Love Me Like No Other (8 page)

Linc pulled back to look at her. “Haven’t you ever been part of happy couple, Jade?”

She didn’t answer, but tried to look away. Touching a finger to her chin Linc turned her back to face him.

“Where’s your boyfriend? Your husband?” he implored. “Tell me why a beautiful woman like you is still alone?”

She shrugged. “Apparently beauty’s not such a hot commodity anymore.”

“Maybe the population of foolish men is growing.” He stroked her cheek wondering if that population included him.

“It doesn’t matter.” She moved out of his grasp to stand near a bush with huge yellow flowers.

Linc had never been an outdoorsman, but could not deny the beautiful landscape and the way it perfectly framed this alluring woman. “How did he hurt you?” he asked without crowding her.

She didn’t face him. “He didn’t.”

“Are you sure?”

There was a pregnant pause.

“He disappointed me. He was just one in a long line of men who disappointed me.”

Her words were soft yet they sliced through him like a hot blade. He was one of those men, he knew without asking. Eight years ago he’d left her in that room and hadn’t returned.

“I’m sorry,” he said for lack of any other words.

She turned to him then. “Don’t be. It’s my fault. I made myself vulnerable. It’s only right that I accept the consequences of my actions.”

Was carrying around a disdainful attitude toward all men a consequence? Was holding herself at arm’s length her fate in life to keep from being let down again? Linc couldn’t bring himself to accept that. She deserved so much more.

But could he give it to her?

He moved to her side, slowly took her hand and brought her fingers to his lips. “Don’t blame yourself for the stupidity of others. If they disappointed you, then they weren’t worth your time.”

She stared up at him quizzically.

“That includes the younger, immature Lincoln Donovan.”

She smiled then and Linc felt a grip on his heart he was sure should have caused some type of pain. Instead it invigorated him. It confirmed that being with her was right.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

He nodded but realized he didn’t want her gratitude. What he wanted from Jade Vincent he wasn’t so sure she was willing to give.

Jade had the suite to herself as she showered and now slipped into her evening gown.

Fastening diamond earrings to her lobes she reminded herself again that Linc was simply her employer. That she had no right to be angry with him for spending time with those other women this afternoon. However, her little display of jealousy had ended quite pleasingly. Never would she have guessed that such simple words could mean so much. But when they’d come from Linc they’d meant more than she could explain.

“It’s just business. Just business,” she repeated until the knock at the door stopped her. “Come in,” she bellowed.

The door opened and in a swish of lavender chiffon Beverly entered. “Good. You’re dressed. Lincoln is busy so I’ve come to take you downstairs.”

Jade turned to face her. “You look great,” she said honestly.

Beverly smiled, did a little turn in the middle of the floor then went to Jade, taking one of her
hands. “Thank you, dear. You look wonderful, too. Your complexion is perfect for jewel tones.”

Jade looked down at her sapphire-blue dress and reluctantly agreed. This was one of her new dresses. One the clerk in Saks had picked out for her. She wasn’t overly fond of the plunging neckline and non-existent back, but she had to admit it made her feel sexy. And if you just looked at her you’d think she really belonged in this house with these people.

“Lincoln is going to love it,” Beverly said.

Her heart fluttered at the thought. “Do you really think so?”

“Child, please. I know my son and if there’s one thing he loves as much as business, it’s a beautiful woman.”

“I’m sure he does love beautiful women, of his own class,” Jade murmured and continued to stare down at her dress, rubbing her free hand down the front of the dress.

“Pardon me?” Beverly moved a step closer.

Had she said that aloud? Jade looked up into the older woman’s face and stammered, “Ah, I just meant that I’m, ah, sure Lincoln loves all beautiful women.”

Beverly looked at her questioningly and Jade prayed she hadn’t just screwed up the charade she was hired to portray. She hadn’t meant to verbal
ize her apprehension about being the kind of woman Linc liked. That was a point of doubt she’d kept strictly to herself all these years.

Beverly reached out and touched Jade’s chin, lifting her head up. “Lincoln is really taken with you, with or without this dress.”

“You think so?” Why did her voice suddenly sound so needy? Jade wondered.

Beverly studied her another moment. “Is there something wrong, Jade? Something between you and Lincoln?”

Jade turned away and changed the subject. She wanted so badly to confide in someone, to tell just how confused she was on the inside. On the other hand she knew that the only reason she was here with Linc was because she owed him money and he viewed this as a way to be repaid. She hadn’t dared entertain the thought that she was still in love with Linc. And wasn’t fool enough to believe it was impossible.

In the span of a few days she’d turned into a liar and a thief. The fact that Beverly stood in front of her speaking about a fake relationship made this even worse. She liked Beverly. If truth be told she liked all the Donovans. And she felt like a colossal jerk for betraying them this way. But what other choice did she have? There was so much more at stake here than her feelings.

So as the two women made their way down the stairs and into the main ballroom Jade squared her shoulders and swore she’d get it together. She had four more days to go. She could do this. She had to do this. Next week, when she was in the comfort of her own home, her own world, she’d allow herself a day or two of sadness.

His tie was too tight.

That’s the reason Linc gave for being agitated the moment he walked into the room. A majority of the guests had already arrived. He blamed that on the conference call he was forced to take an hour before the party began.

His mother would most certainly have his head, but decorum would warrant she wait until
after
the meal.

Oddly enough, she wasn’t the woman who preoccupied his thoughts. They’d returned to the cookout, hand in hand. What just last week had been an enigma to him was slowly revealing itself. For the first time in his life Linc admitted that he wanted something more in his life. Jade was that something.

She’d been hurt and apparently it was so bad that she was determined not to make the same mistake twice. He could understand that and viewed gaining her trust as a high priority. At the
same time he also acknowledged that clearing a five-thousand-dollar debt was a big deal to her. He had lots of questions as to why, so he’d finally given in and done a preliminary background check on her. He could have just asked but was fairly certain she wasn’t willing to tell him.

The brief background check had shown that not only was she a licensed masseuse but she owned her own spa, right off the Strip as she’d said last night at dinner. He wondered why she’d neglected to mention that fact. Moreover, he wondered why, if she owned her own business, she’d gambled away five thousand dollars and couldn’t afford to pay it back.

He’d be lying if he said that Trent’s words hadn’t planted a certain amount of doubt in his mind but he wasn’t yet ready to believe that Jade’s goal was as unscrupulous as Trent thought. While he didn’t know the facts of her life Linc was sure of a few things where Jade was concerned. For example, he was certain that the look on Jade’s face when he’d taken her riding, the sound of her voice as she’d called his name when they’d gotten caught up in the bathroom, the touch of her hands as she’d massaged him, were not fake. No actress could be that good.

She wasn’t manipulating him for money. If anything he was probably the one doing the ma
nipulating. With other debts he’d taken collateral and in some rare instances promissory notes. But from Jade he’d wanted more. And he’d gotten it so far. But it still wasn’t enough.

That fact was the root of his disgruntled mood this evening. He wanted Jade and he wanted to tell her this as soon as possible. He wanted to tell her that his reasons for asking her here went far beyond the debt. But he hadn’t had a moment alone with her today to do that.

With deliberate steps he made his way through the crowd stopping to shake hands with men he hadn’t seen in a while and kiss the cheeks of women he wished he hadn’t seen in a while. Despite his mother’s warning there weren’t as many eligible women here as he’d first expected. A couple of daughters from the socialite circle but not nearly as many as he’d anticipated. Then again, the presence of Leslie Kindle was enough. Momentarily he thought back to this afternoon when Jade had interrupted them. He’d been touched by her jealousy and proud of the way she’d handled Leslie. He certainly planned to avoid the woman for the duration of the week’s celebrations.

In the distance the band began to play. The crowd seemed to dissipate with most of the guests heading toward their tables and a few going
straight to the dance floor. He hated to dance and decided to hang back a bit and scan the tables until he found Jade. Slipping his hands in his pockets he took position near a lighted ficus, hopefully out of easy view of the socialite mistresses. His attention was piqued at the sound of sultry laughter and he turned to the direction from whence it had come. His body came alive with desire as his gaze found her.

There she was, wearing a dress—a dress that showed way too much of her gorgeous skin—head thrown back, laughing at something Max had said as he glided over the dance floor with her. It was an upbeat song yet he didn’t miss Max’s hands around her waist. He clenched his teeth and was about to step onto the dance floor and forego his distaste of dancing when he felt a hand on his elbow.

“She’s a gem, Lincoln. I’m so glad you two reunited.”

Linc frowned. He thought for sure his mother would wait to approach him until later. Apparently he’d been wrong. He really wasn’t in the mood to discuss his tardiness right now. “Great party, Mother,” he said stiffly.

Beverly looked around the room. “It’s a good kick off. Just wait until the rest of the week unfolds,” she said contentedly.

“Where’s your happy husband?”

She chuckled. “He’s just like his son, taking care of some last-minute business over there with a couple of stable owners from across town. But I’m more concerned with why you aren’t with Jade?”

“I was going to claim her when you stopped me.”

“Oh, well, then that was a good move on my part. Son, you look a little disturbed. I can only assume it’s a touch of the green-eyed monster and I wanted to let you know that there’s no need for it.”

Green-eyed monster? What was she talking about now? “Mother, I assure you, you have no idea what’s going through my mind right now.”

“Humph. I’m not as old as you think I am and I’m certainly no fool. I know when a man is jealous. And while I think it’s cute, Jade might not feel that way.”

His teeth clenched as Ben walked onto the dance floor and interrupted the rendezvous between Max and Jade. Then his mother’s words registered and he glanced at her. “I’m not normally the jealous type,” he stated slowly.

Beverly made a big production of wiping non-existent lint from his shoulders and straightening his tie. “And she’s no normal woman.” With a
hand to his cheek she smiled up at him. “There’s only one way to combat jealousy.” She paused and when he didn’t respond continued, “Pay attention to your woman or another man will.”

That’s the same thing Jade had told him. “She’s—” He opened his mouth to speak but was quieted by her hand hovering inches from his lips.

“She’s a beautiful woman with a lot of spirit and a zest for life that you seem to have forgotten. However, she’s with you for a reason. Stop being too stubborn to see it.”

With a smooth movement he grasped his mother’s wrist, brought the back of her hand to his lips and kissed it. “I know full well the reason she’s with me.”

Beverly blushed at the devilish twinkle in her son’s eye and pulled her hand away. “Then act like it.”

With that tidbit of advice she left him alone. Jade was still on the dance floor, still having a good time without him and he frowned. He was just about to go out and retrieve her when again he was detained.

“Enjoying the party, Lincoln?” his cousin, Max, asked.

“I would be if people would stop interrupting me.”

“My bad.” Max chuckled. “That’s quite a woman
you’ve got there.” He nodded toward the dance floor, toward Jade.

“I would say I’m glad you’ve noticed but I’m not.”

Max’s smile broadened. “Possessive, huh? Trent said he thought you were slipping.”

“What? Because I don’t want to share my date, I’m slipping.” Linc didn’t know why he was even entertaining this conversation. One thing the Donovan men did well was goad each other. They were a competitive bunch. But in the end their loyalty to each other would prevail. They had each other’s back, that was for sure.

Laughing Max clapped a hand on Linc’s shoulder. “I’m not saying you don’t have a right to be possessive. She’s quite a woman, like I said. I’m about to place my bet on how long it’ll be before you fall.”

Linc didn’t like Max’s implication, no matter how close to the truth it was. What he had in mind for Jade was between them. His family had nothing to do with it and he wasn’t in the mood for their unsolicited advice.

“That’s a fool’s bet,” Linc said as he watched Adam and Jade walk through the terrace doors. His body tensed but he didn’t say a word.

Max had watched their departure as well and his smile broadened. “I doubt that,” he was saying
but Linc didn’t hear him because he was already making long strides across the room.

Earlier Jade had made a point of reprimanding him about keeping up the pretense of the relationship. Now it seemed he was going to have to remind her of the same thing. For a woman with a grudge against men she certainly kept their company well. He took a deep breath and tried to calm himself. All he wanted was the chance to be alone with her, to tell her all these things he’d been feeling and how she was affecting him, changing the way he thought about his future.