House Of Payne: Payne by Stacy Gail

Author:Stacy Gail [Gail, Stacy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Stacy Gail
Published: 2014-10-13T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirteen

Andreas had outdone himself not just with dinner, but with the setting as well, complete with gilt-edged plates, flowers and candlelight. Payne barely saw it. He ate everything set before him, though he had no clear memory of a single bite. What he did remember was what made Becks smile or laugh, or simply sigh with pleasure. That was what made the meal perfect.

Or, almost perfect.

Andreas cleared things away before discreetly announcing he was heading home for the evening, a converted boathouse no more than fifty yards from the main house. Once they had the place all to themselves and the sense of privacy was as tangible to Payne as the beat of his heart, he took Becks on a tour. As they moved through the first floor, he noticed something seemed a little off. It was subtle, so subtle that at first he thought it was his imagination. But as they looked through the library and into what had once been a study and was now his studio—with several of his more famous tattoo designs framed and hanging on every inch of wall space—he realized what it was.

Becks had stopped looking him in the eye.

As they wandered up the stairs to the media room he’d converted into a home theater, he rested his hand on the small of her back to see what kind of reaction he’d get. Her color heightened and she smiled as if she couldn’t help herself… but still she didn’t meet his gaze. Nor did she rest back into his touch or turn to him in any way that could have been construed as receptive. As they moved into a common area that held a seldom-used pool table and another mini bar, she idly rolled the cue ball along the table to bumper it back to herself, keeping her gaze fastened on the ball.

And not him.

Enough.

When the cue ball zipped by him, he caught it up, then dropped it into a pocket. “Uh-oh. Scratch.”

“No fair.” Her smile was quick and fluttery. Nervous. What the hell had put her so on edge? “Though that’s usually what happens when I play pool. I suck at it.”

“It’s all in how you hold the stick.” Slowly he rounded a corner of the table and hoped he didn’t look too much like he was stalking her. Even if that was exactly what he was doing. “Though, to be honest, I’m probably not much better. I’m so busy I don’t get much time to play.”

“This house was built for fun and games, though.” She didn’t try to keep the distance between them as he’d expected her to. She did, however, shift back half a step as he closed the gap, as if she’d had to consciously stop herself from pulling an all-out retreat. “If the people who owned this place when you were a kid had deigned to let you in, you probably would have had a blast playing in here. Sliding down the banisters, playing hide-and-seek. Fun stuff like that.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.