Her Unexpected Admirer Page 0,56
thrilling.
Kate clenched the knot above her breasts but she couldn’t deny that sharp stab of lust. After the shower, she was ready to burst into flames. “Who was on the phone?” she asked, considering dropping the towel.
“It was the hotel in Denver. Someone left an unfinished painting in the closet.” Kate froze, her eyes wide as she remembered trying to hide her painting from him.
“A painting?” she asked, forcing a laugh but it came out nervous and stilted. “Very strange.”
“I agree,” he said. He stood up and walked towards her, fully erect and looking awesome. “But what is even more odd is the fact that you’re still covered up when I told you to drop that towel.”
He was just about to reach for her when she stepped out of his reach. “I think…” she started to say but had to stop for a moment as a wave of intense desire to be in his arms moved through her. She took a deep breath and tried again. “I think I should go.”
He chuckled, not understanding that her mood had changed. “Go where?” he asked, grabbing her around the waist and pulling her closer. “Go back to bed? Great idea.”
She held her breath, trying to not fall back into his arms. She needed to be firm about this. He was too close to her secret. She’d woken knowing that she had to end this for her own peace of mind but that phone call was too close. “Davis, please.”
He looked down at her, hearing the serious tone. “What’s wrong, love?” he asked, loosening his hold, but not letting her get away.
“I have to go,” she told him, still clutching the towel so she wouldn’t start grabbing onto him. “I found the information you needed and I have to get back to Boston.”
He shook his head. “No you don’t. Your father is an ass. You’ll come work for me.”
She thought about that for a moment, her heart soaring simply because he had enough faith in her intelligence to offer her a job. But she shook her head, not wanting to be an accountant. “Thank you. That’s very kind of you, but I have to do something different.”
He didn’t understand. “What do you mean?”
She bit her lip, trying to figure out the best way to tell him this, the best way to get through to him. “I have to go home. I have to do…things…and I…”
“Wait a moment, Kate,” he interrupted. “If you’re about to say that you need to do this alone, you don’t.”
She stepped out of his arms, grateful that he allowed it. There had been many times over the past few days when she’d tried to wiggle away and he’d held her still. Of course, she hadn’t been trying too hard to get away.
No! Breathing deeply, she re-focused on her mission. To save her art and save herself. “Davis, I think I need to just,” her voice broke here and she took a moment to look back at him. It struck her in that moment that she was in love with him. “Oh no!” she gasped, her mouth falling open and her eyes wide with the horror of what she’d done to herself.
“Kate, what’s wrong?” he asked. He was still naked and she looked at him, memorizing every detail because she had to get out of here, had to get away from him. “I just…” she couldn’t really explain it. It didn’t make any sense to her so she definitely couldn’t help him understand. All she knew was that she loved him and he had no idea who she really was.
“I have to go. I have to get out of here.”
Davis ran a hand over his face, his scruffy cheeks and chin making a scraping sound. “Look, let me shower. We’ll get some breakfast, have some coffee and maybe this will make some sense. Because right now, I don’t see any reason for you to run away.”
She thought about telling him that she wasn’t running away but that was exactly what she was doing. She was panicking, realizing how deeply she’d grown to love him. But he’d been making love to a stranger.
She watched him walk into the bathroom and desperation took over. She couldn’t stop, she couldn’t fight the panic welling up inside of her. All she knew was that she had to get out of there. She had to get away from him. She loved him, but she couldn’t love him. She just had to leave.
She threw on her