Burn(21)

            “Time? Place?” she prompted.

            “Seven thirty,” he answered softly. “Bentley Hotel. I’ll meet you in the lobby.”

            “And you’ll bring the jewelry with you?”

            He glanced down at the box in his hands and then back up to her, amusement twinkling in his eyes. “If I weren’t sure you’d bail on tonight, I’d give you the jewelry now. I have no interest in keeping something that evidently means so much to you. But if it gets you to dinner tonight then I’ll keep it as collateral. And yes, I’ll bring it. I don’t break my promises, Josie. Dinner with me, you get the jewelry. No matter what else happens.”

            She breathed out, her shoulders sagging in relief. “Okay then. I’ll see you at seven thirty.”

            He reached out to touch her cheek, his fingers just grazing her jaw. “I’m looking forward to it. We have a lot to discuss.”

            As he said the last, he let his hand drift downward until it touched the hollow of her throat where the collar had once rested. There was no mistaking his meaning. He wanted to know her status. What had happened to the collar. And why she was no longer wearing it.

            She sighed and then turned to walk away. How could she possibly explain that he was what had happened?





chapter six




Ash checked his watch as he stood in the lobby of the Bentley Hotel, one of the many hotels owned by HCM. He let out his breath in irritation as his gaze tracked toward the entrance once again.

            She was late.

            Or perhaps she wasn’t coming.

            He would have bet any amount of money on her showing up. Her mother’s jewelry obviously meant a great deal to her, and while he’d been a complete bastard to blackmail her into having dinner with him, he couldn’t muster any real regret. Not if it got him what he wanted.

            A few hours in Josie’s company.

            He had a dozen questions simmering on his lips. He wanted to know why she wasn’t wearing the collar anymore. He wanted to know if the guy who’d given it to her was out of the picture now. While it wouldn’t change his plans if she hadn’t cut the other guy loose, it would certainly make things a hell of a lot easier for him if she weren’t in a relationship.

            At a quarter to eight, Ash straightened, realization slowly creeping in that she wasn’t coming. Disappointment surged in his veins. Not a common sensation for him. But if she thought he would be deterred by being stood up, she was wrong. It only hardened his resolve.

            He was about to pick up the phone to call for his driver when Josie burst through the front entrance to the hotel. Her cheeks were red and her hair was askew, as if she’d been hurrying and the wind had played havoc with the long tresses.

            When her gaze lighted on him, she paused, standing several feet away as they locked eyes. He found himself walking toward her when, normally, he wouldn’t be the first to make a move. People came to him. Not the other way around. And yet, he wanted to close in before she changed her mind and bolted back out the door.

            “Josie,” he greeted smoothly.

            “Sorry I’m late,” she said breathlessly. “I was painting. Got caught up in what I was doing and completely forgot the time.”

            He glanced at the oversized bag hanging from her shoulder and the paint smudges on her fingertips. Then he took in the rest of her, memorizing every detail, right down to her toes.

            “That’s quite all right. They’ll hold our table,” he said. “Would you like to eat now or have a drink first?”

            She pulled a face. “I’m not much of a drinker. I mean, I don’t have anything against it, and I do drink on occasion, but I’m rather finicky and I drink frou-frou girly drinks. But I love an occasional glass of wine.”