So here you are at Adam Klaus' sold out show, looking amazing in a tight emerald green dress made of velvet so lush even you're having a touch time keeping your hands off it.

Pushing off the wall you've been leaning against, you notice a crowd gathering. Wondering at the stir, you start forward only to have a strong hand wrap around your arm.

"I beg your pardon?" You turn angrily, ready to tell off the owner of the hand, stopping only when you realize who it is.

"Well, if you like to beg, I have to admit I'm not the man to stop you." His voice is somewhere between a purr and a growl and you decide then and there that if seduction has a sound, that is it. He slides his hand down your bare arm until he reaches your hand. Bowing slightly, he lifts it for a kiss. "Adam Klaus."

"Yes, I saw the marquee." You pull your hand from his and turn back toward the crowd.

"I could tell you the inside scoop," he offers. "All the…juicy details."

Wondering vaguely if he knows who you are, you turn back to him. "And how do you know the…" You pause as well, lacing the words with his implied meaning. "Juicy details?"

Taking your interest as acceptance, he guides you into the silent auditorium. Leading you to the stage, he lifts you onto it, allowing him an excellent view up your skirt, should he look.

Crossing your legs and placing one high heel shoe against his chest, you smile and lean forward. "All right, magic man. Dazzle me."

"The police have solved a murder."

"Well, that in itself should cause a stir." His eyes lock on the soft swell of your breast and you move your arms just slightly to give him a better view. "But I sense there's a little more?"

"A lot more, actually."

Your eyes widen innocently. "Really?"

"Mmm. He manages to look you in the eye, a feat you'd thought him incapable of. "My assistant was arrested just a bit ago."

"I'm surprised she didn't ask you to make her disappear."

"Oh but she has disappeared." He snaps his fingers and you start, angry with yourself for getting lost in his green eyes. "Like magic. So I'm in something of a bind. I need a lovely new lady at my side."

You hop off the stage, loving the distinct look of admiration on his face. The sarcasm, however, takes him by surprise. "Oh good, I do so love a man on the rebound."

His eyes narrow and you can tell you've offended him. "Never on the rebound. Always on the prowl."

"How do the women resist?"

"They don't."

Something in his voice lets you k now he's not bragging, merely stating a fact. A fact that depresses you immensely. "Well then, I guess it's time one of them did."

"Jonathan, you're a whiz at this sort of thing."

"Adam, a dress color and the fact that she has breasts like Devonshire cream is hardly enough to go on. Even for me."

"If anyone can do this for me, Jonathan, it's you."

You step through the doorway, smiling. "Mr. Klaus. And…Mr. Creek?"

Adam smiles in return, bathing you in the full force of his charm. "See Jonathan? You always make it look so easy."

Rolling his eyes, the other man offers you a timid smile. He seems rather unassuming, but again your intuition pops up and you realize, had you not shown up, he would have found the way to your doorstep soon enough.

"You've changed your mind then?"

Adam shrugs off his robe, treating you to the sight of his bare chest. Your higher functions cease working for a moment as you gaze at him, wondering if bondage is out of the question with an illusionist.

"Not quite." Forcing your mind back on your reason for being there, you offer him your card.

"Bloody hell."

"Bloody? Giving up your Yankee ways?" You ask, moving further into the room.

"It's better to say bloody in mixed company. You know what I mean to say but I sound like a gentleman." He hands the card to Jonathan who immediately raises his eyebrows.

"A chaperone?"

You step aside and let in a very regal young girl. "Adam, meet your travelling companion, Miss Adrienne Luxembourg."

Adrienne sighs heavily and looks up at you. "Can I go back to the hotel? I'm dying of boredom."

"I'll walk you out."

"It's not necessary. I'm quite capable of making it to the limousine by myself."

"Your father would have my head." You gesture to the door and follow her out to the waiting car. "Take her to the hotel and make sure she gets to her room? Mr. Klaus and I will be along in just a bit. I imagine I have some explaining to do."

George, your driver, nods and helps Adrienne into the back of the car before moving to the driver's seat. "I'll see you in a bit then Miss?"

"Soon." You watch them drive away and sigh heavily, knowing that the next part of your evening is going to be far from exciting. You walk back to the dressing rooms and lean against the wall, waiting for Adam to hang up the phone in disgust, which you're sure he'll do when he realizes he's lost.

"How did this happen?" Jonathan asks quietly from the doorway.

Looking up, you smile at him. "Adam romanced a certain reporter. She became his public relations woman and got him to agree to this contest. Adrienne won. He signed a contract, which I'm sure he's regretting. She's something of a handful. And she has the biggest crush on him."

The soft chuckle surprises you. "It might do Adam some good to have consequences from one of his many romances come back and bite him in the ass."

Your smile fades a bit. "Well, the reporter in question has done so on a couple of occasions."

Jonathan sits next to you and takes your hand, a move that surprises you both. You look into his eyes and can't help the tears that well up. "Tell me?"

"She was a friend. She got involved with Adam, much to the…annoyance of the man she was seeing. Things didn't go well for her after she stopped seeing him. Adam, I mean. She's better now. Somewhat."

"Does Adam know?"

"Pays her hospital bills." You smile sadly through your tears. "He didn't know about the other man when things started between them. I believe that, but it doesn't change what happened. That's why I became involved with the contest. I wanted to make it worth something…you know, everything she went through."

The door to the other room opens and you both look up. Adam is standing there, a strange look on his face. "Well, bloody hell." He sighs and sits down at the makeup table. "All right. Where is she?"

"Back at her hotel. We'll be travelling with you for the next two weeks. We've arranged our itinerary with the help of your booking agent." You stand and hold out your hand for him to shake. He stares at it for a moment before taking it in his own. He looks up to meet your eyes. "She's a nice girl and she adores you. She just wants to see you work your magic. I promise that we won't…interfere with your lifestyle at all. She has to be in bed by eleven, anyway."

"And you? What time do you have to be to bed?"

"Goodnight, Mr. Klaus." You turn and face Jonathan. "Mr. Creek."

You lay in your bed, listening to the night. You should be asleep. You should be lost in dreams of lush beaches and ocean waves but instead all you can think about is a fourteen year old girl in the room to one side of you and the magician on the other.

"Damn." Tossing the covers back, you pull the satin robe on over your slip of a nightgown and walk to the sliding glass doors that lead out to your balcony. Unlocking them and stepping out into the night, you can't help but sigh.

"Can't sleep?"

You see the soft glow of a candle to your left and look over. Adam is lounging on a chair staring up at the sky. The candle is just a faint glow, perhaps just providing comfort, since it obviously isn't for illuminations. "No. Yourself?"

"I had a lot on my mind." He stands and walks over to the divider that separates your balconies. You watch him, realizing he's wearing a pair of silk pajama bottoms that are slung low on his hips. You're certainly beginning to believe in magic, since you're positive there's no way they could stay up on their own.

"Your agent was supposed to notify you," you shrug, pretending that you haven't noticed the dark vee of hair that disappears under the loose waistband or imagined what else lies beneath them. "I'm sorry if that didn't happen."

"A fourteen year old girl seriously puts a damper on my lifestyle."

"Your nights will be free." Is that edge really there in your voice?

He leans forward and your heartbeat increases. "What makes you think that my nights are all I need?"

Moving closer, you lean next to him. The short distance between the rooms allows you to look at each other and almost touch. "Well, you're short an assistant. Without one, you don't have to…practice?"

His smile is wolfish. "I still have to audition them all."

"Well, good luck with that then." You turn to go, hating yourself for feeling anything for the man. Just because he could be a gentleman when it suited him, didn't mean that he was a gentleman. If anything, it meant the exact opposite.

"Wait." He asks softly.

You turn around, your lips pursed together. "Yes, Mr. Klaus?"

"I'm sorry…about your friend." The fact that neither of you can manage to say her name is telling, but you can't call him on something you yourself are guilty of.

"No more so than I am."

"She mentioned you occasionally. You're close?"

"We were when it mattered." Shrugging, you turn away again. "Goodnight, Mr. Klaus."

"Honey, call me Adam. If we're going to spend the next two weeks together, we may as well pretend to be friends."

"Are we ready?" Adrienne pushed her dark hair back behind her ears and tapped her foot impatiently. "Shouldn't we be going to breakfast and to the theatre? I don't want to miss anything."

Only her good breeding keeps it from being a whine, but you know one when you hear it. "In a moment."

"Why are you wearing that?" Looking over the pale gray pants and lavender blouse, she wrinkles her nose. "It's not your color, you know. You'd look better in something else. Why won't you wear something more flattering?"

"Shall we?" You pick up your purse and keys, ignoring her comments and the voice in your head that agrees with them. You don't tell a fourteen year old that you're dressing down so that you'll seem less attractive to the man she has a crush on.

Not that you can tell if he's attracted to you. It seems that flirting is as essential to Adam as breathing, perhaps more so.

"Are we having breakfast with him?" You look over her outfit and nod, approving of her choice. Jeans and a long sleeve shirt over a tank top, cool enough for the evening before the performance and, fortunately, not too revealing. "I can't wait to spend some time with him. Do you think he'll let me help with some of the tricks?"

"I don't know. He has people he pays to do that, love."

The knock on your door catches her attention and she swings it open quickly. Adam is standing there wearing leather pants and a red silk shirt, looking far more appetizing than anything on the breakfast menu. He takes Adrienne's hand and kisses it, producing a rose from behind his back. "Good morning, beautiful lady."

A soft blush suffuses her face and she giggles softly. She's going to grow up to be exactly the kind of woman Adam Klaus falls for, beautiful, well off, smart and coquettish. Everything, you admit to yourself, that you're not. "Good morning. May I…may I call you Adam?"

"I insist on it." Looking over her head at you, he favors you with a smile. "Shall I take you two ladies to breakfast before we venture off to the theatre?"

You nod, not hearing Adrienne's enthusiastic response. You're lost again in those green eyes, only now you're wondering what it would feel like to run your hands over his strong, leather clad thighs.

"Coming?"

"Right behind you, Mr. Klaus." You follow the two of them out the door, allowing him to take you by the arm. He escorts you both downstairs in that manner, guiding you to a table set for three. "Where's Jonathan?"

"Off with a new friend." He pulls out Adrienne's chair and sets her in it before coming round to do the same for you. You smile at your charge, seeing the idolatry in her eyes. Adam pushes in your chair and leans over, his breath whispering in your ear. "Comfortable?"

You turn to answer, noticing that he's not looking at you at all, but instead at a willowy blonde at the next table. A sharp pain goes through your chest and unexplainable tears threaten to well up in your eyes. "Just fine. Thank you."

He nods and sits, making sure the blonde is well within his line of sight. Thankful that Adrienne is there to make conversation, you eat your breakfast in silence, not wanting to think. Fortunately, he's enough of a gentleman to treat the young girl with care, paying attention to her as she speaks.

But his eyes never leave the blonde.

"I have to make a phone call." You push away from the table and move off before either of them can say anything to you. Out of their sight, you disappear into the bathroom and stare at yourself in the mirror. "You're being ridiculous. You're getting all weepy because he's looking elsewhere, when you've as much as told him that's what he should do. So either come to grips with what you want or…" You trail off, noticing another woman has walked into the room.

"Adam?"

"Pardon?"

She has short red hair and seems slightly frazzled. "You're talking to yourself in the mirror. You're talking about Adam, I'm guessing."

"Is it a common occurrence where he's concerned?"

Shrugging, she moves to your side and stares at your reflection. "I barely know the man, but I can see that he'd drive someone to it. My name is Maddy. I'm here to see Jonathan."

"Nice to meet you." You introduce yourself in return and sigh. "I'm not his type at all."

"I wouldn't say that." She begins applying lipstick, still looking at you. "You're close enough to the last one…"

"Great. Perhaps I'll run out and commit a murder then, shall I?" You sigh and drop your head. "Adam Klaus has as much will and ability to be faithful as I do to become Queen of England."

"Stranger things have happened," She smiles at you and turns back to her lipstick. "Especially when Jonathan's about."

"Have a thing for him?" You figure if she's allowed to pry, you should be given the same opportunities.

"Jonathan? Heaven's no! He's just…" she stops and blots her lips, a faint flush creeping over her cheeks. "I've got to run. We're meeting someone for brunch. Nice meeting you."

"And you." She leaves in a manner much like a whirlwind and you can't help but smile. Following in her wake, you walk back into the dining room to see that the blonde has joined Adam and Adrienne at your table. In your seat.

Trying to seem nonchalant, you walk up and sit next to Adrienne, giving her a smile. She doesn't notice, so intent on watching Adam as he speaks. You stare at your meal, getting cold in front of the other woman and sigh.

Adam seems to hear you and looks your way. "You're back."

"I wasn't gone that long."

"This is Chloe."

The blonde looks at you and you can see the property sign in her eyes. Adam has just been declared off limits, whether he knows it or not. You glance at him and see his own possessive smile. Well, apparently he knows it. "Nice to meet you. I'm afraid I left something in the room, will you all excuse me?"

"Of course," Chloe smiles at you and you find yourself struggling to control the desire to puncture her obviously fake breasts.

"Adrienne, make sure you stay with Mr. Klaus. I'd hate for anything to happen to you while you were in his care."

The threat given, you get up and head for the elevator, feeling horrible.

And the worst part of it is that it's glaringly obvious that this is your own fault. Turning around as you get to the elevator, you catch sight of them once again and sigh. Well, not entirely your fault. Something tells you that, even if you had accepted Adam's offer, you'd still be right where you are now.

Only perhaps a little more satisfied.

The theater is quiet as Adam runs through his routine, not having to expend much energy to keep both Chloe, who tagged along, and Adrienne enthralled. You can't help smiling at the delight on the younger girls' face as he focuses his attention on her. Her father's position keeps him busy and she doesn't get nearly enough personal attention, other than from you.

"I'll have to ask." Adrienne looks over at you. "Is it all right?"

You shake your head to clear the thoughts from it and look up at their expectant faces. "What's that?"

"Can I help Adam tonight? He says there's something I can do that's not very difficult!"

"I'll have to discuss it with him, but if it's as safe as he says, I don't see a problem." You meet his eyes, ignoring the blond. "You won't mind going over it with me?"

"Not at all." His voice is controlled, but you can see the quick glance over to the obviously annoyed Chloe. You barely manage to hide your smile before he turns back to you. "How about in an hour? I'll have one of the guys show you the way the trick works and then we'll discuss it?"

"Sounds wonderful." You move off to the steps that will take you back into the wings. Adrienne is staring at Adam, who has moved over to Chloe's side. Sighing, you move over to her. "Why don't you come with me and we'll find out how this works. I'm sure it's safe and then you'll be a star."

"I'll never be like her, though, will I?"

"A opportunist with bleached blond hair? I should hope not."

Adrienne giggles. "That's not what I meant."

"No, but it made you laugh." You take her arm and lead her off into the wings, willing yourself not to look back at Adam. Losing the fight, you look back as he wraps his arm around Chloe and leads her off in the other direction. Ignoring the tightening in your chest, you turn back to Adrienne's now excited conversation and very deliberately put Adam Klaus out of your mind.

You stand outside the door of his dressing room, knowing that you should just walk away. He's in there. You can feel it. He's also a half-hour late for your meeting. You've sent Adrienne back to the hotel with your driver, telling her to rest up for the night ahead. The trick is relatively simple and you, for some reason, trust Adam with it.

You swallow hard and lift your hand to knock, just as the door opens and Chloe steps out. Her hair and makeup look as pristine as they had that morning, which is your first clue that something has happened. She also has her skirt on backwards. "Chloe."

"Oh, um, hello." She doesn't even bother trying to remember your name as she brushes past you. You nod as she walks off before turning to face the now closed door once again. Knocking this time, you push it open and walk inside.

He's lying there on the chaise lounge wearing a long, silver silk robe. "You're late."

"I didn't want to interrupt your…audition, did you call it?"

"Time slipped away from me."

"Really? You don't seem the type to let anything out of your grasp." You sit in the chair at the vanity and look at him. "They walked me through the trick. I have no problems with allowing Adrienne to do it. I'm sure you'll be careful with her."

"Of course."

"Of course." You stand up and start to leave; ignoring the predatory look in his eyes and the scent of him that permeates the room. "We'll see you this evening, then."

"Wait." He stands and comes up behind you, grabbing your arms gently. "Talk to me."

"You don't want a conversation, Mr. Klaus. What you want is to figure out why I'm not falling all over you like the other two women you've encountered today." Shrugging off his arms and turning to face him, you look him straight in the eye. "Fine then, I'll tell you. I'm here because I have a job to do. I'm not here to fall for you or your charms. I'm here to make sure that you pay attention to that girl and that she has a delightful time. That's all."

"I like you angry."

"I don't like you."

"Liar." He pouts slightly and steps closer. "You like me more than you care to admit. You like the fact that I'm dangerous."

"Oh yes, it ranks right up there with irresponsible and promiscuous. You're a fine catch." Turning around, you walk out of the dressing room intent on leaving the theatre. You get a few feet away before you're swept up and deposited neatly over his shoulder.

Walking back into the dressing room, he shuts the door with his foot. He slides you down his body, and places his hands on the sides of your face. "Don't walk away."

"Adam," you start.

"Say it again." He moves closer, the silk rustling against you. "Say it?"

"A…Adam?"

He leans in, his lips brushing yours lightly. "You make it so full of promise." Moving his head slowly, he finds your earlobe with his lips, nuzzling it. "I don't suppose you'd like to realize that promise?"

You step back, swallowing hard. "Adam, you were just in here with another woman having sex. Exactly how do you think that would be turning me on?"

His eyes narrow and he steps back as well. "You're saying I don't turn you on?" Disbelief is all over his face.

"I never said that. I simply said that there's no way in hell I'm going to fall into your arms after Chloe of all people."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Turning toward the door again, you glance back over your shoulder. "You seem like a smart man Adam. Figure it out."

Adrienne is sitting in your room when you get back to the hotel, practically bouncing in anticipation. "Well?"

"Well?" You stare at her for a moment before realization dawns in your eyes. "Oh. Of course. Adam will take excellent care of you."

"I'd let him take care of me."

"Adrienne!" You shake your head and shut your door. "I thought you were going to rest before tonight's performance."

"I am. I just had to know for sure." She gets up and heads for the adjoining door. "And don't worry. I know he won't even glance my way until I'm about five years older. But…never mind."

"But what?"

"Why don't you like him?"

"I'm not the kind of girl Adam looks twice at, love." You sigh and sit on the bed, wondering why you're lying. "He likes women he can mold and dispose of. I'm afraid I don't fit the pattern."

She nods. "I suppose it's a good thing then isn't it? That you're not interested?"

"A very good thing," you nod as she leaves the room, waiting until the lock clicks to lie back on the bed. If only it were true.

Continues