Counting On You (Counting the Billions 2)

Eventually, Abby laughingly conceded. “You win, you win!” she told me, when it became clear that she wasn’t getting her wrists free of my grasp. She wrapped her legs around my body, and when I finally released her, she all but collapsed against me, breathing heavily. She snuggled into the hollow of my neck, humming contentedly. I carried her to the edge of the pool and helped her out.

We were both silent as I gently toweled her off and then led her back toward the bed, tugging her gently along with me. We made out again, this time even more heatedly than before. But I could tell that the sun and the swim had worn her out. I smiled at her. “Nap time?” I suggested.

She smiled up at me and curled even closer to me, nodding wordlessly. I wrapped my arms tightly around her, lightly stroking her hair and back. She fell asleep almost immediately, and it was all that I could do to stay awake, to keep this moment going for as long as I could.

Chapter 16

Abby

I WOKE UP TANGLED IN the sheets on Saturday morning, as Daniel slipped back into the room dressed in athletic wear. “Good morning, sleeping beauty,” he said, sounding amused. “There’s coffee and some breakfast pastries on the table if you want.”

I blinked over at him and then looked over at the clock. The last thing I could remember was going for a swim yesterday afternoon and then coming back in here to take a nap. I groaned. “Did I really sleep for the whole night?” I asked.

Daniel laughed. “Yeah, you did,” he said, coming over to the edge of the bed and leaning down to give me a quick kiss. “I didn’t realize work was wearing you out that badly. You should have told me.”

I shook my head. “I honestly had no idea I was that tired,” I told him. I stretched broadly, hearing my back crack as I did so. “God, I feel good. Better than I have in forever.”

“Good,” Daniel said, looking amused.

I reached out and grabbed his shirt, tugging him toward me so he sprawled ungracefully on the bed. I started peeling off his clothes. “I thought we agreed we were going to spend the whole weekend in our robes,” I complained.

He laughed. “That would have made for an awkward workout down at the hotel gym,” he pointed out.

“Is that where you were?” I asked.

“Yeah, I woke up early

and I didn’t want to disturb you,” Daniel told me. “This place has a pretty nice gym too. Got some good reps in.”

I raised an eyebrow at him. “What, you didn’t think I was going to give you a good enough workout later?” I asked teasingly.

Daniel laughed and leaned in to kiss me passionately for a moment. Then, he pulled away. “I should probably shower,” he said slowly, and I could hear the suggestion in his voice.

I grinned at him and pulled him in for another kiss. “What’s on the agenda for today, after that shower?” I asked breathlessly as we pulled apart.

Daniel shrugged. “Whatever you want,” he told me.

“Mm, I like the sound of that,” I said. “But I don’t even know what the options are. Other than, you know, staying in the room all day.”

“We could do that,” Daniel said, “or I was thinking you might want to head down to the spa and get a couples massage? With the way you slept last night, I’m thinking that maybe you could do with a little relaxation and pampering.”

I laughed and shoved at his shoulder. “If I need a little relaxation, it’s your fault, boss.”

“I know,” Daniel said, holding a hand over his heart. “So aren’t you so glad that I’ve taken it upon myself to rectify the situation?” He leaned in close, kissing my shoulder. “But before we do that, I’m going to show you just how much I appreciate you.”

I giggled again, frowning toward my bag as my phone started going off. “Ignore it,” I said to Daniel.

“You can answer that if you want to,” Daniel said, smiling at me. “I don’t mind.”

I shook my head at him. “This weekend is about us,” I said. “Whoever that is, it can wait.” I doubted it was anything important, anyway. Daniel was the one who had to field work calls on the weekends. I was just his advisor; any of the calls I had to field were coming from him. So if it wasn’t him calling me, there was a short list of other people it could be. More than likely, it was just some telemarketer.

“Come on, I want to hear all about this appreciation that you were going to shower me with,” I told him.

Daniel grinned and lay me back on the bed, beginning to kiss his way along my body. With each kiss, he complimented either my body or my work: “I like that you’re not afraid to make suggestions at work, even to guys who are decades older than you”; “I like this little freckle right here”; “I like that you’re so grateful to be here.”

My phone had quit ringing, but suddenly, the ringtone started again. “Ignore it,” I insisted. “Whoever it is, they’re probably just calling back to leave a message this time or something. Like, they didn’t know what they wanted to say the first time.”

Daniel smirked at me. “Something that you do a lot?” he asked.