The Agent (The Consultants #3) - Nancy Herkness Page 0,2

slow.” He adjusted her left hand so it rested on his shoulder while his right hand rested on her shoulder blade, allowing him to support the entire length of her arm. “Here we go. Right foot behind you first.”

She felt his weight shift a second before he pressed her backward while he stepped forward. She moved her right foot as though it was the natural thing to do. Because that was how it felt when he was leading. The first time around the dance floor, she concentrated on the steps and finding the rhythm of the music.

The second time she began to notice things she didn’t want to. How warm Tully’s hand was as it wrapped around hers. The coiled energy that radiated from him as he moved in perfect time with the music. The way his arm provided a rock-solid support for her so she never stumbled.

“Tully! My man! Show us how it’s done!” someone called out.

And suddenly the center of the dance floor cleared, leaving the two of them alone on the expanse of parquet while the other dancers stood in a wide circle, clapping to the beat.

“Let’s give ’em a show.” Tully’s grin flashed in the low light of the dimmed chandeliers.

“I don’t—”

But he was already spinning her away from him so the pale pink chiffon of her skirt swirled around her ankles. Then he reeled her back in and started the two-step rhythm again. Except he began to twirl her as they moved, his left hand holding hers high over her head, his right hand guiding her shoulder in the direction he wanted her to turn. Then he somehow wove their arms together so they danced shoulder to shoulder before spinning her into their face-to-face position again. Another shift in position and they were whirling side by side with their hands still joined.

Exhilaration fizzed through her as she gave herself over to the man and the music in a way she hadn’t in years. When she faced him again, she smiled straight up into his eyes, wanting to share the delight she was feeling. He missed the beat of the next step by a fraction of a second and his easy grin disappeared, replaced by something intense and focused. Something that sent a shiver of awareness through her. He kept her facing him for longer than usual, the two of them locked in each other’s gaze.

She lowered her chin to stare at the onyx-and-gold studs of his tux shirt. And then he was spinning her again, so she had no time to think about the heat sizzling between them.

Until the song reached its final bars, when he pulled her in against him from knee to chest—his body like a hot, living wall—before he lunged to the side, taking her with him in a dramatic dip.

Their faces were a mere inch apart for a long moment as the guests whistled, stomped, and applauded. She could feel the feathering of his warm breath on her cheek and see the sheen of perspiration on his forehead. A waft of some clean, sharp, woodsy scent drifted past her.

And then she was lifted upright in a whoosh before he draped his arm casually around her waist while he bowed in mocking acknowledgment of the applause. She followed his lead and gave a quick curtsy.

As they left the dance floor, Dawn and Leland approached them. “I didn’t know you could dance like that,” Dawn said.

“I didn’t either.” Natalie slanted a smile up at Tully. “My partner gets all the credit.”

“He wasn’t the one spinning like a top without falling over,” Leland said in his slow Georgia drawl.

“Natalie here is too modest,” Tully said. “She took to two-stepping like a duck to water. I wouldn’t have tried some of the more complicated moves if she hadn’t been so graceful and perfectly balanced.” He winked at Natalie. “I’m thinking another beer after all that hard work.”

“Natalie only drinks Manhattans,” Dawn said.

“Time for her to broaden her horizons and replace her electrolytes.” Tully strode off toward the bar, leaving Natalie still trying to catch her breath—whether from the exercise or the man, she wasn’t sure.

“Did you know Tully could dance like that?” Natalie asked Leland.

“Tully is a man of many surprises,” Leland said. “You never know what he’ll be able to do.”

Tully leaned his hip against the carved-stone baluster of the mansion’s terrace, where the three partners had retreated together before he pinned Derek with a glare. “If you even think about working while you’re