Page 40 of False Evidence

“Glad I came. See you Christmas Eve?”

“Not if I can get out of it.”

“You know you can’t. It wouldn’t be Christmas without you.”

If only it was just JT’s presence he was referring to. “I better get a kickass present from you.”

“One anatomically correct blow-up doll coming up,” Lee said as he headed for the casino floor.

“Damn, I hate it when we get each other the same thing,” JT called after him. “Ruins the surprise.”

Lee laughed and disappeared into the crowd on his way to the exit.

JT headed for the covered walkway to the hotel. His gut clenched as he crossed the parking lot that separated hotel from casino. A chill wind blew off the Chesapeake, and he shivered.

Emotions swirled through him as he rode the elevator. Anticipation and anxiety warred for supremacy.

From the moment he’d spotted her and realized she wasn’t an employee, he’d felt a kick in the gut. It had been completely superficial. The woman was stunningly beautiful. Flawless pale cream skin, loads of platinum-blonde hair, heavily lashed big blue eyes. An hourglass figure atop long legs made even longer with sexy stilettos.

His attraction had grown exponentially after speaking with her.

He reached her room and paused before knocking, feeling nervous. She might well have fallen apart in the fifteen minutes since she’d left the ballroom. He might be the last person she wanted to see now.

He took a deep breath, then raised his fist and hit the door, his heart pounding with a matching thud.

The door swung open. She met him with a wicked smile. “You’re late,Pumpkin.”

He couldn’t help but grin at seeing her in the fluffy white hotel robe. Was she wearing anything underneath?

He stepped into the room, backing her up against the small foyer wall. He planted an arm beside her head and leaned in. “I’m pretty sure I made it just under the wire.” He pulled out his BlackBerry, just as the appointment reminder went off. “See?”

She yanked the device from his hand. “Is this one of those new smartphone thingies that can send and receive emails?”

He grinned. “Yes. And as you can see, I’m right on time.”

She studied the screen. “You set the meeting for fifteen minutes from now, which would make youverylate.”

“It’s a reminder that goes off fifteen minutes before the meeting, so I had to fudge it a bit to set it quickly. BlackBerry says that in future models, you’ll be able to set timers and alarms without tying them to a meeting.”

“So you admit you’re late.”

“Does that mean I don’t get any muffins? That’s what you invited me here for, right?”

She slipped under his arm, still holding his phone. He followed her into the king suite. The plate of muffins sat on the coffee table in front of the couch. She waved to the plate. “You can have the pumpkin one.”

“My favorite.” He picked up the indicated muffin and took a bite from the center of the top. He chewed then said, “Moist and delicious.”

She rolled her eyes, even as she laughed.

There was a knock at the door.

“You expecting someone else?”

“Room service.”

He followed her to the door, pulling out his wallet.

“Don’t worry. I’ve got this.” Then her eyes flared. “Well, Russ does. And tonight, he’s a big tipper.”