Page 24 of At Your Service
“I’m not in the habit of answering questions about my personal life,” Nina said to the shock of everyone in the room, except maybe the reporter.
Nina moved until she was behind the podium, multiple microphones banked on the edge to point directly at her.
“But I recognize your need to intrude, especially since we made such a bold and exciting announcement just a few days ago.”
“Exactly,” the reporter replied with a look of measured satisfaction. “Shall I repeat my question?”
Nina held her gaze and smiled. “That’s not necessary. Major and I believe in keeping our personal relationship to ourselves. So while we’ve announced our engagement, and you’ll probably be hearing a lot more about the upcoming wedding plans, everything else between us, including the ring, will stay that way. Regardless of how many surprise questions are tossed at us. And on the business front, the At Your Service app is designed to work alongside fashion houses to offer customers a complete experience. There was an announcement on the home pages of RGF’s domestic and international websites a few days ago, which is how I presume you found out, so that hardly qualifies as a secret.”
The woman’s smirk faltered a bit at Nina’s words and, out of the corner of her eye, Nina could see Maurice grinning. She didn’t bother to try to see Major’s reaction. He probably wasn’t having any.
“So you’ve been dating for four months and now you’re getting married. How nice. When’s the big day? Have you picked out a dress? Will Riley be one of your bridesmaids? I must admit I thought if there were going to be a wedding in the Gold family, it would be Riley. But then again, she is dating the company’s biggest competitor, so making that union legal would probably be a stretch.”
This woman is a piece of work.Correction, she’s an ass.
“So glad you mentioned Riley. She’s been such a great sister-in-law-to-be these past few days. You’re correct in assuming she’ll be in the wedding, along with my sisters, and we’ll all be wearing dresses from the Golden Bride Collection. I’m very excited about selecting the perfect gowns. Are there any more questions about the wedding plans, or should I turn this over to the talented men who made today’s show possible?”
Another reporter thankfully spoke up, directing a question to Expo and the phenomenal—his word, not hers—turquoise gown they’d just seen in the show’s finale.
As Nina stepped away from the podium, Major reached for her hand. She hesitated just a second, looking up at him in question. His facial expression was still grim and he didn’t offer any explanation, but she placed her hand in his and stood beside him for the remainder of the press conference. If he’d thought them not touching for the past few days was in any way going to dull their attraction to each other, he was wrong.
Warmth instantly spread through her body at his touch and her fingers clung to his as they walked. He didn’t say a word until they were in the backseat of the car, and that was when he pulled her so close her lips parted on instinct in preparation for his kiss.
CHAPTER EIGHT
“I’MNOTGOINGto kiss you, not again.” The words hurt his throat as they came out in a scratchy growl.
His chest was heaving as anger poured through him. How dare that annoying Morgana McCloud question Nina the way she did? Major should have known this would happen. There were some reporters and bloggers who hated that he never gave them the comments or interviews they requested. Morgana hated that he’d never accommodated her and that he’d never accepted any of the advances she’d made toward him. If he were the loneliest man on earth, he wouldn’t have sought the company of such a woman. He’d known a woman like her before and had sworn to never again get sucked into their clutches.
Now the news about At Your Service was out and that had him wondering once again about the division of Brand Integrated that involved accessorizing for fashion house designs that was very similar to Nina’s. When Brand Integrated made its appearance in the fashion world, there was no doubt that very fact would be mentioned. But their charade would be over by then.
“I...um, I didn’t ask you to kiss me,” she said and then licked her lips.
But she didn’t pull away from him. They were in the backseat of the limo he’d reserved for tonight. He released the grasp on her arm and extended one hand to press the button that would close the privacy barrier between them and the front seat.
“It’s what got me in trouble the first time. The kiss.” He shook his head because he knew he sounded irrational, but that was exactly how he was feeling. It was how he’d been feeling for the past few days, the longer he’d stayed away from her. “Kissing is too intimate. I’m not going to do it again,” he stated, trying to calm his tone because her eyes had grown a little wider.
“I’m not going to ask you to kiss me, or to do anything with me, Major.” She looked down to where his other hand still gripped her arm and then back up to him in question.
He pulled back as if he’d been burned, cursing at the mere sight of his fingers pressing into her arm. “I’m sorry,” he said and sat back against the seat. “I don’t know what’s going on.”
And that was the truth. He didn’t know what was happening to him because whatever it was had never happened before. So he’d slept with her, big deal. He’d slept with other women before, and he and Nina were pretending to be a couple, so it should’ve been fair game. Everything that had happened between them up to this point had been consensual, so why had he needed to write that list creating rules to separate them? And if he’d thought that list was the best plan for them to move forward without any threat of entanglements later, then why had he spent these past few days feeling like crap and needing desperately to be alone with her, to see her, to touch her?
Nina cleared her throat. She sat back and smoothed the skirt of her dress, letting her hands rest in her lap. “Look, maybe you don’t have to take this seriously, but I do. Everything we do from the night of the Sip ’n’ Chat to the day we have our fake argument is part of my first impression to the fashion industry.
“My work so far has been on a much smaller scale, but this is my opportunity to show the industry who I am and what my business can do for them. We’re supposed to be an engaged couple. But I’ve gotta tell you, we need to do better. That reporter in there was intentional in her questions. There’s doubt about this relationship. For whatever reason, she doesn’t believe us and if one person doesn’t, then others may be wondering, as well.”
She was right. Appearances were everything, especially in this industry. Wasn’t that why Desta and Riley had come up with this idea in the first place? It’s why they knew including a Gold in the campaign would ensure its success. And now, this woman who had no stake in his family company was essentially telling him he wasn’t pulling his weight.
“What do you think we should do?” If she said get naked in the back of this limo right now, he’d do it. Damn him, he would.
“First, you’ve gotta relax and you’ve gotta act like a man in love.”
His head snapped to hers and he saw that she was staring at him. She looked spectacular today. He’d noticed the moment he’d peeked through the curtain and seen her walking in on Maurice’s arm. A spurt of jealousy had pierced his chest before he’d cursed and pushed it away. But he hadn’t been able to look away from her, not for minutes after she’d taken her seat.
The dress wasn’t formfitting but flowing breezily down past her ankles. The halter top cupped her breasts the same way his hands had before. And the muted colors complemented everything from her skin tone to her eye color, to the soft, barrel curls that fell past her shoulders.
“I’m not going to give the press the innermost details of my life, they’re not entitled to that.” No one was.
