Wickedly Hot. Leslie Kelly

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      HE HAD HER. HE KNEW IT at that moment. The cool, confident goddess had turned into a stammering high school girl.

      Women. Unbelievable what kind of verbal B.S. they fell for.

      Though, he hadn’t entirely been B.S.’ing. He’d had to force his voice to remain steady as he’d seduced her with words because, in truth, he’d meant everything he’d said. Though, in any other situation, he’d never have been so outrageous and suggestive with a woman he’d just met. The women he knew were the same cool, mature businesspeople he interacted with every day.

      Not like her. Not like Jade. The kind who had him thinking of nothing but what her curves looked like under that black dress, how her mouth would taste, how her hair would feel spread out across his naked chest.

      How she stole from your own family, asshole!

      Yeah. That, too. This hot seductress used her Southern act to convince others she was intelligent, respectable, in control.

      And honest.

      She’d fooled his very astute grandmother into thinking she was a professional restorer of valuable art. That’s how she’d conned Grandmother out of the beautiful Jules LeBeuf portrait. The elderly woman would never have handed over the painting, done by a lesser-known French Impressionist in the 1850s, without believing it was in good hands.

      Such pretty hands. Such soft hands. Such talented hands…most especially when it came to things like picking locks. Or pockets.

      “You seem to think you know how to charm a woman. I suppose you’ve had a lot of experience?”

      Her voice was a little shaky. She was obviously still affected by the outrageous things he, a stranger, had just said to her. But there was also a hard note, as if she had her back up for some reason.

      “No more than any other man,” he said, lifting his shoulders in what he hoped looked like self-deprecation. Then he quirked a brow. “That’s what I’m supposed to say, right? So I don’t appear too confident?”

      “I don’t think that’s possible. You wear your confidence like some men wear their clothes.”

      “Attractive and in good taste, I hope?”

      “I was thinking more along the lines of flashy and overdone,” she replied, though her insult lacked the punch she’d probably intended.

      “Should I go away?” he asked, knowing the answer.

      She shook her head. “So far you haven’t done anything completely unredeemable.”

      No, she didn’t want him to go away. She was still wrapped in the cozy, intimate place they’d stumbled into here in the midst of all these people. And she was still as affected as he was. He just hid it better.

      Jade began rubbing her hand up and down one bare arm, as if warming herself. But the noticeable goose bumps on her skin weren’t caused by cold—the room was sweltering.

      No, their interaction was putting her entire body on high alert. But before he could call her on it, her attention was diverted by someone who paused to speak to her.

      Ryan watched quietly, silently admitting that he, too, was on high alert. He tried to analyze it. This hot flush of awareness and excitement couldn’t be brushed off as righteous indignation or the culmination of a couple of weeks’ buildup. Being truly honest about it, he believed he’d have reacted just as strongly to Jade Maguire if this really had been a chance meeting at a party.

      Ryan had known a lot of women over the years, and been involved with his fair share. Probably more than his fair share. He’d even come close to commitment, getting engaged to a Manhattan lawyer he’d met at a cocktail party a few years ago. But he hadn’t been able to go through with it, and neither had she. They’d both figured out that while the two of them made a picture-perfect couple, they’d never shared the kind of deep, soul-stirring passion a marriage should have.

      His grandmother would probably never believe it, and she’d laugh in his face if he told her. But one of the main reasons Ryan had never settled down—never even tried to feign interest in any of the women she, his mother and his sister had set him up with over the years—was because of the example his family had set. His grandparents were mad for each other. Ditto his parents. And Jane, his younger sister, was deeply in love with her husband.

      Though he didn’t believe he could fall madly in love at first sight—as other members of his family claimed to have—he did think he was capable of real love.

      And he wanted it.

      His family had set a high standard. Deep inside, he knew he couldn’t settle for less. Unfortunately, so far Ryan had never felt that way about anyone. Never lost his mind, lost his heart or even lost control of his emotions over a single female he’d ever met.

      Which made his instant reaction to this one that much more surprising. And intriguing. He’d never felt as sparking with energy, as…alive with a woman as he did in the brief time he’d known Jade Maguire.

      Before he could take any longer to wonder about it, they were interrupted by Mamie Brandywine. “Well, here you are,” she said to Ryan, giving him a broad smile. Then she turned her attention to Jade. “I’m surprised to see you here. This isn’t your usual crowd, is it?” She shook her head and tsked. “And I must protest, you’re monopolizing our special guest.”

      No love lost between those two, he’d already figured out by Mamie’s earlier comments, so he wasn’t exactly surprised by the woman’s hard tone. Jade responded with a lazy smile and amused silence that practically dared Mamie Brandywine to push harder.

      Mamie didn’t push. And Ryan’s interest in Jade went up another notch. A woman with a lot of nerve, that one.

      Rather than losing the staring contest with Jade, Mrs. Brandywine backed down and turned her attention back to Ryan. She took his arm, saying, “I want you to meet someone. The owner of the inn we were discussing is right over there.”

      The Winter Garden. The inn where he’d be staying, starting tomorrow. He did not want Jade to know he’d be there. It might be enough to make her suspicious when he put Plan B into action.

      Plan A was to seduce her, get close enough to her and try to get her to reveal something that might lead him to the painting.

      Plan B was…well…a little riskier and involved the inn.

      And a pair of handcuffs.

      “You won’t mind if I steal him away, will you, Jade? Surely СКАЧАТЬ