Page 76 of Trap ’N’ Trace

Dayne gritted his teeth so hard they squeaked. “Knock. It. Off.”

Kat stepped closer, massaging her chin as she examined the tux. “Something is a bit off. I wonder…” She pulled open the right side of the jacket, exposing his Glock. “Must you really wear this dastardly weapon of death? It ruins the cut.”

He shot her an unwavering stare. “I really must.”

She released the jacket. “Touchy this evening, aren’t we?”

Tess giggled. “That, he is.”

“Buddy, you look so hot right now, I’d do you.” Jaime held up his phone and snapped another shot.

“Knock it off, Romeo.” Markus gave Jaime’s bicep a none-too-easy punch, and Dayne shot his friend a look of gratitude.

Eric smirked. “He is pretty, though, isn’t he?”

“Fuck all of you,” Dayne snapped.

“Dayne, really,” Kat admonished, but from the hint of a smile spreading on her face, she wasn’t offended in the slightest. “Hmm.” She tapped her finger on her chin and began circling him, eventually stopping behind him. When she tugged at the hem of his jacket, her fingers grazed the top of his ass. A lightning bolt of sensation shot down the backs of his legs, then up the front to— Dammit all to hell, they had an audience.

Her hands released his jacket and he exhaled a breath of relief. That was, until she came to stand directly in front of him. Things were about to get worse. Even her flowery perfume was making him hornier than a rhinoceros in a rose garden.

He tried focusing on anything besides the way she smelled. Or the way her dress dipped torturously low toward her softly mounded breasts.

Tiny pink gemstones sparkled at her ears and from a thin gold chain around her neck. The tips of her toes—painted light pink—peaked out from delicate gold sandals. Yeah, focus on her toes.

Again, not working. Even the woman’s toes were sexy.

Kat rested her hands on his shoulders then smoothed them down the front of his jacket. “This looks good.” He swallowed, hard, as his slacks tightened painfully over his dick. Luckily, she blocked everyone else’s view.

When her hands parted the sides of his jacket and her eyes dipped to his waist, a bead of sweat trickled between his shoulder blades. As she skimmed the tips of her fingers along the front of his cummerbund, flames licked at his balls.

“Kat, no!” He grabbed her wrists, holding them away. “The tux is fine.” He could barely choke out the words as he struggled for control. Of his libido and his emotions. Where she was concerned, both were inextricably entwined.

Her eyes were questioning at first then she looked down—at his giant, throbbing boner.

Her cheeks flushed, and her eyes flared with awareness of what she’d unwittingly initiated.

“Yeah. We’re done here.” Releasing her wrists, he spun and stalked away to cool his jets in the bathroom.

When the door shut behind him, he went straight to the sink and cranked on the tap. He cupped his hands and splashed cold water in his face.

Time to face undeniable, scary-as-shit facts.

He wanted her like nobody’s business, and it wasn’t just about sex. It was about—more. She was getting to him. Hell, she’d already gotten to him. But getting involved with her could have dire consequences and not just because being around her messed with his head.

His feelings for her went way beyond a one-night stand or even a brief fling. What worried him was the long run. Could they really fit into each other’s worlds?

His guts twisted at the thought of never seeing her again when this was over. If he didn’t stay clear of the trigger that would set them off, they could both wind up burned and bleeding, with their hearts cut into tiny pieces.

Chapter Twenty-One

“Ready?” Kat asked as the limousine braked in front of her twenty-two-story building on Madison Avenue—a subsidiary Vandenburg Enterprises location with a banquet-ballroom on the top floor.

Dayne sat across from her, staring through the tinted windows at the throng of reporters gathered on either side of the red carpet leading to the main entrance. A slight frown downturned his lips—lips she sorely wanted to kiss her again, but she didn’t dare test those boundaries. Nearly five days had passed since then, and he hadn’t touched her. It was as if someone had flipped a switch. Funny, how she’d been determined not to get more personal with him. Now it was all she thought about.

“Vultures,” he grumbled.

Subtle, fresh cologne filled the limo. While she’d been examining his tuxedo at the castle, she’d breathed in the same scent. He was so strikingly handsome in the tux, so broad-shouldered and sexy her breath hitched. The same as when she’d seen the erection straining behind his slacks. Emotionally, he didn’t want her. Apparently his body never got the message. Just thinking about it made her skin hot and her gown feel like it was smothering her.