Id like that, he told her.
She expected nothing less. Yes, Im sure you would. Im staying at
I know where youre staying, Patrick Moore cut her short.
She smiled, inclining her head. Clever boy, she murmured.
With that, she sashayed off to the casino, every step a calculated movement guaranteed to make mens mouths water.
Once inside, Candace began to move just a tad faster. If shed retained her present pace, the object of her pursuit, Luke Montgomery, would have put too much distance between them. She very much wanted to hook up with the gala host. Men of power were like an aphrodisiac for her, and Luke Montgomery, despite his humble beginnings, was now regarded as one of Vegass movers and shakers. Nothing she liked more than being on the winning team.
She had, she liked to think, a lot to bring to the table.
Luke, she called out to him. When he didnt appear to hear her, Candace raised her voice, temporarily abandoning Marilyn Monroes sexy, throaty whisper for pragmatic reasons. There was still no response.
The third time she called out his name, Luke stopped walking. He could feel his shoulders tensing. Hed heard her the first time and had hoped that she would just give up.
He should have known better.
Damn that shrew anyway. He wanted the focus of this gala to be on him, his newest casino and the charity he was sponsoring, in that order. Nowhere in that hierarchy did he want to include a vapid, superficial bleach-blonde.
But if he didnt acknowledge her, he knew she was going to cause a scene, and that was the last thing he wanted tonight.
So Luke turned around, a perfunctory smile of civility on his lips worn for
the benefit of anyone who might be passing by.
Hello, Candace, he said as soon as he crossed back to her. Towering over the woman, he all but quietly growled, I dont seem to remember sending you an invitation.
A careless laugh met his statement. Im sure it was just an oversight. Candace possessively threaded her arms through his. Being so close to Luke vividly reminded her of the last time theyd been together. Though shed never said anything, shed considered settling down with him. At least for a while. A ladykiller who lived up to his reputation, he was a magnificent lover who always left her wanting more.
Because she sensed that this gala meant a lot to him, she tried to get on his good side by saying, This certainly has the looks of being quite a successful event.
He certainly hoped so. Luke had undertaken hosting this event and pulling together all the beautiful people from the four corners of the world not just to benefit the charity he was sponsoring but also because hosting such an event, where all the rich and famous showed up in droves, would garner him an enormous amount of goodwill. Good publicity was crucial since he was on the verge of building yet another casino and hotelthis one on the exact spot where the tenement building hed lived in as a child had stood.
The Phoenix, as the new establishment would be called, was very near and dear to him, and he wanted nothing to hamper its success. Someone like Candace Rothchild and the kind of attention she attracted could do a lot of harm to all his good intentions.
He wanted her out of here, and he had no time to be polite about it. Moving over to a more private corner of the casino, he asked in a controlled, low voice, What is it you want, Candace?
Her eyes raked over his body, blatantly undressing him as she looked up into his eyes. Why, darling, that should be very evident to someone as smart as you. Tightening her hold on his arm, Candace raised her face up to his. Her mouth was barely inches away from his lips. You.
Gone were the days when he would have been flattered. He knew her for what she was. A woman with no soul on her way out, living in a town that didnt care. She was swiftly becoming a punch line to a good many insulting jokes.
Not now, Candace.
A pout appeared on her moist lips. Then when? she wanted to know.
What had he ever seen in her? he couldnt help wondering. Granted, thered been a time when he would have gladly taken her up on her offer, but hed been younger then and far more impressionable. Hed like to think he was too smart now to be tempted to lie down with a black widow.
He shook his arm free and then grasped hers. He began directing her toward the front entrance. Some other time, Candace, he said forcefully.
Instantly, her face clouded over. I dont like being rejected, Luke. Your little party wont go so well if I make a scene. Thats what theyll remember, me, she emphasized, not you or this little jewelry store display of yours.
It was a threat with teeth, and they both knew it.
He didnt react well to threats. I think youll be happier elsewhere, Candace, Luke told her coldly. He snapped his fingers over her head at someone across the floor.
She didnt bother looking to see who Luke was summoning. She wasnt interested.
And I think Ill be happier here, she insisted. Accustomed to getting her way, it infuriated her to be contradicted.