Her Tender Touch

“Sorry I was late,” he said. “There was a major water problem and parking was limited and...”

“That doesn’t matter now. Just shake hands and be nice.” She turned to leave.

“I’m sorry I missed your presentation.”

“I told you it doesn’t matter.”

“But you’re angry.”

She folded her arms. “I’m disappointed. Would you have been late if you had an appointment with the president?”

“What?” Jason paused, wondering what she was up to. “If you had been the president, I hope your secret service men would have made arrangements for your guests to be escorted through the mess outside, so they wouldn’t have...”

Abby glanced around the room. “All of these other people made it on time. You know why? Because they checked before they left, and added enough time, so they would make it. Isn’t that right, Mr. Brant?” She turned and spoke to a slimy-looking gentleman standing just behind her.

“It sure is. I checked my phone and GPS to make sure I’d get here on time. I wasn’t going to miss your presentation for nothing,” he said, his eyes raking over Abby’s body in a way that made Jason grit his teeth.

Look, but don’t touch, Jason thought, sizing the man up just in case he had to make himself clear.

When Jason didn’t reply, the other man continued. “A fine woman like her deserves to be the focus of a man’s attention. Isn’t that right, Abby?”

Abby laughed a little nervously, but Jason could tell she felt uncomfortable. “Mr. Brant, that’s not—”

“I mean, if I could get just a few minutes alone with...”

Jason’s temper snapped. That was as much as he could take. “I need to see you outside for a moment.”

“Jason, it’s okay.”

“Now.” His gaze never left the man.

Abby grabbed his arm and pulled him toward the door. “Jason, I have to talk to you.”

He glared at the man, then let her lead him outside. “What?” he asked, once they were in the hall.

“Congratulations. You have just failed your first test.”

“Test? I thought we weren’t doing tests anymore.”

“You can’t, but I can. I’m the teacher, remember?”

He rested a hand against the wall behind her. “Yes, I remember.”

“Nicholas Brant is a dear friend of mine.”

“You mean what happened in there was an act?” he asked, doing his best to rein in his temper.

“Yes,” Abby said in a clipped tone. “I wanted to see what you would do. How you would respond.”

“How was I supposed to respond?”

“With more tact. Not so aggressive. You looked like you wanted to slug him.”

“I did.” He sighed, hating that he’d disappointed her when today had meant so much to him. He’d wanted to make a good impression, but he kept failing. First, missing her presentation and now, this. “I didn’t like how he was treating you.”

“And that’s not the problem,” Abby said, softening her tone, as though he were a wayward child she wanted to correct. “You could have just led me away.” She smiled briefly. “However, the look you gave him was eloquent enough.”

He drummed his fingers against the wall with irritation. “That sounds like something from out of a textbook, not real life. What would you have done if you were me?”

She paused. “If I were you?”

“Yes. What would you have done if you saw a beautiful woman you were attracted to being disrespected by another man?”

Abby opened her mouth to say something, then closed it and shook her head. “That’s not a fair question.”

“Why not?”

“Because it’s hypothetical. What really happened in there was about a man who was embarrassed about being late, who was annoyed that he had to come here in the first place and who wanted to handle his frustration by throwing some punches.”

Jason narrowed his gaze. “I thought you knew me better than that.”

Abby licked her lips. “I do.”

He watched the motion with interest, wishing he could moisten them some more for her. “Then why would you discount the fact that I’m attracted to you?”

“How you feel about me is not the issue here.”

“How come?”

Abby licked her lips again. He groaned inwardly, wishing she’d stop doing that. “Do I make you nervous?”

“You make me angry.”

He sighed, wanting so badly to kiss her, he had to grip his hand into a fist. “I’m sorry I missed your presentation,” he said with sincerity. “I won’t do that next time.”

“Don’t worry, there won’t be a next time. Right now you need to focus on smiling and shaking hands.”

He caught and held her gaze. “The only hand I want to hold is yours.”

“Jason.”

His gaze dropped to her lips. He wanted to do more than hold her hand. “Don’t pretend you don’t feel it, too.” He met her eyes, seeing the sizzling awareness in her gaze that mirrored his. “From the first moment, I knew you were the one.”

She shook her head. “I can’t risk it.”

“What?”

“Anything more than a personal relationship with you.” She shook her head again. “I mean professional.”