Hidden Riches
chest so that her heart was stuttering when he released her.
“Well, hi.” Staggered, she put a hand on his arm for balance. In her spike-heeled boots she was nearly eye level with him, and the intensity of his look had every pulse point jumping in time with the band’s back beat. “Glad you could make it. I—ah—this is . . .”
She turned to her two friends and went blank.
“Excuse us.” Jed pulled her away until he found a corner. He couldn’t call it quiet, but at least they didn’t have to shout at each other. “What do you call that thing you’re wearing?”
“This?” She glanced down at the spangled cat suit, then back up at his face. “Sexy. Do you like it?”
“I’ll let you know as soon as I manage to roll my tongue back into my mouth.”
“You have such a way with words, Skimmerhorn. Do you want a drink, some food?”
“I had a drink. I was met at the door by a seven-foot black man in red leather. He hugged me.”
“Indigo.” Her eyes sparkled. “He’s a very sociable sort.”
“He’s got me pegged as an out-of-work actor from New York.” Experimentally, he touched a fingertip to one of her curls, wondering what it would take to have them all tumbling down toward her shoulders.
“Indigo’s a bit flamboyant, but he’s an excellent director, and he has a very good eye. It’s a good thing you didn’t tell him you’re a cop.” She took Jed’s hand and led him backstage, where another bar and a buffet were set up. “He doesn’t like them.”
“I’m not a cop.” He started to order another scotch, then opted for club soda while Dora chose champagne. “Why doesn’t he like them?”
“Oh, he used to work part-time at this club—as a bouncer. The cops raided this crap game in the back room and hauled him in.” She angled her head, shifted her shoulders and did a dead-on imitation of Indigo. “Darling, it was a frightful experience. Do you have any idea what kind of people they put in those cells?”
“Yeah. Criminals.”
“Don’t say that to him. I’m the one who bailed him out, and let me tell you, the man was wrecked.” In an automatic gesture, she straightened the collar of Jed’s shirt. “It would be difficult for you to sympathize, I imagine, as you’ve only been on the outside of the bars.”
“I’ve seen them from both sides.”
“Oh, well then.” With a brisk, practical movement, she brushed the windswept hair from his forehead. “You’ll have to tell me about that sometime.”
“Maybe I will. Have you finished grooming me?”
“Yes. You look very nice in black—a bit of the rebel, maybe. Sort of James Deanish.”
“He’s dead.”
“Yes, of course. I meant if he’d lived to see thirty.” Her smile was thoughtful and amused. “Are all cops so literal-minded, or is it just you?”
“It’s a matter of fact and fantasy. I’m more comfortable with fact.”
“Too bad. I spent most of my life steeped in fantasy. You could say laboring over it.” She chose a radish rose from the buffet, crunched. “I prefer it to straight reality.”
“When you were an actress.”
Her laugh bubbled out, frothy as the wine. “Need I remind you, I’m a Conroy. I may not be on the legitimate stages these days, but I’m still an actress.” Leaning closer, she nipped teasingly at his earlobe. “If you ever decided to try the stage, I might be tempted to come out of retirement.”
The lance of heat arrowed straight down the center of his body. “Why don’t we just stick with who we are?”
“The world will never know what they missed.” She glanced down at his drink. “You don’t have to play designated driver, you know. We can cab back.”
“I’ll stay with this.” He reached out, cupped a hand under her chin. “I want a very clear head when I make love with you tonight.”
“Oh.” She lifted her own glass with an unsteady hand. “Well.”
He grinned. “Run out of lines, Conroy?”
“I . . . Ah . . .”
“Isadora!”
Jed saw a statuesque redhead poured into a glitter ofgreen that slicked down a regal body, then frothed out in stiff fans from the knees to the ankles. As she bore down on them, she looked exotically like a ferocious mermaid.
Blessing Trixie’s timing, Dora let out a pent-up breath and turned to her mother. “Problem?”
“That caterer is a beast. God knows why I continue to hire him.” She aimed a look over her shoulder that could have melted steel. “He refused, absolutely
Weitere Kostenlose Bücher