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she rushed from the kitchen, those weren’t tears. She was too old for that, wasn’t she?
    ***

Chapter Four
    It might be a self-evident statement, but there were definite advantages to being rich. Even though he was too intoxicated to drive, he didn’t have to worry about it. The limo he’d rented at the airport was waiting for him at the side parking lot of the Paradiso. Despite logic, he’d stayed at the casino.
    His time hadn’t been spent only nursing cocktails at the bar. He’d also gone to the high roller table for poker and lost several hands. If he had his inheritance for another six months, he planned on enjoying it.
    However, after seven hours of drinking and playing cards, he was shuffling off to his limo. The last person he expected to see was a tearful Kelly Kentworth. The sight of tears rolling down her cheeks stabbed into his heart. The last thing he wanted was for her to be upset. He’d been kicking himself since he’d first seen her pain at Alana and Dharr’s wedding. It burned that he’d hurt her so long ago and hadn’t been able to make amends, but seeing her so distraught now bit him even harder, like fangs digging into his flesh.
    Even though he had to be the last person she wanted to see, he couldn’t help but check on her to see if against all impossible odds that was something he could do to make her feel better.
    “ Mon amie , what’s wrong?”
    She snorted and pushed aside a tangled strand of hair from her face. “Why do you care?”
    “I care,” he said, stroking her cheek and grateful she let him. He’d enjoyed stealing the kiss from her earlier. After all, he was a sheikh and a Hassem on top of that, damn it. He had a right to whatever he wished, but with Kelly, it really was true. A big part of the thrill with her was the chase and her fiery spirit. “You look upset. Is this about me?”
    “Don’t assume, Asam. After all, it makes an ass out of you and me.”
    “Then it’s not from this morning?”
    Kelly took a shuddering breath. “No, it’s not about you. My boss is someone the bitch from The Devil Wears Prada would look up to, and she’s decided to vegan-ize our menu. I only have a couple of weeks to research the right recipes, or she’s replacing me. In only five years, I built us up as the best Italian in Nevada. Let’s not even mention the way she talks to me. Sometimes it’s so hard being stared at and treated like dirt just because I’m a little heavier than some.”
    He snorted and kept stroking her cheek. Her soft skin was so supple under his fingers. “You’re gorgeous, Kelly, and you know it.”
    She stepped back from him, and he wanted to reach for her again. “Maybe not gorgeous enough. I don’t even know why I told you.”
    “Because you trust me.”
    “No, that’s not it. Maybe it’s because you’re the only one I have any ties to in town besides Jasper.”
    He clenched his hands into fists at the thought of this Jasper. After all this time, had he been replaced? Had she finally found someone? “Who’s Jasper?” he asked, trying and failing hard to sound calm.
    She smirked at him, the first expression she’d shown that wasn’t flat-out distress. “Oh he’s my rock—very reliable, sweet, greets me when I get home after a hard day.”
    “You live together?” he asked. Frustration was roiling in his gut.
    “Oh yes. He’s so strong and dependable.”
    “So he’d be mad if I took you to a late dinner?”
    “Well, he’d be mad if I don’t bring him any takeout tuna. Jasper’s my cat. I’m a living cliché, I’m afraid.”
    Asam breathed a sigh of relief and hoped she didn’t notice. Kelly pursed her lips in response. He had to admit there was hardly anything that turned him on more. “So you were just playing with me. I will see you then, mon amie . You’re quite the sly minx, aren’t you?”
    “I’m a lot of things,” she said, hiccupping a little. He was glad she wasn’t actively crying anymore.
    “I have a waiting