Free The Spy With the Silver Lining by Wendy Rosnau Page B

hands in the business, but Casmir Balasi had the best set of lips.
    A kiss was everything—if it was done right.
    Casmir sucked hard on Pierce’s lower lip as she broke the kiss, then followed through with one last slow swipe over his lower lip. He had nice lips to go along with his nice complexion and hard body. Warm, not dry. Not too thin. Not too full.
    Yes, very nice. On a scale of ten, she’d give him a nine and a half.
    When she finished, she looked up at him and smiled like an expectant bride.
    “What’s going on?” he muttered. “What are you up to now?”
    “The question is, what are you up to?” She slid her hand down his chest and ran her hand along the fly of his jeans.
    From the bar the woman broke the moment. “That’s quite a rock, Pierce. I guess congratulations are in order. When did you decide you were the marrying kind?”
    Casmir turned around to see that all the men seated at the bar were engaged in the show as well as the question. Grinning fools, every one of them.
    Before Pierce could answer and put his foot between his nice lips, she said, “Life is funny that way. Love comes when you least expect it.” She glanced back at Pierce. “Isn’t that right, honey?” She slipped her arm around his waist. Playing the giddy bride-to-be, she laid her hand on his chest. “I love my ring almost as much as I do the man. It’s to die for.”
    “Now there’s a word,” he muttered.
    She saw his jaw jerk as he glanced down at the bauble on her finger. She wiggled it, causing the ring to wink at him. Then she whispered, “You’re supposed to be excited to see me.”
    He looked at her, faked a smile. “ Oui, I’m excited. I can’t wait to wring your neck,” he whispered back. “Linny, send over a beer. Me and my…bride are going to steal a booth. What are you drinking, amant? ”
    “It’s on the bar. I thought I’d try the local favorite and order a beer.”
    Casmir stepped away from him and sauntered to the bar using a little more hip action than she had when she’d entered the Ginger Root earlier. Beer in hand, she cut across the bar and slipped into the seat across from Pierce in a booth at the back.
    The minute she was comfortable, he leaned forward and said, “What the hell do you think you’re doing? No one in this town is going to believe I would marry someone like you.”
    “Someone like me?”
    “ Oui, like you.”
    “Then I guess you’re going to have to work on your acting skills and change their minds. Polax said that I should use my imagination when it came to fitting in with the neighbors. As you said, why would someone like me choose a vacation in Le Mystère? And why would I bring my mother along?” Casmir cut him a razor-sharp smile. “I wouldn’t. Not unless I wanted Mama to meet the love of my life and soon-to-be husband.”
    “You’re crazy.”
    “What, so I came for the local color? To enter a beer-guzzling contest? No, let me guess, the summer sack race down main street on Sunday.”
    He didn’t say anything, just scowled.
    She went on. “The truth is, the only reason someone like me would land in Le Mystère is if I was lost, or kidnapped, or…came to meet the family and friends of the man I love.”
    Casmir saw the woman behind the bar heading their way with Pierce’s beer. “Here’s your chance. Convince Linny that I’m the one.”
    “The one?”
    “The one you want to spend the rest of your life with. Merrick told Polax you’re a man of many talents. Here’s your chance to prove it. Serve it up with a smile, honey. The locals are watching.”
    Thirty minutes later, they walked out of the Ginger Root, Pierce’s arm around Casmir’s trim waist. He waved to the bar crowd, smiled at Linny, then disappeared out the door with Casmir.
    The minute they were out of the bar, he dropped his arm and headed for the Jeep. Suddenly he stopped and held out his hand.
    “The key.”
    Casmir reached into her pocket and tossed it to him, then, ignoring his