The Best Man Read Online Free PDF

from her
restless fingers, his hand closing momentarily over hers.
    Christine
didn’t have to fake her blush. “You should have to tell me a fantasy in
exchange.”
    Jake
shook his head. “Nope. I paid for this in points.” He smiled at her. “And it
sounds like it’s going to be worth it.”
    “I
should call forfeit and go sit in the back.”
    “With
Mark? I think I’m better company.”
    “Expensive
company.”
    Jake
laughed and Christine couldn’t keep herself from smiling. “Come on,” he coaxed,
his low voice making her body hum with the possibilities. “Tell me. I won’t
tell anyone.” He crossed his heart and held up two fingers. “Scouts’ honor.”
    “Okay,
a deal’s a deal.” Christine twisted in her seat so that her knee bumped against
Jake’s thigh. She leaned to whisper in his ear. It would be so easy to stretch
up and kiss him. “I’ve always had this fantasy of having a secret lover, a
mystery man who comes to me in the night and seduces me with his touch.”
    “So,
you don’t even know who he is?”
    Christine
shook her head. “He’s a stranger, one who has fallen in love with me from
afar.”
    Jake
looked skeptical. “Is that even possible?”
    Christine
decided to be a little bolder. “Why not? Maybe he is someone I know or have
met, but wants to hide his identity. He’d be masked when he came to me. Or I’d
be blindfolded. That would be the mystery.” She reclaimed her glass and took
another gulp of champagne, hoping he connected the dots.
    But
Jake frowned. “Masked? Like the Lone Ranger? With Tonto and the horses, too?”
    “No!
More like the Phantom of the Opera.”
    “Does
he have to be scarred and living in the sewers of Paris?”
    Christine
was crushed by his attitude. “You’re making fun of me.”
    “No.
I’m trying to understand.” He leaned his chin on his fist, bracing his elbow on
the armrest. His face was really close to hers, his gaze searching. “What makes
it such a good fantasy?”
    “It’s
just such a romantic idea.” Christine sighed. “He’d be a man who hid his
identity from me, but romanced me every night. He’d live in the shadows, or in
the twilight, but risk everything for love. A secret lover, who was already
crazy about me.” She risked a glance at Jake, expecting another smart comment
but was surprised by the heat in his gaze.
    “So
why couldn’t he just tell you so?”
    “It’s
the secrecy that makes it powerful. When you’re in disguise, you can let go.”
    Jake
caught his breath. “Let go?” he echoed, his voice husky.
    Christine
nodded. “Get a little wild. Indulge in a sexual fantasy, maybe one you wouldn’t
tell anyone willingly.” She gave him a steady look. “Maybe go farther than you
might otherwise.”
    His
eyes got darker. “So, it would be more than kisses in the dark.”
    Christine
held his gaze. “Much more.”
    “How
much more?”
    Christine
smiled. “It would depend upon how passionate he was.” She dropped her gaze.
“And how persuasive.”
    She
peeked through her lashes to see Jake swallowed visibly and dared to hope.
    “So
he’d have to be masked in order for you to really let go?”
    “Yes.”
    “What
if you knew him really well already?”
    That
question made Christine’s pulse flutter. She tried to keep her tone level.
“Then he’d need even more of a disguise, wouldn’t he?”
    Jake
straightened, drumming his fingers on his knee. “But Phantom of the Opera was
set in Paris, not on a Caribbean Island. Is this a city fantasy?”
    His
abrupt change to a businesslike tone wasn’t encouraging. Christine tried to
grab his interest again. “Not necessarily. There are lots of places that are
romantic and it could be adjusted for the possibilities. I think a moonlit
beach, for example, would be a wonderful place for a secret rendezvous.” She smiled.
“On a tropical night, there could be romance and mystery.” Christine swallowed
and dared to look at Jake. He was so fixated on her that