He shook his head. “I’m afraid of me,” he said gruffly, then took a step back. “You have your own bathroom,” he continued, as though their flirtation hadn’t happened. “Fresh towels are in the closet, and there are toiletries in there if you want them. We’ll have a light meal at five and leave at seven.”
“Won’t we be eating at the ball?” Becca asked.
Daniel snorted. “There’ll be food there, if that’s what you’re asking. But nobody really eats it. They’re too busy gossiping and networking to spear a chicken tender with their fork. Plus, the drink my brother serves is potent. So we eat before we go.”
“And too busy dancing,” Becca prompted.
His chin lifted as he looked at her. “Possibly.”
“And kissing.” She was playing with him now. Like a cat and a bird.
“Kissing?” His brow arched. “Will there be kissing?”
“I know you’ll be thinking about it all night.” She leaned back against the wall, flattening her hands against the painted plaster.
“Is that right?” He seemed amused. “Because I notice that you’re the one who brought it up. Not that I blame you after the last kiss. I saw how it affected you.”
“It affected you, too.”
He swallowed. “It did. But tonight we’ll be in public. So unless you plan on tearing my clothes off in the middle of the ballroom, I imagine it won’t be quite so… potent.”
Becca shrugged. “If you say so. I’m not the one who refused to kiss again because, and I quote, If we kiss I’ll carry you to your bedroom and strip your clothing off and neither of us will survive it.” She smiled smugly. Game, set, and match.
He stared at her for a moment, his lips soft, his eyes narrowed. He was so damn masculine she could feel his potency pulse in the air between them. “Freshen up,” he said, “And then come down. I’ll ask Rona to make us some coffee.”
“What are we going to do, then?” she asked. “It’s a couple of hours before I need to get ready.”
“You could make use of the library. Or we could play a game.” He shrugged.
“What kind of game?”
He chuckled. “The board type of game, very boring, I know. We have everything here. Chess, Scrabble, Monopoly, there’s even an old Ludo set somewhere.”
She smiled, because he had no idea how much she loved board games. She’d spent most of her childhood running around after one brother or another begging them to sit at the table and play. She was a scion at Monopoly, a ninja at Scrabble. She could even muster a passable Queen’s Gambit if she concentrated properly. But there was one thing she loved more than anything else.
“Do you have a pack of cards?” she asked, trying to keep the excitement out of her voice.
“About a dozen of them.”
“Okay then, I’ll be down in ten minutes.”
Becca Hartson never ceased to surprise him. Daniel bit down a smile as she laid out her hand, squealing with excitement when her straight flush beat his three of a kind.
“Dammit, I should have made a higher bet,” she said, pulling the pile of matchsticks toward her. “I always undercall the worth of my hand.”
“I didn’t expect you to be so competitive.” He pulled the cards toward him, shuffling them easily.
“You forget I grew up with four brothers. I spent hours teaching myself poker just so they’d let me join in on their card nights.” She played with a matchstick, twirling it between her fingers. “Anyway, you’re as bad as me. I saw you fist pump when you beat my three aces earlier.”
“You noticed that? I’ll have to be more discreet next time.” She looked so happy, gazing down at her matchsticks as though they were worth something more than kudos. It made him feel warm inside. What would it be like to make her smile like that every day? “And for the record, I’m worse than you. I was competitive from the moment I was born. Before, probably.”
She blinked. “How so?”
It was so easy to talk to her. He had to be on his guard to not let too much slip. “Let’s just say I had a role to play from day one. To vindicate and validate my parents’ relationship. To be the best son in the family.” And it almost ripped him to shreds.
She leaned her jaw on her hand, propping her elbow on the card table. Her dark hair flowed in waves past her shoulders. “And Nathan? Did he have the same role?”
“You’re still interested in my brother?” It was a tease, but also a little stab in his chest.