Page 45 of Prince of Her Heart
He moved in close, brushing a kiss across her mouth because, well, that’s what engaged couples did in public, right?
“My turn,” he whispered.
She gave a small grunt—half surrender, half challenge—and stepped aside.
He forced himself to focus on the table instead of the ache in his groin.He took aim and pocketed three balls in quick succession, each one more satisfying than the last.
When he looked up, Tabitha was staring at him.
Her jaw had dropped, but it wasn’t just shock—her eyes were warm with admiration, her posture shifting ever so slightly.She gripped the pool cue with both hands and shifted her stance, one leg easing to the side, a silent, sensual signal he couldn’t miss.
She was just as on edge as he was.
The realization hit him hard.
He wanted to clear the entire bar, press her down against the green felt, and make love to her right here, right now.No games.No witnesses.Just them.
“You gonna shoot again?”she asked, her voice teasing, one brow lifting in challenge.
Oh, she was trouble.
He took the shot but missed—barely.His body was too tight, too wired.The tension between them was a live wire, and it was short-circuiting his control.
As he straightened, Tabitha was already moving past him.She waved him aside, all focus now.With a practiced elegance, she leaned over the table again, her back arching just enough to make him curse under his breath.
He didn’t watch the shot.
He couldn’t.
He was too busy watching the way her jeans hugged every curve, too busy imagining what it would be like to strip them off slowly and—
“I can’t believe you’re panting after a secretary!”a shrill voice sliced through the buzz of the bar.
Tabitha didn’t flinch.
She didn’t even glance over her shoulder.But Ramzi saw the tension in her shoulders, the way her fingers tightened on the cue.Leandra sidled up to the table like an annoying pop quiz.
Still, Tabitha took the shot.
It sank with a satisfying thud.
Then she walked calmly to the opposite side of the table, putting a deliberate wall of space between herself and her old nemesis.
“Tabitha isn’t a secretary,” Stacy shot back, her voice firm as she leaned against her fiancé.John wrapped his arms around her, tugging her close in a quiet show of support.“She’s a business developer,” Stacy continued, eyes locked on Leandra.“And she makes more money than you could ever imagine, Leandra.So why don’t you slither back to whatever rock you crawled out from?”
Leandra didn’t flinch.Instead, she pivoted with practiced ease, offering Ramzi a sugary-sweet smile.Then, in a move straight out of a bad movie, she reached out and ran a hand along his forearm.
“Isn’t that cute?”she purred.“Her best friend wants us to think she’s more than a glorified clerk.”She leaned in closer, angling her cleavage just so in her tight, low-cut dress.“And areyoureally a prince?”
Ramzi stared at her, the revulsion on his face unmistakable.And then—he felt it.
Tabitha.
The shift in the air, the invisible pulse of her reaction—tight, sharp, unmistakably jealous.It was as real as a sound in the room.
He immediately pulled back from Leandra’s touch.
“Tabitha is a very senior member of my business development team,” he said coolly.“She recently led the negotiations to acquire a company that will help my country expand its affordable housing sector.”
