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CHAPTER ONE
BY THE TIME the jet had clined herself to the destruction of her secret fantasies She would ue and spine-tingling excitement was definitely not for her Why, the plane hadn’t even levelled off yet and she was desperate for the drinks trolley to coht steady her shattered nerves with a savage slug of pure, potent alcohol
Elizabeth forced her hands to relax in her lap and allowed her clever brain to attack the problele She wasn’t inco what had to be done She had never dealt ith surprises and the one that had been sprung on her at the airport had been bound temporarily to unnerve her In the circu herself rather well
She grieration She had been trying to behave with the utmost discretion, to attract as little attention as possible to herself—a task that she usually accoled it badly First there had been the altercation at the check-in desk when the harassed airline representative had tried to tell her that because she was a few er a seat available for her If she were travelling purely on her own behalf Elizabeth would have happily accepted the offer of a later flight, but as it was she had had no choice but to make a fuss until the airline had backed down Unfortunately the fuss had generated a ripple of interest through the surrounding queues of se the sers at the adjacent desk
Then there had been the incident at the security checkpoint in the departure hall Elizabeth had set the alar arch She had beenmore flustered, before the security officer had run his hand-scanner over her and asked politely if she earing any jewellery under her clothes
Elizabeth had clapped a hand to her chest, her whole body going hot with guilt 'Yes, but it's gold—a necklace—surely it wouldn’t set that thing off,' she said in her distinctively deep voice
'It may have some other metal mixed in with it; may I see?' the officer asked in a bored tone that didn’t reassure Elizabeth's anxieties at all He obviously didn’t think she was a crie when he sahat she earing!
She unbuttoned the neck of her blouse cautiously, conscious of the curious eyes around thelance she was most particularly anxious to avoid She turned protectively away frouard what she earing, feeling ely like a flasher as he looked into her parted clothing His eyes flicked up to her flushed face and down again
'Looks rather valuable'
'It is,' Elizabeth adony of apprehension 'It's—sort of a fa it I didn’t like to put it in e'
To her eternal gratitude he didn’t ask whose family heirloom The officer ran his scanner over her chest and it beeped obligingly Thewas probably the hard, cold lu heart used to be! 'You're probably wise,on holiday or business?'
'Oh, holiday,' she said only semi-truthfully 'To Nou would explain the necklace if theabout New Caledonia The off-shore resort was renowned for the glahtclub and casino
He turned and had a ly over and peered into Elizabeth's exposed cleavage,her acutely aware of the fullness of her breasts This lea through her ht he did If he had known everything he would have arrested her on the spot!
'Would you lasses for a moment, ma'am?' the second man asked, and Elizabeth did so, reluctantly, hurriedly re-buttoning her blouse as one of the ed around to see what the