Into Temptation

Joshua preferred not to appear on anyone’s suspect list. A man with his reputation could never be too careful. His most valuable skill was moving through social circles around the world. If red flags popped up whenever he crossed an international border, his autonomy would be affected. He’d worked too many years to get where he was today—connected with a man of Henri Renouf’s stature.

He did not want this particular alias tarnished now.

“Joshua Benedict.” Reaching for her hand, he brought it to his lips, found that she tasted as feminine as she looked. “And you are….”

“Lindy Gardner.”

“Lindy.” He let the name roll off his tongue, liking the sound, sensuous and feminine like the woman herself.

He also liked the way she trembled when his breath burst over her skin. It was only a slight reaction, but Joshua had made a career out of noticing details.

This lovely lady’s shoulders quivered oh-so-gently. Her chest rose and fell on a quick breath.

“A beautiful name for a beautiful woman.” He released her hand, but to his surprise, she held on.

Her gaze slid from his. “Gloves, Joshua?”

“I was handling a sculpture.”

She stared down at their clasped hands with a smile playing at the edges of her mouth, a mouth that looked even more perfect for kissing up close.

She ran her thumb along the back of his glove. Just the sight of her fair skin against the fabric was so much more intimate than a touch should allow.

“They have some very beautiful pieces on display tonight,” she said.

“They do. But you couldn’t have toured the entire exhibit yet. Let me show you around.”

“I’d like that.”

Her acceptance was all he needed to make his move. Looping their arms together, he turned to lead her down the hall. Once inside the gallery, he would ply her with champagne then excuse himself to take care of business so he could return to the pleasure of making this lady’s acquaintance.

But as they reached the restrooms, Lindy came to a sudden stop. “Aren’t you forgetting something?”

With his adrenaline still pumping, he couldn’t pinpoint what it was about Lindy that had his instincts on edge.

“What?” he asked.

Raising a slim finger, she pointed above their heads, directly at his digital imaging device.

One small gesture and Joshua had his explanation. As usual, his instincts were on target—this woman was a lot more than a pretty lady in a white dress.

Following her gaze to the security camera, he said, “Well, that doesn’t look like it belongs there, does it?”

“Sure doesn’t.”

“What makes you think that device belongs to me?”

“Simple arithmetic.”

“As in two plus two equals four?”

She inclined her head so the exit light threw fiery highlights onto her hair. “The usher couldn’t confirm where you’d gone, so I guessed you’d given him the slip. And you weren’t wearing gloves when you left the gallery, so that would mean you were handling a sculpture where…? On the stairs? Another gallery on another floor? I don’t believe the loo factored at all, and I’m not generally wrong.”

No, there was nothing wrong with Lindy Gardner except that she was toying with him.

“Are you trying to pin something on me?”

“Do I hear an emphasis on trying?”

He laughed. “How do I know you didn’t plant that device to frame me?”

“You don’t.” She glanced at her watch then back up at him, the smile twitching around her mouth again. “I will say I’m very impressed, though. Given my calculations, which began when you left the gallery, you placed that device on the security camera at least nine minutes ago. I’ve just chewed up another two chatting, which puts you at eleven minutes give or take. You won’t want to leave that device behind because you know as well as I do when security discovers it, they’re going to run the guest list. You won’t want to be called in for questioning whether or not they can pin the goods on you.”

“So, what impresses you?”

“That you haven’t broken a sweat yet.”

Joshua didn’t get a chance to respond because as he registered that tonight wasn’t the first time Lindy Gardner had heard his name, feminine laughter rang out in the hall behind them—women headed to the restroom.

“Think they’ll wonder what we’re doing down here?” Lindy asked.

“They’ll know what we’re doing.”

Her mouth pursed. “Really?”

“Really.”

In one move, he pinned her against the wall and brought his mouth down on hers.

Now it was Joshua’s turn to be impressed. Lindy didn’t react with surprise. She only exhaled a laugh that burst against his lips in a champagne-laced breath before her mouth yielded to his—soft, warm, arousing.

Definitely a kissing mouth.

Lips parted. Breaths collided. Tongues tangled, leaving Joshua the one feeling impressed and surprised. By the way Lindy threw herself into the moment, sliding her arms around his neck and pressing all those lush curves against him.

And by the way his body reacted. His pulse rushed. His blood crashed south so fast the sensation made him deepen their kiss just to share her air.

If Lindy’s mouth had been made for kissing, the woman herself was all about making love.

Their bodies aligned perfectly. With her face tipped upward, her mouth fitted his just right for this soul-dragging kiss. She toyed with his neck, fingers sliding into his hair and caressing places he hadn’t realized could feel intimate.

Feel intimate they did.

She was an enticing armful. Long, lithe, much more toned than her slim curves appeared at a glance, she possessed a strength that suggested an active lifestyle. Her smooth stomach caught what wanted to become an erection—this woman aroused him faster than he’d ever been aroused.

And he wasn’t the only one feeling the effects of their closeness. Something about Lindy’s swaying hips felt real. He didn’t think this was a performance. Another question to add to his growing list about this woman.

Was she a bold thief sent to trap him?