A Trap So Tender
A Wager Most Wild
With businesses to conquer in Singapore and a centuries-old family heirloom to find in Scotland, investor James Drummond is no stranger to a challenge. But making the mysterious Fiona Lam his represents his riskiest power play yet. When he offers her the moon and stars, Fiona counters with a proposal of her own—a bet, to be exact.
Winning a high-stakes horse race against James is Fiona’s best chance at reclaiming her family’s factory...and her father’s honor. Seducing James is just a means to that end…until they end up in bed together! Then all bets are off….
“Everyone's Captive In One Way Or Another.”
“Are you?” Had he moved closer? His male scentâexpensive wool and subtle muskâtickled her senses.
“Absolutely.” His voice was a low growl that took her by surprise, but not as much as the way he stepped in, lifted her chin deftly with his fingers and pressed his lips softly to hers.
This man is a beast. He chews people up and spits them out. He just confessed as much!
His low moan in her ear made her desire surge.
Was there magic in this place? If so, it might be the dark and scary kind. She certainly didn't feel fully in control of this situationâor even herselfâat this moment.
And there was that family curse to contend withâ¦.
His kiss was alternately fierce and tender, drawing her in and taking her breath away. She'd never been kissed like this.
But he's your enemy.
Dear Reader,
In this book, I was able to give free reign to my passion for castles by creating one for my characters. In the British Isles most castles have been destroyed in one conflict or another, and their ruins dominate the landscape around them with an air of romance and drama. A few medieval castles have resisted the attacks of successive marauders and stand as mighty as when they were built, including Edinburgh and Stirling castles in Scotland.
For this book I had fun imagining an even more ancient castle, with parts dating back to when the Romans attempted—unsuccessfully—to occupy Scotland. My imaginary castle is the seat of the ancient Drummond family, and their impressive legacy has become something of a burden to the man who inherits it. It takes a woman from far away to shake him out of his ordered existence and make him see his majestic home with fresh eyes. I hope you enjoy James and Fiona’s story.
Best wishes,
Jennifer Lewis
Jennifer Lewis
A Trap So Tender
Books by Jennifer Lewis
Harlequin Desire
†
The Prince’s Pregnant Bride
#2082
†
At His Majesty’s Convenience
#2094
†
Claiming His Royal Heir
#2105
Behind Boardroom Doors
#2144
**
The Cinderella Act
#2170
**
The Deeper the Passion…
#2202
**
A Trap So Tender
#2220
Silhouette Desire
The Boss’s Demand
#1812
Seduced for the Inheritance
#1830
Black Sheep Billionaire
#1847
Prince of Midtown
#1891
*
Millionaire’s Secret Seduction
#1925
*
In the Argentine’s Bed
#1931
*
The Heir’s Scandalous Affair
#1938
The Maverick’s Virgin Mistress
#1977
The Desert Prince
#1993
Bachelor’s Bought Bride
#2012
*The Hardcastle Progeny
†Royal Rebels
**The Drummond Vow
Other titles by this author available in ebook format.
JENNIFER LEWIS
has been dreaming up stories for as long as she can remember and is thrilled to be able to share them with readers. She has lived on both sides of the Atlantic and worked in media and the arts before she grew bold enough to put pen to paper. She would love to hear from readers at
[email protected]
. Visit her website at
www.jenlewis.com
.
For Mia
One
H
er enemy was handsome. Slate-gray eyes,
dark hair and aristocratic features—every inch the Scottish laird.
She shook his offered hand. “Nice to meet you. I’m Fiona
Lam.”
“James Drummond.”
I know.
She smiled sweetly. His
handshake was firm and his skin cool to the touch. Her own hand suddenly felt
hot and she struggled not to pull it back. The glitzy cocktail party hosted by
an international bank hummed around them, bright young things in expensive suits
meeting and greeting each other, but somehow they all faded into the background.
“I’m new to Singapore. Just moved here from San Diego.”
“Really?” One elegant eyebrow raised.
“I sold my first business and I’m looking around for new
opportunities. Do you work here?”
“Sometimes.” He still held her hand. Cheeky devil. No wonder he
had a reputation as a ladies’ man. “I have a place in Scotland.”
The grand estate she’d heard about. She didn’t care about that.
She did want her hand back, though. It was getting hotter, and an unpleasant
tingling sensation had started to trickle up her arm. She gave a firm tug and he
released her fingers with the ghost of a smile.
She tried not to shake out her hand. “I’ve heard Scotland’s
beautiful.”
“If you like mist and heather.” His steely gaze was totally
unblinking. No wonder he intimidated his business rivals.
“You don’t?”
“I inherited them. Don’t really need to have an opinion. Can I
get you a drink?”
“Champagne.” She sagged with relief as he turned to find a
waiter. This guy was pretty intense. Which was fine. She didn’t have to like
him.
She just needed him to like her.
He returned with two bubbling glasses and handed her one. No
one had warned her he was so good-looking. It was more than a little
disconcerting. In her experience venture capitalists were usually men in their
sixties with hair growing out of their ears. She sipped, then tried not to
sneeze as the bubbles tickled the back of her throat. She wasn’t a big fan of
booze, but she wanted to look as if she fit into James Drummond’s rarefied
world.
He raised his sculpted chin. “What brings you to
Singapore?”
“I’m looking into a couple of business opportunities.”
Again, his brow lifted. “I’m in business myself. What do you
do?”
“I just sold a company that makes decals. Smileworks.” The name
usually made people smile. It made her smile and she was still sad to have sold
it. But not sad about all the money she’d made on the deal.
“I read about the buyout. Congratulations. That was quite a
coup.”
The sparkle of interest in his eyes had intensified. She felt a
tiny rush of power—or was it pleasure? “Thanks. It was fun building Smileworks
but I’d taken it as far as I could.”
“So what’s next for you?” He leaned forward, clearly
intrigued.
She shrugged, annoyed to notice that her nipples had tightened
beneath her black cocktail dress and hoping he wouldn’t notice. “Not sure yet.
I’ll have to see what sparks my imagination.”
In his dark gray suit and dark gray tie, James Drummond was
sparking her imagination in all kinds of undesirable directions. He was so
buttoned down that the prospect of tearing off his crisp white shirt or running
fevered fingers through his carefully combed hair seemed an intriguing
challenge.
Was it wise to bed an enemy? Probably not, but a little
flirtation couldn’t hurt. She needed to gain his trust, then figure out how to
buy—or steal—her father’s factory back.
She managed another sip of the unfamiliar champagne. She had to
stay focused. Her dad needed her and at last she could prove to him she cared.
It wasn’t her fault she’d grown up nine thousand miles away, calling another man
Daddy. She hadn’t planned the first two decades of her life but she was in
charge of the rest and she intended to right some of the wrongs that had been
committed against Walter Chen. Starting with the wrongs committed by one James
Drummond.
* * *
They left the cocktail party together, and James’s driver took
them to Rain, the hottest new restaurant, where even he had to pull strings to
get a reservation.
“This place is stunning. I had no idea Singapore had so much
nightlife.” She stared around at the minimalist decor with its cool green
lighting. “Clearly, I need to get out more.”
“Got to keep the worker bees happy or we’d all fly off
somewhere else.”
He sat opposite her, pleased by the surprise of having dinner
with a beautiful woman who’d been in his life for only one hour. Fiona had his
attention. Her company, Smileworks, had created an international splash with its
funky graphics and new concepts for things to stick decals to—like walls. That
she’d already sold it and banked more money than most people made in a lifetime
was impressive.
And she was beautiful as well as smart, with dramatic dark eyes
framed by slightly arched brows, and a full mouth that begged to be kissed. Her
American accent had surprised him, and added to the layers of intrigue. She was
exactly the kind of woman he could see himself marrying.
And he needed to marry.
The waiter gave them shiny black menus. He watched her
eyelashes flick lower as she scanned hers. Then she looked up and transfixed him
with those bright eyes. “What do you recommend?”
“I’ve heard it’s all good, but I can lend my personal
recommendation to the sea urchin.”
Her eyes widened. “I had no idea those were edible.”
The waiter showed him a bottle of his favorite wine and he
nodded. When the waiter had filled their glasses and left, he leaned in. “Last
time I had the pigeon. That was good, too. All depends on whether you want to
eat creatures of land, sea or air.”
She laughed. “How about a pond?”
“The duck is very tender.” He smiled and lifted his glass to
her. “And I expect they could even make pond weed taste good if they
wanted.”
“A little salt and pepper, sauté it with garlic?” Humor
sparkled in her lovely eyes. Then she raised her glass and took a sip. “That’s
some good wine.”
A smile tugged at his mouth. “At four hundred dollars a bottle
it should be. I like it.”
“You spend more time in Singapore than Scotland?” She unfurled
her napkin as she asked.
“I do. Scotland’s not exactly an international business hub.”
Funny how she hadn’t even asked him what he did yet. That was refreshing. Being
new to Singapore, she obviously had no idea of his reputation, which was also a
plus. It got tiresome explaining to people that you weren’t a vulture,
or—lately—that vultures played an important role in the circle of life. “You can
work from anywhere these days. I do most of my work over the internet.”
“I do, too, but nothing beats meeting people face-to-face.”
Fiona’s face was lovely. Smooth skin with a radiant glow that contrasted with
thick dark hair that swept to her shoulders. He wanted to run his fingers
through that hair.
And if all went according to his current plan, he would.
“It’s funny that you have a Scottish first name, when there’s
nothing Scottish about you.”
She lifted her slim brow with a slightly defiant air. “I do
like plaid. I even bought a pair of plaid shoes the other day. What’s Scottish
about you?”
“Good question. I’m not sure anyone’s ever asked it before. I’m
probably the only person I’ve ever met who actually enjoys single malt
whiskey.”
She wrinkled her nose. “You’re certainly the only one I’ve met.
I tried it once and I won’t be doing that again.”
“I treat it with a healthy respect, myself, as it’s killed a
lot of my forebears.”
“They were drinkers?”
“Drinkers, fighters, fast drivers, the type of men who go out
looking for the end of a sword to run into.”
Curiosity sparkled in her eyes, and stirred the arousal
gathering low inside him. “And you’re not like that?”
“I prefer to be holding the sword.”
He expected a laugh, or at least a smile, but she simply seemed
to consider his words for a moment. “I suppose that is a better position to be
in. Are you afraid of ending up like your ancestors?”
“Can’t say I am. Though I keep getting emails and letters from
my American cousin who’s decided it’s her mission to save the Drummond family
from an ancient curse by reuniting three parts of a lost chalice.”
Her eyes widened. “A curse? Do you think there’s anything to
it?”
“I don’t believe in that kind of nonsense. Hard work and common
sense are the cure for most so-called curses I’ve heard about.”
“You did say your ancestors kept wading into trouble.” She
raised a slim brow. “Maybe there’s something to the legend. Where is the chalice
supposed to be?”
“According to my cousin’s last rather breathless email, she’s
already found two pieces. One was in the family home where she resides in New
York—she’s a Drummond herself by marriage—and the other was found in the ocean
off an island in Florida, where it sank in a pirate ship three hundred years
ago. She thinks the third piece was brought back to Scotland by one of my
ancestors.”
“How intriguing.” She leaned forward, giving him a tantalizing
whiff of her soft floral scent. “Are you going to look for it?”
Her obvious excitement stirred a trickle of interest in the
idea. He’d almost forgotten about Katherine Drummond and her pleas for him to
join in the hunt. He’d been so busy lately he couldn’t remember if he’d even
responded. “I don’t know. Do you think I should?”
“Absolutely.” Her eyes shone. “It’s so romantic.”
Romantic was good. He was already entertaining romantic
thoughts about Fiona, whose black cocktail dress wrapped her slim, athletic
figure like a glass around a shot of single malt. “She’s convinced the third
part of the cup is hidden somewhere on my Scottish estate. She’s even offered a
reward for the person who finds it. I’ve had to hire security to keep treasure
hunters from digging up the lawns and climbing the battlements.”
She laughed. “And you’ve never looked for it at all?”
“Nope. I know easier ways to earn a few thousand dollars.”
“But it sounds like an adventure.” Fiona glowed, and he found
his own body temperature rising in response. He resisted the urge to loosen his
collar, which suddenly felt tight. “I think you should search for it. Who knows
what fabulous things might happen if you find the missing piece and put the
chalice back together?”
“My life is pretty good right now.”
“I bet there’s at least one aspect of it that could be
improved.”
I do need a wife.
He certainly
wasn’t going to tell her that. Singapore’s conservative culture frowned on a man
who was thirty-six years old and still playing the field. It was beginning to
affect business. He’d been turned down by a potential partner in a very
compelling project who let him know he didn’t approve of his lifestyle.
Lifestyle? Just because he liked to mind his own business and
control his own destiny didn’t make him a womanizer. On the other hand, even
serial monogamy began to look a bit flaky after nearly twenty years of dating,
simply because of the sheer number of women involved.
There was no shortage of women ready, willing and able to marry
him. They usually threw themselves at him once they got wind of the Scottish
estate or the millions in investments. What he needed was a cool-headed and
congenial business partner. Someone he could trust in the kind of legally
binding contractual situation that modern marriage really was.
Someone—perhaps—like Fiona Lam.
She licked a droplet of champagne from her upper lip, sending a
surge of heat crashing through him. Breathing deep, he shrugged out of his
jacket. Fiona was a very attractive woman, and her high intelligence was even
more of a turn-on than her lush lips or shapely legs.
“Or maybe I’m wrong?” She leaned back in her chair, eyes
appraising him coolly. “Is there anything you want that you don’t already
have?”
He laughed. “Always. That’s what gets me out of bed in the
morning.”
“The thrill of the chase?”
“Makes my venture capitalist heart pump hard.”
“Maybe you’re not so different from your Scottish ancestors.
You’re just excited by different quarry.”
“You could be onto something. They wanted a stag, or the
neighbor’s estate, I want a nice international conglomerate with growth
potential.”
She smiled. “You’re funny.”
“I’m not so sure about that, but I am pretty predictable.”
She tilted her head, sending a fall of shiny black hair to one
shoulder. “Why haven’t you ever married?”
He stilled. “How do you know I haven’t?” Did she know more
about him than she was letting on?
“No ring. And no tan line where the old ring used to be.”
He relaxed slightly. Being somewhat notorious, he tended to be
on guard when meeting new people. Besides, anyone reading a business magazine
could know the basic facts of his life. It was hardly top-secret information.
“Never met the right woman.”
“Too picky?”
“Something like that. A marriage isn’t like an investment,
where it’s worth taking a chance on because you can always get out.”
“You can always get out, for the right price.” A smile tilted
her soft mouth.
He grimaced. “Usually the highest price the market will bear.
Not attractive to a careful investor.”
“You’re too cautious to get married, aren’t you?”
He nodded. “Or maybe it’s just the family curse.”
She laughed aloud, a pretty ringing sound, like the bells they
used to play in the church back on the estate when he was a kid.
Where did that thought come from?
“I think you need to find the last part of that chalice and put
it back together. Think of it as a hunt.” She leaned forward, rested her elbows
on the table and her neat chin on her interlocked fingers. “It’ll be a great
story to tell.”