Bed of Roses Page 0,64

I'd love to hear what you think."

He touched a hand to her elbow - testing, she knew - as he gestured. "Can I get you some wine?"

"Actually . . . I have some," she said when Jack joined them and offered her a glass. "Jack, this is Jasper. We were admiring Babel ," she added when she found the title.

"A confusion of language," Jack supposed and dropped a light, possessive hand on Emma's shoulder.

"Yes, of course. If you'll excuse me."

"Busted his bubble," Jack added when Jasper slunk off. Testing the very bad wine, he studied the canvas. "It's like one of those magnet kits people buy for their refrigerator."

"Thank God. Thank God. I thought you actually saw something."

"Or somebody dropped the Scrabble tiles."

"Stop." She had to suck in a breath to stop a laugh. "Jasper finds it brilliant in its minimalist chaos."

"Well, that's Jasper for you. Why don't we just - "

"Jack!"

Emma turned to see a six-foot redhead, arms outflung, burst through the crowd. She wore snug black that showed miles of legs, a pencil-thin body offset by high, firm breasts that almost poured out of the scooped-neck of her top. She jangled from the clanging of a dozen silver bangles on her arm. And nearly mowed Emma down as she threw her arms around Jack to fix her murderous red mouth to his.

The best Emma could do was grab Jack's wineglass before it upended.

"I knew you'd come." Her voice was low, and nearly a sob. "You don't know what it means to me. You can't know."

"Ah," he said.

"Most of these people, they don't know me. They haven't been in me."

Jesus. Christ. "Okay. Let's just . . ." He tried untangling himself, but her arms tightened around his neck like a garrote. "I wanted to stop by and say congratulations. Let me introduce you to . . . Kellye, you're cutting off my oxygen."

"I've missed you. And tonight means so much, now so much more." Dramatic tears glimmered in her eyes; her lips quivered with emotion. "I know I can get through tonight, the stress, the demands , now that you're here. Oh, Jack, Jack, stay close to me. Stay close."

Any closer, he thought, and he would be in her. "Kellye, this is Emmaline." Desperate now, Jack gripped Kellye's wrists to unlock them from his neck. "Emma . . ."

"It's wonderful to meet you." Cheerful, enthusiastic, Emma offered a hand. "You must - "

Kellye stumbled back as if stabbed, then whirled on Jack. "How dare you! How could you? You'd bring her here? Throw her in my face? Bastard!" She ran, shoving her way through the fascinated crowd.

"Okay, this was fun. Let's go." Jack grabbed Emma's hand and pulled her to the door. "Mistake. Big mistake," he said when he managed a good gulp of fresh air. "I think she punctured my tonsils with her tongue. You didn't protect me."

"I failed you. I'm so ashamed."

He narrowed his eyes as he pulled her along the sidewalk. "And you think that was funny."

"I'm a bitch, too. Coldhearted. More shame." She had to stop, just stop and howl with laughter. "God, Jack! What were you thinking?"

"When a woman has the power to puncture a man's tonsils with her tongue, he stops thinking. She also has this trick where she . . . And I almost said that out loud." He dragged a hand through his hair as he studied her glowing face. "We've been friends too long. It's dangerous."

"In the spirit of friendship, I'm going to buy you a drink. You deserve it." She took his hand. "I didn't believe you when you said she got too intense and so on. I figured you were just being the usual no-commitment guy. But intense is way too quiet a word for her. Plus, her art is ridiculous. She really ought to hook up with Jasper. He'd adore her."

"Let's drive across town for that drink," he suggested. "I don't want to chance running into her again."

He opened the car door for her. "You weren't the least bit embarrassed by that."

"No. I have a high embarrassment threshold. If she'd been remotely sincere, I'd have felt sorry for her. But she's as fake as her art. And probably just as odd."

He considered as he walked around to get in the driver's side. "Why do you say that? About her being fake?"

"It was all about the drama, and her in the center of it. She may feel something for you, but she feels a lot more for herself.