for him. She yanked her hand away, rubbing the spot where he’d touched her.
“Do you golf?” he asked. “We could play today or we could take a drive. I hear there are some nice wineries west of here in Sonoma.”
Darcy jumped to her feet and threw her napkin on the table. She’d had just about enough of this game he was playing. “You’re telling me you don’t remember that night in San Francisco? The bar of the Penrose, the bottle of champagne, the elevator ride? You were new in town, I just needed a drink to unwind and we ended up naked in your room.”
A slow grin replaced his serious expression and Kel chuckled, then took another sip of his coffee. “I do remember that night, quite vividly.”
“Then why did you pretend that you didn’t?” Darcy demanded.
“Until you mentioned it, I wasn’t sure
Darcy didn’t know what to say. Her indignation slowly dissolved, replaced by the uneasy feeling that what they’d begun last night was not over-not by a long shot. She sat down in her chair. “And you recognized me yesterday at the candy shop?”
Kel nodded. “The minute I looked into your eyes. Why do you think I’m here, Darcy? I’m not really a spa kind of guy, although I’ve been thinking I could really use a nice seaweed wrap. And that salt scrub sounds like a good deal. ‘It makes the skin glow with a youthful texture.’”
“It’s called exfoliation,” Darcy said. “And if you’re not a spa kind of guy, then what are you? A sex kind of guy? What happened last night is not going to happen again.”
He reached for her hand and distractedly twisted his fingers through hers. “Why not? I certainly enjoyed myself and so did you, unless you were…” He chuckled softly. “Were you faking it, Darcy?”
“No,” she said, trying to ignore the way his thumb caressed the inside of her wrist.
“Then you enjoyed yourself as much as I did?”
She straightened, pulling her hand away and clutching it in her lap. “That depends upon how much you enjoyed yourself,” she said.
“A lot,” he said. “More than I thought possible in such a short amount of time. Why should we deny ourselves that kind of pleasure?”
“What are you suggesting? That we just carry on with each other until…you decide to leave?” The prospect should have sounded unthinkable, but in truth, Darcy found the idea strangely intriguing. A week of fabulous sex with a devastatingly handsome man, those incredible hands on her body, that mouth driving her wild in bed, and those beautiful blue eyes watching her as he buried himself deep inside her. What more could a girl ask for?
A shiver coursed through her body. Had she possessed just a bit more courage, she’d drag Kel to her office right now and seduce him all over again. But she’d do well to carefully consider all the consequences of his proposed interlude. “So we’d be together for as long as you’re here and then we’d go back to our lives, no strings attached.” Darcy twirled her spoon in her coffee as she contemplated the offer.
“Sounds good,” he said. “With the understanding that we will take our time from now on.”
“I’ll think about it,” she finally murmured.
“Ah, don’t do that,” Kel said, leaning back in his chair and shaking his head. “This should be a simple decision, Darcy. Either you want me or you don’t. Don’t think, just do.”
“Who died and made you Yoda?” Darcy asked. “There are a lot of things to consider here.”
“Like what?”
Darcy opened her mouth, prepared to list all her reasons for
And then there were the tricky morning-after conversations.
“What?” he asked, leaning forward and bracing his elbows on the table.
Darcy swallowed hard. “I’m sorry, I was just thinking out loud.”
“Here’s how I see it,” Kel began. “We seem to have this attraction to each other. I haven’t quite figured it out, but I’d sure like to. The problem is I can’t be in the same room with you without wanting to tear your clothes off and kiss your naked body. So, I suggest we deal with that.”
“You-You’re thinking about that right now?” Darcy asked.
“I’ve pretty much been thinking about that 24 hours a day since I saw you at the candy shop,” he admitted with a boyish grin.
And before that? Darcy wondered if he’d thought about her at all in the past five years. Had he stared at the ceiling, trying to sleep at night, with thoughts of her running through his brain? Had he caught the scent of her perfume in the air and remembered the way she’d kissed him, or seen her in a crowd and followed until he realized it wasn’t her? Had he been obsessed with the memory of her?
“I have a job to do here,” she said. “My father is coming in at the end of the week to do a walk-through and I have a million things to finish before then.”
“But I bet not one of them is as much fun as I am,” Kel said. He leaned over the table and caught her chin with his thumb, tipping her face up to his. His lips touched hers softly, his tongue barely grazing the crease in her lips.
God, why did his kiss have such a profound effect on her? She ought to be able to resist him if she wanted to. After all, she knew he’d spent years honing his talents on a string of other women. For Kel Martin, she was just one more in a long line of females to tumble.
So what was wrong with that? As long as she kept herself from becoming emotionally involved, Darcy could have a fabulous week with him. Ending each day in his arms, in his bed would be sheer decadence-something that even a fifty-pound box of chocolates could never match. And didn’t she deserve a little pleasure in her life?
“I have to go to work,” Darcy said. “I’ll see you tonight and let you know what I’ve decided.”
“I’ll be waiting,” Kel called as she walked away.
DARCY GLANCED over at the clock, then kicked back from the edge of the pool. Midnight. She’d spent the entire day thinking about Kel and nothing she did could distract her mind from what they’d shared the night before.
An afternoon business meeting in San Francisco had occupied her time but she’d barely been able to focus on the architect’s plans for the new wing of the spa. Instead, she’d thought about what she’d be doing later that evening, running the possible sexual scenarios over and over in her head.
She’d expected to return by dinner, in plenty of time to discuss the terms of her decision with Kel. But a conference call with her father had delayed her for hours. Darcy had finally pulled into the parking garage at eleven, exhausted yet filled with a nervous anticipation.
A quick check of the computer brought up Kel’s itinerary for the day. After breakfast, he’d played 18 holes of golf, then had two beers in the bar along with a late lunch. At four p.m., he’d enjoyed a deep-tissue massage with Cynda, then bought some toiletries at the hotel gift shop. He’d made two phone calls to his home phone in San Francisco and watched an action movie on pay-per-view before ordering room service-a steak and baked potato with apple pie for dessert. He’d also left three messages on her voice mail and a note at the front desk.
Darcy floated on her back and stared up at the ceiling of the pool house. The reflection from the underwater lights swirled in a soothing pattern above her and she tipped her head back and closed her eyes. Swimming always exhausted her. Whenever she found herself facing a sleepless night, when her mind was plagued with business worries, she’d come to the pool and swim laps until her head cleared and her body relaxed.
Resisting Kel Martin was what really worried her. The temptation to go to his room was almost overwhelming. She’d sat in her office for fifteen minutes considering her choices. Take a swim, try to sleep or sneak up to Kel’s suite and see if they might be able to enjoy a repeat of yesterday’s activities.
Darcy stroked to the far end of the pool where a huge glass wall overlooked the grounds. Outside, a full moon hung low over the horizon and a chilly winter wind buffeted the high pines. As she made a neat kick turn, her gaze caught sight of a figure strolling across the wide stone terrace outside. Probably one of the maintenance staff, she thought as she started another lap.
