An Exquisite Challenge by Jennifer Hayward

Author:Jennifer Hayward
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Harlequin Presents
Published: 2014-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER NINE

THAT HUSKILY WORDED command was the last she heard or saw of Gabe until the party was over. He was swallowed up in a groundswell of congratulations that lasted well past midnight, and she was busy wrapping everything up. It was one a.m. before the last of the guests left, their headlights disappearing in a snakelike formation down the long, winding driveway.

Her stomach seemed to go along with them. She made arrangements with the caterer to come back tomorrow to finish their cleanup and collect all of their materials, then walked back up to the house. The vineyard felt deathly quiet without the band, without the buzzing conversation of hundreds of guests and the pop of the fireworks.

Or maybe it was just that the sound of her heart pounding in her chest was almost deafening.

She picked out Gabe’s tall figure sprawled on a chair on the front porch. The knot in her stomach grew to gargantuan proportions as she walked up the stairs, avoiding the gaps in the boards with her thin stilettos. He had taken his jacket and tie off. A glass of scotch sat on the arm of his chair. His relaxed yet intent expression was one she hadn’t seen since she’d come to Napa. This was the Gabe she knew—focused, watchful, deadly.

“I told you to lose the earrings,” he drawled.

She lifted her hands to her ears in a self-conscious movement. “I couldn’t exactly stash them on a corner of the buffet.”

His purposeful stare suggested she lose them now. Excitement roared through her, licked at her nerve endings. She reached up and pulled the outrageously expensive jewelry from her ears and secured the backs with trembling fingers.

He took them from her and set them on the table. “Nice gift,” he murmured. “Cost of a small car and all.”

Green eyes tangled with blue. “I like to think of them as a reminder of how untrustworthy men can be.”

His brow lifted. “Are we talking one particular man here or the species in general?”

“I’d have to go with the great majority,” she responded. “Lilly would say I should say present company excluded, of course. She thinks you’re one of the good guys.”

His mouth quirked. “And what do you think?”

She lifted a shoulder. “Does it matter? This is about sex, isn’t it?”

He picked up his scotch and took a long sip. Set it down with a deliberate movement. “I’ve never seen a more jaw-droppingly beautiful woman in my life than you tonight.”

Her heart stuttered in her chest. Dammit, he was smooth. And hell, did she feel reckless. She’d just thrown the party of the year. She was on top of the world.

“First move’s yours, Lex,” he murmured. “After that, all bets are off.”

Never one to resist a challenge, she leaned down, braced her hand against his shoulder to steady herself and set her mouth to his. Explored his beautiful, sensuous lips as she’d been desperate to do for days. He allowed her to take her leisure, let her have her fill of him.

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