Luck of the Dragon (Entangled Covet) (3 page)

“I’m having a problem with Mr. Qian’s funds.” Mei frowned, making her nose wrinkle. She was descended from the dragons of the Orient. In her human form, she was stunning with her straight black hair and eyes. She was smart, spoke four Asian languages, and could add her weekly commission in her head, to the penny.

Alec tucked his hands in his pockets, waiting for the rest of the story. Qian was a pain in the ass with his bizarre personal requests, but the last time he had stayed with them downtown, he dumped fifteen million dollars into the coffers like it was chump change. A casino could put up with a lot of pain for that kind of profit.

“I tried to set up his usual bankroll, but his bank in Hong Kong is denying the transaction. I don’t want to tell him because he’ll just throw a hissy-fit. He’s already threatening to go to the Hard Rock.” Mei grimaced at the possibility of losing her player and her commission.

“No, we don’t want him to leave, especially since this is his first time at Crown Jewel. Advance him one million to play and ask Darius to sort out the money problem.”

Mei tightened her lips as if she had bitten a lemon wedge. “Darius and I are not speaking.”

“This is business.” Alec extended his hand for her microphone and earpiece. Mei pulled it from her ear and handed it to him.

“Floor to Darius,” Alec spoke into the mic. Although the dragons could communicate telepathically with each other by mindspeak, the intercom system was more secure, and private.

“Yes, Jer’ol,” Darius answered, his Russian accent clipped and matter-of-fact.

“Mei is having a problem with a whale’s bankroll. Fix it.”

“Yes, Jer’ol.”

Only Alec and Mei would have detected the slight hesitation in Darius’s voice at being asked to help Mei with a problem. Alec disconnected and shook his head.

“You knew you would have to go to Darius with this?”

Mei nodded, her chin offset in annoyance.

“Any other two dragons on earth would thank the Great One to have found their mate.” Alec fought down his frustration at the always-squabbling duo. “Eventually, Darius
will
lose his dragon form if you do not find a way to do a hell of a lot more than work out a bankroll problem together.”

“With all due respect, Jer’ol,” Mei tapped one elegant foot on the Italian tile. “I had no choice in the matter.”

Alec exhaled a deep sigh. Some days, he felt more like a babysitter than the king of anything. “‘The Fates shall choose thee your mate,’” he reminded her. At Mei’s continued stubborn look, he could only shake his head.

“Don’t let your personal feelings affect business.”

“Yes, Jer’ol.” Mei turned on her stiletto heel and marched off in pursuit of her whale.

Alec continued toward the unopened exhibit but slowed slightly as he walked through the grand entry of the casino. The gold and jewels in the ceiling made the entrance gleam like his ancient lair. It pleased him. His dragon senses vibrated with the pleasure of being around the jewels.

Alec swiped his keycard outside of the sealed gem exhibit. A ten-by-ten foot steel door slid open with a slight
swish
and then closed just as silently behind him. The exhibit was set up for visitors, with balconies on four sides surrounding a gilded throne room. His grandfather’s, and now his, gold throne sat at the far end, behind a pane of glass. Inside the room, a female voice talked with Leo. “I don’t understand why I can’t examine the pieces now,” the gemologist said.

“You can speak with Mr. Gerald when he arrives.”

“Leonides, Leonides,” the woman cooed. She stood above Leo on the right-side balcony, bending over to examine a case of sealed jewels. “We do not need to wait for
Mr. King of Las Vegas
. I know you must have the codes.”

“Mr. Gerald will be here soon.” Leo’s tone was implacable.

Alec stopped beside Leo at the foot of the stairs. “Are you looking up her dress?” His voice was quiet, not carrying to the woman.

“Of course,” Leo responded in a similar hushed manner. “Aren’t you?”

Alec let his gaze wander up the woman’s strappy shoes to her legs. She was wearing stockings. Odd, no one wore panty hose in Vegas. One of her hands held her dark red hair back from her face, presumably so she could see his jewels better. Her exposed backside looked just right in the tight red dress, like an upside-down heart.

Alec’s dragon jumped inside him. Need clenched his gut tight. “I’ve got this.”

“You sure?” Leo lifted a brow. “Dr. Luciana De Luca is a handful. Make that
two
hands full.”

“I can see that.”

Leo laughed under his breath. “Tee needs me to stop by her office anyway.”

Alec looked sideways at his friend with a knowing smile. “Better hurry up, then.” Tee was Leo’s best domestic casino hostess. As the head of Casino Operations, Leo constantly had to meet and greet her high-rollers.

“It’s not like
that
with us,” Leo protested. “She’s my employee and friend. That’s it.”

“Whatever you say.”

“Tee’s damn good for the bottom line, that’s what she is,” Leo said with sharp finality.

“She does have a lovely
bottom line
.” Alec enjoyed the good-natured ribbing.

Leo shook his head. “I’ll see you at the evening briefing,” he said before stomping to the exit and leaving the exhibit.

Alec turned his gaze back to the appraiser. She had not moved from her spot on the balcony and seemed wholly entranced by the sealed case. He bounded up the stairs with a light tread.

“Interesting,” Luciana muttered to herself. “I’ve never seen this color…it’s like the ring.”

Alec stopped near her and inhaled her scent. No daisies here—she was musky with a hint of vanilla. His dragon wings pulsed invisibly at his back. Bestial urges flared and warmed his skin, so much that he wouldn’t have been surprised to see steam fill the room. Alec frowned. His physical reaction to this human woman was unusual.

“You’re hot.” The woman turned to face him, seeming not at all surprised to see him standing next to her.

“So I’ve been told.” He rested his elbow on the case, letting the back of his hand brush her bare skin. Energy zapped along his arm with the suddenness of a snake bite. Alec fought to keep his expression neutral and unthreatening.

“I bet.” The woman dropped her hair and scooted away from him along the edge of the case. “I meant you are warm, temperature-wise. I can feel it.” A flush started at her neck and climbed to her cheeks. “Even in this meat locker.”

Alec stepped closer, purposely crowding her. Luciana’s pupils dilated, but she lifted her chin toward him like a shield. Heat swarmed from him and settled over her. “You’re a contradiction, Dr. De Luca.”

“How so?” Her tone was bold, unperturbed, but she bit her bottom lip. More contradictions.

“You are a natural redhead of Italian descent.” Alec let his gaze drop to her unpainted toes, then travel up the swell of her hips to her narrow waist, then linger over her unbound breasts until her nipples puckered. Luciana crossed her arms.

Alec waited patiently for her to meet his gaze again.

“Look.” Luciana put her right hand on his chest and patted him, as if he were a child being told to wait for dinner. “I am only interested in the jewels.” She bit the tip of her left index finger and touched her lips. The flash of white teeth and stretch of red lips distracted him, but not enough that he couldn’t feel her right hand take his keycard from his jacket pocket.

Interesting.

Alec smiled wider, baring his own teeth. He liked a challenge. He reached past her, and his arm brushed her breast. Luciana stepped back with an indrawn breath. Alec affected a dispassionate mask and leaned around her to press his thumb to the glass. Immediately, the case next to her opened with a
click
of efficient electronics.

Luciana narrowed her eyes, as if she were afraid he might touch her again. She chewed on her lip and then seemed to make a decision. She reached into the case and removed a blue sapphire the size of her palm, set in Byzantine gold. “All the cases open with your fingerprint?”

“My fingers can be very persuasive,” Alec said.

She ignored him.

Luciana replaced the sapphire and picked up a jewel-encrusted dagger sheath. Pulling the wicked looking blade, she turned to him. “This piece is priceless, slag-free crucible steel, and the handle is 18-carat gold inlaid with rough-cut rubies and emeralds. It’s probably Viking, 800 AD, but I’ll need to test it to be sure.”

Alec knew exactly where the dagger had come from. “
Everything
in here is priceless to me.” Luciana replaced the knife and leaned back on her heels, her features tight, looking like she might run.
Back off, you’re scaring her
, Alec’s human mind interceded. “We need to have your appraisal done before we can open the exhibit to the public in September,” he said, his voice casual. “When can you start?”

“But there must be fifty cases in here.” Luciana peered over his shoulder and pointed behind him. “Are all the cases as full as this one?”

“I was told you were the best?” Alec let the challenge dangle.

“I am. But getting an accurate value on this many gems will take time. And it’s going to cost you. A lot.”

Alec laughed and ignored the urge to touch her again. “I imagine I can afford your price.”

Lucy scowled. “Let’s get something straight. I’m not interested in your
private
collection of obscure
etchings
…or anything else
private
you might have.”

“How do you know? The reviews on my, what did you call them…
etchings
are quite flattering.” Alec watched her face, liking the way heat flushed her pale neck, and her brown eyes snapped with annoyance.

“I am a gem appraiser. That is it.”

“But etchings can be so very stimulating.” Alec brushed her arm again, feeling the warm tingle in the tips of his fingers.

Lucy shook her head. “Quit messing with me, or you can find another appraiser.”

“Okay,” Alec said. “No more messing.”

“Okay?” Lucy stepped backward—heel to toe, heel to toe—to the stair landing. “Just like that, you’re going to back off?”

“Just like that.” Alec held still, waiting to see what she would do. “What do you need to start your appraisal tomorrow?”

Lucy looked behind her to the steel door on the bottom level. “I’ve changed my mind. I don’t think this is a good idea.” She clomped down the stairs, the sexy sway of her hips completely gone in her hurry to escape.

The exhilaration of the hunt flared through Alec’s system.

Silly woman. You should never, never run from a dragon.

“One hundred thousand dollars.” He followed her flight down the stairs with a light step.

“What?” Lucy stood in front of the closed steel door, her eyes wide and unbelieving.

“One hundred thousand dollars now. And an additional one hundred thousand when you finish the appraisal.”

“That’s three times my usual fee,” Luciana said, anger again firing her face. “I told you, I don’t do
etchings
.”

“The fee is just for appraising the exhibit, but you must begin tomorrow and be done in a month.”

“Mr. Gerald, thank you for your generous offer, but I’m going to have to decline.”

“I have important guests arriving specifically to see the exhibit.” Alec let his aggravation coat his words, but from the way Luciana’s eyes flitted from him to the closed door, he could tell she wasn’t listening. She wanted out of the room.

Alec closed in on her and considered her nervous side-to-side movements. If she hadn’t taken his keycard for a surprise rendezvous, what was she up to?

“I want to leave
now
.” Luciana met his stare but couldn’t disguise the strain in her voice.

“Dr. De Luca. Is there something else going on here? Something you need to tell me?” Alec let the question dangle, and the woman’s quick averted glance told him he was right. She
was
hiding something.

Something big. His predator’s instincts flared and his keen hearing picked up the pounding of her pulse under her skin.

“Of course not,” she insisted and put her hands on her hips, affronted. “Open this door.”

Again with the demands. Alec smiled, admiring her bravery. He reached around her and pushed the door release, letting the back of his hand brush her bare arm.

Luciana jumped at the contact, and Alec smelled the sharp release of adrenaline as it rushed through her body. She was scared. Why?

Alec stepped out of her way and swept his hand to the beckoning hallway. “After you.”

Luciana gave him a quick nervous glance, seeming to sense that his words were more than just gallantry. Then she fled, as if she knew she had just stolen from the very lair of a dragon.

Chapter Three

Lucy squeezed through the opening exhibit door and rushed through the medieval timbered corridors as fast as her Manolos would go. The massive casino had no windows, no clocks, no way for guests to be distracted from their pleasurable pursuits with the call of responsibility from the outside world.

“Which way?” She slowed down and took a deep breath.
Think.
Alec Gerald had rattled her good brain. The man exuded sexual chemistry like a tomcat on the prowl.

Make that a panther on the prowl.

God help her, she needed to focus.

The keycard lift had gone remarkably well—now she just needed to find the drop spot and get the hell out of there. Luciana took another deep breath in, held it, and released it slowly. Alec’s card rubbed inside the band of her hose and bit into her inner thigh, making the stowaway card inch downward. Down, down, downward…

She was on the north side of the building, near the gem exhibit and upscale shops. She needed to cut across the gaming floor to get to the drop in the south-end bathrooms.

Easy peasy.

“Luciana, wait,” Alec called behind her.

She hobbled away. Around her, hundreds of people pulled levers and grasped plastic containers filled with coins.

Luciana hurried by, avoiding eye contact. She glanced over her shoulder. Alec still followed her at a distance. She ducked past the slot machines to the poker tables, where tavern wenches dealt cards of Texas Hold ‘Em on green half-moon shaped tables.