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Disclaimed, as always.
Chapter 3
Red had closed up on her after their trip to the tailor. Which made her doubt her decision to tease him like she had. Was he mad? Ugh. She hated all this uncertainty. Maybe he liked to be the aggressor. She had pondered this the entire ride home and decided that she wasn't going to worry about it anymore. He could flat out tell her to stop if he wanted her to.
She saw the lust written all over his face. She saw his reaction as he bent over to pick up a bolt of cloth that had overturned. When the time had come to choose undergarments, she had looked at him through her eyelashes and noticed his poker face had returned, but he had alternated between running his tongue over his bottom lip and twisting his tongue in his mouth.
Red had tells and she was learning them. The only question remained was, what was she going to do about it?
When they returned back to the house, she tried to rouse Red's interest in a game of chess. He agreed, but she knew that he was going to test her tactical knowledge. She was actually excited to pit her wits against his. She knew what a mastermind he was and although he would demolish her, she hoped that it would give her an opportunity to peek inside his brain as well.
Lizzie found out that she was an aggressive player to Red's reactionary. During their first game, she sacrificed important pieces in order to move Red into check-mate. He outmaneuvered her every time. When she was going to move her queen to finally put him into what she thought would be check-mate, he asked "You would sacrifice your more valuable and versatile piece to take out your enemy?"
She just shrugged, offering him the explanation that going on the offensive and taking out the enemy was detrimental to the safety of her king, and that was the entire purpose of the game-to protect the king.
His brow furrowed in thought with her reply, but he didn't ask her any more for the remainder of that game.
During the next game, she swept the board of nearly all of his pieces. She had lost nearly all of her pieces with the exception of her King and a few pawns. He had been tapping a piece on the hardwood of the table and she knew he was going to burst if he didn't say what was on his mind. "What do you want to know? Why I changed tactics? I have more pieces left than you and they might all be pawns, but in just a few short moves, they'll all be queens."
In less than ten minutes she had him in check-mate. He was impressed with her strategy of distracting him with taking the more valuable pieces from her and leaving the pawns alone.
It also didn't hurt her game that she had taken off her sweater and only played in a form-fitting tank-top. The swell of her breasts had his attention every single time she leaned over the playing board to examine their moves.
"Are you ready for dinner? I was going to whip up some pasta, if that's alright with you."
She grinned "I'm down with eating as long as you're cooking. I don't feel like having to take you to the ER to have your stomach pumped from my cooking. They might charge me with attempted murder, and we know how bothersome those murder charges can be."
Her cheeky comment caused him to let out a bark of bitter laughter. For all of his criminal activities, Lizzie had come much closer to an indictment than he ever had.
Well hell. Her comment was meant to make him laugh, but not that way. She sighed. So much for lightening the mood.
Dinner had tasted divine, but Red was talented in pretty much everything he did, even cooking. Martha Stewart would put a hit out on him if she knew the kind of competition she had in Raymond Reddington.
Liz continued to flirt, but more subtly. However, she incorporated touching him at every possible turn.
She put her hand on his arm while she gave her gratitude for such a wonderfully cooked meal.
She passed behind him, reached over him for his plate, and allowed her breasts to brush his back and linger there for a moment longer than necessary.
His hands clenched, and he was flirty as per usual, but nothing else. No reactions to hang her hopes on.
She finished cleaning up from their dinner and Red retired to the study to read the myriad of newspapers he had delivered daily and relax. She passed by the doorway and paused. His profile was perfect. She knew he had no idea how attractive he really was, but that made him all the more alluring.
"Thank you for dinner, Red. I'm going to take a bath and then try to sleep. Do you need anything?" Like me? But instead of what she wanted to hear, he just said "You're quite welcome, Lizzie. Enjoy your bath and have a good night."
She knew she wasn't imagining it when she saw him visibly swallow. It made her feel immensely better that he was not as unaffected as her would have her believe. Next, she moved on to her bath and to brainstorm on her new, yet utterly worthwhile goal of seducing the Concierge of Crime.
Tbc…
A/N: Thank you again for the wonderful response to this fic! Let me know what you think!