Нина Сингх – Snowed In With The Reluctant Tycoon (страница 8)
With that flippant comment, she tried to walk away. But he wasn’t going to let her. It was about time they hashed out some stuff, he figured. Otherwise, he was just going to keep letting her get under his skin. That would not bode well for either of them. Even if he was only going to be around her for a few days.
“On the contrary, I’d love a dance,” he said as he gently took her by the arm and led her to the makeshift dance floor.
The protest died on her lips as he spun her around toward him and started swaying with her to the music. He was close enough to sniff a hint of her perfume, a flowery subtle scent. Jasmine perhaps. It suited her.
As did the cocktail dress she wore, a silky, drippy number that hung on her curves in a tasteful, flattering way. He noticed she had whimsical snowman earrings dangling from her dainty lobes.
“See, I can dance to anything. Even annoying versions of Christmas songs.”
She gave an exasperated huff. “How can you not like Christmas carols? There’s got to be one that you’re fond of.”
He shook his head. “Can’t think of one.”
“Not even ‘Jingle Bells’?”
“I find that one particularly grating.”
The look she gave him was one mixed with both sympathy and bewilderment.
Justin sighed. She must think him the biggest Scrooge. “Christmas wasn’t quite the jolly and wonderful time in the Hammond household as it was for most people,” he admitted.
He twirled her around playfully as he said it.
“Makes no sense, I know,” he added. “Given how we make our livelihood. In some ways it just made things worse.”
“How so?”
“Well, for one thing, my father became even more obsessed with sales figures and profit projections. He’d go into the office early and come home late. Even more so than usual. His increased hours gave my parents yet one more excuse to argue.”
He almost laughed at that. Argue was hardly an adequate word for the knockdown, soul-crushing fights his parents used to have.
“It made for less than a peaceful holiday,” he added. Why was he telling her these things? This wasn’t something he particularly liked to talk about with anyone. Let alone a woman he’d just met a few hours ago. A woman who’d made it painfully clear that she didn’t seem to like him very much.
“That’s so very sad. I can’t imagine Christmas being a time of turmoil for a young child.”
Well, now she felt sorry for him. “I wasn’t looking for sympathy,” he said, with a little more force in his voice than he’d intended. “Besides, it’s not like I helped the situation. I was a bit of a frustrating child. As Miranda just pointed out.”
“You were just a child.”
“A rambunctious, unruly, very disobedient child.”
She shook her head. “But still a child.”
The look in her eyes was intense, he had the disquieting feeling she was looking deep into his soul in the most intimate way. What a silly notion that was. They were in the middle of an office holiday party, surrounded by people.
Before he could respond, the music changed. The upbeat, bouncy rhythm of “All I Want for Christmas” transitioned to the slow, rhythmic melody of “Baby, It’s Cold Outside.”
Carli immediately stopped. But he wasn’t ready for this to end just yet. Whatever this was. Before he could give it too much thought and before she could turn to go, he stepped closer to her and took her by her waist. She felt warm and soft under the silky material of her dress. After a gentle nudge, she began to move with him to the slower tempo of the song.
Justin pulled her closer, until they were mere inches apart. Her eyes grew wide with shock but she didn’t make any kind of move to pull away.
Good thing, he thought. Because he wasn’t sure he’d be able to let her go.
WHAT IN THE world was she doing?
Carli knew she should excuse herself and slip out of Justin’s arms. Instead, she just stayed there, lulling herself into the cocoon of his embrace. Not even the fact that her guests were starting to stare could seem to make her pull away. And they weren’t merely guests, she reminded herself. These were her colleagues. She’d never been anything less than professional and straitlaced in front of every single one of them. But for the life of her, she couldn’t bring herself to end the dance.
Justin was indeed an ideal dance partner. He moved with fluid grace and coordination. It was hard not to enjoy being with him this way.
More than that, she couldn’t stop thinking about the things he’d just confessed to her about his childhood. She’d heard rumors about the Hammonds’ failed marriage, of course. Hammond’s Toys was no different than any other company when it came to office gossip. But she’d never given the matter much thought. And certainly neither James nor Jackson had ever broached the topic.
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