Lying Beauty... Adam Gase had risked his inheritance to rebuild a crumbling sugar plantation, but his dream was shattered after he was thrown into a Louisiana prison for crimes he did not commit. Now he was free, bent on revenge -- and he would start by bedding his enemy's mistress, the violet-eyed Cat Douchand. She was all business by day, and pure temptress by night, luring men into her profitable gambling hell, and Adam set out to teach the lying beauty a thing or two about fair play. But when he took Cat in his arms, he discovered she was no cheater, for she responded to his bold caresses and demanding kisses with an honest passion he found irresistible, and soon he vowed to possess her body and soul. Cheating Stranger... Ebony-haired Catherine Douchand had but one dream -- to buy back her beloved childhood home, Belle Terre, from the careless northerner who'd allowed the once-graceful plantation to fall into ruin. The Creole beauty had nearly banked enough of the hard-won profits of her popular New Orleans casino to meet her goal. But one night Cat gambled with a stranger and lost. He claimed a single kiss as his prize, then took much more, his lips searing hers, his hands exploring her every curve, his forceful loving making her forget Belle Terre. And as Cat gave in to desire's rapture, she wondered if she's gambled away her heart along with her passion...