“The Savoy’s barkeep invented that vile concoction I drank this morning?”
“Well, he says he invented it, but for my part, I’m inclined to doubt. Every barkeep worth his salt claims he’s invented some exciting new cocktail when he really stole it from someone else. Either way, he saysit’s an excellent cure for the aftereffects of alcoholic excess. And looking at you, its effectiveness speaks for itself.”
“But how did you know—” He broke off, not willing to admit he’d been so careless as to imbibe enough that such a remedy was necessary.
“How did I know you needed it?” she finished for him. Leaning closer, a distinctly mischievous look in her dark blue eyes, she whispered, “I have my spies. I hear everything that happens in this hotel.”
That was just what worried him. “You shouldn’t pay attention to gossip,” he said.
“You’re right,” she agreed at once, straightening and donning a contrite expression. “They told me you’d gone on rather a bender, but having listened to such wicked rumors, I feel thoroughly ashamed of myself.”
As if to illustrate the point, she hung her head, looking so woebegone that he couldn’t help laughing again.
“Another one?” she cried, looking up. “Well, that proves it.”
“Proves what?”
“That you’re not nearly as stiff and haughty as you pretend to be.”
He was a bit taken aback by the description. “I’m not the least bit haughty.”
Even as he spoke, however, he watched one of her dark brows arch upward, and he appreciated that haughty might be a fair assessment of his behavior to date—at least from her point of view.
“I’m so glad to see this side of you,” she said breezily. “Now, every time you poker up and frown so ominously, I shall know it’s all a hum, and our friendship can remain intact.”
“Ah, so we’re friends now, are we?”
The laughter in her expression vanished. “I’d like us to be.”
He met her gaze, and something in her eyes made him catch his breath. He stirred, and when she moved closer, the faint butunmistakable scent of her perfume wafted to his nose—a spicy, exotic scent so blatantly sensual that his body responded at once. Warmth flooded his limbs and his muscles tightened as arousal flickered to life inside him. “You sound as if you mean that,” he murmured.
“I do mean it.”
She sounded so sincere, and when she moved a step closer, the arousal in him rose a notch. Involuntarily, he bent his head a fraction, but then he stiffened, reminding himself of all the reasons he could not afford to trust her. “I’m not sure I believe you.”
“But what—” She broke off and her tongue darted out to lick her lips, drawing his gaze to her mouth. “What can I do to convince you?”
What, indeed. Erotic possibilities at once began going through his mind, but of course, he was too much of a gentleman to ever act on them. She was under his supervision. She was also an extravagant spendthrift, probably an accomplished liar, and might very well be guilty of embezzlement and fraud.
Sadly, however, his baser masculine nature proved woefully unimpressed by such considerations, and his gaze slid downward, his mind conjuring images of what might be beneath the soft blue cashmere dress that clung so provocatively to the generous curves of her figure.
“The truth is,” she said, her voice barely discernible to his ears above the hard thud of his heartbeat, “I’ve had a sort of epiphany. I’ve realized it makes sense for us to be friends.”
He blinked, trying to think past the sensuous haze enveloping him. “Friends?”
“It’s the best thing for everyone, don’t you agree?”
Given what he was feeling right now, being friends with her sounded like the most nonsensical thing he’d ever heard, but by sheer force of will, Simon hauled his gaze back up to her face and his mind out of the gutter. “Absolutely,” he said with more enthusiasm than he actually felt. “It’s an excellent idea.”
“Oh, I’m so glad.” She laughed, pressed a hand to her chest. “Such a relief to know we can get along if we try.”
“Yes,” he agreed, rather surprised. “I suppose it is.”
“And it’s certainly better for the hotel if we’re friends.”
“Indeed.”
They both fell silent, almost as if neither of them knew quite where to go from here, but at last, she gave a little cough, took another step back, and gestured to the desk behind her. “In this new spirit of friendship, perhaps we could discuss a matter of hotel business, if you are feeling up to it? It won’t take more than a minute or two, but it is somewhat urgent.”
