Love & Deception (Agents in Love - Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page B

“We need to change that.”
    He stepped into her and cradled her against
his body. Carlie felt the hard muscles beneath his shirt and jacket
and tried not to think of how good he’d look without clothes. The
last thing she needed was to blush again.
    “We can’t dance here,” she protested. “This
is a family restaurant.”
    “We can do whatever we’d like.”
    Nick placed one arm around her waist and
held onto her hand with his other, turning her in a slow circle.
For a woman who tried not to draw attention to herself, it crossed
Carlie’s mind how ridiculous they must look to the other diners.
The ambient music playing across the restaurant’s sound system
included some sort of flute and certainly wasn’t what Carlie
considered dance music.
    When Nick raised his arm and spun her before
pulling her back into his tight embrace, looking silly ceased to
matter. He pressed his cheek against hers, his breath gently
blowing into her ear. Tremors of anticipation shuddered through
her. The masculine scent of him made her ache with a need she
didn’t know she had. Kissing on the first date didn’t seem so
farfetched when he held her that way.
    “I don’t want to scare you off,” he
whispered into her ear, “but I’ve been going crazy since the first
day I set eyes on you.”
    “You have?”
    “All I wanted was to talk to you, and you
were always with Stephen.” His hand rubbed the small of her back
and his chest heaved beneath her with a sigh. “Shelley hinted you
were with him and serious, so I just watched you without saying
anything.” He paused for a second. “I’m not normally a patient
man.”
    “But you think I’m worth waiting for?” she
asked, uncertainty causing her voice to hitch.
    “Yes.” His voice was full of conviction, and
Carlie couldn’t doubt him.
    She laid her head on his shoulder and closed
her eyes, nuzzling into his neck with a contentment she hadn’t
expected to feel. “I’m glad you watched me, especially since I
needed you to come to the rescue yesterday.”
    “I wanted to kick that bastard’s ass.” Anger
bit at his words.
    “Mmmmm... Let’s not talk about him anymore.
I don’t want to spoil this.”
    She danced with abandon, concentrating on
nothing except the music and the rapid beat of Nick’s heart against
her chest. The flute reached a high note as the song ended and he
stopped shifting his feet. Applause broke out around them. Carlie
opened her eyes and jerked away, knowing she must be blushing yet
again.
    “Honey,” complained a woman to the man next
to her, “why don’t you ever do romantic stuff like that?”
    Carlie threw a sympathetic glance at the
man. Maybe the four children clamoring for attention around them
had something to do with lowering his romantic sensibilities.
    “It’s time for us to leave,” she told Nick,
not wanting to face the other diners longer than she had to. Most
of them gawked as though they expected another performance to
accompany their meal as the next song started, but Carlie had
provided them enough entertainment for one evening.
    Nick chuckled and pulled out his wallet,
throwing some money on the table. “Sure you don’t want to wait for
a box to put our leftovers in?”
    Embarrassment ate away at her. “Don’t tease
me. I’m not good with being the center of attention, and everyone’s
staring.”
    To her relief, he twined his fingers in hers
and headed for the exit.

Chapter Four
    Nick paused at the door to the restaurant,
and Carlie hoped he hadn’t forgotten something. She wasn’t going
back into the dining room.
    He looked at her and shook his head. “I
can’t believe I didn’t notice earlier. Where’s your coat?”
    Carlie thought of the brown monstrosity
hanging on the hook of her office door. No way had she wanted to
wear that on a first date with Nick. It was made to withstand the
brisk winds and cold temperatures of November in Washington—extra
bulky to protect her after having luxuriated in the