Red-hot and all-encompassing heat curled through her, stoked hotter when his lips added pressure and she opened her mouth to him. Last night, their first kiss had been more tentative, aware of the eyes of those around them, but tonight his kiss was fierce. The taste of his tongue as it swirled with hers sinful.
She gripped his arm, her other arm hooking around his neck in an attempt to bring him closer to her. His fingers touched the small of her back, caressing, and her knees felt like they might give.
But Jack’s arms were there, holding her, lifting her, and carrying her like she weighed nothing until they reached the bed.
Then he was touching her, tasting her, making her remember what it was like to feel so loved, so happy, so wanted, and she held him tighter to her, kissing him back with what felt like her entire being.
She’d missed this. This feeling of being loved.
But this was more. More than she’d felt before. Right now, she felt adored. Special.
Something she wasn’t sure anyone had ever made her feel.
Then her thoughts crashed together as she became almost mindless under his caresses until soon she wasn’t thinking anything at all.
Only feeling. And loving. And being loved.
…
Jack opened his eyes, knowing exactly where he was and who he was with, the realization bringing him only elation. The sun had barely crept into the room, and he rolled over, placing a kiss on Daisy’s lips.
She murmured something but didn’t open her eyes, and he took the moment to stare at her, enjoying the contrast of dark hair against smooth, olive skin, thick lashes that curved into her upper cheekbones, her face soft and relaxed without worry.
How long had it been since he’d spent the entire night with a woman and woke up to such a feeling of gratitude and wonder? Of wanting to share the rest of the day and every day and night with her?
He played with a lock of her hair, enjoying its softness under his fingertips before leaning forward to kiss her bare shoulder. Careful not to wake her, he slipped from the bed, knowing that if they were lucky, there’d be another hour before the rest of the house stirred.
Time for him to get started on his own surprise.
Daisy had spent every morning of her vacation making breakfast for everyone, it was time someone else returned the favor. Notably…him. Hopefully his culinary skills would hold up under the pressure of being judged by such a practiced chef.
He’d just poured the egg mixture into the pan when Daisy ambled in looking every inch like a woman who’d just spent the night making love. His heart swelled in his chest as he stared at her, the soft glowing skin that contrasted against the dark richness of her hair. At lips that needed to be kissed even though it had been mere hours since he’d kissed them soundly.
He wrapped his arm around her when she reached him, pulling her against him to do exactly that again, enjoying the slight moan that slipped from her mouth. If he wasn’t careful, he might need to abandon his idea of making breakfast and sweep her back to the bedroom where he could show her again how much he valued each and every attribute
she possessed.
He eased back, smiling as he caught the dreamy, contented look on her face, the red tinge around her mouth caused by the coarse growth on his jaw. His phone vibrated from the counter.
“I’d ask how you slept but I think we both know how that went,” he said, reaching over to answer it, enjoying the flush that crept up her cheeks.
“There’s been a development.” It was Stuart, of course.
“There always is,” Jack said, grabbing a spatula and trying to salvage the eggs that were already too brown on the bottom.
“Aaron Leary wrote an editorial that was in the Tribune this morning. I’ll spare you from dredging through it, but in essence, he thinks instead of you wasting time and Utah tax dollars frolicking in the sun with your girlfriend, you should be here preparing to assume the duties of governor.”
“First, Daisy isn’t my girlfriend, she’s my fiancée,” Jack said, nearly mangling the words, his temper rising. “Second, this isn’t costing the taxpayers anything. This is my vacation, the first I’ve taken in three years and it’s on my dime.”
Stuart cleared his throat. “That’s almost entirely true. You have to keep in mind that your security detail—even though mandated under law to be there whether you want them to or not—are being paid from the state’s coiffures. The central point to his argument is that there’s going to be a big transition coming in the next few weeks, and Leary and his cronies are sounding the alarm that you’re not here to oversee it.”
Jack rubbed the back of his neck. “I was planning on returning Sunday. Will that be soon enough for my detractors?” Something was smoking and he looked down to see that the eggs were a mess. He flipped off the burner and took the pan to the sink, his attention caught on Daisy who was sitting at the counter, sipping her cup of coffee, a wide, beautiful smile on her face as she watched the show.
Stuart paused. “That’s four days away. I hate to think what Leary could pull next.”
Damn. It pained him to think about bringing this vacation to a close any sooner than he planned, but he wasn’t seeing another alternative. Stuart was right. He needed to step up now.
As if sensing his change in heart, Stuart continued. “The plane could be there by this afternoon, Jack. You could be in front of the press giving them your full undivided attention in time for the evening news.”