Sheltering His Desire (21 page)

Her brain stalled. She was used to small talk
at business gatherings, but that had never been her relationship
with Damon. Even after they broke up, whenever work brought them
back together, the conversation got intense fast. Not necessarily
because of flirting, but more because they tended to delve into
every topic under the sun when they had time. Tonight, as much as
she wanted company, she knew falling into that kind of familiarity
with him was a bad idea. “Like… what you’re doing here?” There.
That was small-talky.

He looked around in an exaggerated motion,
before turning back to her. “I’m in the restaurant, because it’s
near my hotel and I wanted dinner. I’m sitting with you, because
who am I to laugh in the face of whatever fate stuck us in the same
place, on the same night?” He covered her hand with his, and traced
tiny circles with his thumb. “If I talk about why I’m in town,
it’ll lead to work, and… You already know the answer, anyway.”

She wouldn’t be dissuaded that easily. If he
stayed, they’d make small talk.
You could always leave.
Except, despite the mental reminder, she didn’t want to. It was an
irrational response. Not as if anything beyond chatter was going to
happen with Damon. But knowing this didn’t motivate her to pull
away. Maybe the alcohol was fuzzing her senses; she did feel a
little lightheaded. Then again, maybe she didn’t care. “How’s your
brother?”

Amusement danced in his eyes. “Fighting the
good fight, I suppose. Social justice warrior through and
through.”

Vivian could do this. She didn’t know why
she’d been flustered. It was a normal, vanilla conversation. “I’ve
been following this new project of yours. The legal-defense fund,
to help those discriminated against in the workplace.” She wasn’t
keeping track of it because Damon was involved—and that wasn’t
denial. It was because she fully supported the idea of helping
people take a stand, especially in technology, against the kind of
issues that kept a lot of women and minorities out of the business,
or at least from speaking up when they were treated wrong.

“Ethan’s girlfriend came up with the idea.
She reminds me of you.” Damon dragged his gaze over her, and
friction rose in its wake. “Intelligent. Witty. But she doesn’t
have to pretend she enjoys the life she’s built for herself. She
means it,” he said.

Irritation flitted into Vivian’s thoughts.
There it was. If Damon couldn’t immediately find a way to chink
someone’s armor, he kept poking from different angles until he
figured it out. It made him a fantastic attorney, but it also made
him dangerous, as far as Vivian was concerned. She wasn’t
interested in having her walls broken down. Not by him. Not again.
It took her far too long to rebuild, after they broke up. When she
left home right after high school, only seventeen years old, she
swore to never make the same mistakes as her mother. Never let
herself get so lost in loneliness, she clung to any man who paid
attention to her, regardless of how abusive or neglectful they
were. Never surrender her identity to another human being.

She pulled her hand from Damon’s, secured her
glass, and gave him a fake smile, not caring if the phoniness
showed. “They sound like a perfect match.”

“Come on.” Damon leaned back with a chuckle.
“I don’t even get an eye twitch for that?”

At least he’s honest about what he’s
trying to do.
“Nope.”

“Fine.” He leaned back in his seat and took a
drag off his beer. “You already know what I’m up to. What are you
working on?”

She had to be misunderstanding the question.
She rolled it over in her head but couldn’t figure out why he’d ask
after insisting they not talk about the office. “Well, we’re
involved in this lawsuit—”

He shook his head. “I mean at home. You
haven’t given up dancing, have you?”

A new kind of heat flooded her. Pleased that
he remembered, and not a physical reaction to his presence. She
danced in her free time. Jazz, ballet, modern, or whatever mood
struck her. She’d never been good enough to do so
professionally—well, not the kind of professional that went on a
resume—but she enjoyed moving to the music. It helped her find her
center, when nothing else could. “I haven’t given up, no. I found a
new remix a few weeks ago that inspires me every time I hear it.
It’s nice to unwind to at night.”

He shifted in his seat and rested his knee
against her leg. “I’d love to see your interpretation
sometime.”

“I’m not sure anyone else would appreciate me
dancing in the deposition room.”

“Who cares what they think? If they have any
taste, they’ll be grateful for the break from the norm.” He
loosened her fingers from her glass and intertwined them with his
own. “Or, if you’d prefer, I don’t have any other plans this
evening.”

Vivian struggled with her response. Which was
irrational, because she already knew the answer, and didn’t know
why she was debating with himself. His offer wasn’t tempting. Maybe
if he weren’t head of Legal for the NetSafe Systems, the company
her employer, Skriddie Bust Media was suing. And maybe if she
hadn’t almost lost herself in him when they dated. And maybe—

She benched the string of thoughts. None of
them mattered, because she wasn’t seriously considering his offer,
even if he was only testing her defenses again. She pulled away
from his touch and couldn’t ignore the disappointment that raced
through her. “You’ve probably got paperwork to review before
tomorrow. I know I do.” She stood and dropped her money on the
table. It was more difficult than she expected to put her cool mask
back in place.
You’re lonely, so you’re looking for someone to
fill the void. You know it’s not him. You know what he does to
you.
She repeated the mental reminder, until it was stuck on a
loop in her head. “Good night, councilor.”

“Vivian.” A frown creased his brow, and a
hint of request leaked into his voice.

“I’ll see you in the office tomorrow.” She
forced herself to turn on her toe, and cut a straight line for the
door. It took the last of her restraint not to look back at Damon.
Not to go back and join him. Not to invite him back to her place,
for a private performance.

Seriously, what was wrong with her
tonight?

…
The story continues in Chapter
Two

The #5Star Affair (Love Hashtagged Book
1)

Jaycie Wharry is one of gaming’s most
infamous reviewers—under the intentionally vague pseudonym J-Dub.
Most of her friends didn’t even know what she really did for a
living. Then again, one in particular was missing a few solder
points in his neural circuits, and she traded that life in as fast
as she could when his infatuation with her translated into a threat
to her safety. Her new roommate, Ethan, is just supposed to be a
firewall against the past, but they’re heating up the wires faster
than an X-box on a summer’s day.

When one of Ethan’s friends leaks Jaycie’s
reviewing identity to the entire internet, accusing her of sleeping
with developers in exchange for her 5-star approval, both of their
careers are threatened. Since slapping a gag-order on the internet
to protect their jobs, privacy, and safety isn’t an option, Jaycie
and Ethan will need to archive all their preconceived notions, or
watch their future—with each other and in general—crash in an
unrecoverable way.

Roll Against Trust (3d20 Book 1)

The line between fantasy and reality blurs
when a late night gaming session goes from playful to
smoldering.

Tasha’s not looking for love, but she doesn’t
mind just looking… and maybe a little fantasizing. Her two best
friends and weekend AD& D buddies, Seth and Ryan, are the
perfect guest stars in her fantasies. When a late night gaming
session with the three goes from silly to verbally scorching in an
instant, Tasha wonders if her imagination is enough to keep her
satisfied long term.

Then her ex’s money mismanagement catches up
to her in the form of draining her bank account, her job is
threatened by a mistake that points to Ryan, and Seth takes his
side. If Tasha can’t move past her trust issues long enough to
uncover the truth—both with herself and the men she’s falling
for—she’ll wind up broken-hearted and just plain broke.

Courting Mortality (Brothers of Fate Book
1)

When it comes to the destinies, fates, and
curses that come with being a demi-god, Eli got screwed over. He’s
spent eternity thwarting the same family curse that granted his
brother, Loki, ever-lasting fame. As long as Eli doesn’t fall in
love, no one gets hurt. His plan to stay single and detached has
worked for several millennia.

And then he meets Marley. She's making him
abandon all his resolutions, except the one that never lets him
forget the curse. Falling for her means her death, and he won’t let
that happen.

Allyson Lindt is a full-time geek and a
fuller-time contemporary romance author. She prefers that her geeky
heroes come with the alpha expansion pack and adores a heroine who
can hold her own in a boardroom. She loves a sexy
happily-ever-after and helping deserving cubicle dwellers find
their futures together.