Destiny's Daughter Read Free Page B

pandemonium erupted. Several of the men at the poker table jumped to their feet at the commotion. Everyone’s head swiveled to watch as waiters hurried forward to assist. It was a scene of total chaos. In those split seconds of confusion, Chase Masters calmly exchanged a card in his hand for another in the deck.
    "Oh, I’m so sorry. Please excuse me." Annalisa backed away from the waiters as they knelt to retrieve the shards of crystal and china.
    No one acknowledged her. They were all bent on the task of cleaning up the mess she had created.
    She stared around at the taut faces of these strangers, sensing their shock, their scorn. Lifting her skirts, she whirled and fled the sting of their looks.
    As the young woman glided stiffly past the poker table, Chase studied her. Who would have dreamed such a regal beauty could create such havoc? He managed to control the rumble of laughter that threatened. The young woman, he noted, averted her gaze and hurried away.
    Annalisa continued on until she reached the comfort of her own cabin. Inside she nearly wept in frustration at her clumsiness. With trembling fingers, she unbuttoned her dress and tossed it aside. She couldn’t even find the energy to remove her chemise and pull on a night dress. How humiliating. What would Sister Marie Therese say if she had witnessed that awful scene? She would say what she always said; that there was something, some devil perhaps, lurking inside Annalisa that made these things happen to her. No amount of nagging, or teaching, or praying would change that fact. Annalisa would never be the lady the sisters wanted her to be. Her mother would be so disappointed in her.
    Fighting tears of anger and frustration, Annalisa flopped on her stomach on the bunk and buried her face in the pillow.
     
    *  *  *
     
    "I believe that’s the game, gentlemen." Chase wrapped his hands around the pile of chips, sliding them forward, adding to the already overflowing heap at his elbow. "Tomorrow night?"
    Several of the men nodded, then bid him good night.
    Cashing in, Chase folded a wad of money and jammed it deep into his pocket. He could kiss that girl for the perfect distraction that afforded him the chance to turn that dismal game around. Lady Luck was a fickle old dame. Sometimes she just needed a nudge. Chase hummed a little tune and made his way along the darkened deck.
    A man fumbling with a cabin door looked up as Chase approached. Startled, the man bolted toward the stairs leading to the upper deck. For long minutes Chase stared after him, his gaze scanning the silent darkness. Had he only imagined it, or had the man been attempting to force his way into that cabin?
    Stopping to light a cigar, Chase put the man out of his mind and thought of the girl and smiled. What a natural she was. All sweet and innocent and managing to be impossibly clumsy at the same time. She was almost too good to be true. He paused, holding the match aloft. His eyes narrowed. Could it have been an act? He’d met a lot of cons in his day. She didn’t look like any he’d ever seen. Still ... He drew on his cigar and blew out a stream of smoke. She did return his wink.
    He would never be able to forget that strange, husky voice of hers as she’d murmured her apology to the crew. That sultry tone had whispered over his senses.
    The voice suited her. So did the wild mane of hair. The body beneath that prim gown had been slender, with a waist so narrow his hands ached to span it. She was round in all the right places, with breasts that seemed to strain against the tightly buttoned confines of that prudishly high neckline.
    The match burned his fingers. Swearing, he dropped it over the rail. Chase’s teeth gleamed white in the darkness as he grinned. The lady and the gambler. God, what a team they could make.
     
    *  *  *
     
    In her cabin, Annalisa awoke. She thought she’d heard someone twist the latch on her cabin door. She’d smelled the sweet fragrance of spice and