A Clandestine Corporate Affair - By Michelle Celmer Page 0,20
had happened Thursday night, but she’d made herself pretty scarce. Other than snapping a few pictures, she’d spent most of her time in the spare bedroom with her scrapbooking paraphernalia, updating Max’s baby book. A few times when he did try to start a conversation she’d given him the brush-off. Apparently she’d had no trouble whatsoever forgetting that kiss.
He had known that hugging her was probably a bad idea, that he was tempting fate, but she had looked so confused and miserable that he hadn’t been able to stop himself. He knew the instant her body was pressed to his, and her arms wrapped around him, that he had to kiss her, but then she’d slipped her arms around his neck and kissed him first. If Beth hadn’t shown up, he didn’t doubt for a second that they would have wound up in bed together. And it would have been a huge mistake, because as he suspected at the time, Ana was only reacting to the highly emotional situation. When he gave her an out, she gladly took it.
Oh, well, easy come, easy go.
He wasn’t sure what kind of game she was playing with him. He just wished he could shut his feelings off so easily.
Nathan tried to get himself invited to stay for dinner Sunday, but Ana wasn’t biting. She said they had plans for the evening, although she didn’t say what they were. He had hoped they could have a quiet family dinner, he could tuck Max into bed again, then he and Ana could relax with a glass of wine and talk. He had forgotten until recently how much he enjoyed spending time with her. He left her condo at four-thirty wondering what was more disappointing: not being with Max, or not being with her.
Since the instant Beth had introduced Nathan and Ana he had been drawn to her. And while it was true that their relationship had begun based on little more than sex—and really fantastic sex at that—he found what he missed most about her were the times they just talked. She had a very unique and quirky way of looking at the world. Despite her station in Texas society, there were no pretensions, no ego. She was who she was, and when he was with her, he almost felt he could be who he was, too. That she was the kind of woman who would accept him. But accepting him, and deserving him, were two very different things. But damn, had he missed her when it was over.
It would never work for them, so why was he sitting here devising plans to spend more time with her? Things like leaving work early and showing up at her door unannounced with dinner tonight.
There was a knock at his office door, and he looked up to see his brother let himself in. “Hey, what’s up?”
“Did Mom call you?”
“When I was in a meeting. I haven’t had a chance to call her back. Why, is something wrong?”
“No. She wants you to bring the wine this year.”
“The wine?”
Jordan laughed. “For Christmas dinner. It’s a week from this Saturday.”
“Seriously?” Nathan looked at his desk calendar. It seemed as though just a week ago it was Thanksgiving. And frankly, dinner with his mother once a year was more than adequate. “Maybe I’ll have the flu this year.”
“If I have to go, so do you.”
“I have an idea. How about neither of us goes?”
“She’s our mother.”
“She gave birth to us. The nanny was our mother. Maybe we should go have dinner with her.”
“It’s Christmas,” Jordan said. “The time for forgiveness.”
He sighed and leaned back in his chair. “Fine. I’ll call her and let her know.”
“Should we get her a gift?”
Nathan folded his arms. “How about a plaque that says Mother of the Year?”
“Funny.”
He might consider it if he thought for a second that she would appreciate the gesture. But when a twelve-year-old kid spent a month’s worth of allowances to get his mother a necklace for her birthday, only to find it crammed down into the garbage the next day, it left a lasting impression.
“Isn’t it enough that I’m spending an entire evening with her?”
“It’s not going to bother you if I get her something?”
“Not in the least.”
“So,” Jordan said offhandedly. “Anything new with the investigation?”
Nothing Nathan could tell him. Though Adam and the board had promised to keep Jordan in the loop in regard to the investigation, he needed plausible deniability. Jordan was operations officer and worked closely with the