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He wondered what the woman in yellow would be like in bed, then put a firm clamp on those thoughts.
He’d made his bed.
Besides, would the woman in yellow prove any different to Kristen when it came to the money angle?
With a cynical shake of his head, Bryce reached for a glass of iced water. No point in getting heated about anyone he didn’t know…or Kristen’s greed.
His forthcoming marriage was a done deal. Almost a done deal. He didn’t have the time to settle with someone else. The doctors had told him it was a miracle his father was still alive and they were using experimental drugs to treat his condition. Such risky medication held out no guarantees, and Bryce didn’t want to delay giving what peace of mind this marriage might bring, at least in the short term.
No point in brooding over the outcome for himself, either. He’d flown to Vegas to hand out awards and get a feel of how the rank and file were dealing with the company products. His mission this morning was to listen and observe. Which he proceeded to do.
First up was a panel who role-played selling the concepts of particular products to customers who have no idea how they would work in business, or that they even existed to be used. Bryce was favourably impressed by their understanding and the concise way they focused on customer needs to adopt and apply more profitable business practices.
Next came a sample presentation to a company board level, delivered by a Business Development Manager from Sydney, Australia. The program noted that Sunny York had the enviable record of always achieving her quota of sales. Her…a woman? His interest piqued, Bryce waited curiously to assess why she was so successful.
The conference organiser finished his patter on her, raised his arm in a welcoming gesture, and in a typically hyped-up voice, announced, ‘Miss Sunny York.’
Up stood the woman in yellow!
She had a smile on her face that would captivate and dazzle even the hardest-headed financial directors. And she was tall—six feet tall, Bryce estimated—and more than half of that height was taken up by the longest legs he’d ever seen on a woman. He couldn’t help watching them as she stepped up to the podium. Her skirt ended above her knees but it wasn’t a mini. It simply looked like a mini on those legs, and she wasn’t even wearing high-heels, just comfortable court shoes with enough of a heel to look elegant.
His gaze travelled slowly upwards from her feet…what would it be like to have those long, shapely legs wrapped around him…the curvy cradle of her hips underneath him…plenty of cushion in those nicely rounded breasts, too…that mouth, so full-lipped and wide, made for sensual pleasure…and her hair tumbling everywhere.
‘Hi!’ She spread her smile and twinkling eyes around the audience, drawing everyone to her with a flow of warmth that sparked responding smiles. ‘I’m here to help you make money…and save money.’
She had them in her hand from that very first delivery and didn’t let them go for one second in the whole forty minutes of her presentation. It didn’t feel like a hard-sell. She came over as concerned to serve the customer’s very best interests, her voice carrying a very natural charm, allied to a mobility of expression which was almost mesmerising. The line of logic she injected into selling sounded so simple and convincing, she left no doubt this was a winning move, and her own positive energy literally generated positive energy through the whole auditorium.
Bryce found himself totally entranced.
Even her Australian accent was endearing.
Sunny…
He could certainly do with a bit of that sun in his life. A lot of it. All of it. His stomach clenched as his mind skidded to Kristen. He didn’t want a cool-headed calculator. Taking her as his wife went against every grain in his entire body…and that very same body was craving what Sunny York might give him.
His eyes feasted on her as she stepped down from the podium. He’d invite her to join him for lunch…test possibilities. Seize the day. Seize the night. A night with Sunny York would at least satisfy the compelling fantasies she’d been stirring, and if she was all she promised to be…
The flash of a diamond on her left hand pulled the hot run of thoughts up with a jolt. Bryce stared at the ring that declared Sunny York was engaged to be married, committed to another man, whom she probably loved. Her whole performance demonstrated she put her heart into everything she did. Heart and soul.
Bryce wasn’t used to feeling like a loser. It hit him hard, the sick hollowness following on the wild surge of excitement she had evoked in him. He sat back in his chair and grimly reviewed his options.
He might be able to seduce her away from her fiancé. Inducements marched through his mind…powerful attractions for most women. But if he did win her like that…would he still want her?
Give it up, man, he told himself savagely.
Kristen was ready and willing…so long as he paid the price she demanded. Which he could well afford.
Settle with her and be done with it.
CHAPTER THREE
SUNNY headed for the ground-floor casino, determined on having a showdown with Derek. He hadn’t come to the lunch—not even waiting outside the conference room to give her a courtesy comment on her presentation before skipping off—and he hadn’t shown for the last session, regardless of the fact that Bryce Templar had been giving out awards. His respect for the big man obviously hadn’t extended that far.
She didn’t like the casino floor. The assault on her ears from countless bell-ringing slot machines was horrific. It was bad enough walking through it. Actually spending hours here was beyond her understanding. Having finally located the roulette tables, she scanned them for Derek and was frustrated at not finding him. Could he have gone to bed—the need for sleep catching up with him?
Frowning, Sunny moved from foot to foot, too worked up to walk away with so much angst playing through her mind. She shot her gaze in every direction, not really expecting to resolve anything, simply at a loss to know what to do next. It came as a shock when she actually spotted Derek, seated at a blackjack table, watching the cards being played by the dealer with an intensity that cramped her heart.
He was caught in a thrall that nothing was going to break.
It seemed that nothing else mattered.
Sickened by the realisation of how destructively addictive gambling could be, Sunny hesitated over confronting Derek, yet the relationship they had shared up until this week demanded that he at least recognise how he was treating it. The need to get through to him drove her over to the blackjack table. She waited until he threw down his cards in disgust, apparently having lost his bet, then tapped him on the shoulder.
‘Derek…’
He sliced an impatient frown at her.
‘…could I speak to you, please?’
‘Can’t you see I’m playing?’
‘It’s important.’
Grimacing at the interruption, he heaved himself off his chair and tipped the back of it onto the edge of the table to hold his place. ‘What’s so damned important?’ he demanded, his bleary eyes snapping with frustration.
‘It’s the last night…’
‘I’ve just lost the roll I won at roulette. My luck’s got to turn…’
‘Derek, we’ve got seats for the Jubilee show. And dinner beforehand.’
‘The action is here. I’m not leaving it.’
‘Don’t I mean anything to you anymore?’ she cried, trying to get through the obsessive glaze to some grain of perspective on what he was doing.
The personal tack clearly irritated him. ‘I sat through your presentation. You slayed ’em as you always do. Is that what you want to hear?’ he said ungraciously, then waved a sharp dismissal as he added, ‘If you’re hot to go and watch some showgirl extravaganza, fine. But as you just pointed out, this is our last night here and I want to win my money back.’
‘And what if you don’t? What if you lose more?’
He looked shifty.
‘Derek, just how much have you lost already?’
Feverish need flashed at her. ‘I’ll win it back. It’s only a matter of time.’
An icy fear struck her. ‘Have you been gambling on credit?’
‘That’s my business. We’re not married yet.’
No sharing. No desire to share. Complete shut-out. Hurt and disappointment held her silent for a moment as she realised beyond any doubt that there could be no happy future for them. A bitter urge to show him what he’d done, how low he had fallen, had her wrenching the diamond ring off her finger.
‘Here!’ She held it out to him. ‘You can pawn it. Get some more money to throw down the drain.’
It rocked him. ‘Now look here, Sunny…’
‘No. Try looking at yourself, Derek. It’s over for me.’
‘Well, if you feel that way…’ His eyes glittered as he took the ring. ‘You’ll change your mind when I win a bundle.’
He was unreachable on any level. ‘I won’t change my mind. We’re through, Derek,’ she said with absolute finality.
His gaze had dropped to the diamond in his hand, and Sunny had the gut-wrenching impression he was assessing what he could get for it. Her eyes blurred—all the inner torment of hopes and dreams being just swept away suddenly catching her by the throat. For their eight-month-long relationship to come to this…
She swung away, swallowing hard to stop herself from bursting into tears and making a spectacle of herself. Her legs moved automatically, driven by the need to get out of the casino, out of this dreadful playground which trapped people and drained them of any soul she could relate to.
The slot machines jangled around her, a cacophony of sound that seemed to mock her misery. She completely lost her bearings, not knowing what direction led to an exit. A moment’s enforced reasoning told her to head for the hotel’s reception desk from where the lobby was definitely in view.
It was such a relief to break free of the vast gambling area, tears swam into her eyes again. This time she simply put her head down and followed the walkway to the lobby, hoping not to run into anyone who knew her.
The limousine was waiting. His plane was waiting to fly him back to L.A. Kristen was waiting for him to return to her, no doubt ready to sweeten her prenuptial demands with how well she would accommodate his needs. Bryce Templar told himself that what he’d just witnessed didn’t change anything, but still he lingered in the lobby, watching Sunny York.
She’d taken off the diamond ring.
The man she’d handed it to wasn’t following her.
Her haphazard flight from what was clearly a distressing scene had finally been checked and she was heading towards him. Not consciously. She hadn’t seen him. She wasn’t seeing anything except the floor stretching ahead of her.
‘Your bag is in the car, sir,’ the bellhop informed him.
He nodded, unable to tear his eyes away from the long beautiful legs of Sunny York, walking her towards him. The memory of her warm vibrancy played havoc with his usual cool decision-making processes. Here was opportunity. The guy at the blackjack table was one hell of a big loser and that loss was right in front of Bryce to be capitilised upon. The urge to do so was more compelling than any urge he’d had for a long time.
She was free.
He wasn’t, Bryce sternly reminded himself. Kristen was wearing his ring. But not a wedding ring yet. And before he could have any further second thoughts, a fierce surge of highly male instincts moved him to intercept Sunny York’s path to the exit doors.
‘Miss York…’
Legs were planted in front of her—the legs of a big man—and that voice…her heart quivered as a weird certainty crashed through the daze of misery in her mind. Bryce Templar was addressing her. Bryce Templar!
Her feet faltered, hesitating over making a wild sidestep to escape him. Even blinking furiously, she couldn’t hide the moisture in her eyes. Impossible to face him…yet impossible not to. A man like Bryce Templar would not be snubbed. Not by an employee of his company.
‘I was looking for you after the awards presentation,’ he said purposefully.
It surprised her into raising her gaze to his. ‘Looking for me?’ His eyes were green, pouring out interest in her, and despite her embarrassment, Sunny found she couldn’t look away.
He smiled. ‘You impressed me very much this morning.’
At the vivid memory of how he had impressed her, heat whooshed up her neck and scorched her cheeks. It reduced her to total speechlessness.
‘You have a remarkable gift for selling,’ he went on.
Somehow she managed to get her mouth around, ‘Thank you.’
‘I wondered if I could interest you in a proposition.’
Like having a baby with me?
Sunny blushed even more furiously at that terribly wayward thought. Her mind was hopelessly out of control. Bryce Templar had to be talking about a business proposition, which was stunning in itself…the big man thinking she had a special talent for sales.
‘Were you on your way somewhere?’ he asked.
Realising her gauche manner was probably putting him off—putting Bryce Templar off!—Sunny tried desperately to adjust to this totally unexpected situation.
‘I…I was just going for a walk. Out of the hotel. We’ve been closeted inside all day…’
‘Yes, of course,’ he said understandingly. ‘I’ll walk with you. If you’ll just excuse me a few moments while I rearrange my schedule…’ He smiled again, showering her with warm approval. ‘…I would like to talk to you.’
She nodded, completely dumbstruck at the prospect of strolling down the street, accompanied by Bryce Templar. Her whole body started tingling as she watched him stride over to the concierge’s desk. He was rearranging his schedule to be with her! It was incredible, world-shaking.
Green eyes…she hadn’t been close enough to see their colour before. They gave his face an even more striking character. Or so it seemed to her.
She watched him command the concierge’s attention. He would naturally command attention anywhere, Sunny thought, even without the weight of his name and position. His height, the breadth of his shoulders, the sheer physical authority of the man, drew the gaze of everyone around him.
For once in her life, Sunny had the uplifting feeling of her own tallness ceasing to be a burden that had to be bypassed in her reaching out to others. She was short enough to hold her head high next to Bryce Templar without diminishing his sense of stature in any shape or form. Not that her height would be of any concern to him—a man of his power—but it was a relief to her not to feel conscious of it.
He made some quick calls on a cell phone, then spoke again to the concierge. Sunny was grateful for the time to pull herself together. A business proposition, he’d said, which was what she should be focusing on instead of letting foolish personal responses to him turn her into a blithering idiot. She had a future to consider…a future without Derek.
Yet when Bryce Templar turned back to her, his green eyes targeted her with an intensity that didn’t feel business-like at all. Sunny was instantly swamped with an acute awareness of being a woman, every feminine instinct she had positively zinging with the electric possibility that he found her worthy of mating with.
It blew her mind off any consideration of business. Her pulse was a wild drumbeat in her temples. Her stomach clenched at his approach. He stretched one arm out in a gathering-in gesture and some madness in her brain saw him naked and intent on claiming her. Then his other arm pointed to the exit doors and the crazy anticipation rocketing through her was countered by a blast of sanity.
A walk…
That was the sum of his invitation.
Somehow she pushed her shaky legs into walking.
Bryce Templar did not, in fact, touch her. A bellhop rushed to open the door. When they emerged from the hotel, the big man fell into step beside her and Sunny instinctively chose to turn right because he was on her left and bumping into him was unthinkable in her dreadfully hyped-up state with fantasies running riot.
‘Have you enjoyed being in Las Vegas?’
It was a perfectly natural question but his voice seemed to purr in her ear, heightening her awareness of him. Sunny kept her gaze trained straight ahead, not trusting herself to look at him and keep sensible. Business, business, business, she recited frantically.
‘I haven’t really had much time to explore the city,’ she answered carefully. ‘The conference has been pretty much full-on. Which is what we’re here for,’ she quickly added in case it sounded like a criticism. ‘And I have learnt a lot.’
‘You apply what you know extremely well,’ he remarked admiringly.
She shrugged. ‘I like giving our customers the best deal I can.’
