Ian's Ultimate Gamble

Ian leaned back in his chair. He doubted anyone knew how difficult things had been for him at that wedding. “Hey, don’t worry about it. I can handle it.”

There was a slight pause. “You sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure.” He decided not to bother mentioning that Brooke was presently in the casino and they were sharing the same air, as she’d put it. “I got over Brooke years ago. She means nothing to me now.”

Ian sighed deeply and hoped with all his heart that the words he’d just said were true.

Two

Sitting at a table in the back that afforded him a good view of everything that was going on, Ian saw Brooke the moment she walked into the Blue Lagoon Lounge. Under ordinary circumstances he would have given any other beautiful woman no more than a cursory glance. But unfortunately, not in this case. Brooke was, and always had been, a woman who warranted more than one glance, and her entrance into any room could elicit looks of envy in most women’s eyes and a frisson of desire down many men’s spines.

Taking a deep breath, he frowned in irritation when he saw the look of heated interest in several masculine gazes as she wove her way through the crowded room with confidence, sophistication and style. And what bothered him more than anything was the fact that the same heated interest in other men’s eyes was reflected in his, as well. And her outfit wasn’t helping matters. Talk about sexy….

She was wearing her hair up in a knot on her head but had allowed a few strands to fall downward to capitalize on the gracefulness of her neck and the dark lashes that fanned her eyes. And her luscious lips were painted a wicked, flaming-hot red.

But it was that sensuous black number draping her body that had practically every male in the room drooling. Emphasizing every curve as well as those long, beautiful legs, the short dress had splits on both sides, and Ian actually heard the tightening of several male throats when she slid onto a bar stool and exposed a generous amount of thigh. Before she could settle in the seat, he watched as several men stood, eager to hit on her.

Ian took a leisurely sip of his drink. Unless she had changed a lot over the past four years, the poor fools that were all but knocking over chairs to get to her were in for a rude awakening. Although she probably appreciated a hot stare as much as the next female, Brooke was not a woman to fawn over male attention. He had learned that particular lesson the hard way the day they’d met. From that day forward he had never underestimated her as a woman again.

And after being deeply involved with her, he also had a more intimate view of the woman who was the center of every male’s attention in the lounge tonight. Without a doubt he was probably the only man in the room who knew about the insecurities that had plagued her through most of her young life. Her father and two older brothers had been known as the Chamberlain Gang, robbing banks as they zigzagged across state lines before the FBI brought an end to their six-month crime spree.

As a teenager, Brooke and her mother had moved to Atlanta to start a new life and find peace from the taunts, ridicule and insensitivity of those less inclined to put the matter to rest. It was then, while in high school, that Brooke decided to bring honor and dignity back to the Chamberlain name by working on the right side of the law.

The activities in the room reclaimed Ian’s attention, and he chuckled as one man after another was treated to Brooke’s most dazzling smile, followed by her more than courteous refusal. He lifted his drink, and before taking another sip he muttered quietly, “Cheers.”

There must be a full moon in the sky, Brooke thought, idly sipping her drink. The wolves were definitely out on the prowl and had erroneously assumed she was an easy prey.

What woman didn’t enjoy knowing a man thought she was attractive? But there were some men who thought beauty went hand in hand with stupidity. One man had even offered her the chance to be his second wife, although he claimed he was still happily married to the first.

“I see you haven’t lost your touch.”

Brooke glanced over at the man who slid into the seat beside her. The smile in his eyes threw her for a second, but that was only after a flutter of awareness inched up her spine. “Thanks. I’ll take that as a compliment,” she said, sipping her drink when her throat suddenly felt dry.

She fought to keep her body from trembling and, in an attempt at control, studied her reflection in the glass she held instead of placing her full attention on Ian, the way she wanted to do.

“I really thought I wouldn’t see you anymore tonight,” he said, taking a sip of his own drink.

With that Brooke cocked a brow and turned to him, first taking in how he was dressed. He had changed out of the business suit he was wearing earlier and was wearing another, just as tailormade and just as appealing. And, like the other one, it represented his status as a successful businessman. Whether he wanted to or not, he stood out as the impeccably dressed owner of this casino and was doing so in style.

“Why?” she asked, her concentration moving back to his comment. “Why did you think you wouldn’t see me anymore tonight? Did you assume I’d hide out in my villa, Ian, after our meeting earlier? Like I told you, I can’t go through life worrying about running into you at every corner like I did something wrong.”

Ian’s eyes narrowed. “A man’s life was lost,” he said in a tight voice.

“Yes,” she said coolly. “But Boris Knowles should have considered the consequences. He didn’t get involved with a group of amateur criminals, Ian. He was involved in organized crime. Don’t try and make me feel guilty for the choices he made.”

“But had I known, I—”

“Had you known, there wouldn’t have been anything you could have done. He was in too deep. Why is it so hard for you to believe that? Telling you would not have changed a thing, other than involve you in a situation you didn’t need to be in.”

Brooke didn’t know what else she could say to get through that thick skull of his. He refused to believe he wouldn’t have made a difference, and that not knowing about Boris had been a blessing.

She heard his muttered curse and knew it was a mistake to have come to the lounge, a place where she figured he would be. “Look, Ian, evidently you and I will always have a difference of opinion about what happened and why I kept things from you. And I’m tired of you thinking I’m the bad guy.”

She stood and threw a couple of bills on the counter. “See you around. But then, maybe it would be better if I didn’t.”

Ian muttered another curse as he watched Brooke disappear through the door, leaving her sensuous scent trailing behind. He felt that familiar stab of pain he encountered whenever he thought of her betrayal. But Brooke’s words reminded him of the same thing Dare, a former FBI agent himself, had told him. Organized crime wasn’t anything to play with, and regardless of the outcome, Boris had made his choices.

Dare had also tried to make Ian understand that when Brooke had taken the job as a federal agent, she had also made an oath to uphold the law and to maintain a rigid vow of confidentiality. Had she told him about the case, and security had been breached, it would have risked not only Brooke’s life but the lives of other federal agents.

Ian had understood all of that, but still, he believed that when two people were committed to each other, there weren’t supposed to be any secrets between them. So in his mind she had made a choice between her job and him. That, in a nutshell, was what grated him the most. Yet at some point he had to let go and move on or the bitterness would do him in. He couldn’t continue to make her feel like a “bad” guy, especially when he of all people knew how much becoming an agent had meant to her. Twice her application had been turned down when background checks had revealed her family history—namely her father and brothers. It had taken Dare, who’d still maintained close contacts within the Bureau, to write a sterling letter of recommendation to get her in.

Ian pulled in a deep breath. It was time for him and Brooke to finally make peace. He knew that because of all that had happened between them, the love they once shared could never be recovered, but it was time he put his animosity to rest and make an attempt at being friends.

Brooke angrily stripped out of her dress. Ian Westmoreland was as stubborn as any mule could get. He refused to consider that she had been doing her job four years ago and if she had told him anything about the case, her own life could have been in jeopardy. No, all he thought about was what had happened to a man who’d been living a lie to his family, friends and business associates.

Fine, if that was the position Ian wanted to take, even after four years, let him. She refused to allow him to get on her nerves, and somehow and in some way she would wipe away the memories she found almost impossible to part with. More than anything she had to somehow eradicate him from her heart. But in the meantime she planned to enjoy herself for the next two weeks and wouldn’t let him stand in the way of her doing just that.

She slipped into the two-piece bathing suit, thinking a late-night swim might make her feel better. Swimming had always relaxed her, and she was seriously considering adding a pool to her home in D.C. The question was whether or not she would have the time to enjoy it. In a few months she would have made her five-year mark with the Bureau and it was time to decide if she wanted to remain out in the field or start performing administrative duties. Her good friend and mentor, Dare Westmoreland, had cautioned her regarding Bureau burnout, which was what had happened to him after seven years as an agent.

Brooke had just grabbed her wrap when she heard the knock at her door. Evidently room service had made a mistake and was at the wrong villa. Making her way across the room, she leaned against the door and glanced through the peephole, and suddenly felt a sensation deep in the pit of her stomach. Her late-night caller was Ian.

She tensed and shook her head. If he thought he would get in the last word he had another thought coming. After removing the security lock she angrily snatched open the door. “Look, Ian, I—”

Before she could finish, he placed a single white rose in her hand. “I come in peace, Brooke. And you’re right. It’s time to put the past behind us and move on.”

Ian’s heart slammed against his chest. He had been prepared for a lot of things, but he hadn’t been prepared for Brooke to open the door in a two-piece bathing suit with a crocheted shawl wrapped around her waist that didn’t hide much of anything.

There were her full, firm breasts that almost poured out of her bikini top and a tiny waist that flared to shapely hips attached to the most gorgeous pair of legs any woman could possess. And her feet—how could he possibly forget her sexy feet? They were bare, with brightly painted toenails, encased in a pair of cute flat leather sandals.

Her unique scent was feminine and provocative and the same one he had followed out of the lounge. It was the same scent that was filling her doorway, saturating the air surrounding him, getting into his skin. She was and had always been a woman of whom fantasies were made. And seeing her standing there was overwhelming his sense of self-control.

He sighed deeply, inwardly wishing he could focus on something other than her body and her scent. He wanted to concentrate on something like the rose he had given her, but instead his gaze lowered to her navel, which used to be one of his favorite spots on her body. He could recall all the attention he used to give it before moving lower to…

“Ian?”

He snatched his attention back to her face and cleared his throat. Damn, he had come to make peace, not make love. They would never share that type of relationship again. “Yes?”

“Thanks for the rose, and I’m glad we can move forward in our lives, and I hope that one day we can be friends again,” she said.

Brooke was watching his eyes, probably noting the caution within their dark depths when he said, “I hope so, too.”

She nodded. “Good.”

He leaned in the doorway. “You’re going out?”

“Yes, I thought I’d go for a swim at one of the pools. The one with the huge waterfall looks inviting.”

Ian nodded. It was. He had passed the area on his way here, and another thing he noted was that it was crowded with more men than women. He then remembered that the Rolling Cascade was hosting a convention of the International Association of Electricians. There were over eight hundred attendees, eighty percent of them men who probably thought they were capable of finding a woman’s hot spot and wiring her up in a minute flat. He drew his dark brows together sharply. Not with this woman.