He ended the call and slipped his phone in his trouser pocket, sending her a glinting look. ‘It seems there might be some fringe benefits for me in this crazy scheme of yours after all.’
‘Oh?’
‘That was one of the big time sponsors I’ve been chasing for months. He wouldn’t play ball. Until now.’
‘Why now?’
Luiz took her hand and entwined his fingers with hers, drawing her a step closer to his tall hard frame. ‘Because up until now he thought I was a reckless playboy who would bring nothing but disrepute to his precious company’s name. But a tweet’s just gone out about us being a couple.’
Daisy could feel the electric zing of his touch racing all the way to her armpit and beyond. ‘You mean he’ll back you now? Because of me?’
His eyes shone with triumph. ‘Apparently one of his goddaughters goes to your school. She’s not in your class but he’s heard nothing but praise for you. He figures if you’re involved with me then I must be worth backing. This is exactly what I need to win the Argentine Open Championship.’
‘Why do you need his sponsorship? Don’t you have plenty of money of your own?’
‘It’s not about the money,’ he said. ‘It’s the show of confidence in my ability I’m after. Look at the top sportsmen and women in golf and tennis or skiing or snowboarding or whatever. Their sponsors build their image. They brand it. The better your brand, the more confidence people have in your talent. That show of confidence boosts your own. It feeds off it.’
Daisy was pleased for him but she could see the pitfalls even if he couldn’t. ‘What are you going to say to your sponsor when we break up at the end of the week?’
She could almost see the cogs of his brain ticking over. His triumphant expression faltered momentarily before he beamed her a confident smile. ‘We can always extend our fling. It’s only a month till the Grand Slam.’
Daisy frowned at him. ‘Aren’t you forgetting something? I live in London. I have a job to go to. I’m only here now because the girls wanted me to come to Vegas with them for half-term break.’
‘The Argentine Open is on the first Saturday in December,’ he said. ‘I could fly you over for it.’
It sounded wonderfully exotic. A trip to Buenos Aires, all expenses paid. A box seat to see one of the most talented polo players in the world battle it out for the ultimate crown. It would be something to remember when she was just another suburban wife and mother trying to juggle work and family.
‘But what about the other three weeks?’ she asked.
‘The sponsor is based in London so I’ll be back and forth,’ he said. ‘We can meet up often enough to keep the press from thinking anything’s amiss.’
Daisy ignored the red flag that warned against spending too much time with the wickedly charming Luiz Valquez. She had asked for four days and now she had the chance to have four weeks. She’d wanted a walk on the wild side, hadn’t she? This was her chance to make it one to remember. ‘OK. You’re on.’
He took her by the shoulders and pressed a blisteringly hot kiss to her mouth. Daisy leaned into him, unable to help herself from responding with burgeoning passion. He only had to touch her and she erupted into flames. She could feel the heat rushing through her veins, sending electric sensations through every cell in her body.
His hands cupped her face, his fingers splaying out over her cheeks as he deepened the kiss. His tongue played cat and mouse with hers, teasing and taunting hers to fight back. She flicked her tongue against his, doing her own little teasing routine, delighting in the way he groaned in the back of his throat and brought his pelvis hard against hers. She felt the hard ridge of him, the pressure of his blood building as his desire for her escalated. She stroked her hands down over the taut curve of his buttocks, bringing him in closer so she could feel the imprint of his erect flesh on hers.
His hands left her face; one went to her left hip, the other to the zip at the back of her dress. He rolled it down, exposing her spine from the base of her neck to the crease at the top of her bottom. He slid his hand over her skin, discovering every one of her vertebrae in turn. His touch evoked a delicious shower of reaction, especially when he came to the curve of her bottom. She immediately tensed her buttocks, hoping he wouldn’t think her fat.
‘Relax for me, querida,’ he whispered against the skin of her neck.
‘I’m not good at getting naked with people.’
He sent his tongue over her top lip and then her bottom one in a barely-there caress that made her lips sing with delight. ‘You were pretty relaxed about it last night.’