Page 22 of Native Hawk
“Italia.Italy.”
He reached behind her for the whiskey and his glass, and she stiffened. He decided she was the most skittish hooker he’d ever seen.
The soiled doves he’d met were experts at seduction and usually in a hurry to ply their wares. In fact, he suspected most times they didn’t get as much pleasure out of it as the men did and just wanted to get it over with.
But this one didn’t seem in a hurry to do anything.
Not that he’d let that put him off. It just made seducing her more of a challenge.
He poured himself a shot, swirled it around the glass, and then tossed it back.
She followed suit, but wound up gasping and choking again.
“You all right, ma’am?”
She nodded, but her face was red and her eyes were watering.
“You ever drink whiskey before?”
She closed her eyes and shook her head.
He grinned. What on earth had made her order a whole bottle, he didn’t know…unless…
His grin faded. “Wait a minute. You ever done…thisbefore?”
“This?”
“Slept with a man?”
“Of course,” she choked out, almost too insistently. “Yes, yes. Many times. Many, many times.”
The lady couldn’t bluff worth a damn.
It was obvious now she wasn’t playing an innocent. Shewasan innocent. In fact, if he had to bet, judging by how jumpy she was, he’d say she had no experience whatsoever.
“Many,manytimes?” He narrowed one eye at her. “So you know what to expect?”
“What to expect?” She poured herself another shot of whiskey. Her hands were shaky, but she managed a smile. “Not too much—what you call it—snoring, I hope.”
“Snorin’?”
“Back home, my brothers snored,” she said with forced humor, holding the whiskey glass in both hands and staring down into the golden liquid. “Sometimes they kept me awake all night.”
Drew frowned. Her brothers? He reached out to take the glass from her. “Have you ever slept with a manhere, in The Parlor?”
She bit her lip and looked up at him with soulful brown eyes. “To be honest, Mr. Hawk, you are my first.”
Damn. He was afraid of that.
“Before now, I am the housekeeper,” she told him, pouring whiskey into the second glass. Then she raised it in a toast. “But do not worry. Tonight, I am The Lady of the Evening.”
She said it as if it were a noble title.
He gave her a rueful smile. Something had definitely gotten lost in translation. Clinking his glass to hers, he shook his head and tossed back the whiskey.
She contemplated her glass, considering whether she should try another gulp.
If the lady weren’t so adorable and it weren’t so late, Drew would have marched straight down to the madam, given her a sound scolding for trying to pass off a virgin as a whore, and gotten his money back.
Catalina was obviously new to this country. He wondered if she even knew she was working in a house of ill repute.
She was lucky it was Drew and not some two-bit drunk who’d paid for her tonight. At least Drew had some respect. Though the raging bear in his trousers would be very disappointed, he’d do the gallant thing and leave her alone.
But it was late. He didn’t have anywhere else to stay. His brother was off on some wild goose chase, and god only knew where he intended to sleep. Drew had already paid handsomely for the room. It would have been a waste of a good feather bed if he left now.
Maybe if he drank half the bottle of whiskey, he could forget about the pretty little untouchable lady who’d be sharing that feather bed with him tonight.
