Breaking the silence as the elevator descended, Sierra asked the question that had plagued her for the last half hour. “Is there something I should know about Cole?”
As soon as the words were out, Luke looked at her, and she saw the storm brewing in the multi colored hues of his eyes. At first she thought he would shrug her question off, but then he faced forward just as the elevator dinged the arrival at their destination.
“There’s a lot you should know about him. And you will.”
That wasn’t much to go on, but it was more than he had given her earlier on the airplane.
Sierra suspected that she had been right about the two of them. She couldn’t pinpoint what their relationship was, but she had an idea that it was more than friendship. How much more, she didn’t know, and she took the hint not to push it any further just yet.
Moving forward when Luke placed his hand at the small of her back, she allowed him to usher her out of the elevator and into the chaos that was the casino.
The world came into sharp focus the second her feet landed on the lush, velvety carpet of the casino floor. Inundated with the sights and sounds synonymous to Vegas, she tried to take it all in.
Though it was still early morning by Vegas time, the casino floor was littered with people, some standing near the elevators talking, some sitting in the large food court sharing breakfast while many were seated at the wide variety of slot machines that stood proud and tall as far as the eye could see.
The smells of food drifting from the food court made Sierra’s stomach rumble. The breakfast she had consumed a few hours ago had long since burned off, and she realized that, with the time difference, it was lunchtime back at home.
As though he could read her thoughts, Luke turned toward her. “They’re serving lunch at the conference in just about an hour. Let’s find Cole, and head over.”
Sierra nodded, remembering that she was in Vegas for a reason, and not just to find a way into Luke McCoy’s bed.
An incredulous laugh threatened, but Sierra choked it back. Finding her way into any man’s bed was about as foreign as the way her body had lit up like the fourth of July when Luke had touched her that first time in his club. The only companion she’d invited into her bed was of the silicon, vibrating variety.
Confidence was something Sierra prided herself on, yet when it came to men, Luke McCoy in particular, she wondered how much she could pretend. Being led around by her overactive libido for the last few days, Sierra had conjured up some pretty steamy images, with Luke playing the lead role, but when it came down to it, she was going on sheer determination alone.
Instead of hiding out in her hotel room like she had contemplated, she walked alongside Luke, feeling her fortitude return in small measures.
He might be a mystery, but Sierra was pretty sure she understood what drove him. She recognized the hunger in his eyes because it consumed her. She knew the determination he felt when he touched her because she desired it.
She admired his confidence, the respect his mere presence demanded, and the graceful way he moved as though he owned the place. In fact, there wasn’t a single thing about the man that she didn’t want to know more about.
The silence that lingered between them wasn’t as awkward as she anticipated as they ventured through the casino to the main doors that would lead them out on to the strip. She was grateful for the short walk that did wonders in driving down some of the hunger that had been lodged in her belly since the limo ride.
This roller coaster she was riding on was a series of dips and valleys based on sexual highs and lows and it required concentration just to take one step at a time when she wanted nothing more than to grab Luke’s hand and run, not walk, back to the hotel room where she could explore him with more than her hands.
Just when her mind was wandering dangerously close to the gutter again, Sierra was distracted by Cole, who fell into step beside them.
For the second time that day, she damn near ran right into Luke, this time having to put her hands out to keep from plowing into him. Ok, so his abrupt stops were beginning to irritate her.
“Cole Ackerley, this is Sierra Sellers. She’s Xavier Thomas’ admin’s daughter, here on business. Sierra meet Cole. He’s a representative of CISS, Corporate Investigative Security Services. Here to attend the conference as well.”
Sierra hadn’t expected such an in depth introduction, especially coming from the one word responder, so she tried to hide her astonishment. When Cole held out his hand, acting as though they hadn’t already been introduced days before by Samantha, she reached for his in turn and watched the way her fingers disappeared into his large palm.