Page 18 of His Last Gamble

CHAPTER FIVE

As she watched his head swooping low over hers, his eyes glittering with sardonic amusement at her obvious panic, Charmaine told herself that this time she would be ready for him. That this time his kiss would not totally undo her. There would be no humiliating loss of strength in her knees, no overwhelming pounding of her heart blotting out all other sounds.

This time, it would be different. It had to be. Her very sanity depended on it.

His lips touched hers and she stiffened. Vaguely, very vaguely, she was aware of the amused laughter of the other guests. She tried hard to hold onto that thought — that they were in a public place when all was said and done, and that he was only kissing her out of a sense of mischief. Surely these two facts were enough to keep her on the straight and narrow.

But it was impossible. A moment later, his tongue gently teased her lips apart, and his fingers splayed against her back, radiating a sense of desire that seeped into her spine, turning her bones to mush. All too soon, and with a dreadful sense of déjà vu, she felt her body flare into life, as if it were a firework, and Payne the lighted taper.

She tried to push against him, but he was like rock — immovable, solid and unyielding. She might have whimpered against his marauding lips, or perhaps some hidden sense of chivalry pierced his conscience, but just when she thought she was going to lose herself completely, he lifted his head. She thought she heard him drag in a ragged, shaken breath, but knew she must have been mistaken.

A man like Payne Lacey wasn’t going to find a simple kiss as devastating or as soul-shaking as she did herself.

She forced her eyes open, unaware until that moment that they must have feathered closed. When had that happened?

Payne looked down into pale blue eyes filled with stars, as well as anger and . . . yes, fear. Not that he could blame her for feeling so bewildered. He too felt in need of a stiff drink.

‘Well worth the loss of house profits,’ he forced himself to say lightly, making their audience laugh in appreciation. Then the croupier called for the placing of bets, and instantly they were forgotten as, once more, all eyes turned to the enchanted wheel.

‘Come on, this way,’ Payne said dryly, taking her elbow in a firm grip. She looked so vulnerable and in need of rescuing that he wanted nothing more than to take her far away from the hard heat and the indefatigable glamour that was the casino. For the first time in years, Payne felt almost ashamed of his empire.

She nearly stumbled, so unnerved was she by the sensation of warm, hard, strong fingers taking control of her. What would it be like to feel those fingers touch other parts of her, she wondered. Softly, gently caressing . . .

No. No, no, no! She must stop this madness now, at once.

‘Where are we going?’ she gulped, glancing over her shoulder, where Jo-Jo was staring after her, an amazed look on his face. She knew just how he felt! If her business partner had never thought to see her kissing a handsome playboy in public, how much less had she herself ever dreamed of such a possibility?

Things were going too fast.

All right, in a way she was pleased that her plan was back on track. At least Payne was showing a flattering amount of interest again. But on the other hand, she felt as if she were juggling with explosives. One fumbled drop and boom! And she’d be the one blown to pieces, with her heart a major casualty.

And, deep down inside, she knew she just didn’t have the flair for this kind of juggling.

‘I thought I’d show you the conservatory,’ Payne replied softly. ‘There’s an orchid I’ve been cultivating that I want you to see. If it’s successful I have to find a name for it. How about Charmaine’s Delight? Or Charmaine’s Desire?’

His voice was low and husky now, and doing things to her skin. She could feel every pore of her body quiver at the sexy timbre of it.

The man positively exuded sex appeal. Deep, dark sex appeal.

She couldn’t possibly go into the conservatory with him. With the velvet night pressing against the glass, the twinkling diamonds of the stars above, and the heady scent of orchids wafting across the night air, she’d lose her head completely!

But how to get out of it?

It was Jinx, of all people, who came to her rescue. Perhaps she’d seen the kiss, or had merely sensed the charged atmosphere and felt obliged to reclaim her authority, but she suddenly appeared in front of them, and determinedly looped one arm through Payne’s.

‘Darling, I’ve lost all my chips,’ she pouted prettily. ‘I need some more.’

Payne smiled dryly. Wouldn’t she always?

He turned just too late to stop Charmaine slipping away. He watched her go, all but bolting like a startled fawn, back into the crowd, and smiled darkly.

She could run, but she couldn’t hide.

As Jinx began to wheedle and flirt shamelessly, he told himself that Charmaine Reece had better make the most of her reprieve.

She would not get another one.

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