Page 16 of The Bet
“If I told you, I’d have to kill you,” he grinned.
“It’s clever.”
“Yeah.”
“And predictable.”
“Yeah.” He shuffled the cards some more. “Want to see some more?”
And he spent the next half an hour showing her a couple of other card tricks he’d learned, and then ended up showing her how to do them.
“I’ll have to remember them for the next party I go to,” she said, when he finally put the cards away. “So that I can impress.”
“I wouldn’t have thought that someone like you had to try too hard to impress,” he said, staring back at her. She looked at him as if she wasn’t sure what to make of that.
It was a perfect night, warm and balmy, with the chrrrp-chrrrp of crickets all around, perfect for staying put and talking to this girl who didn’t seem in any hurry to leave, perfect for getting down to business, here, under the stars with nothing but the sound of crickets and music, and laughter.
Easy times.
He would have had his tongue down her throat, on an ordinary day, and it was so predictable how the rest of the night would play out. She’d be on her knees in no time, looking up at him with a smile. He looked at her and debated what to do. Sometimes, it was almost too easy.
“It’s going to be too hot to wear a suit, don’t you think?” she asked, her hand settling on her neck, then sliding down, as if she were wiping the perspiration away.
“It’s going to be pretty casual.” Tobias wasn’t wearing a suit. He would still look sharp, and crisp, and enough to make the ladies drool, but he wasn’t getting married in a suit and tie.
“I’m the maid of honor, well, sort of.”
“Sort of?”
She shook her head. “There’s no maid of honor. Savannah wants it all to be simple, and I understand. A beach wedding isn’t as formal. It’s all fairly relaxed.”
“That’s a shame,” he replied, flashing her a smile as his eyes roved over her cleavage. If she was going to have it on display like that, how could he not admire it? “Isn’t there an unspoken rule about the best man and the maid of honor?”
“I don’t know, is there?” Her voice was husky, tempting, teasing, and he would have a hard-on soon if he wasn’t careful. He licked his lower lip. The blood from his veins gushed south, and he scrubbed his hand over his face. He had to get his shit together. The last thing he wanted was for his brother to be in a foul mood, and he would be, if he found out he’d taken Savannah’s cousin to bed the night before the wedding.
After the wedding, was a different matter. But then again … the way she was playing with her necklace was so, so, so sexy. He was getting ideas just sitting there. Would Tobias even know if he took her to bed tonight? It wasn’t as if he had any plans to get back with Gisele. Even when they had been dating, her hectic schedules, and the interviews she was always going for meant that they didn’t see one another much anyway.
“It’s kind of an unspoken rule,” he murmured, leaning forward. This time, their lips were so close he could feel her hot breath. And that was all it took. His hand slipped lower barely skimming her breast as he lowered it to her arm, and his lips clamped over hers. She tasted of coconut cream, and sweet honey, and he was about to cup her face when Tobias’s laughter rang out from somewhere nearby.
Xavier sprang away like a shot.
“Wh—what’s wrong?” she stammered.
He jumped to his feet. “I need to get some sleep. Best man, and all. Early start.”
“But we were … in the middle of something … “ Mirroring his movement, she stood up.
Tobias’s voice made him jump. “Did we interrupt something?” he barked.
“No, no. I was just going to go to—”Bed.But he saw Lime Green Bikini standing behind Tobias.
What the hell was she doing with him?
In a softer voice, and ignoring him, Tobias told her, “I’m going to find Savannah and then we’ll come and tuck Jacob in.”
“I’ll let him know,” she said. “And thanks for the phone.”
Had she seen them kissing? Had Tobias even seen them kissing or had Xavier moved apart by then? He tried to think—because the not knowing was killing him—but the moment had been a blur of sensual heat and cold shock.
