Her eyes were wide and curiosity shimmered in the pale orbs. Her lips were parted ever so slightly and he suddenly wondered what they might taste like against his own. He took a deep breath.
“Restroom,” he finally answered. “I need to wash my face and rinse my mouth out.”
Natalie blew out the breath she’d been holding. She nodded. “When you get back we can go find something to eat. I’m hungry.”
Tinjin laughed. “Is that an invitation?”
Natalie shrugged her shoulders. “Don’t make anything out of it. I just didn’t see any reason why you should eat alone.”
Tinjin laughed a second time. “I don’t remember saying I was hungry.”
“You look hungry. I was helping you out.”
“Just say you enjoy my company, woman! You’re not fooling anyone! I can see right through you.”
Natalie laughed with him. “You are just so full of yourself!”
Tinjin nodded. “I don’t eat fast food so figure out where we’re headed,” he directed. “I shouldn’t be long.”
As he moved in the direction of the restrooms, Natalie mumbled under her breath. “God, I like a man who takes command!”
* * *
Neither spoke as they made their way to terminal four and the Palm Bar and Grille. They maneuvered through a maze of stranded travelers, warm bodies resting wherever anyone could find to lay their head. When they reached their destination there were only a handful of people inside and an enthusiastic waitress waved them into the space.
The chatty young woman was eager to have someone new to talk to. “Welcome to the Palm!” she greeted them excitedly. “Are you both from the city? Were you headed on vacation?”
Natalie eased into a seat as Tinjin answered. “No. We flew in from London and our connecting flight was canceled.”
“It’s something! This storm is crazy!” the girl exclaimed. “My name’s Hannah and I’ll be serving you. We’re a little shorthanded and I need to apologize now because we’re out of lobster. The trucks couldn’t get here this afternoon.”
“I’m allergic to seafood so I won’t be interested in the lobster,” Natalie said.
“That’s good to know,” Tinjin said, lifting his gaze from the menu to her face. “I was just about to order the calamari appetizer for us to share.”
Natalie shook her head. “I’d look like a bruised tomato if I ate that and I’d be scratching hives for days. It’s not pretty.”
“I guess it’ll be the beef tenderloin carpaccio then,” Tinjin said.
“Good choice,” Hannah said as she jotted a quick note down on the lined pad in her hand.
“Would you ask the chef to put extra shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano on that, please? I like good cheese,” Natalie said.
“No problem, miss.”
Tinjin’s eyes shifted back and forth across the menu. “Do you want to share the New York strip?
Natalie hesitated before answering. “Yeah, we can do that,” she said, nodding.
“We’ll have the thirty-six ounce prime double-cut New York strip,” Tinjin ordered.
“And two of your house salads. Plus the green beans, the wild mushrooms and the asparagus fritti for our sides.”
“I have to have potatoes,” Tinjin said, meeting her gaze. “I need something to offset all those vegetables.”
“No, you don’t.”
“Yes, I do. I’m a meat and potatoes man.”
“The three-cheese potatoes au gratin are really good,” Hannah interjected, her eyes moving from one to the other. “They’re my favorite.”
“We’ll have a side order of those, too!” Tinjin said with an air of finality.
Natalie shook her head. “Unnecessary carbohydrates. Calories neither of us needs.”
“This coming from the woman who asked for extra cheese on the appetizer.”
Natalie laughed. “Yes, I did. That little bit of cheese won’t hurt me. Those potatoes, however, will put twenty pounds on my hips and I make a living with this body.”
“Are you an actress or something?” Hannah queried, her eyes wide as she stared at Natalie.
“Or something,” Tinjin said with a wry smirk. “She’s an adult film star. She does porn. Hardcore, dirty porn.” He winked an eye at Natalie.
“Oh,” Hannah said, suddenly blinking, her cheeks warming with color.
Natalie laughed. “Good one,” she said as Tinjin gave her a bright smile.
He winked again. “And Hannah, we’ll take a bottle of your best red wine. If you’ll ask your resident wine steward to make the selection for us, please.”
“Yes, sir,” Hannah said. “I’ll be right back with your salads.”
When the young woman was out of sight, Natalie gave him a light kick under the table. “A porn star? Really?”
“Hannah believed it.”
“I’m sure she did. But for the record I’ve never done porn before.”
“Not even a homemade movie with you and your boyfriend? A little something for your personal stash?”
“I don’t have a boyfriend.”
“One of your exes then. You’ve never taken a nude picture for one of your exes?”
“Never. No pictures, no movies. I don’t do that.”
“Interesting,” Tinjin muttered. “Very interesting.”
“Why is that interesting?”
“Gives us something to aspire to,” he said matter-of-factly.
Natalie pondered his comment, her mouth lifting to a full grin. “Not on your best day ever,” she said. “But have fun dreaming.”
“I can be very persuasive,” Tinjin said, his voice dropping an octave.
Natalie laughed. “You might be good, but you’ll never be that good.”
Tinjin’s bright smile warmed his face. He leaned back in his seat, shifting his legs out in front of him. He crossed them at the ankles as he folded his arms over his broad chest.
“So, Gnat, tell me something else I don’t know about you,” he said.
Natalie leaned forward, resting her elbows atop the table. She dropped her chin against the backs of her hands. She eyed him intently as he stared at her. A moment of silence swelled full and thick between them before she finally answered.
“Have you heard of the blog site, Pretty, Pretty?”
“I actually follow it. I’ve been following it since it started. It’s grown nicely and it has a great reputation for setting some of the newest fashion trends.”
“Thank you.”
A slow smile pulled at Tinjin’s mouth. “That’s you? You’re the creative genius behind Pretty, Pretty?”
“Creative genius! I like that!” Natalie exclaimed.
“I don’t believe you.”
Natalie shrugged, her narrow shoulders jutting toward the ceiling. “Believe it. I am the creative genius behind Pretty, Pretty.”
“I’m actually impressed.”
“You