Blurred Lines 1: CHASE novel Chapter 1

“Anything exciting at work?” Kyle asked, blue eyes twinkling in the dimmed candlelight. He was sporting a suit three shades darker than his eyes, a white shirt underneath unbuttoned at the very top. His blond locks were combed back to perfection, framing his face.

I lift a shoulder in a shrug, my knife cutting through the grilled Branzino on my plate. “You know Katerina Simone?” I asked, and brought my fork to my mouth. I moaned at the unbelievable taste of piquant basil, ginger, and lime. When I opened my eyes, Kyle was observing me, eyes dilated with an emotion I could not point out. “What?” I wiped my mouth with the napkin.

Adam’s apple bobbing up and down, he reached for his wine.

“Stop moaning like that,” he said, lips hovering over his glass.

I bit my lip, cheeks warming up.

Kyle and I had been together for two years and engaged for one, yet he never failed to make me blush.

Tucking my hair behind my ears, I reached for my own drink. His heated gaze made my mouth dry. He stared at me as though he couldn’t wait to strip this little black dress I’m wearing.

Hoping to get my mind back on track, I took in the fancy accent and framed artwork lining the wall. We are in one of the swankiest restaurants in Boston. Words go around that reservations here could take about a month or two, yet I doubt Kyle waited that long. Being one of Boston’s most sought out defense lawyers, Kyle was used to dining in places like this.

“Katerina, Fernando Simone’s daughter?” he asked.

Dark midnight eyes held my gaze, a promise that this night would end better than the lemon pie for our dessert. I was so distracted by the way he was looking at me I’d forgotten what we were talking about.

“She walked into the office and specifically looked for me. She said,” I made a quotation in the air, “‘Gia told me you are the best in this field. I need you to work for me.’ It was really weird since Gia Marquez, and I didn’t see eye to eye when I was working with her.”

“Interesting,” Kyle murmured, brows tilting to the ceiling.

I hummed a yes.

For the last four years, I crawled up the ladder of Lewis Brown Public Relations from Intern to Account Coordinator and got promoted to Account Executive two years ago. On record, Gia Marquez is the most challenging client our team has ever handled. It’s funny how she could say a good word about me when she cursed me and my roots when I worked with her. She was a total brat, coming from old money, just like Katerina.

Shaking my head at the memory, I set down my glass with a sigh.

“You accepted her,” Kyle commented. It’s one thing I love about Kyle. He can read me like the back of his hand. A crease in my brows, a sigh, a pout. I don’t know how he does that, but he just gets me.

“What can I do?” I traced the mouth of my glass with my fingers, shoulders slouching. “Georgia gave me two choices: accept Katerina or take this billionaire client in Rio.”

Georgia, my senior account executive, candidly dislikes me for unknown reasons.

Kyle reached across the table, taking my hand. He stroked my knuckles with his thumb. “You made it this far, and this is your dream job. Don’t let Georgia stop you from reaching your goal.” Our eyes locked, and his sincerity caressed my heart the way his thumb did to my knuckles. “I know a good way to help you relax,” he smirked.

Like an obedient puppy, my mind instantly shoved away what worries it was constructing. I gripped Kyle’s hand, tilting it up, my fingertips tracing his palm lines. Pressing both elbows on the table, I lowered my voice and asked, “oh yeah?”