Read Tess's Tale (The Chanel Series Book 3) for Free Online Page A

I think it’s amazing.’
    ‘Really?’
    ‘You could be riding on your father’s coat tails.’ I pulled a face. I wasn’t sure how that relationship worked. Would Jolly Jim pay for him to go to college?
    He smiled. ‘He wanted to pay. But I figured if I let him, then he’d be able to use it against me in the future. You know to…,’ he paused and shifted uncomfortably, ‘make me work for him.’
    ‘And you don’t want that?’
    He shook his head. ‘And if I did, I would want it to be my choice.’
    I reached across the table and grabbed the coat of his jacket. I wanted to see his hands again. He let me pull his arm towards me till I was holding his hand with mine. I flipped it over so I could see the palm and traced a finger lightly over the calluses.
    He sighed and closed his eyes. ‘That feels wonderful,’ he whispered. He reached out his other hand towards me so I could draw on both of them at the same time.
    ‘You vaant duuuuck?’
    I jumped at the little Chinese woman’s voice. I’d been so busy concentrating on the feel of Harry’s hands that I hadn’t heard her approach.
    ‘Yes.’ Harry opened his eyes and sat back up. ‘Peking Duck for two please.’
    When she’d left he said, ‘It’s really the only thing they serve here so I’m glad you like it.’
    ‘I’ve never tried it,’ I admitted.
    He rubbed those hands together. ‘Excellent. You’re in for a treat.’
    The silence that stretched between us was filled with tension. Not awkward so much as expectant. Finally Harry broke it.
    ‘I’ve wanted to take you out since the first time I saw you.’
    I blushed and looked down at the table cloth, tracing my fingertip over the pattern.
    ‘You were the reason we came to Vegas Ladies in the first place.’
    ‘You heard about my singing?’
    ‘No,’ he shook his head. ‘Well that’s not entirely true. We heard about a singer, I didn’t realise it was you.’
    ‘Then why?’
    ‘I was working at the construction site down the road. You walked past one day.’ He stopped for a second and half-closed his eyes. ‘Your hair was pulled back in a tight bun, all strict and severe. But a wisp had escaped and was dancing around your neck, shining in the sun. You kept winding it back up, but as fast as you tucked it, it was free again.’ He smiled. ‘You looked so frustrated and so beautiful. I wanted to kiss you.’
    I could feel a blush creeping up my cheeks.
    ‘A few weeks later I saw you again. You went into Vegas Ladies. I used the ‘new singer everyone was raving about’ as an excuse to check it out.’ He smiled. ‘I never realised the singer was you.’
    ‘And Hillary?’ I felt like my mouth was stuffed full of cotton wool as I said her name. If there had been something between them, if she had gotten there first – already I didn’t want to give him up but I didn’t know if I could eat her leftovers.
    ‘She’s just Dad’s secretary.’
    ‘So there’s nothing?’ I waved my hand at him.
    Please say no. Please say no.
    He shook his head as the little woman arrived with our first course and I sagged back against my seat.
    She placed a plate of meat and scallions, some little pancakes and a dark brown sauce on the table. I watched what Harry did and then copied him, placing some of the duck, sauce and scallion on a pancake. I bit through the soft pancake, into the crispy skin of the duck and flavour exploded in my mouth.
    I let out a moan. ‘It’s delicious,’ I said, once I had swallowed. It was the only words we said as we polished off the Peking Duck. Once we had finished, Harry walked me back to the club, lingering in the doorway with me.
    ‘Thanks for dinner.’ I wanted him to kiss me, but the fact that I had never been kissed before, plus the fear that I had duck sauce on my face was making me shy. I drew a line on the ground with the tip of my shoe.
    Harry put a finger under my chin and drew my eyes up to his. I was caught by his gaze, the intensity making it