Under Wraps by Joanne Rock

new visitors to the Marquis had made her wary of his intentions.
    Was he a swinger like her ex?
    The thought had her worried as she paid a trim little blonde dressed as a courtesan for the stockings. No way would Lianna tread down that path again. But why elsewould Alex be interested in new hotel guests unless he was on the lookout for potential playthings?
    She’d quizzed him about it on the phone the night before when he’d expressed such interest in the newcomers from Miami. He’d tried to reassure her, saying he was only curious because he used to live in Miami. As if he thought he’d know Jack and Marie Barnes—surely not their real names—from a city with half a million people? He’d asked her to find out more to feed his “curiosity.”
    Well, she could tell him quite honestly that the new couple only had eyes for each other. The sight of them together filled Lianna with envy since her ex had never looked at her that way. Perversely, she’d flirted lightly with the couple, half hoping they’d ignore her and prove that love and loyalty existed within a passionate romance.
    She’d been oddly gratified when they’d done just that.
    So if Alex McMahon didn’t bother to show tonight—and if he was only interested in having her scope out fresh prospects for him—Lianna would cut her losses. All the books she’d read on divorce counseled not to get involved with anyone before the one-year mark anyhow, and she’d only just reached that. Maybe she’d jumped into something too fast with Alex.
    If he wanted to spy on Jack and Marie, he’d have to come to the Marquis to do it himself because that wasn’t her style.
    For her part, she planned to keep her eyes open for the kind of chemistry that pinged between the couple. She’d settled for a relationship based on shared interestslast time. That had resulted in a lukewarm marriage that sent her husband out looking for adventure.
    So when she got involved again, she wouldn’t settle for anything less than, hot, sexy, all-consuming passion.
    Â 
    S ETTLING INTO A LOVE SEAT across from a floor-to-ceiling window that looked out on the property’s grounds, Jake kept Marnie close to his side. They’d explored the hotel this morning after the incident in the dressing room, attempting to get acquainted with the place before it became crowded in the evening. Now, they watched out the window as a party of five braved the falling snow to enter a horse-drawn carriage complete with sleigh bells and fur blankets.
    A driver in his mid-twenties wore a top hat with a sprig of holly at the band, and he peered back into the sleigh full of women with open eagerness. Did the kid really stand a chance with five women?
    Jake was just damn glad to have a chance with this one. But he wanted to keep her under wraps here as much as possible, which meant he needed to get her back to their suite now that more guests were waking up.
    â€œWe should get back to the room.” He checked his watch, thinking he should be able to get another update from his office regarding patrons of the Marquis over the past year.
    If the embezzler had targeted Marnie to take the fall for the crime purposely, chances were good he was keeping tabs on her. Would he—or she—know by now that the scheme to frame her hadn’t worked? Would theembezzler take enough interest in Marnie as to know she’d closed up her shop in Miami and had left town?
    â€œDon’t you think we should divide and conquer to cover more ground first?” Marnie kept her voice low and had gotten in the habit of leaning close to him to speak so that if they were observed, it looked as if she was whispering lusty suggestions in his ear.
    He had the feeling she did it simply because she was a detail person who didn’t overlook the small stuff. But he liked to think she got a charge out of being next to him. God knew he enjoyed the soft huff