Page 48 of Release Me

All of the apprehension leaves my body, melting into a puddle of anxiety at my feet that calls me silly for thinking that Sebastian wouldn’t have thought of everything. In the weeks that I’ve known him, he’s proven himself to be thoughtful, considerate, and attentive over and over again. I don’t know why I thought that wouldn’t be the case today. With Sebastian in my life, I don’t have to face anything alone. He treats every concern, issue or minor inconvenience like a hurdle for us to jump together, an obstacle for us to face head on and hand in hand.

I don’t know why he’s decided to make this part of himself available to me, but I’m grateful that he has.

“Oh.” My fingers curl around his. “Thank you.”

His eyes go all soft, and my heart turns to mush. “You’re welcome. Now sign your lease, so I can take you out for an early dinner to celebrate.”

Our dinner is part celebration and part business, which just means that we talk about how things are going at work while we sip on glasses of champagne and eat from the assortment of small plates the tapas bar Sebastian insisted we try is known for.

“Are you sure Nic doesn’t want us to go all out tonight? I mean if it’s a first date then, he should do something special.”

Sebastian laughs, washing down the firecracker shrimp he just ate with some water. “He’s reserved the entire rooftop, so they can have a private meal. I think that’s special enough, don’t you?”

I shrug. “I guess, but I’d love to do something more. We could get a string quartet, clear off all the tables and cover the terrace with flower petals.”

“It’s a first date, Nadia, not a wedding.”

“Fine,” I concede while making a mental note to at least put some fresh cut flowers on the table to up the romance factor. Nic’s request for a private meal came at the last minute via his personal connection to Sebastian, and despite the fact that it’s left my team with the ugly work of having to cancel reservations, I’m excited about playing a role in the budding relationship between him and his mystery woman. “Do you know who the woman is he’s bringing?”

“No idea. He refused to give me any details.”

“Why’d he call you instead of contacting me?”

“Because you don’t owe him any favors.”

His answers sparks my interest. Both my brows rise, and I wiggle them at him. “What kind of favors do you owe Dominic Alexander?”

“Owed,” he stresses, pushing one of his plates to the center of the table. “I owed him a few favors, and he cashed all of them in today.”

“Damn.” I pick up my glass and polish off the last of my champagne. “She must be someone special for him to give up having you in his debt just for a meal with her.”

Sebastian settles his gaze on me. “I’m sure he didn’t even think twice about it. There are some people you meet that make you just want to do everything for them, no matter what it cost you.”

My heart jumps up into my throat because he’s sucked me into yet another moment. Another bubble of possibility where he and I are the only people that exist. How does this keep happening?

I sit my glass back down with shaky fingers. “You sound like you’re speaking from experience.”

He licks his lips. “Maybe I am.”

“Nadia?”

The moment stretches and snaps at the sound of my name, and Sebastian and I both turn to see who’s responsible for the frayed edges at our feet. I’m stunned to see Preston standing over us, two rows of straight white teeth gleaming between lips pulled up into a smile that turns strained when he aims it in Sebastian’s direction. The abrupt change feels weird to me, but then I look over and see that Sebastian is glowering at him. Everything from the curl of his lip to the narrowing of his eyes demanding Preston to justify the interruption that is his presence. Since it was my name he called, I assume he’s here for me.

“Preston, hi.”

“Hey, gorgeous.”

He swoops down, pressing a kiss to my cheek. Heat immediately rushes to the spot his lips touched, and the reaction is based on two things: the gentle press that spells the beginning of intimacy and the knowledge that Sebastian is watching. Unlike Desiree’s client with the exhibitionism fetish, I don’t have a thing for being watched, so the second part of my two fold reaction stems from something else. Preston doesn’t give me time to dig out the roots, though, because the moment the kiss is done, he turns to Sebastian.

“Adler.”

Sebastian doesn’t miss a beat. “Fredricks.”

I’ve never seen these two men interact, but it doesn’t surprise me that they know each other. They have to since Preston’s membership at Ludus was only granted after a personal interview with Sebastian. What does catch me off guard is the reproach coating both of their tones. I didn’t realize there was bad blood here, but I probably should have since Preston seemed especially bitter about being kicked out of Ludus. It didn’t occur to me until just now that he might blame Sebastian for that.

Preston straightens and places a possessive hand on my shoulder. “I didn’t realize you two knew each other…socially.”

One of Sebastian’s eye brows lifts like he wants to say something, but he looks to me, creating space for my voice in a conversation that’s quickly becoming awkward as hell.

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