The Family Jewels Read Online Free PDF

you dance with me first?"
    Said the spider to the fly.
    She stiffened but when she met his gaze, she nodded, a crafty twinkle in her eye. "Certainly. Maybe we can use the time to talk about my foundation."
    The surge of disbelief that followed her words was only eclipsed by the surge of admiration. That was the second mention of what he was almost one hundred percent certain was a fake charity run by a fake Countess.
    Sadie the Countess Waitress wasn’t sure if he recognized her or not, but in the interim, she figured she might as well try to work him over, too.
    The irony of it all was enough to make him want to belly laugh. How long had it been since he’d felt that way?
    Too long. But as much as he was enjoying this little detour from his regularly scheduled program, he needed to stop her before she actually became a problem.
    He led his companion to the dance floor just as the band struck up another song.
    The plan had been to call her out right there, while she was trapped in his arms. Flat out ask her who the hell she was trying to fool. Tell her he knew who she was, and send her packing.
    And then, she’d looped her arms around his neck, and her soft breasts had brushed his hard chest, and suddenly the very last thing he wanted was for her to go away.
    He couldn't deny that a part of him, long dormant, had come roaring back to life the second he'd seen her. The past few years especially, this thing with Hannigan had consumed him and it seemed like his joy for life was leaking out of him one drop at a time. Now, though, with the mysterious Sadie’s lithe body pressed against his and her scent filling his head, he felt alive again, and made a split-second decision.
    He'd still have to set her straight and send her on her way soon enough, but for now? For just a minute, he was going to kick this game of cat and mouse into high gear and have some fun.

    * * *
    I rish Spring soap .
    The scent had haunted her since they’d collided at the restaurant and she’d practically plastered herself against him, swiping at his muscular chest with that bar rag. She’d figured it was him right off. He was the only guy with enough confidence to skip the cologne, but the fact that she’d known it all along didn’t make it any easier to think straight this time or the last.
    In fact, being this close to the man again and trying to think at all was an exercise in futility.
    He was so tall and broad, she should’ve felt dwarfed by him, even in her high heels. Instead, it was like their bodies had been sculpted to fit one another. Not cool.
    Just as she was plotting a way to get him to sit down and talk before she melted into a puddle at his feet, he tipped his head so that his lips were close to her ear, and a puff of warm breath sent a shiver through her.
    "That dress should come with a bloody fire extinguisher,” he murmured.
    So should that accent, she wanted to reply, but she managed to restrain herself. He was a wedge. A barrier between where she was and where she needed to be. Time to kick it out of the way and move things along. He was already suspicious. She needed to find out exactly how suspicious so she could determine whether to scrap plan A and move to plan B.
    “I’m glad you like it,” she said with a smile, hoping against hope he didn’t test her rusty German again. Luckily, this wasn’t her first rodeo as a Bavarian aristocrat, so she’d muddled through, but it had been a close call.
    “So tell me, Mr. Callahan, how do you know Alistair?”
    “We’re business associates.” He pulled back to gaze down at her. “And you?”
    “We just met this evening, actually,” she replied through her suddenly dry lips. “We had corresponded via email for several months when I contacted him about a painting I was interested in acquiring. We got to discussing our passion for art and my organization, and he invited me to the gala.”
    She ran the tip of her tongue over her mouth, flushing when his eyes followed the