As he pulled away again, he observed with amusement, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a woman so anxious to get into a car with me.”
“It’s an Aston Martin,” she said, breathing heavily from her jog. “You can really accelerate, and I’m desperate.”
“The first time I think I’ve been praised for my ability to go fast.”
“J-just drive.” She breathed in deep, then, pressing a button, put her phone to her ear once more.
Hawk assumed she was calling the car service again.
He glanced at her. She was wearing a short-sleeved caramel-color satin dress with a gently-flared skirt and matching tan kitten heels. He’d already identified the outfit as she was racing toward him as another of what he’d come to think of as her working-party dresses—festive but not so eye-catching that they’d detract attention from where it was meant to be.
Now he listened to her half of the conversation with the car service. It seemed as if she was getting good news.
In fact, when the call was over, Pia slumped with relief.
“They got through to the driver,” she said. “He’s getting off the highway and meeting us three exits away at a gas station rest stop.”
“Great.” On to more enchanting matters. He nodded to her dress. “You look nice.”
She threw him a startled look, as if not expecting the compliment. “Thanks.”
He felt a smile pull at his lips as he tossed her a sidelong look. “Do you pick your wedding clothes with an eye toward being able to make a quick sprint? You made good time across the grass. Rather impressive in those shoes.”
“Weddings can be full of the unexpected,” she replied. “You should know that as well as anyone.”
He arched a brow. “Still, I’m curious. You phoned me to come to your rescue. Am I your modern-day knight riding to the rescue in a black sports car?”
“Hardly,” she replied tartly. “There are very few people I know at this wedding, and you got me into this mess—”
He laughed.
“—so the least you could do when you arrived at just the right moment was to lend a set of wheels.”
“Ah, of course.”
He let the discussion go at that, though he was tempted to tease her some more.
Moments later, he took the highway exit that she indicated and found the gas station.
The driver of the car service was waiting for them, a shopping bag in hand.
After Pia took the errant veil from the driver and thanked him quickly, she and Hawk hopped back into his car.
“The day has been saved,” Hawk remarked as he put the key back in the ignition.
“Not yet,” Pia responded. “The wedding isn’t over. Trust me on this one. I’ve been to more weddings than there are lights in Times Square.”
“Yes, but isn’t this the moment when you thank your hero with a kiss?”
She jerked to look at him, her eyes widening.
Not giving her a chance to think it over, he leaned forward and touched his lips to hers.
Lord, he thought, her lips were as pillowy soft as they looked. Just as he remembered.
Even though he knew he should stop, when he heard and felt Pia’s breath hitch, he deepened the kiss, settling his lips more firmly on hers.
She didn’t pull away, and he drew out the kiss, molding her lips with his. With his hand, he stroked the soft skin of her jaw and throat.