The Sapphire Affair (Jewel #1)(34)

“What did I set you up for? Tell me. What on earth am I setting you up for?” he asked, holding his arms out wide. “I had an amazing time last night. Kissing you rocked my world, and I wanted more.” He paused, then leaned closer and lowered his voice to a rough and sexy whisper. “A lot more.”

A shiver ran down her spine, heating her up and turning her on in seconds. “I wanted more, too,” she said, and he locked eyes with her, looking at her as if he were picturing her naked. She liked him looking at her that way. “I want all the bad things.”

“I’m very good at doing bad things,” he said in a rough, dirty tone. She dug her fingernails into her palms so she wouldn’t launch herself across the table and ride him hard here at the restaurant.

OK, she really wouldn’t do that. But maybe grab him and tug him into the ladies’ room and pull him snug against her. Let him grab her wrists, pin them over her head, hike up her dress, and just take her. It had been so long, and she was willing to bet he could deliver everything she wanted.

But even so, she didn’t know how to trust Jake, or anyone for that matter. She drop-kicked all those naughty thoughts away. “I’m sure you are quite skilled in the dirty department, but you’re really telling me none of this was planned?” she asked, narrowing her eyes, maintaining her skeptical stare.

“Look, things got complicated today when I learned who you were. I’m not going to deny that. But I’m still here. Still talking to you.” He tapped the table with his finger. “Because, maybe, we should work together to find the jewels. We’re on the same team.”

Her body said, “Yes.” Her brain said, “Don’t be stupid, girl.” She wouldn’t be fooled by lust. She had to remain focused. “Why should I work with you? What do I need from you? I’m the one who was invited into Eli’s house later this week. I can just find them myself. I don’t have to, you know, break in,” she said, whispering the last words sarcastically. She might want the man, but that didn’t mean she was going to team up with someone she just met twenty-four hours ago.

“What if they’re not there?” he suggested casually. “What if they’re, say, in the nightclub?”

“Then I’ll find them there,” she said, though admittedly, her task would be harder if they were in Sapphire. Still, she needed to stay the course and do this on her own. Maybe she wouldn’t find a big, huge bag of diamonds. But perhaps she could find a way to get back her mom’s money and even unearth evidence that Eli wasn’t the man who’d so coolly dismissed her reasonable request at brunch. She wanted him to be the man who’d hugged her, who’d reminded her that he would have helped her business if she had asked. That’s who she’d known him to be, and he’d shown her that inkling today. She held tight to it. Dipping her hand into her bag, she fished for some bills and set them on the table. “I’d better go. I have work to do.”

As she stood, a willowy redhead appeared.

“Steph!”

“Sandy!”

Sandy wrapped her in a hug. “So good to see you. I missed you around here.”

“I missed you, too,” she said.

“I want to hear everything that’s going on.”

“Yes, me, too. We have to get together.”

“A bunch of us are having a party on a friend’s boat later this week. Want me to text you the details? Penny is off camping, but she should be back then.”

“That sounds great. I’ll be there.”

“We can catch up and you can see the whole crew.” Sandy squeezed her arm, then held up her finger. “It is so good to see you, and I’ll be back. I need to run to the storage room. But stay here.”

As Sandy scurried off, Jake met her gaze. The look in his eyes was one of satisfaction. He tipped his forehead to the disappearing Sandy. “That’s why.”




He had an idea. He had a plan. It was crazy, but they might be able to kill two birds with one stone. Though he vastly preferred to work solo, especially given the Rosalinda fiasco, he had a hunch that he was going to need Steph on his side. This feisty, fiery woman wasn’t going to step out of the picture on her own, not when she was motivated by personal reasons to hunt the diamonds. If Jake let her walk away, he’d keep running into her and butting heads. She was in a unique position to be his best weapon in this case. Better to work with her than against her.

He just needed her to see the benefits, and he didn’t mean the physical ones, because tearing each other’s clothes off needed to stop. ASAP. Besides, she seemed closer to throat-punching him than yanking off his shirt.

“Teaming up makes sense for us both.”

“Why?”

“You need me and I need you. You know everyone on this island, which is great,” he said, giving her his best pitch for why she’d want to work with him. “But it also means that people recognize you. It only took you going out to one breakfast with your stepdad for me to find out who you were. But me? No one knows me. I could be anyone. I can go places you can’t go. I can be unseen. You have inside access, but I can walk around unnoticed.”

She crossed her arms. Her lips were doing an excellent impression of a straight line. “Unless I told my stepdad who you were.”

He scoffed and stared hard back at her, calling her bluff. “I highly doubt you’d do that.”