‘You really do need to get in,’ he said, ‘before my sister threatens another, far more important part of my anatomy.’
* * *
Whatever had got to her faded. The lines creasing her brow softened, her eyes once again bright, her smile once again teasingly subtle, the hint of promise making Daniel ache to add some alone time into the schedule she’d mapped out.
She lowered herself into the car and he followed suit, his mind preoccupied as it had been since he’d unwillingly left her that morning, fighting the urge to insist she leave with him. He hadn’t been ready to go, not without her accompanying him. Which was crazy. That didn’t happen to him. He could only think it was down to her insistence, up-front, for a one-time-only deal. That when it was over, it was over, and it was that rationing that had him so eager for more.
Not that she seemed to be sticking to that rule. Yes, she’d kicked him out of her office at two, but she was giving every sign she was up for more this morning. And that sure as hell worked for him.
‘Did I hear you trying to impress the lady with your car, Daniel?’ his sister chided as they pulled away from the kerb.
He grinned. ‘Maybe.’
‘Ooh, you’re honoured,’ she said in that same teasing tone, eyes narrowing on Zara with speculative interest.
Oh, no, here we go.
‘He never tries to impress the ladies, Zara, they just seem to fall at his feet. He must think you’re different.’
Zara smiled, no trace of discomfort, unless one caught the brief tic to her jaw and the subtle flush to her skin, as he did, sitting so close. ‘Please excuse my sister, she just loves to mock me.’
‘No apology necessary,’ she said, head turning, her gaze flicking to his, both confident and amused. ‘But for the record, if you were trying to impress me, cars would be the way to go.’
‘You like cars?’
She nodded. ‘An obsession passed down by my father. We have a family race day at least once a year.’
His mind rushed with imagery; taking her around his track in Italy, testing out his fleet, seeing how she handled the stick, the wheel, the speed... Adrenaline pumped wildly through his system. ‘I like your father already.’
She gave a small laugh and he clamped his jaw closed.
Where the hell had that come from?
He didn’t talk family with women. And yet that morning alone he’d already done so twice. And that was twice too much.
‘Ew...get a room, you pair,’ his sister drawled, saving him from his own discomfort. ‘Do I have to remind you that this is supposed to be about me? Me and my new home? Not you guys getting your rocks off.’
Now Zara squirmed, her eyes snapping away, her spine straightening and accentuating the teasing length to her neck that was far too close for comfort.
‘Of course, I apologise, Julia,’ she said, the flush to her cheeks becoming obvious now, making her all the more appealing with it as she concentrated on flipping open her bag. ‘Take a look at this. It’s our first destination for today.’
She extracted her tablet, launching the property file as she passed it to Julia. Daniel feigned interest in it across the back seat, but really his attention was on the line of Zara’s body, almost within brushing distance. Her scent, that same vanilla smell that had drugged him yesterday, subtly invading his senses.
Suddenly he wished the car to be smaller, the back seat more compact, then she would be forced up against him and...
And then what?
He would kick his sister out and have an entirely different day.
Not a dick move at all.
He gave a heavy sigh and both women looked to him.
‘Problem?’ Zara asked.
‘Don’t you start being negative already,’ came his sister’s add-on. ‘Else I’ll steal Peters for the day and you can get out now. Your opinion is starting to hinder rather than help, storebror.’
He forced himself to grin. If only they knew it wasn’t the property that had driven his reaction. ‘Better?’