Free Captivate her: Laws of Seduction Book 1 by Ava Hayworth Page A

run back to him.
    When I don’t respond, James continues. “Listen, I am not asking for anything serious, just a chance to get to know you better. You go out with other co-workers, don’t you? Why should this be any different?”
    “Well, for one thing, I am not thinking about sleeping with any of them.”
    “So you are thinking about it?” he asks. 
    “I need some time.” I force myself not to squirm under his steady regard.
    “That’s probably a good idea. Give me your phone.” Contrarily, I am a bit put out by his easy capitulation.
    I look around for my bag and see it sitting next to the door. I take out my phone and hand it to James, who taps out something and hands it back to me.
    “Now you have my number. How much time do you think you will need before you come to a decision?”
    “A few days?” I decide, but it comes out sounding more like a question than a statement. I berate myself. Show some backbone, Lainey, or he will run right over you with his good looks, charm, and sexual magnetism.
    “How about a week? I’m going to the Hamptons next weekend. If you decide to pursue this,” he waves his hand back and forth between us, “then you can come with me. We will leave Friday after work and come back on Sunday. I will have to meet a client on Saturday, but that shouldn’t take very long. My friend Rex has a house there, and I usually stay there. He won’t be there that weekend, so we will have the house to ourselves.”
    A whole weekend with James at the beach is a heady thought. “You have to meet a client on the weekend?”
    “Yes, this client requires kid gloves, but we should still have most of the weekend to ourselves." James cups my face with his hands and rubs his thumbs along my cheeks. His eyes darken and his eyelids droop. “Your skin is so soft.”
    I think he is going to kiss me, but then he lets go of me and steps back. “You must be tired. Let me call a car and get you home.”
    The car is out front waiting for me in less than ten minutes. I can’t help but be a little hurt that James makes no effort to convince me to stay. It seems like he is big talk but little action.
    He must have read my mind, because at the door he takes my elbow and pulls me to him. “I promised that if you came over we would only talk tonight, so I am letting you go. If I hadn’t made that promise, there is no way you would be walking out that door right now.”
    The burning intensity in his eyes almost makes me throw my arms around his neck and beg him to let me stay, but my doubts and uncertainty hold me back. I need to think of everything that he has said without his overwhelming presence.
    He pulls me more tightly to him, and his lips meet mine for a short hard kiss. “I want to fuck you, but if I don’t let you go right now, you won’t be leaving.” He turns and guides me to the elevator. It arrives and I get on, turning back for one more glimpse of James before the doors shut in front of him.
    As I am chauffeured home, my mind goes back over what he has said to me, and one point stands out. He said he never pursued women. Have they always pursued him? And what does it mean that he seems to be pursuing me?

CHAPTER 11
     
    The next morning there is a buzz of excitement running through the office. Curious about what has happened, I head down a floor and over to Alex’s desk. It flashes through my mind that the buzz could be about me and James. I watch to see if there are any unusual looks directed my way. Several of the new junior associates cluster around Alex’s desk, and Alex calls me over. “Lainey, have you heard the news?”
    “No, what’ss happened?”
    “Do you remember Sonia from orientation?” he asks.
    “Sonia with paralegal experience?”
    “Yea, her. She was ‘let go’ this morning. Security just escorted her out.”
    I look around at the shocked expressions on everyone’s faces. “Why? Does anyone know the reason?”
    A junior associate who works in family law