lips twisted in a faint grin. “I don’t sleep, remember?”
That was almost true. He did have the ability to make it on only three or four hours of sleep a night, but he did sleep. “You sleep enough.”
This time he grinned wide, his perfectly aligned smile blazing white against his tanned skin. “We’ll worry about that when the time comes.”
The smile was not enough to charm her. He was being deliberately evasive. She glanced down at her watch. It was after seven. She was a night owl, but even then the time was coming sooner rather than later. “I’m going along with your plan because you’ve given me no choice, but I am not sleeping with you, Nathan Reed.”
His heavy brows rose in response to her declaration. “I hadn’t planned on seducing you.” Nate stood up and rounded the coffee table. He leaned over her, trapping her between the long lengths of his arms.
Annie eased back into the couch, but there wasn’t anywhere else to go. She could only breathe in his cologne and remember that same scent on her pillows as she slept in this very suite. Back then, Nate had the ability to play her body like a musical instrument he’d studied his whole life. She’d never been with another man who could bring her pleasure like he had. What they had was explosive. Mind-blowing.
The closer he came to her, the more she wondered if that connection had severed during their time apart. It didn’t feel like it.
His gaze raked over her body. “But if I did...what’s so wrong with that? It’s not a crime to sleep with your own husband, Annie.”
She felt a surge of electricity run through her body when he spoke her name. He’d said it the way he had in the past, with the low, soft tones she remembered him whispering into her ear as they made love. Whatever it was between them was still there. For her, at least. She couldn’t even respond with him so close.
“Besides,” he continued, “I don’t seem to recall you complaining much about it before.”
Her mouth suddenly felt dry. Annie ran her tongue quickly across her bottom lip. Even after all this time, she still wanted him. There was no question of it. “That was a long time ago,” she said, her voice a little too breathy to ring true even to her own ears.
“We’ll see about that.” Nate stood up, pulling away from her and breaking the spell. Annie felt him take all the oxygen in the room with him as he stepped back and scooped his drink off the table. He took a sip, the ice clinking in the mostly empty glass, and turned his back to her. He was as calm and unaffected as he would be conducting a business deal.
Then she understood. She was right; this wasn’t just about busting cheaters in his casino. There were other ways to go about catching them that didn’t require them to pose as the married couple they were. Methods that didn’t make him touching her necessary for their cover.
No, Nate wanted to make her pay. To get the small sense of justice he’d been lacking for the past three years. She couldn’t exactly call it torture, but he would be using every weapon in his arsenal—from seduction to indifference—to ensure she was uneasy and off her game. She would get her divorce, but the next week would be anything but simple. The odds were she could kiss this tournament win goodbye. Her focus was already shattered and it hadn’t even begun.
The chime of the elevator startled her. Annie looked over to see Gabe, the head of security, enter the foyer with her luggage. He was one of the only people with the card to access Nate’s private suite.
Annie stood and rounded the coffee table to approach him, but his gaze stopped her cold. Gabe had always had a smile and a laugh for her, but not today. His hazel eyes were like knives, shooting sharp accusations at her from across the room. His jaw was tight, the muscles in his thick neck tense. There was more anger in Gabe than she’d seen in Nate. Perhaps Nate was simply better at controlling it.
Gabe turned toward the darkened suite without speaking and dropped her luggage carelessly beside the dining room table. “Call me if you need me, sir.” He said the words while looking at Annie, the threat inherent. A moment later, the elevator doors reopened and he disappeared.
With him gone the heavy weight of his anger suddenly lifted from her chest. Annie had never realized how protective Gabe was of Nate. She bet if given the chance, he’d shoot her with his Taser just to watch her twitch.
Annie chewed her bottom lip thoughtfully. Of course he was angry. He’d been there every day of the past three years. He was probably the one who’d gotten Nate drunk and hauled him to a strip club to get over her. As a friend and as a security officer, he obviously disapproved of Nate’s plan to use Annie in the sting operation. Especially the part about them living together. Gabe could see the potential problems a mile away.
To tell the truth, Annie wasn’t entirely thrilled with that part of the plan, either. She wanted to follow him downstairs, to tell him she had no intention of getting involved with Nate again, but knew it wouldn’t help. Annie turned around, stopping short when she found Nate smiling. It was the first sincere grin he’d cracked since she arrived and of course, it was at her discomfort.
“He’s not your biggest fan.”
“I gathered that much. I’d hoped you hadn’t told anyone about us. Does anyone else know? Should I watch for flying daggers from housekeeping?”
Nate laughed and shook his head. “No, just Gabe. I wasn’t even going to tell him, but he found your wedding ring.”
The ring. Annie had forgotten. She’d left her platinum wedding band on the bedside stand. She hadn’t felt good about taking it. Leaving had been the right thing to do, but taking the ring so soon after receiving it felt like stealing.
She watched, stunned, as Nate twisted a tiny band from his pinky finger and held it out to her. “You’ll need this back. For the cover,” he added.
Annie took the tiny silver loop from his hand and examined it like a lost artifact. It was a dull, brushed-platinum band with shiny accents around the edge. They’d picked the rings out in such a hurry. At that moment, all she’d wanted was to be Mrs. Nathan Reed. What the hell had she been thinking?
“Why are you wearing it?” she asked.
“I wear it as a reminder.”
Annie got the distinct impression that he didn’t mean it in a sentimental way. More a daily reminder of how much she’d suffer if he got his hands on her again. “Where’s your ring?”
“Put away. I couldn’t very well wear mine and tarnish my reputation as Vegas’s most eligible bachelor.” He said the last word with audible distaste before he walked around his desk, fished in the top drawer and pulled out a small black velvet box.
“I can see how being married might interfere with your social agenda.”
Nate looked up, studying her face for a moment before opening the box and slipping the matching ring onto his left hand. He stretched his fingers out, testing the feel of the long-forgotten jewelry before making a fist. A slight frown pulled down the corners of his mouth when he spoke. “I have no social agenda, Annie. I thought that was one of the reasons you decided to leave me.”
“No, I...” Annie’s voice trailed off midprotest. She didn’t really want to talk about why she left. Not now. It wouldn’t change anything. What was done was done and their agreement would close the door
