Battle Prize Read Online Free PDF

sake of her host and his guests had been too much. What she really needed was a long soak in the whirlpool spa that was one of the amenities of the condominium complex.
    With abrupt decision Rani reached into a drawer for a silver-gray maillot swimsuit. Stepping out of her prairie skirt, she changed quickly and then stuck a few more hairpins into the loosening coil of hair on top of her head. She hoped they would control the tendrils that were always threatening to spill down around her shoulders. Yanking a huge gold towel out of the hall closet, she walked outside through the kitchen door, which opened onto the large communal lawn and garden. In the center, beneath a latticework gazebo, the heated spa waited. Ripping on the switch that set the jets of water in motion, Rani slipped into the bubbling hot water with a soft sigh of relief.
    She had brought a small cassette player out with her, and now she set the little machine carefully on the edge of the pool and fitted the earphones over her head. Pressing the button she closed her eyes and gave herself over to the soft, pummeling water and the strains of a Mozart flute concerto. Overhead a canopy of black velvet and silver stars sealed the night around her. It must be nearly midnight, Rani realized absently.
    She tried to imagine King on his way home. He would be halfway there by now. A nice man and a successful one. What more could a woman ask? But try as she might Rani knew she would never feel a genuine need for him or even a genuine level of excitement
    Actually, annoying though the knowledge was, the only exciting male in her life recently was Gage Fletcher. Mouth twisting wryly at the thought, Rani shifted her legs languidly beneath the foaming water and inclined her head back against the edge of the pool. The wonderfully controlled exuberance of the concerto seemed to fill the world.
    What had the man done after she'd walked out of the restaurant the day before? Had he done as she'd instructed and obediently carried her message back to Aaron Prescott? It was hard to imagine Gage as a mere messenger boy. It was hard to imagine him at anyone's beck and call, in fact. On the other hand, she could conceive of him allowing nothing to stand in the way of finishing a job he had contracted to perform.
    Rani frowned to herself at the thought. So how would such a man react if a stumbling block had been firmly placed in his path? She had half expected him to contact her again that day. That was one of the reasons she'd been glad of King's invitation to the ranch. It had neatly gotten her out of the vicinity. Had Gage come by her house or gone to the shop? Would he pursue the matter further? No doubt about it, he had managed to make his presence felt in her life. There she was, fresh from King's good-night kiss, dwelling on Gage Fletcher's possible actions! King would be chagrined if he ever discovered that
    In her mind, Rani refought the Battle of Hastings as the flute concerto flowed through her head. What would have happened if Harold's men had stood firm instead of charging down the hill in hot pursuit and leaving themselves exposed to William's cavalry? What would have happened if she had stood firm behind the counter of The Miniature World instead of charging out the door in pursuit of the man who had deliberately basted her out into the open?
    Well, it hadn't done Gage any good, she reminded herself with great satisfaction, and it had given her some very interesting Information. Aaron Prescott was feeling the pinch of her absence! Served the man right. That thought made her wonder how Gage would tell his employer of his failure. It wouldn't be easy for him to do. She had the feeling Gage Fletcher seldom failed at anything. There was a controlled power and masculine certainty that seemed to emanate from him. Such power and certainty rarely admitted to failure.
    It wasn't until the flute concerto was abruptly cut off and strong male fingers lifted the earphones away from her