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“All right, I won’t,” Rachel agreed softly because she wasn’t truly sorry about the open way she had responded to him

“Good night, Rachel” There was a split-second’s hesitation before he caught the point of her chin between his thu it still while hiskiss

“Good night,” shewell clear of her

Under his watchful eye she turned and shakily re purse to insert it in the lock Before she entered the cabin, Rachel glanced over her shoulder once and smiled faintly at him, then stepped inside

For a long ainst the closed door and held on to the lingering after-sensations, trying to separate eed for her introspective study to divide

Slowly Rachel moved away from the door into the center of the room All the preparations for her retireht steward—the bed was turned down and the drapes were closed The next day’s issue of the Princess Patter was on the table

Rachel slipped off her silver-gilt shoes and set the purse She reached behind her neck and began to unfasten the tiny eyehooks of the dress’s high collar The first one slipped free easily, but the second was more stubborn

“Damn,” she swore softly in frustration, unable to see what she was doing and obliged to rely on feel alone

“Need some help?” Gard’s lazy voice sounded behind her

Startled, she swiveled around, her fingers still at the back of her collar He stood silently inside her cabin door and calmly pushed it shut Wide-eyed, she watched him, certain the door had been locked and the key replaced in her purse

“How did you get in here?” She finally ed to overcome her surprise and shock and ask him the question

“I had a key to this cabin to start out with—relint in his eye as he crossed the room to where she stood “For some reason Ihaven’t remembered to turn it in” He held it up between his thuer to show her “I decided it was time I removed temptation from my pocket”

It hadn’t occurred to Rachel that Gard still ht have a key to the cabin they had shared so briefly When he offered it to her, she extended an upturned palainst her skin when Gard laid it in the center of her palaze searched his face

“You could just as easily have knocked,” Rachel said

“I could have,” he ad the back neckline of her dress No apology was offered for the fact that he had let hiuess I didn’t want to have the door shut on ain”