Master of the Game (Rush Series Book 3) Read Online Free PDF Page A

continually bothered by the men in the room. So I
thought if I sat down with you, they’d think you’re with me,” he replied
smoothly.
    “And
why would you do that?” she asked with a wry twist of her lips.
    He
unleashed one of his devastating smiles on her. “Maybe I’m just a nice guy,” he
replied.
    She
felt a little hum of excitement skip across her skin at the extraordinarily
handsome man seated across from her – she was only human, after all. He
reminded her of an all-American kind of guy – tall, blonde, green-eyed – his
short cropped beard gave him a slightly rakish appearance. He was dressed
casually in jeans and a long-sleeved button-up shirt that seemed to linger on his
sculptured body. If things had been different… if she’d met
him just a week before, but no… that would have been worse. Shaking the
thoughts she didn’t want to dwell on aside, she brought herself back into this moment. “Right…” she said in a
mocking tone, “A nice guy. Not self-serving in the least.”
    Rocking
his head side to side in small motions, he said, “Okay, maybe a little
self-serving.”
    She
gave him a tight smile and shook her head, the mirth of his comment evident on
her face, but absent from her sad eyes.
    “Are
you from Mexico City?” he asked.
    The
small smile she’d struggled to hold on to, faltered
even further. “No. I live a few hours from here,” she replied quietly.
    “Your
English is very good,” he said.
    “As is
yours,” she replied mockingly.
    “Touché,”
he replied with a grin. “What brings you here?”
    “Work,”
she answered simply, and looked away from him as she took a swallow of her
drink.
    When
she made no further comment, he said, “I’m here for the same.”  
    As the
waitress passed by, Alex tipped his nearly empty glass at her and pointed a
finger at Devon’s drink as well.
    They
sat watching the bodies bump and grind on the dance floor for several minutes,
each contemplating the other silently. He stayed because he intended to have
her; she stayed because she was afraid of being alone.
    “So…
what do they call you in that place a few hours from here?” he asked her.
    She
gave him her first true smile, and its sudden appearance caused him to smile in
return. “A hot mess,” she replied glibly, remembering the numerous times Roman
had called her that.
    Alex
continued to grin at her. “I’ll keep that in mind.” He tilted his head as he
contemplated her. “I think I can come up with a much better name than that for
you, though.”
    “And
what pray tell, would that be?” she asked as she raised her wineglass to her
lips.
    “I
think I’ll just call you Taz ,” he replied.
    With a
lift of her eyebrows, she questioned, “ Taz ?”
    He
nodded as he studied her with his translucent green eyes. “Yep. As in the Tasmanian Devil . I imagine you cause havoc
wherever you go… leaving broken men behind you at every turn.”
    Once
again, her smile faded leaving pain clearly etched in her beautiful features.
Nervously, she licked the wine from lips. “I don’t know about the Tasmanian
part, but I have been called the devil before.”
    Alex
studied the exquisite woman across from him as music pulsated around them. Her
skittishness and apparent vulnerability brought out all his natural instincts.
On one side was the desire to protect… and on the other, his desire to conquer.
    With
his conflicting desires warring within him, when the music changed tempo, Alex
rose and held out a hand to her. She studied it momentarily before shaking her
head slowly. His eyebrows rose and he held her gaze steadily – commandingly -
but otherwise he didn’t move. Not wanting to cause a scene, she finally slipped
her hand into his.
    His
hand was warm on her cold one. He pulled her slowly to her feet and moved to
the darkened dance floor. As they walked, he placed his hand lightly against
the small of her back and fanned his fingers to gently caress her there. A
thrill of