Page 151 of Let It Breathe
“A high-class gigolo. My client—an esteemed senator from California—was meeting me here this evening for a rendezvous, but she got cold feet when she saw the media camped outside waiting to do a big exposé.”
“I hate it when that happens.” Jenna reached for a piece of cheese. She chewed thoughtfully, then took another sip of wine. “It’s just as well. As a terrorist spy, I would have been forced to report any illicit activity to the government, and the next thing you know, the senator’s face would be plastered all over CNN.”
“No, not CNN,” Adam said, keeping his eyes on her face as he unbuttoned his cuffs and began to roll up his shirtsleeves. “In addition to being a sought-after gigolo, I’m also a billionaire media mogul who owns most of the major news outlets around the world.”
“You don’t say.”
He nodded and picked up his glass again, taking a careful sip of wine as he forced himself to hold a serious expression. “Yep. CNN, NBC, ABC, CBS—they’re all mine.”
“BS?”
“That one, too. Also all the newspapers and magazines in the world. I write all the articles for most of them. Very tedious work.”
“Good job on last month’s Cosmo cover story on finding your G-spot with a golf club and a pair of stilettos.”
“Thanks. I initially planned it for Sports Illustrated, but we couldn’t get Arnold Palmer to wear the stilettos.”
“Maybe for next year’s swimsuit issue,” she said. “I just turned down the opportunity to pose for the cover, so I know they’re looking for someone.”
Adam snapped his fingers in mock recognition as his brain flashed on an image of Jenna in a bikini. “That’s right! I thought I recognized you as an international supermodel. I saw your GQ cover last month, and I really love that photo spread you did for the Journal of Mutation Research and Genetic Toxicology.”
“Shh!” she said, bringing a finger to her lips. “It’s part of my cover as an international terrorist. Don’t tell.”
“Your secret’s safe with me.”
She crossed her legs under the table again, and Adam tried not to stare. The supermodel thing wasn’t so off base. God, she had amazing legs. He wondered what her real profession was, then decided he’d rather not know. There was something to be said for the thrill of reinventing oneself. He sipped the last of his wine and signaled the waitress for another.
“This wine is really good,” he said. “Fruitier than I was expecting. Seems like something you’d drink with a good pork loin, maybe.”
Her delicate brows arched. “Very perceptive of you. Pork and pinot get paired together a lot. There’s a local chef, Meg Delaney?” She paused like he might know the name, but he didn’t. “Her catering company has an entire specialty menu where she pairs different Oregon pinots with various pork dishes. Things like bacon-wrapped apricots served with pinot from the Amity Hills region or slices of pork loin braised in a pinot reduction.”
“I’ll have to check it out.” He admired her knowledge of food and wine. “You also work as a sommelier when you’re not spying for the Russians and posing for Vogue?”
“No, I own ninety percent of the vineyards in the world. I stomp all the grapes myself.”
“No wonder you have such great legs.”
She grinned and sipped the last of her wine. The waitress paused at the table to ask if she wanted another glass, and Jenna nodded.
“Just half a glass, though.”
“A full glass for me, thank you,” Adam said. “I have to catch up.”
He turned back to Jenna, who was nibbling a piece of cheese. “Try the prosciutto. It’s really good.”
“This brie is amazing.” She smeared some on a cracker, then looked up at him. “So how about you?”
“I don’t know that I’d call myself amazing, but I try.”
She laughed and bit into her cracker. “No, I mean when you’re not gigolo-ing for politicians and writing Cosmo quizzes, what sort of hobbies do you have?”
“Ah, I have a diverse range of talents and interests.” He combed his brain to come up with some. “I crochet office furniture, train and breed fighting beetles, and make abstract potato art. Maybe you’ve seen one of my gallery shows?”
“Yes, I think so.” She took a sip from her new glass. “I must’ve run across it in the Ashmolean when I was at Oxford earning my doctorate in aromatherapy.”
“Was this before or after you attended ninja training camp?”
“Before the ninja thing, but after I won the Ultimate Fighting Championships by strangling a man with my thighs.”
