"So where does that leave you?"
Wanting you. Wanting a relationship with you. "It leaves me knowing I need to do some serious thinking when I get back. Make some changes. I need to stop feeling sorry for myself and start finding solutions. Maybe we do need to take the chance and employ someone else. Maybe it's time I learned to relinquish control a little."
Laura laughed, and Daniel's heart flipped. "Good luck with that!" She pointed at his dish. "So, have I converted you to caldeirada?"
He polished off the last mouthful with exaggerated relish. "Absolutely."
"How come you only had one meeting? I thought you try to pack more into a day."
"I do, but the other hotel had to cancel. Staff illness." Daniel didn't meet her eye. The meeting had been cancelled all right, but by him, not the hotel. He would have to catch it next time around. For now, all he could think about was spending more time with Laura. "Which is lucky for us, because we get to play hooky. Are you happy to drive to the beach when lunch has settled a little?"
Laura beamed. "Absolutely."
Chapter Eighteen
Laura wasn't quite so blasé by the time they got to the beach. As they dropped their bags and laid towels on the sand, she suddenly felt self-conscious about the bikini she'd put on that morning under her dress.
Daniel had found a Gents to change from his suit into baggy swim shorts and a tee shirt, and as he pulled off the top half, Laura tried hard not to stare at his broad, tanned chest.
He gave her a knowing look. "I've already seen you in your swimsuit down by the pool," he reminded her. "And had it tossed in my face. If you don't take that dress off, I'll drag you into the water with it on!"
His wolfish grin was enough to get Laura moving. Telling herself she was being ridiculous, she pulled off the dress, knelt on her towel so she wasn't a full length pin-up, and pretended not to notice the way Daniel's eyebrows raised in pure appreciation.
"Pass me the sun cream," he ordered. "I'll do your back."
"I can manage," she blustered, the mere thought of Daniel's hands on her causing her temperature to spike.
"Not properly, and you know it. I thought you were always super sensible?"
Beaten, Laura tossed him the bottle and lay on her stomach, fervently hoping Daniel couldn't sense her body's reaction as he smoothed the cream onto her back, and that he wouldn't try to take advantage of the situation. But he was as decent as he could be under the circumstances . . . and she ignored her disappointment.
"I assume you'd rather do your own legs?" he asked when he'd finished.
Laura gave him a glare. "You assumed right." As she completed the task, Daniel did the same for himself, then waited expectantly, sun cream in hand.
She narrowed her eyes. "You want me to do your back?"
"If you don't mind. Sunburn under a suit isn't much fun."
Laura kept the contact to the minimum she could whilst doing a proper job, but when he finally sat back up, she knew she was blushing—and not from the sun.
Sitting, she hugged her knees and took in the view. Soft sand led to a blue sea, and green hills stood at the far side of the bay, their summits shrouded by a light mist. With a sigh of pleasure, she stretched her legs out in front of her and leaned back on her elbows. Daniel lay back too, then pulled her across so her head was pillowed on his chest.
"Siesta time," he murmured drowsily. Acutely aware of the intimacy, Laura doubted she could possibly sleep, but the warmth of the sun and the effects of lunch soon worked their magic to lure her into a dreamless doze.
****
When she came round, Daniel was still asleep, his chest rising and falling in a steady rhythm beneath her. He must be so tired, she thought. She'd only spent the odd day with him, and that was mainly out of choice, but she could see how exhausting it must be touring around, holding meetings, negotiating, living out of a suitcase . . . and then back to the office to tie up loose ends before doing it all again. Laura admired his sense of duty to his family, but hoped he could find some sort of solution for them all before he burned himself out.
She closed her eyes against the sun again. Her first impressions of him had been so wrong. She'd thought he was a bad-tempered, ruthless businessman, but he wasn't; he was only tired, and from what she'd seen of the way he worked so far, usually polite and fair.
She'd also thought he had low morals, indulging in an affair with a married woman in the form of Natalie. A woman she'd thought belonged to his brother! And when that little misunderstanding had been cleared up, she'd still assumed he was a womaniser, but that couldn't be farther from the truth either. It was clear he had no time for relationships, and his life was too complicated to accommodate one. Her heart sank a little at that thought, but she brushed the feeling aside. She didn't want one either, did she? So why did it matter?
He stirred under her, and she lifted her head to look at him. Still dopey, he gave her a lopsided smile, and her heart stuttered for a moment. She sat up to allow him to do the same. Smiling at his hair, ruffled and full of sand, she reached across to brush it out for him.
"Right. Sea," he declared, standing up.
"What?"
"We're on the beach, aren't we? That means we have to go in the sea." He winked as he tugged her to her feet. "It's
