started the water and stepped into the glass-enclosed shower. The heat and steam immediately relaxed her, and with each passing minute she convinced herself she was overreacting. Maybe he just didn’t want to touch her until she’d cleaned up. That made more sense than her thinking he had ulterior motives. And it was highly likely the maid had straightened up after he’d had his shower.
Twenty minutes later, when her fingers were wrinkled and her skin was warm and dewy, she climbed out and wrapped herself in a plush terry robe. The cotton was soft against her skin, and she felt worlds better than she had only moments before. Feet bare, she padded out into the bedroom and moved to the closet to find something clean to wear.
She gasped at what she saw inside. Two pair of slacks—one black, one brown—silky blouses in a variety of colors and low matching sandals. All pieces made from sumptuous fabrics, bearing expensive designer names any moron would recognize.
She swallowed hard, knowing the few outfits alone hanging in this closet probably cost more than her entire wardrobe, both here in Cairo and at home.
But something wasn’t right.
Kat backed up until her legs hit the bed and crumpled beneath her. And staring at the extravagant clothing and the opulence of the room, she had a flashback to the offhand Pretty Woman comment Pete had made in the lobby.
Things started to click into place. Each of the pieces hanging in the closet was beautiful, but they weren’t overly sexual in any way. Not the kind of thing a potential lover might buy for a woman. With sinking suspicion, she realized he hadn’t brought her here for sex like she’d thought. Instead, he’d brought her here because he wanted something from her. Wanted something so much he was willing to try to buy her off with trendy clothing and posh luxury in lieu of his body.
In a rush she remembered the way he’d been eyeing the artifacts in the tomb during his first few tours, and the way he’d watched everything around him with a keen eagle’s eye.
Her stomach tightened as reality smacked her in the face. Tomb robbers did indeed exist in this day and age. And there was an enormous belowground market that traded in ancient antiquities. She’d even heard stories of shady dealers scouting out tombs, passing themselves off as tourists and doing whatever they could to get information from workers. And with the pieces she suspected had gone missing from her site…
Oh, God. She’d been stupidly naïve. She’d been sosucked in by his good looks and charm she hadn’t even questioned what he was really about.
Heart pumping, Kat rose on unsteady legs and opened the bedroom door. The living room appeared empty at first, and though she wanted to rush out of the disgustingly beautiful suite she’d at first envisioned as a lover’s palace, now all she wanted were answers.
Her jaw clenched when she spotted Pete sitting at a desk facing windows that looked out toward the Pyramids, his back to her, his hand busily moving over a piece of paper. Dusk was just settling over the desert, and the lights were only now coming up, spotlighting the massive stone triangles against the dimming sky.
“Just what the hell’s going on here?”
He turned sharply and looked at her, obviously not having heard her march across the floor. For a moment she was sucker punched again, only this time with that familiar lust she’d been experiencing since he’d shown up. He was still wearing the same clothes as before, but he’d added a pair of wire-rimmed glasses that for some reason made him look damn sexier and even more rugged than he already was.
His eyes swept over her as he swiveled his chair and leaned back, taking her in from wet hair to bare feet. “Nothing fit?”
She fisted her hands on her hips and ignored the playful tone of his voice. “I didn’t try any of it on.”
“You didn’t like the clothes?”
“I’m not some hooker you can buy off.”
With slow
Twenty minutes later, when her fingers were wrinkled and her skin was warm and dewy, she climbed out and wrapped herself in a plush terry robe. The cotton was soft against her skin, and she felt worlds better than she had only moments before. Feet bare, she padded out into the bedroom and moved to the closet to find something clean to wear.
She gasped at what she saw inside. Two pair of slacks—one black, one brown—silky blouses in a variety of colors and low matching sandals. All pieces made from sumptuous fabrics, bearing expensive designer names any moron would recognize.
She swallowed hard, knowing the few outfits alone hanging in this closet probably cost more than her entire wardrobe, both here in Cairo and at home.
But something wasn’t right.
Kat backed up until her legs hit the bed and crumpled beneath her. And staring at the extravagant clothing and the opulence of the room, she had a flashback to the offhand Pretty Woman comment Pete had made in the lobby.
Things started to click into place. Each of the pieces hanging in the closet was beautiful, but they weren’t overly sexual in any way. Not the kind of thing a potential lover might buy for a woman. With sinking suspicion, she realized he hadn’t brought her here for sex like she’d thought. Instead, he’d brought her here because he wanted something from her. Wanted something so much he was willing to try to buy her off with trendy clothing and posh luxury in lieu of his body.
In a rush she remembered the way he’d been eyeing the artifacts in the tomb during his first few tours, and the way he’d watched everything around him with a keen eagle’s eye.
Her stomach tightened as reality smacked her in the face. Tomb robbers did indeed exist in this day and age. And there was an enormous belowground market that traded in ancient antiquities. She’d even heard stories of shady dealers scouting out tombs, passing themselves off as tourists and doing whatever they could to get information from workers. And with the pieces she suspected had gone missing from her site…
Oh, God. She’d been stupidly naïve. She’d been sosucked in by his good looks and charm she hadn’t even questioned what he was really about.
Heart pumping, Kat rose on unsteady legs and opened the bedroom door. The living room appeared empty at first, and though she wanted to rush out of the disgustingly beautiful suite she’d at first envisioned as a lover’s palace, now all she wanted were answers.
Her jaw clenched when she spotted Pete sitting at a desk facing windows that looked out toward the Pyramids, his back to her, his hand busily moving over a piece of paper. Dusk was just settling over the desert, and the lights were only now coming up, spotlighting the massive stone triangles against the dimming sky.
“Just what the hell’s going on here?”
He turned sharply and looked at her, obviously not having heard her march across the floor. For a moment she was sucker punched again, only this time with that familiar lust she’d been experiencing since he’d shown up. He was still wearing the same clothes as before, but he’d added a pair of wire-rimmed glasses that for some reason made him look damn sexier and even more rugged than he already was.
His eyes swept over her as he swiveled his chair and leaned back, taking her in from wet hair to bare feet. “Nothing fit?”
She fisted her hands on her hips and ignored the playful tone of his voice. “I didn’t try any of it on.”
“You didn’t like the clothes?”
“I’m not some hooker you can buy off.”
With slow
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