‘My head spins when I lie down.’
‘You drank too much champagne. That feeling will pass. Drink lots of water.’
‘I’m not drunk.’
The barest flicker of a smile touched his mouth. ‘You were dancing on the table.’
‘That wasn’t because I was drunk. It was because I’d lost some of my inhibitions. If I had the confidence, I would have done the same thing sober. The drink just made me less anxious.’
‘In that case, remind me never to escort you whe
n you’re drunk.’
‘Tell me why you hate Christmas.’
Anger flickered across his face and his swift glance was loaded with warning. ‘I think you should go to bed.’
‘Only if you come too.’ She had no idea what had driven her to say those words. Immediately, she wanted to drag them back. What if he said yes? She’d never had a one-night stand in her life. Compared with his experience and sophistication, she was a complete novice.
For a moment he simply watched her, his eyes glittering in the darkness. She had the feeling that he was fighting some brutal internal battle.
‘Leave,’ he said thickly. ‘Right now.’
‘I’m not drunk.’
‘That isn’t why I want you to leave.’
‘Then—’
‘I’m fresh out of happy endings, Evie. You won’t find one within a thousand kilometres of me.’
Her mouth dried and her heart was pounding in her chest. ‘I know that. You could never be my happy ending. But that doesn’t mean…I want to know…’
His eyes were hard and unsympathetic. He gave her no help at all. ‘What do you want to know, Evie?’
She licked dry lips. ‘I want to know what it would be like,’ she whispered. ‘If the rest of it would feel as good as the kissing part.’
‘You want to know how it would feel?’ He rose to his feet so suddenly that she actually took an involuntary step backwards and he registered her retreat with a sardonic smile. ‘I’ll tell you how it would feel, Evie. It would feel good. We’ve both felt the chemistry. It would be incredible. Hot and crazy. For a short time.’ His voice was thickened by emotion. ‘And then I’d break your heart. Like that—’ He snapped his fingers in a cruel, casual gesture that made her flinch. ‘Easy.’
The blood was pulsing in her ears and it was difficult to breathe. ‘That’s fine.’
His gaze mocked. ‘You’re saying it’s fine for me to break your heart?’
‘No. I’m saying you won’t break it. To break it, I’d have to be in love with you and I’m not in love with you. I wouldn’t be that stupid.’
His lids lowered, half concealing black eyes that glittered dark and dangerous. ‘Perhaps I’m not in the mood for a gentle seduction.’
Evie felt a spasm of fear, intermingled with the most fierce excitement she’d ever experienced. It was like a drug, urging her on to be more and more daring. ‘If you’re trying to scare me, you’re not succeeding.’
‘Maybe you should be scared, Evie.’ His voice was lethally soft and cold as the ice that had formed on the windows. ‘I’m not the right man for you.’
‘I know that.’ They were alone in the room and yet she was whispering. ‘That isn’t what this is about.’
‘So what is it about? What are you trying to prove to yourself? Or is this good girl seduces bad boy, just to see how it feels?’
‘No! I—’ Evie broke off, struggling to breathe. ‘I don’t know what this is. All I know is…I thought you wanted…earlier you said…’
‘I know what I said. I know what I wanted.’