in Luccy’s eyes didn’t make much sense to him, either…
CHAPTER FIVE
‘CHAMPAGNE?’
Luccy didn’t need to turn and face the owner of that silkily soft voice to know who it belonged to. It might have been eight weeks since she had last heard it, but, as she had guessed at the time, she hadn’t succeeded in forgetting a single thing about Jacob ‘Sin’ Sinclair, least of all the silky seductiveness of his voice!
She had wondered about—and dreaded!—seeing him again at this glitzy party being given in the New York Sinclair hotel to celebrate the launch of PAN Cosmetics’ new brand of lipstick. But, as she was the photographer for all the publicity shots that had blitzed the media for the last month, it would have looked distinctly odd if Luccy had refused her own invitation to attend. Especially as she had decided that this particular photography assignment for PAN Cosmetics was to be her last…
Which didn’t make it any easier for her to break off her present conversation in order to turn and face Sin!
Despite the fact that the reception room in this New York hotel was full of the press, as well as the rich and famous, Sin had had absolutely no problem picking out Lucinda Harper-O’Neill in the sparkling crush of people. For one thing it was impossible not to spot that distinctive long, blue-black hair. For another, she was looking beautiful again in red…
Had she deliberately worn red again this evening as a challenge to him for that night two months ago?
Whatever her reason for wearing it, there was no doubting that Luccy looked stunningly beautiful, her low-necked, sleeveless red gown a shimmering sparkle of sequins that hinted at her curves rather than clung to them, and revealing a long expanse of shapely legs, the red high-heeled shoes she wore adding an extra three inches to her height. Her long blue-black hair was loose again tonight and curling silkily down the length of her spine, the deep blue of her eyes emphasised by long, curling black lashes, a delicate blush to her cheeks, and the fullness of her lips once again glossed a deep, tempting red.
Sin had stood across the room watching her for several minutes before approaching and speaking to her, his body tensing as he watched her conversing with one of the male executives of PAN Cosmetics, her beautiful face animated, her blue eyes glowing, her cheeks satiny smooth, and those red-glossed lips full and smiling to reveal her small, even white teeth.
That the man she was talking to was totally captivated by her glowing beauty was more than obvious—if Darren Richards leant any closer over the bare expanse of her creamy breasts he was going to lose himself down the front of that glittering red gown!
Sin turned his hard silver gaze on the older man. ‘Richards,’ he greeted tersely. ‘I believe my grandfather was looking for you a few minutes ago…’ he added pointedly.
Luccy, having turned to face Sin, barely noticed as Darren Richards excused himself and hurried away, her attention all on Sin. He looked tall, dark, and breathtakingly handsome in the black evening suit and snowy white shirt and bow tie, the expression in those silver-grey eyes totally unreadable as he coolly returned her gaze, holding out one of the two champagne glasses he carried.
‘I won’t, if you don’t mind.’ She shook her head as she held up her glass of sparkling water.
‘Fine.’ He shrugged before disposing of one of the glasses on the tray of a passing waiter. ‘Have you been working your brand of magic on one of the PAN executives this time?’
Luccy had decided before coming to New York that if she and Sin did meet again she would not allow him to get under her skin. ‘Do you think I succeeded?’ she came back dryly.
Once again Sin couldn’t help but admire her easy confidence. ‘Judging by the way Darren almost fell into your cleavage? I would say that’s a yes,’ he confirmed mockingly. ‘The only problem is, Darren doesn’t have the final word over any future contracts you may or may not have with PAN.’
Luccy met his gaze unblinkingly. ‘But you do?’
‘Of course.’ He gave a derisive inclination of his head.
‘Pity.’ She gave him a sweeping glance before turning her attention to the rest of the room. ‘Did you say that your grandfather’s here?’
Sin’s mouth curved into a humourless smile. ‘He may be eighty but he still makes a point of always appearing at these occasions. Would you like to meet him?’
‘No, I don’t think so, thank you,’ she refused lightly.
‘He doesn’t bite,’ Sin assured her dryly.
Unlike this man, that silver gaze warned Luccy!
‘You don’t want any champagne. You don’t want to meet my grandfather. What do you want, Luccy?’ he asked softly.
The huskiness of his voice caused a tingling at Luccy’s nape and sent a quiver of awareness down the length of her spine, the bodice of her gown suddenly feeling too tight as her breasts swelled in response.
This man was playing with her, Luccy easily guessed, and he was enjoying doing it too!
‘From you?’ she bit out. ‘I thought I had already made it clear at our last… meeting, that you don’t have anything that I want.’
‘I believe what you wanted was another contract with PAN?’
She looked at him coldly. ‘There are plenty of other companies who have just as big an advertising budget, you know.’
‘Wow and Paul Bridger came up trumps, after all, did they—?
‘Where are you going?’ Sin reached out to take a light hold of her arm as she would have walked away.
‘Anywhere that you aren’t,’ she snapped. ‘For your information, I haven’t seen or spoken to Paul Bridger—or anyone that knows him,’ she added pointedly, ‘since talking to you at your hotel that evening. How about you?’
Sin raised a disdainful eyebrow. ‘Why the hell would I want to see him?’
She shrugged those creamy shoulders as she looked at him challengingly. ‘Oh, the two of you seemed to have so much in common.’
Insulting as well as courageous, Sin acknowledged ruefully. Not that she had lacked courage the last time they had spoken, she just seemed different in some way. Or was it himself that was different? He’d had the same eight weeks to think of this woman and wonder if he really had been wrong about her, as Luccy had insisted so vehemently.
In the circumstances it was unfortunate that the first time he’d seen her this evening she had obviously been charming yet another executive, of PAN this time!
Luccy looked pointedly at the fingers that still encircled her arm. ‘Take your hand off me, Sin,’ she instructed softly. ‘I’ll give you three seconds and then I’m going to start screaming,’ she added when he continued to frown down at her.
His mouth twisted. ‘That would definitely make you the centre of attention!’
She raised dark brows. ‘I believe that would bother you more than it would me.’ After all, there were hundreds
