Knightless in Seattle Read Free Page B

gaze from her
deliciously mounded breasts to her face. "You look great."
    And felt even better. He couldn't get enough of touching her.
"Sorry about all that. I didn't know it was you. Thought someone was
trying to sneak into the tent." He drew her back into his arms. What
was it about this girl that pulled him like a super-charged magnet?
"There's a lot of funny business going on in the game right now and
I'm a little jumpy."
    "So I've heard," Jackie murmured against his chest. "You're
going to have to show me that move one of these days. I'd never be
afraid to walk down a dark alley again."
    "Any time." Lance swallowed hard at the feel of her pressed
tantalizingly against him. Reaching for a little of the focus and
self-discipline that had built him a name and a chain of successful
European martial arts studios on the eastern seaboard, he reminded
himself he had a match to get ready for.
    "But who will protect you from me?" He grinned and leaned
down, intending to drop a chaste kiss on the top of her head. She
turned her face up to his at the last second and met his lips squarely
with her own.
    Fireworks exploded behind Lance's eyelids at the first touch
of her soft, lush mouth. The little teasing flame of attraction that had
flared to life yesterday with the first touch of her hand burst into
full-fledged inferno-mode, scorching him with a bolt of lust.
    Jackie opened her lips beneath his, and he thrust his tongue
inside to tangle with hers. His control was further shaken by the little
moan she gave as she looped her arms around his neck and pressed
tightly against him.
    He pulled her even closer. He could hardly believe his own
response. "I haven't been able to stop thinking about you since
yesterday." He ran his hands down the length of her spine. "All wet
and bedraggled, pushing that dead-as-a-doornail car in the
rain."
    "Yeah, I know. That was my plan all along." She looked up at
him, laughter dancing in her eyes. "How could you resist a damsel in
distress, you being a knight and all?"
    God, this woman was like water in the desert. Her skin, her
soft curves, that knowing sparkle in her eye. Maybe it was just that
he hadn't had anyone special in his life for such a long time. He put a
lot of time into his work, but he knew deep down he intentionally
kept himself too busy to think about how lonely he was.
    "You seem like the kind of girl that should keep a knight in
shining armor on contract, if you ask me," he said, and bent his head
to kiss her again.
    A spear of daylight stabbed through the open tent flap. "Hi,
I'm looking for-- Oh! Sorry about that." The boy's voice cracked on
"sorry".
    "Oh!" Jackie jerked back out of his arms. Her blush was
obvious even in the dim light.
    Lance sucked in a deep breath and counted to three as he
forced reality back into focus around him.
    The freckle-faced boy cleared his throat and focused
pointedly on the toe of his soft leather boot as he traced arcs in the
dirt floor. "I was, uh, just looking for your shield to, you know, shine
it up for you."
    Lance frowned. He had actually been expecting the arrival of
his squire to start getting things ready for his next event. Although
the kid was dressed in the green and black of his house, Lance didn't
recognize him. "Who are you and where's Matthew?"
    "Um, I think he had to go home for some emergency or
something. I'm Sam." He slid his gaze around the interior of the tent
and licked his lips. "The game manager sent me."
    "Oh, maybe that was what Lila was dealing with when I got
here," said Jackie from behind him. "She said she got pulled away by
something and missed seeing me arrive."
    The kid seemed a little off to Lance, but maybe he was just
being paranoid. The problem was that his final event was going to
start in about fifteen minutes and he needed a squire to help him
with his gear. He made his decision.
    "All right, thanks Sam. Why don't you start gathering my
equipment together. We don't have much time."
    After a few more