“So Nicky,” Ella lay her large breasts upon the table, resting them comfortably on her place-setting as she leaned seductively forward, “have you ever done anything like this before?”
The cleavage was distracting enough—I’d give him that. If Ella really applied herself, I was sure she could use the things for some kind of demolition. Breaking down doors, and such.
But that wasn’t what had my poor client temporarily tongue-tied. You see, upon sitting down, he’d suddenly realized that the girl he was supposed to be professionally ‘dating,’ bore a freakishly impossible resemblance to a woman his father had married a few years back. A woman who—if memory served—Mitchell had divorced after she’d done to Nick beneath the table at Christmas dinner, exactly what Ms. Campbell had done seconds before shaking his hand.
I kicked him under the table, and he shook himself back to the present—blinking away the horror as he stared back into her cat-like eyes and tried to remember the question.
“I’m sorry,” he tilted his head apologetically to the side, “what was that?”
Ella blushed, as if her irresistible attraction had derailed him. This was going to be even easier than she’d thought.
“I said,” she leaned closer, pushing the breasts right up against his arm, “have you ever done anything like this before?”
He glanced down, hesitated, then forced his eyes back up. Across the table, I hid my face behind a menu, slumping lower and lower in my chair.
“I...uh...I actually haven’t.” He leaned back with a casual smile, creating another well-needed bit of space. “At least not under these kinds of circumstances. I’m sure Abby told you—”
“A company merger, blah-blah, cleaning up your reputation, blah-blah.” She flashed an impish grin, as if she was being fucking adorable. “She told me you need something steady.”
I did no such thing.
Thankfully, a waiter appeared at that very moment, sparing Nick from having to come up with a response. The man looked over our rather odd trio for a moment, before lifting his pad of paper with a pleasant smile.
“Can I get you folks started with some drinks?”
Nick cleared his throat and glanced down at the menu for the first time, still trying to recover himself. “Uh—yes, thank you. I think we’ll start with a round of sake—”
“Oh, didn’t Abigail tell you?” Ella interrupted again. “I don’t drink.”
Nick’s bright eyes glassed over. At this point, he was completely incapable of telling whether or not I was pulling a prank. “You don’t drink...today? Or on weekdays? Or—”
“Ever.” She flashed him another smile. “I’m alcohol-intolerant. It basically means that I can’t process the stuff.”
The waiter piped up excitedly. “Oh—I have that too!”
I glanced between them in disbelief, before discreetly sliding my butter knife off the table and into my lap. At this rate, there was a distinct chance I was going to need to protect myself before the dust settled. Either from my seething client, or my own conscience, evening the score.
Nick looked like he was in his own personal hell as Ella handed up her own menu so the two of them would have to share, then proceeded to order drinks for the entire table.
“We’ll have two sparkling waters, please.” The Southern accent was back. She clearly thought it made her sound fancy. “And we’ll start with two kelp salads as well.”
Nick was staring at the table with a thoughtful, yet vacant expression. Clearly trying to keep his head down as much as possible and let this she-beast tire herself out. But his attention snapped up when she ordered in quantities of two, not three.
He glanced at her for only a moment, before turning to me with a slight frown.
“Some green tea, right Abby?”
Once again, Malibu Barbie couldn’t help but interject.
“Oh,” she glanced up at the waiter and pretended to look highly embarrassed, “I’m so sorry. I was under the impression that Abigail probably had work to do and wouldn’t be joining us, seeing as these outings are supposed to be for just the two of us.”
My menu came down and I looked at her with cold amusement.
Really? Two hours ago you were groveling in my office. Now, you’re dismissing me as the help? That’s really the way you want to play it?
No matter how furious he might be with me at the moment, the snide comment was enough to crack even Nick’s charming façade.
“You can’t be serious—”