Seduced by His Touch by Tracy Anne Warren

lowered in an inattentive, almost sleepy way, but she sensed the exact opposite was true. Underneath his seemingly bored façade, he was alert, watchful and ready to pounce at a moment’s notice.
    Arranging the cards in her hand by suit and number, she did her best to keep them hidden. However, his superior height and the angle at which he sat gave him easy means to peek.
    Well, no matter, she thought. It’s not as though he’s playing.
    But as the round got underway, she realized that Lord Jack was playing, shifting subtly in his chair or rubbing the edge of his nose each time she was about to make a wrong move. She tried holding her cards closer to her chest, but it did no good. He knew each correct play before it was made, leaving her to wonder if he possessed some sort of extrasensory sight that allowed him to see through everyone’s cards. As a result of his silent assistance, she and her partner won the round, as well as the small pile of winnings that came with it.
    Soon, the others stood to stretch their legs and get a refreshment. Grace remained seated, however, waiting until she and Lord Jack were alone before she turned to him. “What do you think you’re doing?” she said on a hiss.
    “What do you mean?” he asked, his expression all innocence.
    “You know exactly what I mean. You were helping me, feeding me little signals throughout the game. I’m surprised none of the others said anything, particularly after you rubbed your nose for the fifth time.”
    He flashed a white-toothed grin. “None of the others had any idea what I was doing. As for my signals, you looked like you could use the help.”
    “I would have done just fine on my own.”
    He raised a clearly skeptical brow.
    “I feel like a cheat,” she bemoaned.
    He sent her a sternly mocking look. “Of the most vile sort, to be sure. You ought to be banned from card play forever for ‘stealing’ all eight pence in that pot.”
    “The amount is not the point.”
    “No, and neither were our actions a crime. At worst, we played as a team. I mean it’s not as if I could see their cards.”
    Despite the uncanny accuracy of his hints, he was right about that. From his vantage point, she knew he couldn’t have seen anyone’s cards but her own.
    She studied him for a thoughtful moment. “How did you know which cards to play?”
    He shrugged and stretched his legs out before him. “It’s simply a matter of watching what is being played and taking care not to forget. Once a few opening cards are established, the rest becomes easy.”
    She paused, digesting the information. “Remind me never to play cards against you.”
    He chuckled. “I shall look forward to the occasion and the opportunity to change your mind. Now, if I am not mistaken, I believe your aunt is about to announce supper. Pray agree to dine with me.”
    “I am not sure I can, since the place cards may require otherwise.”
    “Then we shall simply have to switch them so they’re arranged to our liking,” he said, adding a naughty wink that sent tingles whirling through her system like maddened fireflies.
    He stood and offered his arm.
    “You wouldn’t really switch them, would you?” she asked as she gained her feet.
    “What do you think?”
    She studied him, his azure eyes unreadable. “I think,” she said, “that you are the wickedest man I’ve ever met.”
    He choked out a laugh, then leaned over so that his lips were a mere inch from her ear. “You had best take care to avoid me, then, else I cease being a gentleman and decide to lead you astray.”
    Which was precisely what made him so dangerous—because unlike other men, she just might let him tempt her if ever he should ask. But he was only teasing, she was sure.
    With that dismal reassurance in mind, she laid her palm atop his sleeve and let him lead her in to supper.
    As she’d suspected, her aunt had arranged the table so that specific guests were—and were not—seated next to each other. To her