Excitement

She showed. Seeing was believing. The had spent the entire arguing at work, and Jessie swore up and down that she was not going to show. She said she had better things to do than come to Anna’s latest launch party. She said that watching paint dry would be more exciting. Yet here she was, in the red gown, the shiny fabric hugging every sensual curve of her slender figure. He had been played, he realized. Why? Why didn’t she want him to know she would be here?

In a word, she was breathtaking. It was not like he had not seen her in the red gown before. But this time, with her hair swept up out of her soft brown eyes and off her long slender neck, not to mention the complimentary make-up, she looked like a different person than the one he worked with all day. Adam found it hard to breathe, had to concentrate on that task before he hyperventilated.

Jessie moved through the crowd and appeared to be heading straight for him. Adam cleared his throat, braced himself for this encounter. By now she had to know that he was interested in her. He had not kept that a secret, even though Nolan warned him about taking things slow. He had to get a grip and fast.

“Surprised?” She asked, her eyes sparkling like jewels as they caught his.

Adam nodded, counting on his inner strength to keep in line, though being this close to her sent his pulse racing like a thoroughbred at the Kentucky Derby. He reached for his beer off the bar top, needing something to calm him.

“You played me,” he said.

Jessie tilted her head to the side and smiled. “Yea, I did.”

“Why?”

She shrugged, pulled the matching clutch purse from under her arm, and set it on the bar. “Wasn’t it you who said you liked surprises? That the day-to-day stuff made life boring as hell?”

Damn. She had been paying attention. Adam had to laugh. This girl was going to keep him on his toes. “I can see I’m going to have to keep an eye on you.”

“Sounds interesting.”

Jessie lifted the hem of her dress, and sat on the barstool beside him, exposing her legs to mid-thigh. All he wanted at that moment was to reach out and run the palm of his hand over her leg. The thought alone made his fingers tingle, itching to carry out the idea. She crossed one leg over the other and turned the chair toward him. If Adam didn’t know any better, he’d think she was a tease, but she wasn’t the type. He could be wrong about that, though.

“What would like to drink?” he asked.

“A whiskey would be good right about now, but I’ll settle for a beer.”

Adam motioned for the bartender and ordered two beers. He wondered why she thought she would need hard liquor, and then an interesting thought occurred to him. Could it be possible that Jessie liked him too? The thought made him smile. She did not act that way, though, because at the office she was all business, taunting him with her knowledge of computers and business operations.

Could I be wrong? There was only one way to find out.

A slow song spilled from the speakers. Adam grabbed his beer, took a long swig, and reached for Jessie’s hand. Electricity shot up his arm from that innocent contact.

“Would you like to dance?” Thoughts of having her in his arms made his heart lighter.

She smiled up at him, sliding down off the barstool. Adam drew in a ragged breath, trying to quell his raging heartbeat. He led her to the makeshift dancefloor, the glow of the yellow Christmas lights adding to the ambiance.
Two other couples were already on the dancefloor. Adam led Jessie in between the other couples and pulled her close, never letting go of her hand. She rested her hand on his shoulder and kept up with his every move.

“So, you can dance.” He said.

Jessie chuckled, “Among other things.”

Her perfume wafted toward him, the light vanilla scent assaulting his senses. He inhaled, taking in more of the fragrance. It was sweet intoxication. He held her closer, loving the feel of her body snug against his. Everything around them became a blur as he closed his eyes, imagining what it would like to be alone with her, no one around watching them.

In his mind, she would look up at him, desire dancing in her eyes as he lowered his mouth to hers, slow and deliberate. Their lips would meet for the first time, soft and sweet, before passion took hold making his body vibrate with an intense need he had never known. One kiss would lead to another. A deeper kiss, hungry, searching, their tongues dueling, their heavy breathing the only sound around them.

“Hmmm.”

“Are you alright?” Jessie asked, jerking him from his fantasy.

Heat rose to his face and the back of his neck. Adam nodded, giving himself a tongue lashing for drifting so far away from where he was.

Jessie laughed, “Tell me where you drifted off to.”

Damn, no way could he do that. He wanted to lie to her, but he hated lying, for any reason. One lie always led to another and he refused to dig himself into a hole a couldn’t climb out.

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.” He hoped that she would let it go at that, but had a feeling she would delve deeper.

“Try me.”

His heart skipped a beat. A challenge. What’s the worst that could happen? Would she run? Would working with her become awkward? Or, was there a chance that he was right and she did have feelings for him? Questions flew through his mind at a rapid pace.

“Adam?” Jessie said.

Just the sound of her saying him name all breathy send tingles pulsing down his spine.

“Maybe I should show you instead,” he countered.

Oh, yes, he would love nothing more than to kiss her, right here, right now.

She looked up at him, her lips parted, almost as if she knew exactly what he had been thinking.

He spun them around, turning his back to the crowd. Jessie yelped. The sultry music played on, and he paused, needed just one more second to make this monumental decision.

“Are you gonna kiss me or not?” Jessie asked.

WC: 1083