Cursed by Love

by Jacie Floyd

  “Congratulations,” she mouthed. The same brilliant eyes that had watched him disapprovingly when he’d talked—all right, when he’d yelled—at Granddad, now glittered with excitement, eager to hear about her treasure.

  As the appraiser began his spiel, Gabe reminded himself to pay attention—when all he really wanted to do was take the piece and run to the nearest auction house.

  “See the similar markings?” the expert began.

  Gabe watched on autopilot, following the lead of the Webber woman, nodding when she nodded, smiling when she smiled.

  And what a great smile. Her lush and full lips drew his attention. Wide and expressive, they were totally out of place on top of a package that made her look like she’d arrived at the Convention Center straight from the schoolroom.

  Pleated skirt, canvas tote bag, sensible sneakers, tip-tilted nose. Clear, oceanic blue eyes that conveyed her every thought. Skin like peaches. Even under the unremarkable, everyday clothing, her body hinted at some definite curvage.

  So not all of her parts fit the elementary-school image, but enough of her bits and pieces meshed together for him to recognize a traditional woman with children and domesticity on her mind. Not the sophisticated, career-driven type that usually appealed to him. Not the kind of woman who looked for sexual release more often than an emotional connection.

  The fire-shot opal sparkling on the third finger of Molly’s left hand didn’t look like a wedding or engagement ring. But if she wasn’t married, he’d missed his guess by a mile. Although her earlier choice of reading material indicated things might be rocky on the home front. Still, someone who looked that sexily domestic should definitely be married and making some lucky bum ecstatic in the bedroom.

  “There are twelve flawless rubies, at least a carat each. Valuable in their own right, but combined with the authenticity of the jade and its partner—” James removed a handkerchief from an inside coat pocket and mopped his brow, letting the suspense build. “Individually, the two pieces have similar values. The pink is slightly more valuable than the green due to the unusual coloring and the size of the jewels. But here’s the exciting part…”

  The appraiser picked up both jades. A sly smile lifted the corners of his mouth. The tension in the air ratcheted up a notch. Sensing a jackpot find, a crowd had gathered on the perimeter of their set.

  “If you fit the components together like so...” James paused before placing Molly’s rose-hued swirling petals of jade inside Gabe’s hollowed out base. As the appraiser gave a slight twist of the wrist, the hair on the back of Gabe’s neck stood up.

  “Voila!” James said with a dramatic gesture. “It’s unusually subdued for a piece of this sort, especially from this era, but do you see what we have?”

  “Oh my goodness, it’s beautiful.” Molly’s voice flowed over Gabe like warm honey. “It looks like a flower. A lily, maybe, or... a lotus blossom?”

  “It’s what Asian art collectors call a Sleeping Lotus,” James enthused. “It’s very uncommon to find a set created in the twelfth century, by Li-Wang, the Emperor’s Imperial carver, intact and undamaged.” The appraiser beamed like a man ready to kick up his heels. “I’ve dreamed of handling both the stalk and petals of a Lotus in such pristine condition for my entire career, but I’ve never had the privilege. My heart nearly pounded out of my chest when I saw the two pieces.”

  “Never?” Molly’s eyes widened with delight.

  Gabe rubbed his palms together beneath the table. Oh, yeah, this could be good. Very, very good.

  “None that have come close to this one in quality, condition, and beauty,” James amended.

  An unprecedented spark of hope flared inside Gabe’s chest. “Why are they so rare?”

  “Despite the curses often attached to such artistry, the pieces get—”

  Uh-oh. Gabe clamped a hand over the back of his neck. He hoped his sister, Sierra, didn’t hear anything about a possible curse. She lapped up that kind of claptrap with a spoon.

  Molly’s shoulders jerked back like she’d been shocked with an electrical wire. “What kind of curses?”

  “We can’t know what curse is attached to this particular piece without more research,” James told them. “But generally the curses predict infertility, impotence, death, dismemberment, painful affairs of the heart, any number of personal disasters.” He shrugged them all away with a flick of an elegant hand. “All myth, of course, but a powerful incentive for those inclined to superstition.”

  Gabe trained his attention on the conjoined pieces. Tipping his head from side to side, he tried to discern the beauty Molly claimed to see. He saw only the hint of a flower. In fact, the form reminded him of a man and a woman.

  Intertwined in a very intimate act.

  Pornographic, in fact.

  He looked closer.

  Yes, by God. From every angle, all he could detect was the linked image of a couple enjoying uninhibited sex. He fought the urge to drop a cover over it before the suddenly irresistible Molly Webber realized her beautiful Sleeping Lotus depicted nothing more artistic than a complicated Kama Sutra pose.

  “Are you sure it’s a flower?” He cleared his throat. “Isn’t it... Isn’t it...?” He couldn’t think of a way to phrase the question without jeopardizing the program’s family rating.

  “Yes, it’s subtle, isn’t it?” James stuck his thumbs into his vest pockets and preened. “It’s the finest piece of twelfth-century Chinese erotica I’ve ever handled.”

  The delectable Molly gasped and leaned in, tilting her head this way and that. Gabe knew the instant recognition hit her by the color that flooded her cheeks. With her newfound awareness, her gaze remained riveted on the object.

  “Are you allowed to show this on the air?” she blurted. “There might be children watching.”

  “Of course,” the appraiser assured her. “We’re public television. It’s educational.”

  “It is now,” Gabe muttered. “For anyone under the age of ten anyway.”

  “But what does all this ancient Chinese artistry mean in regard to value?” Bless her heart, Molly returned to the crux of the matter more quickly than Gabe.

  “Because there are only a few complete sets by this artist known to exist, these are highly sought after by a number of different collecting groups.” The appraiser’s eyes glinted with avarice. “For a Sleeping Lotus of this quality, a serious jade, Chinese and/or erotica collector would pay as much as four- to five-hundred-thousand dollars. Maybe more.”

  Chapter Two

  Gabe looked around in disbelief. Had he heard right?

  The crowd watching their appraisal gasped, then broke into cheers and applause.

  “Half-a-million dollars?” Too stunned to think or say anything more, he pictured a neat row of zeroes all lined up behind the very beautiful, very curvaceous, very sexy number five, all of them ready to ride to his rescue.

  Hot damn! He laughed as a truckload of worry rolled off his shoulders. His half of half a million dollars would keep them in business for the rest of the year. If he carefully invested the money and managed to keep Uncle Roger’s mitts out of the till, it could keep them going even longer.

  And then, he looked at Molly. Really looked at her, couldn’t tear his gaze away from her, in fact. Everything about her grabbed his attention. Fascinated him. She smelled delicious, like woman and sex, and something citrusy. And she glowed with excitement, with exuberance, and with a magnetic earthiness that left him breathless. And aroused.

  Sensuality surrounded her like an aura of clear red with tinges of gold and purple, vivid and throbbing. He stared at her, transfixed.

  “Five-hundred-thousand dollars?” She licked her luscious lips. “Fun! How exciting!” She squealed her delight and jumped up, flinging herself at James for a hug. The expert appraiser gave her a perfunctory squeeze as he winked at a muscular cameraman over her shoulder.

  Molly turned to Gabe with her hand outstretched. Her gaze met and locked with his as the
ir fingers touched. An explosive tingle spread like wildfire from his palm to his heart to his groin. Zip, zap, bang!

  In a maneuver that seemed as elemental as breathing, Gabe stood and pulled her into his arms. She settled into place with a shimmy of her shoulders.

  Oh, yeah, he’d been right about the lush figure. Full and firm. An armful of temptation swathed in basic cotton.

  Public physical displays weren’t his style. But of their own volition his hands cupped the round cheeks of her bottom, and he aligned her hips with his. They fit together as neatly as the two pieces of the Sleeping Lotus. Bending his head, he touched the tip of his tongue to her neck, to a deliciously tempting spot right beneath her ear. He breathed deeply and savored the irresistibly sweet and tart combination of Molly Webber.

  For a moment, he got a confusing whiff of oranges and vanilla. The scent prodded childhood memories of sitting on the front porch steps with his mom and sister, eating ice cream on a hot summer’s day. He absolutely knew, down to the marrow of his bones, if he could lick Molly Webber all over, just like one of those Dreamsicles in his memory, he’d die a happy man.

  He’d only begun to fully indulge in the fantasy when the cuddly treat pulled away. She looked up at him, lowered her gaze to his mouth, and then batted her eyelashes. Flirtatiously? After a heartbeat, she batted them again. A tip of her sweet, pink tongue swept across those full lips. Oh, yeah, definitely flirtatious.

  He lowered his mouth to hers. At first, he was content to graze the soft warmth of her lips, taking his time to gauge her response. He teased his tongue along the seam of her lips, plump and juicy, until she opened for him, pulling him in, kissing him back.

  Sweet, definitely sweet. And hot. And intense. Elemental. Like rain, or wind, or fire. Like nothing he’d ever known before. She felt like heaven in his arms, yet his craving for her clawed at him. She nestled closer.

  Pulling her tight, he surrendered to the swirl of heat and desire spinning around them. Everything around them faded to white noise.

  Fresh and powerful, the textures of Molly, of everything about her—her mouth, her body, her response—all of them together, were new and incredible, yet familiar, too. Like every hot, erotic dream he’d ever had coming to life. He couldn’t think, he couldn’t breathe, he could only feel and want. He wanted Molly, pure and simple. He wanted to slip inside her and feel her around him. And he wanted to keep on kissing her for the next four or five days.

  But James poked Gabe in the ribs. Gabe brushed him away. James poked him again. Harder.

  The appraiser dragged Molly back to the present by placing a hand on her shoulder. Damn the man.

  “Get a room,” a deep voice in the crowd hollered.

  Gabe blinked, trying to clear the sensual thoughts that claimed him, yet still reluctant to let her go.

  “Ease up there, buddy,” James hissed in Gabe’s ear. “Cameras are still rolling, you know.”

  Gabe reluctantly removed his hand from Molly’s waist and hip.

  Most of the crowd hooted and applauded, encouraging them to continue.

  Confusion spread across her face as she registered their full-body proximity and high-octane chemistry. She separated herself from him, murmuring, “Definitely not gay.”

  “Who, me?” What gave her that idea?

  She blinked and eased away. Although she remained inches away from him under the klieg lights, he felt as though she’d removed all the heat and brightness from the cavernous room, leaving him cold and alone in the dark.

  Still dazed, he cleared his throat and denied the inexplicable emptiness. And while he was at it, he ducked behind Molly, hoping to hide his raging hard-on.

  She pressed her fingertips to her lips, as if holding onto their kiss. James picked up the Lotus and separated the sections. Molly’s expression cleared. She smiled and continued her round of hugs with the crew, even high-fiving several spectators on the sidelines.

  Whatever phenomenon had ignited the sexual storm between them began to ebb. However hot and vivid it had been, it was just an illusion, not important. Not to him and not to his future. He didn’t need Molly Webber. He didn’t even know her. The money was the important thing, not the woman. Aside from the few business dealings necessary to arrange for the sale of the Sleeping Lotus, he’d probably never see her again.

  Returning to more vital matters, Gabe turned to the appraiser. “You’re sure about the money?”

  “Oh, absolutely. Although if you can establish provenance, you’d improve your chance of getting the best price.”

  “Establish what?”

  “Provenance. Its history, the chain of ownership.” James tapped his finger against his chin for a moment, before continuing. “My colleagues and I wonder how two pieces created in China, so many centuries ago, have ended up in the same Ohio city, in the hands of separate owners.” He looked back and forth from Gabe to Molly. “This isn’t a joke, is it? Are you two married? Related? Old family friends?”

  Gabe shook his head. “Nothing like that.”

  “We’ve never set eyes on one another before.” Molly blushed.

  As Gabe’s brain chugged into action, he puzzled over the way his body had urged him to do so much more than set eyes on her. It wanted him to set his hands on her, all over, and then after removing her clothes with the speed of light, set his mouth on her...

  “The coincidence is incredible, but the two of you share something very special.”

  Gabe managed a stiff nod of agreement. If the last few minutes were any indication, they shared a lot more than the Sleeping Lotus. “What happens next?”

  “I’d recommend researching the origins and history, but now that the pieces have been reunited, you should keep them together at all costs.”

  Nothing would please Gabe more. He’d do whatever he had to do to sell the Sleeping Lotus as a combined unit. From the way his and Molly’s thoughts had synced up, he guessed she’d agree.

  With one hand, she clutched a crystal pendant attached to a chain around her neck. With the other, she stroked a possessive finger across the jade stalk. Her eyes glowed with delight and fascination, as brightly as the silver charms on her bracelet gleamed in the lights. She picked up his piece of jade and cradled it in the palm of her hand. As she looked up in amazement, he imagined that same expression on her face if she were stroking him.

  For the first time in his life, he seriously envied an inanimate object.

  “Be careful what you do next,” James told Molly after they’d completed her and Gabe’s segment. “The world of serious Lotus collectors is small, greedy, paranoid, and unscrupulous. As soon as word of this discovery gets out, you’ll be inundated with offers from people trying to get the Lotus from you by fair means or foul. Owning the Lotus might turn out to be a blessing or a curse, in more ways than one.”

  He looked around surreptitiously before continuing. “Frankly, I’d kill to have this in my own collection, but my contract with the show prevents me from making an offer. If you choose to sell, I can point you in the direction of a buyer or an appropriate auction site.” He slipped his business card into Molly’s hand with a wink and a meaningful nod. “In case you’re ever in need of my services.”

  “Thanks!” She tucked the card into her pocket, too dazed to decipher the meaning of the wink and nod.

  “About that on-air clinch…” James turned Gabe away from her even though they were still within earshot.

  She gulped just thinking of her unrestrained public reaction to this complicated stranger. Her head—and not just her head!—still reeled with aftershocks of desire. Life was too confusing at the moment to make sense of anything, especially the way she’d melted into him with a compulsive desire to stick her tongue down his throat and rub herself against him like a cat.

  Gabe cleared his throat. “Sorry about that.”

  Molly closed her eyes against the memory, only to have the episode flash across her eyelids in bold strokes and vivid colors. She opened her eyes immedia
tely and turned away, while Gabe continued. “I hope you can edit it to make our segment airable.”

  “Sure, no problem. The Sleeping Lotus is one of our best finds in years. We’ll make it work, but you should know—” Shooting a glance at Molly, he turned his back on her, too, and leaned close to Gabe’s ear, talking quickly and too quietly for her to hear.

  Gabe darted a guarded look her way, but responded to James without bothering to keep his voice down. “You mean, like Spanish fly, oysters, or rhinoceros horn? I don’t believe it.” Shaking his head, he shook hands with the appraiser and accepted a business card from the man. “We’ll be in touch.”

  Two of the spectators from the sidelines—a barrel-shaped man in a Reds cap, and a woman who resembled a woodpecker with a long, thin nose and a shock of orangish hair—approached Molly and Gabe, congratulating them on their good fortune. With greedy eyes, the couple watched Molly handle the jade petals.

  “You’re so lucky.” A rhythmic bobbing of the woman’s head added to the woodpecker effect. “Discovering a Sleeping Lotus is quite a coup.”

  “Thank you.” Molly tried to be polite even though her emotions still careened wildly. “But I only own half of it.”

  “What are you going to do with that beauty?” The Reds fan’s deep bass voice rumbled like thunder. “There’ll be collectors coming out of the woodwork with offers for something as rare as this.”

  Uneasy under their scrutiny, she wrapped the petals in the terry dishtowel she’d bundled it in earlier. “I haven’t had time to think about it.”

  “Whatever you decide, be careful.” The man echoed James’ words of caution. “Some collectors can be relentless. Isn’t that right, Ethel?”

  “Right you are, Bert. It wouldn’t surprise me if some rabid erotica enthusiast tried to take advantage of a young girl like you. Bert and I dabble a bit in Asian carvings, so if you need advice on selling, just give us a call.” Ethel slid a business card into the front pocket of Molly’s bag. “We’ll make sure you get top dollar.”