Into Temptation

So where exactly was the danger?

Another glance into Joshua’s gaze, and Lindy decided her attraction to this man was the only thing dangerous around here.

She wasn’t the only one feeling the attraction, either. Joshua’s oh-so-affable expression might not let her see what he was thinking, but she knew a real reaction when she felt one. There’d been no missing the bulge of his crotch while they’d kissed.

Chemistry—it changed everything.

Dragging her gaze from his, she helped herself to one of his hands and peeled away his glove.

“Quite handy.” Slipping her fingers inside, she gauged the roomy fit. The man’s hands were as large and attractive as the rest of him. “Will you lift me?”

He arched an inky-black eyebrow. “Lift you?”

Lindy knew he understood, but played along. Joshua obviously wanted to cover himself to give her nothing to implicate him since he didn’t know who she was.

She couldn’t blame him. Caution was a prized commodity even on her side of the law. Caution often meant the difference between anonymity and exposure, sometimes the difference between life and death.

Grabbing a fold of her gown, she aimed a foot his way, letting the fabric part to reveal a long stretch of hose-clad leg and a sandal.

“It’s these strappy shoes.” She displayed the shoe as his gaze followed appreciatively. “I won’t be able to brace myself, but if you give me a boost, I can reach.”

He didn’t reply, but suddenly his hands were around her waist, a move that told her so much about the man. Aggressively agile. Ruthlessly honed physical condition. Strong enough to haul her against him effortlessly.

For a breathtaking instant she could feel the hard outline of his body against hers again, and heat flooded her senses, a purely physical response that made every cell in her body yearn for another go at kissing him.

Almost before the thought registered, Lindy found herself spun around and hoisted off her feet. It took a conscious effort to remind herself she had a job to do—one that needed to be done with an ample level of skill.

Presumably, Joshua wouldn’t have needed to deceive the security camera if he’d had a connection inside the museum, someone who could have disabled this security zone.

This information prompted more questions about what he’d been up to tonight.

Operating alone?

Picking up a delivery or meeting with someone?

How was tonight’s event linked to his New York City visit?

Secret Intelligence hadn’t uncovered any evidence that Joshua Benedict was a thief and, as a result, Lindy believed he’d come to town exclusively to fix some trouble that had arisen with a recent auction-house theft.

She intended to find out, and to do that, she couldn’t let anything come between them. Especially not an imaging device that could place him in jeopardy with museum security and, subsequently, the local authorities.

This man was all hers.

So tracing the edge of the device, she tested the connection to the ceiling. Okay, she needed a fast and clean break to avoid creating a distortion on the live feed in the security monitoring station downstairs.

Gathering her focus, Lindy blocked out the feel of his hands on her waist, the way he easily lifted her off the floor.

She ignored the feel of her bottom brushing against all his hard tummy muscles and how her panty hose and dress didn’t protect her from his body heat.

This man was one big distraction.

With brutal precision, Lindy trapped the device between her fingers and pulled it away in a hard, clean stroke.

“Got it.”

“Impressive,” he said, but she couldn’t be sure whether he meant her work or herself as he lowered her to the floor, treating her to a tour of his every body part along the way.

Sliding against him in a prolonged and very tantalizing move, Lindy tried to sound casual when she said, “Thanks.”

“Pleased to be of service. So tell me, Lindy. What are you going to do with that device now you’ve got it?”

Good question. Unfortunately, she didn’t have a good answer—yet. So she leaned close to stay out of camera range and forced him back another step before turning to meet his gaze.

A very approving gaze.

An interested gaze.

A gaze that made her rethink her point of entry.

This man was Henri Renouf’s fixer, a man who used his talents to manipulate situations to the bad guys’ advantage. They had too much chemistry to ignore, chemistry she might use to gain his cooperation.

“I’ve got a plan.” A bold plan. One that involved smoothing her way to his cooperation with seduction.

“Do you, Lindy?”

“Always.” Dropping the device into her evening bag, Lindy peeled off the glove and returned it. “Thanks.”

He hid the gloves away in a jacket pocket. Then he extended his hand. “The gallery. Shall we?”

Securing her evening bag on her shoulder, she let him lead her down the hall. She had some quick decisions to make. First she must decide how best to dispose of her new electronic acquisition. She couldn’t be certain what Joshua had been up to and didn’t want to be caught with the goods.

She knew there would be nothing to incriminate him on the small device. He was far too skilled to be careless—far too cool when he had to be burning up with questions about who she was and why she was covering him.

Then she had to decide how to play this man. Physical awareness had changed things between them, given her a new weapon in her arsenal, and she had to decide whether or not to use it.

The man lived up to his profile as a charming host. They’d barely set foot inside the gallery before he plied her with champagne and grilled her about what exhibits she’d like to see. He was oh-so-cool, and she was determined to be as impressive.

She motioned across the gallery. “I overheard that woman wearing the ostrich feathers mention a vase with depictions of Eros and Gaea.”

“You mentioned Eros earlier. Are you interested in early mythology?”

“No. Just Eros.” She gazed up at him from under her lashes, a flirtatious glance she hoped would pique his curiosity and get them to the end of the buffet table.

Her gracious host led her toward the display asking, “What specifically about Eros interests you?”

“Lust and passion, of course. What do you think of them, Joshua?”

“I’m interested in attraction, too. It can happen when and where you least expect it.” He reached out and dragged his thumb along her cheek, a bold touch that she felt straight to her toes. “Did you know in early mythology, Eros was about the force attracting two people to each other? It wasn’t until later myths that he was Aphrodite’s son and represented lust and passion.”

“Did you research for tonight’s event or is Greek mythology a hobby of yours?”

“Let’s say I take a great deal of pleasure in learning and use every opportunity to do so.”

No doubt research was an important part of his work. “Very diplomatic.”

He raised his champagne flute in salute then brought the glass to his lips. Their gazes locked over the rim, and Lindy raked hers from the top of his expensive haircut over the terrain of his handsome face.

But she didn’t stop there. Oh, no. When she considered how he’d finagled an invitation to tonight’s gala from one of the Ladies Who Lunch—a woman well known for her philanthropy—Lindy decided subtle wasn’t in this man’s vocabulary.

So she perused the tailored collar of his Egyptian cotton shirt then the sleek lines of his tux. The jacket draped those broad shoulders to perfection before descending to the trim V of his waist. She’d felt all those hard muscles up close, so the fact he was yummy shouldn’t keep surprising her.

Somehow it did. Or maybe that was the strength of her attraction to him.

“Tell me, Lindy, whose guest are you tonight? I don’t recall seeing you with any of our hosts and you haven’t said.”

“No, I haven’t said.”

“Top-secret information?”

“Not really.”

“Would you like me to guess?” he asked.

“Are you fishing?”

“I like to fish. That’s no mystery.”

“No, it isn’t.”

He appeared to consider that. “I’m also not very patient.”

“Is that a warning?”

His dark gaze twinkled, but Lindy didn’t answer when the opportunity she’d been looking for appeared. She needed to seize chance before it got away.

Setting her flute on the buffet table, she helped herself to several wedges of foie gras. Bypassing the plates, she grabbed napkins and popped the wedges into her mouth whole.

Joshua watched her curiously. “Hungry?”

Since her mouth bulged with a delicacy she truly despised, she couldn’t do more than shake her head and try not to dwell on the creamy, meaty texture coating her teeth and tongue.

Joshua waited as if sensing something was coming then glanced absently at the server serendipitously making his way from behind the buffet table with a full trash bag.

Lindy made a gagging sound, loud enough to draw the server’s attention. Dragging the napkin over her mouth, she spat out her nasty mouthful.

“Foie gras. Looked like some sort of hummus.” She pulled a face then pointed to the trash bag. “May I, please?”

“Vegan, don’t you know?” Joshua added, and she could see he fought back a smile.

The server eyed them grimly and held out the bag. Stuffing the napkins deep in the debris, she hoped the regurgitated goose liver would deter anyone from inspecting the mess.

“Thanks ever so much.”

The server took off, and once he was out of earshot, Joshua laughed, a deep lustrous sound that sent prickles through her.

“I assume that device you took from the hall just made an exit.”

She only smiled, which he clearly took to mean yes.

“Nicely done, Lindy. Inventive, clever and clean. I believe the owner of that device is in your debt.”

“I certainly hope so.”

“Do you?”

She retrieved her flute and fought the urge to gargle away the nasty taste. “I do.”

“Why?”

Lindy considered her answer while considering the man. Cool, yet curious. Displaying the exact right mix of persistent and pushy. She appreciated how fine a line that was.

“I want something from you.”

“What?”

Deciding that nothing short of a toothbrush would clean away the aftertaste, Lindy relinquished her champagne flute. “Let’s find some place private.”

He didn’t hesitate but led her away from the buffet. They made their way through the crowds, forced to stop several times as he greeted acquaintances. He was as charming as his profile suggested, and as he introduced her to people he’d obviously socialized with before, she observed how this man had become so successful at running his game.

He was likable and knew exactly how to place people at ease. Some he let lead the conversation. With others he directed. He was a veritable social chameleon, and that was a skill Lindy knew came in handy.

They ultimately wound up inside the bisected glass walls of a timeline display of classical Grecian antiquities, and she glanced around as Joshua led her forward.

“Perfect.” They would be able to hear approaching guests before being happened upon.

“So you’re finally going to end my suspense?” Folding his arms across his chest, Joshua eyed her expectantly.

“From what I’ve heard, you like suspense.”

“Heard from whom?”

“My agency.”

“MI6?”

Lindy feigned a pout. “You guessed?”

“Simple arithmetic.”

A man with Joshua’s specialized skills would recognize hers. From there her accent would make an equation of two plus two equaling an answer that wouldn’t be difficult to guess.

“What does your agency want with me, Lindy?”

Rising up on tiptoe to whisper in his ear, she pressed so close that her breasts brushed his arm.

“We don’t actually want you.”

He inhaled, a sound that was the second honest reaction she’d gotten from him tonight.

Their kiss had been very honest.

“What do you want then?”

“We want Renouf. We want you to give us everything you have on him.”

“If I had anything on him, why would I give it to you?”

“Because…” She let her words trail off for dramatic effect. “My agency can provide you with a new identity and a well-heeled life outside the organized crime world.”

Конец ознакомительного фрагмента.

Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».

Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.

Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.