Captivate her: Laws of Seduction Book 1 Read online

  Since I am not certain I can speak at the moment, I just give a shaky smile and nod.

  “Maybe talking would help to keep your mind off things. I’m James.”

  “Hi, I’m Elaine, well Lainey actually. Everyone calls me Lainey or sometimes Laine, but you can just call me Lainey.” Hells bells, I hope he can make sense out of what I am saying. Yes, believe it or not I am just about to graduate near the top of my class from NYU Law School.

  “Nice to meet you Lainey. What is your middle name if it isn’t Marie?”

  I can feel the blood rushing into my face. “Oh, did you hear that?” James, gives me a panty melting smile. I thought he was handsome before, but when he smiles, the dimple on the right side of his face pops out. It gives him a boyish charm that is captivating.

  “It’s a little difficult to ignore when you are sitting right next to me. You are a little difficult to ignore.”

  The intent look in his eyes makes my stomach drop, and I feel hot and cold chills race down my spine. I stare at him blankly as he gives me another dazzling smile. “What’s wrong? Cat got your tongue?”

  I quickly search for a response. “I am just not used to people being so direct.”

  “I am direct to a fault. It can get me into a lot of trouble, but it also minimizes misunderstandings.”

  James does not seem to lack confidence, and I find this incredibly attractive. I still feel butterflies in my stomach. James continues, “So is this one of the times where it has gotten me into trouble?”

  I give him a little smile and say, “Not necessarily.”

  “So Lainey, you never did tell me your middle name.”

  “Middle names are very personal. I am not sure that I want to divulge that information so early in this acquaintanceship. What is your middle name?”

  “How about quid pro quo? I’ll tell you mine if you tell me yours.”

  “Is this sort of like that game ‘I’ll show you mine if you show me yours’?”

  “Yes, it is exactly like that.” I hear the soft murmur of voices around me. No one seems disturbed to be sitting on a dark, unmoving train. The baby behind us is still asleep. His parents seem to be sleeping as well. James and I are talking in low voices that make the whole conversation seem more intimate.

  I shift my mouth closer to his ear as if sharing a secret and whisper. “My middle name is Channing. It’s my mother’s maiden name. Now it’s your turn.”

  “Alexander. Elaine Channing…?”

  “Hart.”

  “ECH, not much you can do with those initials. Are you going to tell me what had you so freaked out a while ago?”

  “I don’t like being in closed in spaces, especially not in the dark.”

  “Have you always been claustrophobic?”

  My mind balks at the direction this conversation is taking. “No, not always, but for a long time now. It’s actually gotten much better. I rarely have panic attacks anymore.”

  “I used to have panic attacks too.”

  This revelation shocks me. James seems so in control and self-possessed. “You did?”

  “Yea, I went through a pretty traumatic event. It took a long time to get over it.”

  “But you’re completely over it now?”

  “Yes. I’ve come to terms with it. I am sure that you can too.”

  His words make me hopeful that someday my inner demons will leave me alone. “How did you get over it?”

  A wistful smile touches his lips. “Time. I just gave it time.”

  CHAPTER 2

  The whispering behind us starts to grow louder. A man wearing a Mets jersey waves his arms around excitedly. “They just announced that a Long Island Rail Road train stopped just out of Hempstead has lost power and is not expected to move for several hours. That’s us.”

  A loud groan echoes around the train car before pandemonium breaks out. Questions whiz all around us. “Did they say why?” asks the woman across from us.

  “No,” Mets guy replies. “They think it’s due to bad weather conditions, but they don’t know anything for sure.” I hear another passenger ask Mets guy where he is getting his news. Glancing over at James, I see that he is frowning down at his phone.

  “From this report it doesn’t look like we will be getting back to the city anytime soon. I guess I should have taken a car after all.” James runs is fingers through his dark hair several times before glancing over at me. “Listen, I know this whole situation makes you nervous, but you are going to be fine.”

  For some reason James’s declaration soothes me. Under normal circumstances I would be about to have a meltdown. I look into his eyes and wish I could read his expression better in the dim light. It has gotten even darker in the train car with the onset of night. I reach over and take his hand, and the same jolt of awareness streaks through me when our skin touches. “You are being so nice to me, and you don’t even know me.”

  “I know your middle name is Channing, and that you are afraid of the dark.” I notice that we are still holding hands, but I don’t want to let go. James glances down at our joined hands and starts to move in closer to me. I think he is going to kiss me and I hold my breath. Instead, he shifts over to my ear and whispers, “Believe me, I am not nice.” The feel of his warm breath against my ear gives me goose bumps, and I try to control a shiver.

  The train car is getting colder and colder, since we no longer have power for heat. James stands up and retrieves his overcoat. “Here, wrap this around you.” For someone who says that he isn't nice, he is behaving in a chivalrous manner.

  “No, you need it, and I can get some extra clothes out of my suitcase.” James pulls down my suitcase, and I open it up. He starts piling the clothes I take out on top of me. After zipping the suitcase back up, he returns it to the overhead compartment. He sits back down and spreads his overcoat over both of us. I try to share some of my clothes with him as we lean into each other. I can think of worse ways to spend trapped in a small, dark space. Body heat radiates off of him, but I am not sure if it is that or my own internal turmoil that is heating me up.

  Oddly enough, I am able to doze off, but the crying of a baby wakes me. I can’t see much in the darkness, but James seems to be awake. “How long was I asleep?” I ask.

  “Not long. You should try to go back to sleep. We don’t know how long we will be here.”

  “I don’t think I can.” I feel pressure on my bladder, but I hope I can wait a little longer. I am not sure that the restrooms will work properly with no power. Maybe I should not have drunk that latte after all. I sit up and turn around in my seat. The parents of the baby are desperately trying to quiet his crying. Raising my voice over the pitiful wails, I ask, “Do you think he’s hungry? I have a scone if you think it would help.”

  The baby’s parents accept the scone gratefully, and it seems to work, because soon we only hear the mother singing softly. Some of the passengers are standing in the aisle and talking to each other. It has grown dark, and I wonder if we will be stuck on this train all night.

  From the far side of the train car, a cat begins to meow plaintively from its carrier. James says, “Yes, kitty, this sucks. You’re saying what we are all thinking.” The entire car erupts into laughter, me along with them.

  James leans over closer to me and whispers in a low voice, “Do you have plans when you get back to the city?”

  I push several stray strands of my hair back over my shoulder. “I was going to meet my friend Samantha for drinks. What about you?”

  “I don’t have any plans except for getting some dinner and maybe working a few hours.”

  “Do you work a lot?”

  “More than I should. What about you? Are you a hard worker?”

  I laugh. “What if I said I was a slacker? Would you still like me?”

  “Either way. I’m just trying to make conversation.”

  “Well, in that case, you should know that I am a hard worker. I can’t seem to stop myself. I always want to be the bes
t in everything.”

  “You must be disappointed a lot of the time.”

  This makes me laugh again. “Are you telling me that I am not good at anything?”

  “No, not at all. It’s just impossible to be the best in everything. Why do you feel like you have to be the best? Isn’t second best okay too?”

  I ponder this for a few seconds. “I think it’s fine to be second best as long as you try to be the best.”

  “Touché.” I can hear the smile in his voice. I have an overwhelming urge to reach my hand up and feel the curves of his face.

  I try to identify what it is about him that draws me to him so relentlessly. “So you always try to be the best too?”

  “Yes, definitely. I am extremely competitive.”

  “Do you play sports?”

  “I am competitive in all aspects of my life, but to answer your question, no, I don’t play sports. I do not like games.”

  Above us the light flashes on and off a couple of times before staying on. I hope this means we will be moving soon. I decide that this would be a good time to find the restroom. It is strange seeing James in the bright light after the intimate way we had been snuggled together. I feel like I should be embarrassed, but instead, I feel exhilarated. James insists on going with me to the restroom in case the power goes out again. I am surprised that no one is waiting to use the restroom and am thankful that everything works, including the lights and doors. I finish as quickly as possible, and as I am washing my hands, I notice my flushed face and overly bright eyes. I can actually feel the hormones zipping through my body. I didn’t even know that this sort of elemental attraction to another human being could happen. I have to get a grip. James and I have just met. We are sitting next to each other on a train, practically strangers. True, these are unusual circumstances. Once this is over, we will each go back to our own lives and forget that the other exists.

  I wait for James to use the facilities, and then we return to our seats. Although the lights have come back on, it is still cold. James piles the extra clothes back on and pulls his overcoat over both of us again. With the lights on, I glance discreetly at James from under my lashes and am again reminded how handsome he is. I have to suppress the urge to reach out and touch him. I long to rub my hand along the stubble on his jaw and feel its roughness.

  Before the fact that I am staring becomes obvious, the lights of the train flash on and off a few times before leaving us in darkness again. Panic at being trapped in a dark and confined space conflicts with the exhilaration of spending more time with James. I try to suppress the restless energy he inspires in me. He reaches over and pulls me closer as he whispers reassuringly, “I’m sure they will have us out of here soon.” I wonder if anyone realizes that I am sitting here stranded on this train and if they are worried about me. Maybe James has a girlfriend or even a wife who is waiting for him. The thought of James with a wife makes me feel a bit ill. I must have unconsciously drawn away because James readjusts our positions, drawing me back. “What is it?”

  I clear my throat to dispel the lump that has risen there. “Do you have a girlfriend waiting for you at home?”

  “No, no girlfriend.”

  He doesn’t elaborate, so I tease, “No mother, sister? Not even a dog?”

  “My mother doesn’t usually get lumped into the same category as dogs, but no, none of the above. Not even a goldfish.”

  Relief surges through me with the knowledge that James has not been so familiar with me while his girlfriend waits for him at home. That would be just too gross. I hate to think that I was getting comfortable on some other girl’s man, and I do mean “on,” since I was practically lying on top of him.

  James interrupts my thoughts with his next question. “How about you? Anyone waiting for you at home?”

  “Just my roommate Sam.” James tenses and I wonder why my having a roommate should put him on edge.

  He clears his throat. “You have a male roommate?”

  It takes me a moment to process what he means. “Sam? What… Samantha? No, she is definitely a girl. Didn’t I mention her earlier?” I feel James relax beside me. Maybe I just imagined it, because surely he is not jealous. I chuckle inwardly at the thought of anyone thinking Sam was a man. She is a girly girl if I ever met one. If it weren’t for Sam and her sister, my wardrobe would consist of jeans and t-shirts, because I hate shopping. Don’t get me wrong. I love wearing beautiful clothes. It’s shopping for them that bores me to tears. Sam, on the other hand, could make shopping a full-time job.

  “The one you are meeting for drinks tonight?”

  I give a little nod. “Yes, that’s her, but I guess that won’t be happening now.”

  “Is it just the two of you?”

  I nod again. “We have lived together for three years now. We took over her sister’s lease on an apartment in Hell’s Kitchen two years ago. It was a good deal.”

  “Where in Hell’s Kitchen?”

  “51st Street, between 9th and 10th Avenue.”

  I sense a note of censure in James’s voice. “That is not the safest area. I doubt you even have a doorman.”

  In an exasperated huff, I chastise him. “Hell’s Kitchen is not some kind of slum. It has some really nice buildings and a lot more diversity than you would find on the Upper East Side. I’ll have you know that I live next door to the best falafel place in the entire city. I defy you to find better falafel. Besides which, not all of us can afford doormen and concierge service buildings.”

  “Fine, fine let’s call a truce. I won’t criticize your neighborhood anymore if you stop talking about falafel. I don’t think I can handle any more talk of food, since we have now missed dinner and it looks like we will be lucky to get back to the city in time for breakfast.”

  Hmm, good point. Somehow I don’t feel hungry, probably due to the extra-large serving of hormones dancing around in my system, but it has been a long time since lunch. “If you’re really hungry, I think I might have some gummi bears in my bag.”

  I can feel James’s shoulders shaking with laughter under my cheek. “Since when do gummi bears belong to a food group? I think I will be able to stick it out until morning.”

  I shove my hand in my bag searching for the package of gummi bears. “You should have some. It tricks your stomach into thinking it’s getting some food, and besides didn’t you know that sugar suppresses your appetite? Here.” Beaming at successfully locating the candy, I thrust the little plastic package into his hands.

  “This seems a bit forward of you.”

  Confused, I squint up at him in the darkness. A blinding grin gleams back at me. What is so funny about gummi bears. Looking down into the hand holding the gummi bears, I do a double take. That is not a package of gummi bears. It’s a condom. The condom that Nick had given me as incentive to start dating after Mark. I squeeze my eyes shut, wishing I could rewind the past five minutes of time. Reaching over, I take the condom package out of his hand and drop it back in my bag. “Please forget you saw that.”

  “It’s good to be prepared.”

  I can hear the laughter in his voice. “Okay, you’ve had your laugh. Let’s move on now.”

  In the following silence my fears begin to grow again. “Do you think we will be stuck on this train all night?” I ask with growing apprehension.

  “Not necessarily. I think they will have us moving soon. This is pretty unusual for the LIRR.”

  “Do you ride the LIRR often?”

  “No, I don’t get a chance to ride the train much, since I live and work in Manhattan, but I have always liked riding trains. We have a great system here compared to the rest of the country, and I think that we sometimes take it for granted.”

  “Is this a little boy thing?”

  I can hear the smile in his voice as he replies, “I guess you have discovered my secret. I have always been a sucker for trains.” He gives me a gentle squeeze. “Why don’t you try to get some rest? I will wake you if anything happens.” br />
  I close my eyes and breathe in the intoxicating fragrance of expensive cologne diluted by something that is the essence of James and try to commit the heady scent to memory. The train is quiet. Most of the other passengers seem to be sleeping. I will be glad to have this nightmare train ride behind me, but, I admit to myself, it may have been worth it because of James.

  The sensation of moving forward slowly brings me back to consciousness. The train is rolling again. I sit up and look around. The lights have come back on, and it is much warmer. James is asleep beside me. I wonder how long we have been moving when I see that we are almost to Jamaica Station. We will be coming into Penn Station soon. I notice that the battery is running low on my phone, but I shoot off a quick text letting Sam know that the train is running again and that she shouldn’t wait up. James stirs beside me. He turns toward me and smiles. “It looks like our ordeal is almost over.”

  I can’t help but feel a small pang of disappointment that we will soon be saying goodbye. James pulls down my suitcase and I re-pack my clothes. I finish just as we are arriving at Penn Station. You can sense the relief of the passengers as they de-board the train. In the background the sound of the LIRR conductor apologizing for any inconvenience echoes over the loudspeaker system. James helps me with my suitcase as we exit the train. I am thanking him for making the trip bearable when his phone rings. He glances down at the name of the caller and stops to take the call. It feels uncomfortable to stop and wait for him when I don’t have a reason to, so I give an awkward little wave and walk on.

  CHAPTER 3

  “I would have at least gotten his number,” says Sam before turning to look at some fresh cut flowers at Union Square market.

  I give a little shrug, “I don’t think he is on the market for a girlfriend.”

  “Girlfriend, schmirlfriend. Why do you have to label it? You could just hook up and have great sex.” I just give her a look and don’t say anything. She knows me well enough to know that that isn’t my style.