“Our ride tomorrow.” Clinking the bottle neck to her goblet, he said, “Cheers.” Her full, red lips touched the glass, and his blood heated. The orange and pink sun setting behind Jade could not compete with her radiance. Once again feeling he wasn’t showing his manners, he said, “I don’t usually drink straight from a wine bottle, but there wasn’t enough wine left to make it worth my while to walk over there for a glass.” He said as he nodded to the outdoor kitchen.
Jade opened her mouth to reply, and instead, a tiny and cute hiccup escaped her. “I don’t usually hiccup,” she said, blushing. “And I probably couldn’t have made it over there to get you a glass.” She said, nodding in the general direction he had.
“Yeah, I saw you wobble.”
Her eyes widened, and Chase laughed. She was not only the sexiest woman he’d ever met, she was funny. Then, his smile slowly faded as she sipped the last of her wine. Her next line would relate to being drunk, giving him the idea he could get lucky. Same old, same old. There was a time when he enjoyed that until it became the rule instead of the exception. She placed the goblet on the table with two hands, looked at him with what Hollywood might have called bedroom eyes, and smiled. Here it came.
“I think I better try to find the way upstairs to my room now.”
“Get a good night’s sleep.” He stood and held his hand out to her. “I’ll be back for you at the crack of dawn.”
“What time is the crack of dawn?”
“This time of year, ‘bout five-forty,” he replied, assisting her to her feet.
“That’s the middle of the night!”
He chuckled. “I’m teasing you. What time is the crack of dawn to you?”
Pulling her hand from him and holding up her fingers, none of which bore a wedding band, she counted off, “Eight is the crack of dawn, nine I leave for the office, by ten, I’m alert and oriented enough to see my first client.” Her giggle was so infectious he laughed.
“You’ve burned a lot of daylight by ten.”
She lowered her hand, and her smile faded. “In my defense, I often work until late in the evening, and then I study online.”
“Fair enough. I’ll be here at eleven.”
She twirled a finger in the air, gave him a sharp nod, and said, “I’ll be ready.”
His lower body was reacting to her every word and move. But mind over matter would prevail. She walked to the chaise lounge, where her sunglasses lay on top of a beach towel. Just as she leaned over to reach for her glasses and the towel, a Chinook breeze blew. Zebra stripes fluttered up her slender back, and he glimpsed her bikini-clad bottom. Damn, that view blazed hotter than the sunset. Standing, she took a faltering step as she tugged the stripes over her fanny. When she weaved to the right, he snared her elbow and walked her toward the back door of the house. What would she say if he offered to see her to her room?
“Can you make it up that winding staircase by yourself, Jade?”
“Yes, definitely,” she replied, taking a wavering step to the left as he opened the door.
Good girl, Chase thought. “Straight ahead, down the hallway to the foyer.”
“Right. Don’t worry about me,” she said as they entered the kitchen. “I’ve caused you enough trouble for one day.”
“I figure you’re trouble wherever you go.”
“Shh.” She turned to him, her finger touching her lips. In a conspiratorial whisper, she told him, “Not if they don’t find me.”
Letting go of her, he asked, “If who doesn’t find you?”
Jade hiccuped, and Chloe entered the kitchen. His sister nodded as if saying she wasn’t surprised to see him. Jade thanked Chloe for a nice evening and wiggled her fingers at Chase. What was this intriguing woman’s story? Who was looking for her? What kind of clients did she have? What was she studying? Maybe he’d find out tomorrow. Maybe he didn’t give a damn.
“Jade, hold onto the banister going upstairs,” Chase called after her.
“K,” came her reply.
“Chase, be a gentleman and see her to her room,” Chloe said.
“No.”
CHAPTERFOUR
“Nine-thirty, already?” Jade mumbled, one eye squinting at the alarm clock. She sat up in the canopy bed and silenced the clock. She’d no doubt missed breakfast.
