I nodded and tried to turn back around to face him, but he wouldn’t release me.

He started caressing my thighs. “Can you promise me you’ll drop the age thing?”

“Yes...”

“Good. Because it doesn’t matter to me.” He swayed me to the music and began planting kisses along my bare shoulders.

Every kiss sent a tremor down my spine, a new fluttering butterfly against my stomach.

“Are you still free tomorrow?” he whispered.

I didn’t answer him. It’d been so long since someone affected me like this and I didn’t want his barrage of kisses to stop.

“Claire?” He kissed the back of my neck and slid a hand underneath my dress.

He must’ve realized I wasn’t wearing any panties, because his hand stilled right where the lace band should’ve been. He kissed my neck again and slowly slid his fingers down lower.

I could feel the dampness between my thighs and I heard him fail to stifle a groan.

I’m never going commando around him again...

“Answer me, Claire...” He pushed one finger inside of me and torturously moved it in and out.

Say yes...You are still free tomorrow...

He pushed two fingers inside of me, holding my body completely still with his other arm. He kept his punishing rhythm at a steady pace, kissing my bare shoulders and whispering my name—waiting for an answer.

“This is our last midnight song ladies and gentlemen,” the maestro said as the horns began to play. “After this, we will be switching back to our in house DJ and turning on the lights.”

Jonathan slowly pulled his fingers out of me.

I thought we were going to dance to the final midnight song, but he began using his thumb to massage my clit. Then he pushed his two skilled fingers in and out of me again.

Oh my god...

His pressure was perfect. His rhythm was relentless. I was sure I was going to explode in any second if he didn’t stop.

“Mr. Stath—”

“Jonathan.” He kissed my shoulder.

“I...I...” My breath caught in my throat. “Stop...”

“Not until you answer my question.” He slipped his other hand underneath my dress and once again stalled when he realized I wasn’t wearing a bra. He cupped each of my breasts, softly pinching my nipples, pushing me further to the edge.

I said yes...

“The song is going to go off any second, Claire, but I’ll hold you right here—just like this, with the lights on until you answer me.” He was rubbing my clit even harder—faster, and I felt intense tremors building inside of me.

“Yes.” I bit my lip to prevent myself from crying out. I didn’t want any of the other people around us to know what was going on.

“Thirty seconds until we speed things up again!” The maestro’s voice was muffled.

“Yes what?” He continued his rhythm, continued caressing my breasts, and I couldn’t hold back anymore.

I exploded in waves around him—shuddering and convulsing, biting down on my lip so hard it was probably bleeding. My knees nearly gave out, and it took every bit of energy I had to not collapse into his arms.

“Yes...I’m...free to go out tomorrow.”

“Good.” He withdrew his fingers and spun me around. He pulled the bottom of my dress down and grabbed my hand, leading me past the stage.

He led me into a private restroom and locked the door.

Helen was right—they were nice, too nice. There was a wall length antique mirror that covered the entire left wall, a rustic chandelier with glimmering emeralds, and a sofa and chaise covered in plush red velvet.

If Jonathan had been any other man, I would’ve immediately started berating him for what he did to me on the dance floor. I would’ve said it was rude and offensive and that I would never speak to him again. But he wasn’t any other guy and I couldn’t deny that I loved every second of it; I was still entranced.

He took a white cloth from over the sink and ran warm water over it for several seconds. He pulled me over into a corner and slid my dress up past my hips.

“Spread your legs,” he whispered.

I slid my legs apart and looked into his eyes as he gently wiped the inside of my thighs. He moved his way up in a slow sensuous motion that nearly sent me over the edge again.

I tried coming down from the intense high I was feeling, but the look he was giving me was preventing that from happening. He grabbed another cloth—a dry cloth, and caressed me with it until I was completely dry.

We kept looking into each other’s eyes and I thought he was going to say something—or kiss me, but he simply smiled and reached for my hand.

“Are you ready to rejoin your friends now?”

I nodded.

He gave my hand a slight squeeze and walked me back upstairs to our table. As soon as we arrived, he offered to take another drink order for Helen and Sandra.

“So?” Sandra smiled. “Is your boss a good dancer?”

“He’s very good...” I picked up my mojito and chugged it.

She raised her eyebrow but she didn’t say anything further. She and Helen filled me in on two men they’d met during the midnight dance, but I was only halfway listening.

I was still hypnotized by Jonathan’s touch and honestly wished that it hadn’t ended so soon.

When he finally returned to the table, he talked to us as if we’d all known each other for a long time. Much to my surprise—and disappointment, he didn’t touch me again.

Jonathan put his jacket over my shoulders. “Where’d you park? I’ll walk you to your car.”

“The east lot.”

“Okay.” He clasped my hand and we walked over in silence. He helped me into my car and before I could drive off, he tapped the window.

“You never told me where you wanted to meet me tomorrow.” He smiled. “Did you forget already?”

“Oh no, I just...Um, how about doing an early run with a great view of the city? Around eight?”

“That sounds great. Where?”

“Corona Heights Park?”

“I’ll see you there.” He pulled a small box from his back pocket and handed it to me. “Happy Birthday again, Claire.”

“Thank you.” I tried not to blush as I rolled my window up.

As soon as I pulled in front of my house, I opened the box and peeled the thin layer of tissue paper away. There was a note: “To the most beautiful woman I’ve ever met: Give me a chance to show you how great we could be together—Jonathan.”

I rolled my eyes and pulled out what was underneath: a diamond lattice bracelet that looked like it cost more than my house.

I latched it onto my wrist and watched it sparkle against the darkness, wondering when I would ever wear something like this out in public.

I wasn’t sure whether I should keep it or not, but I knew I would give it back if I chose not to date him for the long term.

I looked down at the box again and noticed that there was a tightly folded piece of paper at the very bottom. I used my nails to pry it out and unfolded it: a page from the Statham Industries’ employee handbook.

Highlighted in yellow were the words, “Revised as of January 2013: The no fraternization clause is hereby terminated. Interpersonal relationships between employees are no longer a violation of company policy.”

I woke up at six in the morning, practically dragging Ashley and Caroline from their beds. No matter how many times I suggested that they go to bed early on nights that they had work in the morning, they never listened.

“Do you have your ID badges? You know I’m not driving out there to bring them if you don’t.”

“Yeah, yeah.” They both groaned as they zombie-walked down the steps.

I watched them take their time getting ready for work—ironing their white polo shirts and khakis, re-shining their leather flats, and arguing about whose turn it was to drive.

“Ashley, I’m pretty sure it’s your turn.” I sighed after watching them conduct yet another coin toss. “Please drive safely and—”