Knight's Mistress

  ‘Where was it?’

  ‘Paris.’

  ‘Why so many women?’

  ‘For the usual reasons: variety, self-indulgence, lack of restraint …’

  ‘I saw plenty of restraint.’

  He shrugged. ‘That’s part of the game. Excess is an escape for me, a defence against old ghosts and what seems at times a soulless reality – present company excepted, of course,’ he said with a small smile. ‘I like to feel something rather than nothing and that’s why I do what you saw in that video.’ His eyes went blank for a moment and his nostrils flared, as though he were struck by some internal image, then he shrugged again in such obvious dismissal, his shuttered gaze came as no surprise. ‘Vanilla sex works for some people. I need more. Sorry if I’ve frightened you. You shouldn’t have asked.’

  ‘I wouldn’t like any of that – stuff that hurts,’ Kate said, wanting to make her position clear.

  ‘You don’t know,’ he casually said. ‘You might.’

  ‘Now you are frightening me.’ Half breathless, she pressed into the chair back as though putting distance between herself and danger.

  ‘Then let’s not talk about it.’ His voice was tempered, like his gaze; he could have been discussing the weather. ‘Let’s just enjoy a night on the town. And seriously, don’t worry about YouTube. You won’t be on it.’

  His level of indifference was amazing. He didn’t care that he was uber-notorious for probably more than that single video. And he talked about kink without inhibition; she could have been asking him whether he liked puppies or kittens. He obviously considered it unexceptional. But just to be certain, she confirmed her position. ‘I’m not interested in super kinky sex.’

  He smiled. ‘Does that mean you’re interested in something less than super kinky?’

  ‘Maybe. I told you I don’t know yet.’

  He suddenly laughed. ‘Actually, I don’t either. I go crazy for a while wanting you, then talk myself out of it, then go crazy again. Christ, now I’ve offended you. It’s not a question of your appeal, Miss Hart. You’re tempting as hell. I’ve been equivocating because we might be from two different universes, galaxies … whatever – and I’m not so sure you can deal with it.’

  She immediately took offence, even though they were clearly on the same page. An unreasonable reaction that had nothing to do with logic and everything to do with having a man say no to you before you could say no to him.

  ‘Look,’ he said softly, leaning forward slightly. ‘Don’t be pissed. It has nothing to do with you. It’s me.’

  She gave him a pouty look. ‘That’s the classic line when you’re blowing someone off.’

  ‘I don’t do classic lines, Miss Hart,’ he said, thinking her pouty look was really fucking hot. ‘I’m just trying to be honest. Ah – here’s our champagne and shrimp.’ He smiled at her, then at the server, waited while their glasses were filled, said, ‘That will be all,’ and raised his glass to Kate. ‘To a memorable evening.’ His smile was so sexy it had to be illegal. ‘Drink up, Miss Hart. We’re not going to think too hard. We’re just going to have fun.’

  She exhaled, felt her tension ease. She was within touching distance of God’s gift to women, warmed through and through by that sexy smile and honestly, like him, she’s wasn’t entirely sure what she wanted to do. Although right now it wasn’t out of the question that she could come to orgasm just by looking at him.

  Dominic was casually dressed in a black T-shirt, a sepia and black houndstooth sport coat, black slacks and sepia suede lace-up shoes, his dark silken hair gleaming in the subdued lighting, curling slightly at his nape, his high cheekbones and fine straight nose the gold standard for classic beauty. His brilliant blue gaze was pure temptation because he was smiling at her like she was the only woman in the world. Even if it was in play, that smile-across-the-room moment took her breath away.

  ‘Hey.’ Soft, low, almost a whisper.

  She slowly smiled. ‘Hey back.’

  ‘Enjoying yourself?’

  She wanted to get up and hug him she felt so good. ‘Yeah,’ she said instead. ‘I’m checking this moment off my bucket list.’

  ‘Maybe I can give you some more moments later,’ he drawled.

  Conscious of the deliberate mood shift, she flirted back. ‘Maybe I’ll let you.’

  ‘Let me?’ An infinitesimal edge had entered his voice.

  ‘Do you have a problem with that?’

  His gaze was suddenly cool. ‘You’ll know if I do.’

  Kate dragged in a shaky breath, her carnal nerves twitching big time like they’d been jolted by a power surge. ‘Don’t,’ she whispered.

  ‘It’s really complicated, isn’t it?’ he softly said.

  ‘Seriously fucked up,’ she said as softly, wondering what was wrong with her that she responded to his authority with such instant lust.

  His brows settled into a slight frown. ‘I haven’t done this virginal dance before, if it matters.’

  ‘And I’ve never been turned on just looking at someone,’ she said in the same grudging tone.

  He suddenly laughed. ‘We’re going to have to lighten things up.’

  ‘Easy for you to say when you can turn off your sex drive like a spigot. I can’t do that.’ She shifted slightly in her chair as the heated pleasure waves rippling inside her punched it up a notch as though to emphasize her point.

  Dominic noticed, covertly glanced at his watch. Christ, it was only eight forty-five. And selfishly, he was damned hungry. ‘Lesson number one, Miss Hart. Think of something else. Or let me help you. We don’t have to discuss this now if you’d rather not but it just occurred to me that I haven’t heard from Roscoe whether we had the twenty million wired to our account. Care to lay odds on whether we won that little game or not? I’ll give you two to one the transfer’s been made.’

  ‘I’d be stupid to take that bet after seeing what you did to those guys.’

  ‘How about odds on who drinks more tonight?’

  ‘Again, not a reasonable bet. We could guess each other’s favourite ice cream.’

  He grinned. ‘Seriously, ice cream? That’s gotta be a woman’s question. It’s always chocolate, isn’t it? Don’t look at me like that, the only woman I know who eats ice cream is my sister. OK?’

  ‘OK. Then who’s ahead on points in the NBA?’

  ‘Now I’m impressed. The Heat.’

  ‘Only by six points.’

  ‘Now I’m really impressed.’

  ‘Thanks,’ she said. ‘You did good.’

  ‘See how easy it is.’ He grinned. ‘Watch and learn, babe.’

  But he liked that she was so adaptable. Swift to arouse, she could be pacified just as quickly, her mind and body extremely sensitive to stimuli.

  How gratifying.

  He was deeply obliged to Max for having found Miss Hart. Quite separate from her whizz-kid capabilities in forensic accounting, her company made the world less grey.

  Champagne seemed appropriate to the occasion.

  After their drinks, they cabbed to the recently designated ‘best restaurant in Hong Kong’. Cépage was the Hong Kong affiliate of the highly rated Les Amis restaurant in Singapore. The decor was sleek and modern, from the panelled red-wine cellar to the teak dining room with burgundy velvet armchairs to the rooftop gardens where cigar smokers could retire after dinner. The menu was cosmopolitan, all the best cuisine of Asia and Europe drafted into seasonal roles. The wine list included the pricey ’96 Krug Clos.

  They started with a carpaccio of Hokkaido scallop, citrus fruit and lemon balm, topped with a little sea salt, moved on to the Tayouran egg confit, with truffled oxtail gelée, Iberico ham, and croutons. Then to a Chin Chow classic, spectacularly moist goose meat – an extra serving for Dominic – with a soy sauce fuelled by ginger and anise. Along with a simple steak frite on the side for Dominic while Kate finished her goose.

  Not that she picked at her food, Dominic noted. She ate everything with relish. He liked a
woman with an appetite.

  Dominic Knight ate enough for three men, Kate thought. How did he stay so buff? Sex probably, damn him; as if she had the right to be pissed.

  Two bottles of champagne later – the majority downed by Dominic – they finished their meal with a sour kumquat ice cream on a nutty cookie base and, leaning back in his chair, Dominic motioned for the cheque. ‘Unless you’d like coffee.’

  ‘God no, and lose this nice buzz?’

  He grinned. ‘You’re always frank, Miss Hart.’

  ‘In contrast to everyone else you meet?’

  ‘Yes.’ He peeled off several large bills from the folded money in his pocket, dropped them on the table and looked up at Kate with a smile. ‘Thank you for your company, Miss Hart. I enjoyed myself.’

  ‘Thank you. The food was delicious.’ The company was more delicious, but she wasn’t quite drunk enough to say so.

  Minutes later, they were standing on the sidewalk outside the restaurant, the electric excitement of the city swirling around them, the pavement a crush of people.

  ‘Would you like to go dancing?’ Dominic offered.

  ‘I’m not sure I can move after all that food.’ Kate looked up at him. ‘You’d have to carry me around the dance floor.’

  He smiled. ‘I could do that.’

  ‘You’re different,’ she abruptly said, giving him a searching look.

  ‘I am?’

  ‘Normal, happy.’

  ‘Probably drunk. You haven’t seen me drunk before.’

  ‘Are you drunk?’

  ‘Not really.’ He tapped his thigh. ‘Hollow leg. It’s a real advantage at a Chinese business dinner where there’s a toast every five minutes. Or in Moscow where vodka’s consumed like water.’ His brows flickered up and down briefly. ‘I never sign the wrong contract.’

  ‘I’ll bet others do.’

  ‘Sometimes.’ He grinned. ‘Have I gotten you drunk enough to sign the wrong contract?’

  ‘I come from a town with ten bars on the two blocks of main street. What do you think?’

  ‘Maybe we should do shooters.’

  ‘Are you trying to get me drunk?’

  He raised an eyebrow. ‘Could be.’

  ‘For?’

  ‘For you to make a move on me. I’ve been trying to behave.’

  ‘And I’m trying not to make a move on a man who’s got so many notches in his belt, I’d fade into oblivion a second afterward.’

  A quick smile. ‘After what?’

  ‘I’m not going to say it.’

  ‘Should I?’

  She looked around at the stream of humanity swirling past them.

  ‘No one cares,’ he said. ‘We’re just an impediment in their way. So let me be clear. I want to sleep with you, Miss Hart, despite your earlier indecision and mine. I’ve wanted to since the first day I met you. Maybe you could take pity on me before you leave. I promise to be gentle, if that helps.’

  She didn’t say he was the last man on earth who was a candidate for a pity fuck. She said instead, because she was a woman and wanted the words, ‘Why me?’

  ‘I don’t know,’ he said in the typically male way. ‘Maybe it’s because you’re so smart.’ He grinned. ‘Or smart alecky.’ Or maybe you remind me that wild, urgent feeling still exists in the world and even someone like me can feel hope. Now tell me to shut the fuck up. Seriously.’

  She smiled. ‘So you’re not all bad-ass and ripped edges and cut-throat after all.’

  ‘Don’t get your hopes up,’ he gently said. ‘I’m ninety percent irrevocably damaged.’

  ‘Maybe I don’t think so.’

  ‘And maybe that’s part of your disobedient personality,’ he said, more softly than necessary, his long lashes partially hiding his eyes. ‘You haven’t learned to agree with me yet.’

  ‘That’s probably not going to happen,’ she warned.

  He looked at her with a slightly wry smile, his gaze thoughtful. ‘Sure, kill all my dreams.’ The sharp rise of his cheekbone twitched, his smile appeared.

  And she suddenly saw him through a raw, unfiltered lens—he looked bulletproof, self-sufficient, not damaged, broad-shouldered enough to hold the world on his shoulders, unadulterated male of such obvious beauty, she said without thinking, ‘I’ll bet women never say no to you.’

  His lashes dropped slightly. ‘It’s a mercenary world, Miss Hart.’

  ‘Please. They don’t all want your money.’ She knew better. Money or not, he wouldn’t lack women in his life.

  ‘Let’s just say it’s a trade-off. I want something, they want something.’

  ‘So I should ask for something. Is that what you’re saying?’

  His smile was breathtaking. Moving into her space, he slid a finger under her chin and gently lifted her face so the blue of his eyes glittered in the neon lights. ‘Name it, Miss Hart.’

  She caught her breath. He meant it. ‘Anything?’

  Ignoring the crowd, he slid his free hand down her back, pulled her into his body, bent his head until his mouth was hovering a hair’s-breadth from hers. ‘Anything at all,’ he whispered.

  She could feel his erection hard against her stomach and her response was intense. And it had nothing to do with any monetary quid pro quo. ‘How gentle is gentle?’ The website video was still vivid in her memory.

  Her question was swallowed up in the noise of the street.

  He turned his head so his ear brushed her mouth and when she repeated what she’d said, he swept her up in his arms and said loud enough to be heard above the tumult. ‘It’s up to you.’

  She grinned. ‘No orders? I don’t believe it.’

  ‘I have my moments.’

  ‘When you want sex.’

  ‘When I want sex with you.’

  The virtual traffic gridlock aside, his car was waiting at the kerb near the restaurant, and despite Kate’s protest, Dominic slid into the back seat, still carrying her. ‘It doesn’t matter,’ he murmured, settling her on his lap. ‘You don’t know anyone here.’

  ‘But everyone knows you.’

  ‘Are you kidding? In this crush.’ He dropped a quick kiss on her nose, then spoke to the driver. ‘We’re going back to the Ritz. Try not to run over anyone.’

  The driver understood, and leaning on the horn, he slowly forced his way through the stalled traffic, until they finally broke free two blocks from the harbour.

  ‘God, you feel good in my arms like this,’ Dominic said, husky and low. ‘There’s something about you …’ His voice trailed off. Full disclosure was always a mistake.

  ‘There’s something about you, too, and I can feel it’ – Kate wiggled her bottom – ‘in all its impressive glory.’

  ‘Are you saying we impress you, Miss Hart?’ Back on safe ground, his voice was teasing.

  ‘Do fish swim?’

  He laughed. ‘Clearly, a romantic.’

  ‘I doubt you want a romantic.’

  ‘True. Still,’ he said with a grin, ‘I’d hate to think you want me only for my impressive size.’

  ‘Sorry,’ she murmured, with a playful flutter of her lashes. ‘But I’m only in the market for stud services tonight.’

  When in the past he would have been grateful for such a reply, he suddenly felt otherwise. ‘Maybe I can change your mind.’ His smile was impudent. ‘I can be very persuasive.’

  ‘I’m sure you can. But Nana didn’t raise any dumb kids, so your persuasion might not work.’

  ‘We’ll have to see, won’t we?’ he asked, arching his hips upwards and pleasing them both.

  Her eyes shut and she softly moaned, the hard length of his erection pressed into her bottom firing up every sexual receptor in her body.

  ‘Did you like that?’ he whispered. ‘Would you like to feel me inside you? Deep, deep inside? Open your eyes, Miss Hart.’ His voice suddenly took on a hard edge. ‘Look at me.’

  Her lashes slowly lifted, her gaze moody. ‘I don’t respond well to that tone of voice.’
>
  ‘Maybe this time you should.’ A slow smile formed on his lips. ‘Because I have what you need.’

  Her nostrils flared, a hot-tempered green flame lit her eyes. ‘I don’t need you. I have a vibrator.’

  ‘I know.’

  ‘Jesus,’ she hissed, trying to shove him away. ‘Have you ever heard of privacy?’

  His grip tightened. ‘Don’t make a scene,’ he quietly said. ‘We’re here now – at the docks.’

  She glanced out the window, saw a man suddenly materialize at the car door. Dragging in a breath, she reminded herself that she was in Asia with a man she barely knew who could make grown men quail. Dominic’s people were everywhere and until she reached the hotel, she was subject to his authority. The hotel staff would be less beholden to him. ‘I’m fine,’ she calmly said. ‘I won’t make a scene. But I’d like to walk, if you don’t mind.’

  He looked at her askance for a moment, surprised at her sudden docility. Then he dipped his head. ‘Suit yourself.’ When the door opened a second later, he lifted her from his lap, set her on her feet outside, joined her a moment later and led her to the launch. Neither spoke as the boat accelerated away from the dock at high speed. Pouring himself another single malt, Dominic left the cabin without a word and soon after, Kate heard his voice up on deck.

  He came down for her as they approached Kowloon, and after docking, escorted her to a waiting car. The trip to the hotel passed in a cool silence.

  She didn’t exactly flounce into the Ritz-Carlton, although it was clear to anyone looking that Mr Knight’s female companion was unhappy. His expression, in contrast, was placid. To the hotel staff, however, the state of Mr Knight’s disposition had sizeable financial consequences.

  The night manager came running up as they crossed the lobby. Bowing like any practised courtier, he breathlessly inquired whether he could be of service to Dominic.

  ‘Thank you, no.’ Dominic smiled politely. ‘Although, if you’d see that we’re not disturbed until morning, I’d appreciate it. Miss Hart is tired.’