She gazed up at him.
And sighed. Rather dreamily.
He grinned.
“Don’t gloat,” she whispered in a softer voice, one not quite so dark and raw.
“I can’t help it,” he told her. “You’re practically melting into me.”
“I can’t help it,” she teased back. “You’re seriously irresistible.”
With a chuckle, he told her, “I’m okay with that.”
“But…we should get going.”
“We should get going,” he concurred.
Still, they remained rooted where they stood, staring at each other.
Perhaps it was the prospect of what awaited them on the other side of his bedroom door that made it so damn difficult for them to move in that direction.
Despite how much Damen wanted to see his mother and his niece, so they knew he was all right after his latest mission—and he wanted them to meet Nikki, of course—he knew their private world would instantly shatter when they left his suite.
Plus, there was no telling what would happen once they were on the ops campus and they transferred the data that was on her computer.
Unfortunately, they could only stall for so long. These were pressing matters to tend to.
So he slipped his hand in hers and led her into the hallway and down the stairs. At the landing, they veered off from the vast foyer and passed into the opened formal living room that overlooked the patio and the courtyard, all covered with a blanket of fresh powder.
Mads was outside making a snowman when she caught sight of them through the tall windows. She quickly abandoned her effort and raced through the door to get to Damen, not even stopping to shed her boots or her coat. Much to his mother’s dismay.
As Mads threw her arms around him, Damen’s mother followed close behind, coming from the kitchen. She made a tsking noise.
“Look at this mess, Mads,” she gently chastised.
“I’ll clean it, I promise.” Staring up at Damen, she added, “I’m just sooo happy you’re home!”
“Me, too.” He returned her fierce hug. Then he gestured toward Nikki and said, “I want you to meet a friend of mine, Dr. Nikki Kane.”
Mads very reluctantly unraveled from him and thrust her hand toward Nikki. “It’s very nice to meet you, Dr. Kane. I’m Mads.”
Nikki smiled sweetly. “I’m Nikki. And I love your hair.”
Mads beamed. “I just had it done the other day. The color starts to fade after a few weeks and it’s not quite as cool.”
“It’s perfect,” Nikki commented.
The rainbow effect was neither stripes nor streaks, but an entire blending of colors that morphed into each other.
Mads whipped her head back and forth to show off the full extent of the blending. She said, “It takes, like, two hours. But I think it’s groovy.”
Nikki’s brow shot up.
Damen laughed. “She’s a bit of a free-spirit. A modern-day flower child.”
“I can dig it,” Nikki said. And flashed a peace sign with her fingers.
Damen was pretty certain she’d just made a best friend.