Page 70 of Whistleblower
I laugh to myself. “Yes, Bambi. Several times.” I squeeze her thigh through her thin dress. “In fact, you only get one more for the entire evening. One more ‘thank you,’ and that’s it. You can’t say it again, so make it a good one.”
Her eyes hit the ceiling as she taps her fingertips together, contemplating. Then, she eyes me up and down. “Thank you for dressing up, you look so handsome.”
Confused, I say, “You’re welcome, but that was an odd one to waste it on. I plan on paying tonight, and I have a little present for you back at my place.”
She eyes my lap and gives me a naughty smile as I burst into laughter.
“Well, that too…but I mean a literal present. Nothing fancy, although I did put it in a small gift box.” I rotate my fingers around each other. “There’s even a bow.”
She leans over and kisses my cheek, the smell of her rich perfume lingering between us. “Do other women know about you?” I let out a breathy chuckle. More than I care to admit.
“Not this version of me,” I say honestly.
“Good,” she responds matter-of-factly. “Let’s not tell them. I’d have to go to war to keep you.”
After taking in a panoramic view of the dimly lit restaurant, Eden scoots out of the booth. “I need to visit the restroom.” Tapping her clutch on the table she adds, “My license is in the clear flap. If this waiter ever decides to return, would you show him my ID and order me a drink?”
“Of course. What would you like? Or do you want me to control that too?” I ask with a wicked smile. I’m half-distracted by her breasts which look unbelievably tempting in her low-cut dress. I have to keep reminding myself to keep my eyes on hers when she’s speaking. I’m suddenly very annoyed at this tardy waiter, delaying dinner…and my after-dinner plans.
Her tongue darts out quickly before she winks. “Prosecco, please.” She takes a few steps, then returns to the table and furrows her neatly trimmed eyebrows at me. “Do you have an ID if you get carded?”
My forehead wrinkles from my perplexed expression. “Do you think I’m underage, Eden?”
She snorts. “No, I’m just curious.”
Leaning to the side, I pull my wallet out of my back pocket and retrieve my driver’s license. I hand it to her. “I’m twenty-eight, like I told you.”
She grabs it from me and scours the little lines of text, looking for something. “You’re shitting me.”
“What?”
“Lincoln. Abraham. That’s what is on your driver’s license?” Her eyes widen to startling proportions. “Lincoln Abraham? And no one suspects that’s a fake name?”
Laughing, I scold her. “Are you trying to announce that to the entire restaurant?”
She exhales in cute frustration and heads toward the ladies’ room. In perfect timing, the waiter arrives shortly after she leaves. He’s dressed up in a three-piece suit and my irritation is quickly replaced by pity. It must be hot and uncomfortable to wait tables in that monkey suit all night.
“Would you like to start with a drink?”
Yes, thirty minutes ago. “Your nicest bottle of Prosecco for the lady, and a mid-tier whiskey for me. I don’t care about the brand.”
“May I see your IDs?”
I shuffle through Eden’s purse, finding her license in a clear flap. As I pull it free, a notecard slips out and onto the table.
“Would your girlfriend like strawberries for her Prosecco?”
I don’t correct him. Do I need to? Is Eden my girlfriend now? “I’m not sure. How about on a plate to the side?”
He nods and saunters off. I stuff Eden’s belongings back into her purse until I notice the title on the card and my curiosity takes over. I have to swallow down my laughter. Across the top of the notecard, underlined, reads: Questions to Ask Linc.
* * *
EDEN
Sometimes I wonder if I’m attracted to Linc because, in a way, he’s elite. From the moment Callen spoke about him at the diner nearly a month ago, he’s had a spotlight on him in my mind. I got goosebumps the very first time I laid eyes on him in that meeting room and realized who he was because he has a magnificence about him.
Am I so hot for him because of his job, even though I claim it’s the only off-putting aspect of him? Do I like the power he holds? The way he takes what he wants and executes justice as he sees fit?