“We are—we always have been.”
She nods and lowers her head to my shoulder. “Sorry I fell on you.”
“Daze, you didn’t. I tripped, and I didn’t want you to get hurt. I’ll protect you. Always.”
“Aren’t they adorable?” Livie asks, breaking the spell—again. She’s absolutely poking the bear.
“Come on, let's get rid of all this sand.” I help her up, and in no time, we’re walking to our hotel room with instructions to be back for dinner with the whole family at eight.
6
Rule Number One
UNCOVER BY ZARA LARSSON
Daisy
“I thought you weren’t working on this trip,” I say as I step out of the bathroom into the bedroom. Mateo is sitting on the bed with his laptop open on his lap, but his eyes lift slowly—deliberately—starting at my feet and dragging upward, unhurried, like he’s savoring every inch of me.
I know what he sees: the one piece romper with wide-legged floral palazzo pants, the cut-out at my stomach, the bralette-style top that frames my chest. My outfit makes me feel confident, feminine, alive, but under Mateo’s gaze, it suddenly feels…I don’t know. Wrong? His stare lingers too long, burning into me.
“What’s wrong?” The words tumble out before I even think. His eyes snap up to mine, dark and unreadable yet charged with something I’ve never seen before, something that coils low in my belly. I swallow hard. “I can change if this isn’t…appropriate.”
He says nothing. He just looks at me, the silence speaking louder than any other word. Fine. Noted. I spinon my heel toward the closet, but his hand catches my wrist.
“Daisy.”
The single word makes my pulse stutter. When I turn, he’s closer than I expected, his black linen pants hanging low on his hips, his shirt open just enough to reveal the gleam of the small gold chain he never takes off. God help me, it’s unfair how good he looks. My mouth goes dry.
“Daisy,” he whispers again, and my name has never sounded edged with hunger before.
“Wh—what?” My voice cracks, and his smirk tells me he noticed. “Why are you so smug?” I ask.
“You were checking me out.”
“I was not!” My protest comes out too loud, too fast. My cheeks blaze with heat, and his smirk widens. Busted.
“It’s okay, Daisy girl. You don’t look so bad yourself.” His voice softens, laced with something intimate, maybe even passionate. “Don’t change. You look beautiful.”
The sincerity in his tone sinks into me like warm tea after a long day of work. Mateo never shies away from giving compliments, but this one feels different—playful, yes, but also, I don’t know…sexy?
“Daisy girl?” I echo. It’s the second time he’s used it, and, God help me, I want to hear it again.
“Trying to find something else to call you,” he says, stepping closer, his presence erasing the space between us. “You didn’t like it when I called you baby earlier. You froze. I want to be respectful.”
Always so considerate.Tooconsiderate.
“It just caught me off guard, that’s all.” Of course he just wants to make it seem real. He’s not actually thinking about me in that manner.
“What did?” His voice is quiet now. He’s too close, and I have to tip my head back just to meet his eyes. Hiscologne wraps around me, a dizzying scent. There’s something about, I don’t know, pretending we’re together, him looking like this, my real feelings for him enhancing absolutely everything to the point of delusion.
“You calling me baby.” The words scrape from my throat, broken and almost needy. Damn it, Daisy, get it together.
He lifts a hand, and I stop breathing. His fingers graze my cheek before tracing slowly over my lips, lingering there, teasing the corner of my mouth before pulling away. The loss is instant, leaving me agonizingly cold after warming me with just that single touch.
“Sorry,” he murmurs. “Reflex. You had lipstick there.”
“Oh.” I touch the spot where his thumb was, where his touch still burns phantom-hot. My heart is racing, but I shake it off and breathe.Breathe, Daisy. Breathe. You have to. “Sorry. Are we ready?”
