Part 12 (2/2)

aThank you,' she said quietly. For all his faults, and, yes, not falling helplessly in love with her was one of them, Nicholas Cooper believed in her. Hallie felt her heart falter, felt it stumble before righting itself, and when it did it wasn't altogether hers any more. Some of it was Nick's. Not that she was inclined to let him know that.

So she pinned on a smile, a smile that became more genuine as she was introduced to friends and acquaintances of John and of Jasmine. She nodded to husbands and mingled with wives as they ogled the diamonds around her neck overtly, Nick covertly, and made laughing conversation with her.

Partnering Nick to a ball was easy. He was gorgeous, charming, and knew exactly when to leave her to her own devices and when to stay by her side. aYou're a very good escort, you know that, don't you?' she said as he whisked her half-finished gla.s.s of champagne from her hand, handed it to a pa.s.sing waiter, and snagged a cool gla.s.s of water as a replacement. It was exactly what she wanted. aHow did you know I wanted water?'

aI didn't,' said Nick. aBut you hadn't touched your champagne in over an hour and it's getting warm in here so I figured it was worth a shot.'

aGorgeous, generous and attentive,' said Hallie dryly. aIs there anything you're not good at?'

aRules,' he said, his eyes darkening. aI'm not real good with rules. Dance with me.'

Hallie took a quick sip of her water, felt it slide, wet and cool, down her suddenly dry throat. aI'm not sure dancing's a good idea for us.' Dancing meant touching, touching meant wanting, and when touching, wanting and Nick came together she was inclined to forget the rules herself. aI'm thinking we should forgo the dancing.'

aNo. This is a ball. There has to be dancing.' And with a crooked smile, aWe're in a public place. We have an audience of thousands. I'm not going to break any rules here.'

This was rea.s.suring. aOkay, but if we dance, so do others,' she said as she spotted Jasmine and Kai peel away from a large group of people and head towards an unoccupied seating area. aKai needs to dance with Jasmine.'

aWhy?'

aI'll explain later.' They'd reached the younger couple. Hallie smiled brightly. aAnyone for dancing over by the balcony? I'm thinking it's probably the coolest place in the ballroom.'

Jasmine shrugged, glancing at Kai through lowered lashes. C'mon, Jasmine, Hallie willed the younger girl, this is the age of equality, ask him. But Jasmine stayed silent. And so did Kai.

aSmell me,' she said to Nick. aHow do I smell?'

Nick sighed, bent his head to her neck and sniffed. aYou smell divine.'

aNow you smell Jasmine,' she ordered Kai. aEverything okay there?'

Jasmine lifted her chin. Kai nodded, a small smile playing around his lips.

aExcellent. And do I look beautiful?' she asked Nick.

aExtremely,' he said dryly.

aWhat about Jasmine?'

aShe looks exquisite,' Nick a.s.sured her gravely, his eyes alight with laughter.

aSo there's no problem in that direction either. Of course, I'm a.s.suming that everyone here can dance. You can dance, can't you?' she asked Kai pointedly.

Kai knew when to give in gracefully. He gave Nick a man-to-man stare that was strangely sympathetic and then turned to bow gracefully to Jasmine before offering his arm. She took it, and together they moved off towards the dance floor.

aYour brothers have a lot to answer for,' said Nick with a rueful shake of his head. aThey've taught you man-handling skills a woman your age really shouldn't have. I shudder to think what you'll be like when you're older.'

aMore subtle, I hope,' said Hallie, following Jasmine and Kai's progress though the throng of people with a frown. aLook at them! He's not even touching her. Anyone would think he doesn't want to dance with her!'

aThat would be my call,' said Nick. He was guiding her towards the dance floor as they spoke.

aNot that I have anything against you being right in general, but in this particular case I really hope you're wrong.' Matchmaking really wasn't her forte. What if Kai wasn't in love with the younger girl? What if she'd given Jasmine the wrong idea altogether? aI can't watch.' She turned abruptly and came nose to chest with Nick's s.h.i.+rt. aOut of my way. I'm going to go and shoot myself for interfering.'

aWait,' said Nick, his hands on her shoulders as he urged her back around.

The other couple had started dancing and if Kai had thought to keep Jasmine at arm's length, Jasmine had other ideas. Her small hands slid up his arms to rest on his shoulders. Kai's hands rather unwillingly slid to her waist, his fingertips brus.h.i.+ng the bare skin of her back and then, as if he couldn't help himself, he gathered her close, the tension and the longing in him unmistakable.

aMy parents used to dance like that,' said Nick. aThey always gave each other room to move, to be themselves, but then when they came together you could tell that at that moment in time there was nowhere else they'd rather be. It was like...magic.'

aNick, you're a romantic!' Hallie turned towards him, thoroughly enchanted by his words. aDo you think we're going to dance like that?'

aNo.' His voice was firm but his eyes were warm as he swung her smoothly into her arms. aWe are going to avoid dancing like that at all costs.'

He danced like a dream. As if he'd held her in his arms a hundred times before yet still delighted in the feel of her. The brush of a thigh, fingertips on bare skin; it was like foreplay, like flirting, and Nick was a master of both. It was his fault Hallie snuggled closer when a slow number began. His fault that she slowed it way down and let her body remember the feel of flesh on flesh and the pleasure his hands and lips could bring. He had the most wonderful touch, she thought dreamily, a lover's touch, and she savoured the moment and the man who gave it to her.

It could have been fifteen minutes later, it could have been fifty, when the music stopped and Nick peeled her out of his arms.

aI was having a Cinderella moment,' said Hallie, warmth creeping into her cheeks as she eyed Nick warily. aIt's possible I got a bit carried away.'

aIt's all right,' said Nick with a heavy sigh. aI'm getting used to it. Do you want to go out to the balcony?'

Where there was bound to be a night-time Hong Kong skyline to be dazzled by, rather than the man beside her. Hallie was all for it. aCan you see Jasmine and Kai anywhere?'

aThey left the dance floor half an hour ago.'

Hopefully this was a good thing.

There were almost as many people on the balcony as there were inside. The air was cooler, the faint breeze a welcome surprise. aWhat time is it?' she asked him.

aEleven-thirty. Not long to go now.'

No, it wasn't. Not to midnight. Not to the end of their time together. Hallie smiled, but it wasn't a real smile. It was going to hurt to say goodbye to this man in two days' time, she'd always thought it might. She just hadn't realized how much.

And then the thunder of drums sounded from inside and people turned and started heading inside, Jasmine amongst them. aLion dancing,' said the younger girl, linking arms with Hallie as they fell into step with the slow moving crowd.

aHow was your dancing?' she asked and laughed when Jasmine blushed. aWhere's Kai?'

aRecovering,' said Jasmine impishly. aActually he's gone to the kitchen. Something to do with checking out the wait staff.'

The drums settled into a steady, driving rhythm and a magnificent Chinese lion appeared, bigger and more elaborate than Hallie had ever seen. He strutted, roared, and considered the poles set out before him, each pair of poles that little bit higher than the next. He disdained the lowest poles, sniffed at the next, wove his way through the third, and sat before the fourth. He groomed himself lazily, as he studied the tallest of the poles, poles that were taller than Nick, and then with a flick of his tail and an unbelievable leap he was standing on top of them and along with it all came the bold beating of drums. The colour red was everywhere; on decorations, on dresses, on the jackets of the wait staff who circulated with a never-ending supply of drinks and finger food. The wait staff. Hallie stared hard at a waiter heading towards them with an empty tray. He looked familiar, irritatingly familiar.

aNick,' she whispered, disengaging her arm from Jasmine's and tugging on his sleeve. Wasn't that the waiter from the restaurant? The one who'd served the poisoned crab? aNick!' But Nick was engrossed in the lion dancing. And then the waiter was almost upon them, one hand holding the tray aloft, his other hand close to his side and in it was something that gleamed with a dull black s.h.i.+ne. Nick was turning towards her now, but it was too late to warn him. If it was a gun, the waiter had a clear shot. Hallie did the only thing that came to mind.

She charged the approaching waiter and tackled him, gridiron style, and they went tumbling to the ground, both of them, the crowd parting as onlookers scrambled to get out of the way. Some were quick enough, others weren't. Two other guests. .h.i.t the ground, both of them men, both of them cursing, but not nearly as much as Nick who was wading through the wreckage, trying to get to her. The waiter scrambled to his feet and rabbited his way through the crowd, his tray and whatever had been in his hand lying forgotten on the floor.

aIt was the waiter from the crab restaurant! He was aiming something at you,' she said breathlessly as Nick helped her to her feet. Kai was beside them now, barking orders into a cell phone. aI thought he had a gun!'

aYou mean this?' said Kai, picking up a small black cylinder that gleamed dully.

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