah, sure, why not? I’ve never tried it before.”
Mostly because it looks expensive and I don’t waste money on food. But then again, how often do I get to eat with a man who owns half the city?
He held open the glass door for her and she couldn’t stop herself from grinning as she passed through the entrance and stepped into a whole new world.
Crisp, white tablecloths adorned the tables and tinkling classical background music played. The food here would be way out of her price range.
“This looks a bit fancy for a business dinner. You sure you don’t want to keep walking?”
She was way out of her depth here. The whole restaurant was filled with couples canoodling and gorgeous women all done up to the nines.
A blonde at the table to her right stared at her, glanced up and down her body, sneered, then went back to her date, a man three times her age.
Emily tugged on her ill-fitting shirt sleeves. She still had her hair pulled up tightly in a bun and her off-the-rack suit did nothing for her figure, she knew that. But all her money went into the mortgages, she didn’t waste money on labels.
She glanced again at Nate and sighed. His suit jacket probably cost more than most of her furniture combined. It was cut to perfection and obviously custom tailored.
“No. I like it. Let’s sit.”
She resisted rolling her eyes. Of course you do.
He spoke to the maître d’ and they were escorted to a table in the back of the restaurant.
She sat down when the chair was pulled out for her,
not quite sure how this had happened. One moment she’d been working too hard at her desk and now she was having dinner with one of the most eligible bachelors in the city and would also soon be working with him.
“I’m starving, shall we order?”
“Sounds like a plan.”
She scanned the menu, quickly ordering a risotto that cost more than half her weekly grocery bill, but would keep her going until the morning. She had a big night of work ahead of her.
“So, tell me more about you, Emily.”
She chuckled at his tactics. She wasn’t interested in conducting this night like an interview or a rerun of some bad dating show.
“How about this—let’s ask each other three questions and we have to answer with complete honesty.”
She had no fear of what he’d ask her. Her life was boring and she preferred to be honest. Lying came badly to her and the few times she’d made mistakes in her life and lied about them later, the guilt had eaten away at her for months. On the flip side, though, she was very intrigued by the man in front of her. What was he hiding behind that obviously false mask?
His smile faltered and he shifted in his chair.
“I’m not sure I want to play this game, Emily.”
“What’s the problem, Nate? Scared?”
He grimaced out a smile and tugged at his cuffs like he was showing her he wasn’t hiding any cards.
“Any three questions or must they be work related?”
To her, they were one and the same. “Anything’s fine by me.”
His blue eyes flashed with something hot at this idea and he sat up straighter.
“All right, I’ll indulge you. The terms and conditions are set. Ladies first.”
Emily opened her mouth, then snapped it shut again. If she wasn’t a bit clever she’d blurt out the first thing that came into her mind and she wouldn’t find out anything of real importance. She may be the solicitor, but he was a successful businessman and a bachelor. He wouldn’t be trapped by any question very easily.
“Why is Eleanor’s House personal to you?”
Nate blew out a long breath and placed both of his hands on the table, laying them palms down and pressing until his knuckles all but disappeared.
“You had to start with a hard one, didn’t you?”
A laugh rose and escaped before she could stop it. “Technically I’ve already asked you this question, you just never got around to answering it properly.”
He took a moment and then spoke, his tone smooth and deep.
“Eleanor’s House is personal to me because I did it for no other reason than to give back to the community. Sure, my accountant finds a way to get a tax break from it, but if he couldn’t, I’d still do it.”
Emily cocked her head and stared at him. He didn’t seem to be lying. There were no outwards signs of it, but was he aware that he hadn’t even answered the question properly?
She didn’t want to change the words of the request too much, in case he counted it as a second question, but she wanted a real answer. So she cleared her throat, used a stronger tone and rephrased it a little.
“That’s very generous of you, but that doesn’t have anything to do with being personal. Why is it personal to you, the charity?”
This time, he glanced away and ran a hand through his hair, ruffling the perfectly styled coif.
“Ah, I’m not sure I want to answer this one.”
“Come on, I promise not to tell anyone.”
He shrugged and lifted his chin, something strange transpiring behind his blue eyes. Whoever said that eyes were the windows to your soul had been right, but Nate had a damn good set of shades on his windows and it was going to take a crowbar to pry them open. “I set up Eleanor’s House because my mother died from abuse.”
Something cold and hard hit Emily in the gut and she gasped from the shock.
“I am so sorry.” She reached across to the hand still lying on the table, lightly touching the warm skin of his knuckles. He pulled his hand away so quickly it made her stomach clench tightly once again.
Had he been abused too? Affection seemed to be a problem for him.
Oh God, Nate, I’m so, so, sorry.
She cleared her throat and averted her gaze. Now was not the time to ask such a thing.
She focused back on him, steering away from the subject as quickly as possible. “Your turn. Ask away.”
“Why do you work so hard? What are you trying to achieve?”
She grinned at him. “That’s two questions.”
“Not really, I’m just leading you.”
She smiled at his use of a good solicitor’s trick but allowed him the freedom to do so. After being so honest with her, he deserved it.
“It’s pretty simple, really. I want to do some good in the world. My parents had their house and business taken from them when I was young because they couldn’t afford a decent solicitor who might have fought for them. They really struggled after that and I don’t want to ever be in that situation again. It ripped my parents apart.”
“So you want to make lots of money?”
She thought about that. Money itself wasn’t the actual point, but what it gave her was important. “Not really. I want to be financially secure and independent, and now that I’m doing relatively well, I need to do more, too. I want to help people who can’t help themselves. It makes me feel good.”
“And you want to be the best?”
Definitions of that varied, so she decided to sidestep it as simply as possible. “Not exactly, but there is some satisfaction in being good at my job, too.”
“Then we’re kindred souls in that regard. Your turn again.”
Now that was a telling statement if ever there was one, but she had suspected that herself. It seemed that both of them wanted to make up for the past in some way.
She chuckled and shook her head. That had been more like five questions, but again, she wasn’t calling him on it. He was talking, sharing and exposing more of himself than he meant to. She wasn’t stopping him now.
Their food arrived and Emily took a moment to inhale the sweet scent of parmesan, cream and garlic before biting her lip in hesitation.
Where could she lead him now?
“Tell me, why aren’t you married?”
He laughed at that one, the sound a little harsh for her liking. “Simple really. I haven’t met a woman I wanted to date for more than a month, let alone keep around for the rest of my life.”
Oh goodness. What sort of women have you been sleeping with?
“Do you think so little of women in general?”
“No, but I must admit that the fantasy those romantic movies project is pretty far from the truth. I haven’t met a woman yet who wasn’t obsessed with money, looks, and status.”
She swallowed the creamy forkful of risotto. “Well, you have now.”
“I have what?”
“Met a woman not obsessed by any of those things.”
His eyes roamed over her face with cynicism etched into his brow. She continued to stare at him as heat flowed up her face and bloomed across her cheeks. She didn’t really like telling people too much about herself, but she wanted him to understand.
“I have an old car and an even older house, but they’re mine. I try to make myself presentable but I think it’s pretty obvious that I don’t conform to fashion or the weight restrictions that are placed upon women.”
And there was no way she was ever going to change. She loved rich food, her curves, and her old-fashioned values.
“And status, Emily? You don’t want to snag yourself a wealthy husband who can fly you all over the world, present you at the most glamorous parties and give you everything your little heart desires?”
She laughed out loud at that one although it hurt her throat to do so. Part of her would love to be spoiled a little bit, who wouldn’t? But marrying for money? Never.
She levelled her eyes at him.
“What my heart truly wan
ts is a man who is kind, funny and hardworking. A man who appreciates me for who I am, not what I can give him and more than anything in the world, I want to feel that I am loved, every day. Always.”
He sneered at her, although his hand shook a little as he reached for his glass. “I’ve heard such things sprouted at me before, but never so eloquently put, Emily.” He lifted up his glass in mock salute and drank some of his water.
She tried her best to ignore the cheap shot and picked up her fork, forcing her hand to lift the food to her lips and eat it.
Her breathing rate had increased, as had her pulse. She was offended on behalf of every good woman she had ever met, but she needed to stay calm. Nathan Johnson would be hunted by every gold-digging woman in the country. He was allowed to be a little cynical.
“Your turn, Nate. Next question.”
His face sobered and his lips flickered in a small smile, the most genuine look he’d given her all night. Something told her that he was impressed by her control, but as she forced her fingers to unwind from the fist they made under the table, she wasn’t so happy with her lack of it.
“Tell me about the best sex you’ve ever had.”
Emily’s mouth literally dropped open. Thank goodness she hadn’t been eating or drinking anything at that point in time.
“Umm.” She had agreed to answer any question he asked, but she honestly hadn’t expected such a thing. “I’m sure it would be extremely boring to you.”
He tilted his chin up. “Try me.”
****
Her lips were so damn juicy, pink and lush, like a plum he just couldn’t wait to taste. Nate couldn’t drag his eyes away from them. He clenched his fingers into a fist on the top of the table and waited for her answer to his question.
She tapped her fingers on the table and drank her water, obviously trying to find a way around his question.
He’d been pretty blatant, but he had to find an angle around this woman. She was far too likeable, attractive and warm. He wasn’t used to those sorts of females. Every girlfriend he’d ever had was at least fifty percent bitch. It was a reliable statistic that suited his world well.
