Page 47 of Playing with Temptation

He wanted to be with her and Kai. Couldn’t she see that he was sincere?

Nate tried to shake off the melancholy that settled over him when he saw the pain in Kendra’s eyes, despite her forced smile.

He forced a smile of his own as he made his way through a quick turn in the makeup chair, then a brief meeting with the producer and the host of the show.

He fought his way through filming, sporting the broadest smile he could muster. It took a few takes, but finally everyone was satisfied with his performance and he was on his way back to the green room.

“How’d it go?” Kendra greeted him warmly, as if he hadn’t been a complete jerk less than an hour ago.

“Pretty well.” He grabbed a bottle of water off the table and opened it, ignoring the urge to apologize and admit that he had no interest at all in the intern. “Should get a laugh.”

“Great.” Her smile rose no higher than the edges of her mouth. Not even close to her genuine smile. The one that rounded the apples of her cheeks, lit her brown eyes and went straight to his heart. “Guess I’ll grab a bite, then meet you on the plane.”

“Wait, Kendra, I was thinking about your suggestion that we get something to eat and go over things…”

“Yeah?”

“How about we grab dinner, but leave the shop talk at the door. I think we both deserve a break from it, don’t you?”

One side of her mouth curved, her eyes dancing. “Are you asking me out to dinner, Nate Johnston?”

“Yeah, I guess I am.”

A genuine smile lit her face. “Thought you’d never ask.”

* * *

“That was incredible.” Kendra finished the last bites of her London broil and creamed spinach and then put her fork down.

Nate, who had already finished his culotte steak and lobster tail, leaned back against the booth and grinned. “Told you you’d love this place.”

“I had my doubts.” The iconic Koreatown steak house looked like a throwback to the 1950s. Dark wood paneling on the walls; comfy, lived-in red leather booths; and crisp white tablecloths lent to the feeling of being transported to the set of an old Rat Pack movie. “But you were right. Thank you for dinner.”

“Hate to rush you away after such an amazing meal.” Nate stuffed some bills inside the vinyl guest check holder and thanked their server. He helped Kendra into her coat. “But we’ve got a plane waiting for us.”

“No, it’s fine.” Kendra smiled. “But this was really nice. Much better than the sandwich I had at the commissary.”

“About that…” Nate extended his elbow and Kendra slipped her arm through his. “I was a jerk earlier. It won’t happen again.”

“It’s forgotten.” She gave him a small smile. After they were both settled in the car, she added, “Hope you had a nice lunch date.”

“I did.” Nate held back a grin. She was fishing for information about who he’d spent those missing hours with. “Jase Hernandez invited me out to his place for lunch.”

“Oh, well, that sounds nice.” She sounded relieved. “And on the subject of invitations… I have one for you. Maya and I are taking the kids to the Pleasure Cove roller-skating rink tomorrow.”

“Are you kidding me? Is that old place still out on the edge of town?”

“Yeah, and I’m pretty sure there is still gum stuck underneath the benches from when we were kids.”

“Don’t look at me, it was Q who had the fascination with sticking his gum everywhere,” Nate chuckled, referring to his youngest brother, Quincy.

“So?” She looked at him expectantly, her eyes beaming. “What do you say? I know you can’t get out there and skate, especially while you’re in the middle of contract negotiations, but you can keep me company while I cheer Kai on from the sidelines. That’ll give me an excuse to stay off the skates.”

“Well, when you put it that way, how can I possibly refuse?” He grinned. “Just tell me the time and I’ll meet you there.”

“Great. And I know it’s my weekend with Kai, but after skating, he can spend the rest of the weekend with you, if you’d like.”

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