Was that disappointment or relief in his face? ‘Well,’ I said airily, ‘it was nice meeting you. Thanks for the champagne and sorry about the, you know, falling unconscious part. I should remember to eat next time.’ Not that there would be a next time. I pivoted on my heel.
‘Integrity, wait.’
I turned slowly back. ‘Yes?’
His eyes fixed on me, freezing my body into place. ‘Nothing happened last night. I’m not that kind of guy. You conked out so quickly that I was worried. It made more sense to keep you with me so I could check on you.’ He inhaled. ‘I’d really like to see you again.’
I almost snorted. He’d not achieved end-game status yet; that was why he didn’t want this to be over. So predictable. ‘Sure,’ I said. ‘I’ll call you.’
‘You don’t have my number.’
I shrugged. ‘The hotel is pretty well known. I’ll find you.’
Before I could leave, Byron got to his feet. Without meaning to, my eyes drifted down. He was wearing a pair of silky black boxers and nothing else. I stared for a moment at the trail of hair leading downwards and swallowed, then glanced up again. His mouth twitched and he stepped right in front of me.
‘Why do I get the feeling that you’re giving me brush off?’ he asked, reaching out and fingering my hair lightly.
I tried to smile. ‘I don’t know. Perhaps it happens to you a lot?’
‘Girls don’t normally try and run out the door. They normally try and hang around for as long as possible.’
I bet they did. ‘What can I say? I’m a busy person.’
His gaze heated up. ‘Promise me that you’ll call. I’m in meetings all day but I’ll be free after six.’
I looked straight at him. ‘I promise,’ I lied.
‘Good.’ He bent his head until his breath was hot against my neck. ‘I’ll look forward to it,’ he whispered.
I almost ran out of the room. I could swear he chuckled as the door closed behind me. So he was good looking, I told myself. And I could feel fizzy lust zipping through my system whenever I looked at him. It was merely a combination of the drugs and the fact that it had been too long since I’d had a man. He was a sexy guy and I wasn’t immune. It didn’t make me want to marry him or have his babies any more than he wanted that from me. I sighed. He certainly lived up to his reputation.
Locating my shoes at the far end of the sofa, I scooped them up along with my bag. There wasn’t a peep from Bob so at least something was going my way. I clumped out to the front door, keeping one wary eye on Byron’s bedroom. When I was sure he wasn’t about to suddenly appear, I wrenched open the door and stood back, letting it slam shut. There was still no sound from the bedroom. Perfect. I tiptoed over to the silent unoccupied second bedroom and sneaked inside.
There was a gap underneath the bed. It would be a tight squeeze but I reckoned I could manage it if I had to. Helpfully, there were also several built-in wardrobes. It was nice to have options. Now all I had to do was wait and hope that Byron didn’t plan to hold his meetings here in the suite. He had to leave sooner or later. I pinched the bridge of my nose and wished I’d thought to grab a glass of water before I pretended to leave. My mouth was as dry as a badger’s arse. My breath probably smelled even worse.
If I closed the bedroom door completely, I wouldn’t be able to see a thing. Whoever had crafted this room put a lot of effort into the details. I was certain, however, that it been ajar last night so, as long as I was careful, I could leave it that way and give myself a line of sight into the living room.
I experimented with the light, checking that my shadow wouldn’t give me away if I stood in the corner, and peeked out. The chance of Byron wandering in here was slim. If he did, however, I wanted to be able to scoot under the bed without him noticing the flicker of movement.
Once I was satisfied with my position, I relaxed a little. Not a moment too soon either as I heard the door opening and Byron emerging. I squinted at him through the gap. He’d dressed casually in a pair of jogging trousers and tight T-shirt. It was as if he had to show off his pecs, even when he was alone. Poser.
He moved around the room, sometimes within my line of sight and sometimes not. After downing a glass of juice which looked so orange and so tasty that I was gagging to run out and snatch it from him, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a phone. He walked to the window and murmured into it. It was annoying that I couldn’t hear what he was saying. I tensed, straining my ears, but no matter how hard I tried I couldn’t catch more than a word or two.
Not long after he hung up, there was a sharp rap on the door. Byron strolled over and opened it.
‘Morning. How are things?’ asked another male voice. ‘I thought you’d be done by now.’
‘Things are good,’ he answered. ‘It’s just a more delicate operation than I realised. I’m going to take my time. Come on. Let’s head downstairs and see what Jamie has to say.’
I frowned. Delicate operation? That was an odd way to talk about getting your leg over. Not that I really cared. In fact, it probably wasn’t anything to do with my little sleepover and was about the business he was in town for.
I nibbled my bottom lip. Was he here just for the Lia Saifire or was the jewel merely an added bonus? The part of me that had flirted with him the night before hoped the jewel’s disappearance wouldn’t cause him too many problems. The part of me that remembered what it was like to be eleven years old and dismissed by him hoped that it would.
I wasn’t used to feeling this conflicted and I didn’t like it.
After he left, I stayed where I was. It was important to wait for at least ten minutes. Speck used to tell a story about when he’d hung around hotels and, using a cleverly keyed master card that he’d developed himself, darted into the guest rooms when the occupants went down to breakfast. There were at least three occasions when he was almost caught. People are forgetful. They come back to see if they’ve left the iron on. Or they need their wallet or their phone or whatever. I had to allow for those sorts of memory lapses. It’s not like this was my first snatch and grab; I was an experienced professional.
Once the allotted time had passed, I opened the door and snuck out. The suite was completely silent. Allowing myself a moment of luxury, I grabbed a glass, filled it with water from the tap and gulped it down. Damn, that was good. Then I squared my shoulders. It was time to get down to business.
