Husband for Hire by Susan Crosby Read Free Book Online

casino. At the top she stopped him, raising her voice over the din of the machines. “Answer me, please. Are youplanning on commuting from San Francisco every day?”
    â€œNo.” He looked amused.
    â€œWhere will you stay?”
    â€œI have a place available.” He tugged her toward the nearest bank of slot machines.
    â€œI’m on to you, Gavin Callahan.”
    His brows went up. “Are you? In what way?”
    â€œYou didn’t really answer me. Oh, you uttered a sentence about having a place available, but that could mean anything. I suspect you’ve taken a hotel room. I can’t have you doing that.” Especially not when he seemed to already be foregoing pay to help her during the week. “You’re sneaky, you know?”
    He laughed. She loved the sound. But she wasn’t going to be swayed by it. “You can stay with me. It’ll be easier, anyway. First thing tomorrow, you can buy a bed for the guest room and have it delivered. I’ll sleep on the couch tonight.”
    â€œThanks, but it’s unnecessary. Julia always has house-sitting jobs available, so even if I wanted to stay with you, I couldn’t.”
    â€œOh. Okay.” Disappointment hit her full force. The idea of having him around at night had been far too appealing.
    â€œCome on. Try your luck.” Before she could even think about arguing, he fed a twenty-dollar bill into the nearest machine and patted the chair seat for her to sit down.
    It happened on the eighth pull—Triple, Triple,Triple. Jackpot! The sound of coins dropping in digitally reproduced beeps seemed almost musical. “How much did I win?” she asked, too excited to figure it out.
    â€œFifteen hundred.”
    â€œI told you I was feeling lucky!” she shouted above the noise around them. She wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him. After a moment, his arms came around her, his fingertips grazing the upper curve of her rear, an incredibly arousing touch that made her catch her breath. She let go reluctantly when a casino employee appeared to handle the payout.
    â€œFor expenses,” Becca said, folding all the bills in half. She tried to slip the wad into his suit pocket but it was stitched shut. He saw her dilemma and cocked his head at her in challenge. His only open pockets were those in his pants.
    Becca loved challenges, thrived on them, in fact— in business. But the I-dare-you look in his eyes made her bold. She leaned against him, searched blindly for a pocket and tucked the bills inside, making sure they went to the bottom….
    Gavin sucked in a breath, in one sense pleased at her forwardness and yet also aware they were taking a risk that was probably unwise. Yes, they needed to seem married, but if they continued at this rate, they’d hit fever pitch about the time her brothers got to town. If that happened, he and Becca would either be all over each other, or so frustrated they’d be arguing about every little thing.
    It was a good thing he couldn’t spend the night with her. With anyone. Being alone during the night was critical for him.
    â€œThe honeymoon suite’s available,” one of the drink servers whispered dramatically as she passed by.
    Becca stepped back, but was smiling. “Just following orders,” she said to Gavin. “You said I should look like a real wife.”
    â€œA real wife would’ve put those bills in her purse.”
    She laughed. “Well, I’m done here. Are you?”
    â€œThat’s it? You’re not going to play a little longer? You’ve got luck on your side.”
    â€œI know when to fold ’em.”
    He took her hand and headed toward the parking-lot exit. “You seem like a risk taker to me.”
    â€œWhen the odds are in my favor. I was made VP of operations because I’m a good money manager. I’m expected to keep everyone on budget.” She gripped his hand harder.