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Shit. It was happening. The man who had ruined George and torpedoed Jane’s relationship was hitting on her. Clearly, he expected her to be on the same page.
Her eyes fixed on the far wall. “Oh. I…um…didn’t know.” She swallowed hard.
“Of course you did. You’ve been flirting with me.” He chuckled softly.
I have?
He put soft fingers on her chin and gently turned her face toward his. She inhaled his spicy scent. Why did he have to smell so edible? “I’ve wanted to do this for a very long time,” he breathed. And then his lips were on hers. Elizabeth’s resistance dissolved instantly. He could kiss!
It started with soft, velvety strokes of lips meeting lips. But then he increased the intensity, licking at the seam of her lips until her mouth opened without a second thought. She had to know what he could do with that tongue. She wasn’t disappointed. His tongue swept in, dueling and entwining with hers. He tasted of white wine and an undefinable flavor that resembled his scent. The taste of William Darcy.
Elizabeth hadn’t given any thought—well, perhaps she had occasionally imagined—to how the president might kiss, but she wouldn’t have expected this…passion. Searing. Overwhelming. Shattering. Speaking the intensity of his attraction without words.
The rest of the world fell away; Elizabeth could only feel. Her whole world narrowed to a single point of foc
us, a solitary part of her body. Bill and George had both spoken to her about chemistry, imagining a connection that hadn’t existed. But this was chemistry. Whatever she thought of William Darcy, her body was completely on board with kissing him. Craving his kisses—and more. I want more. I want more…
She moaned, a needy, greedy sound. His hands roamed over her back and upper arms, caressing, pulling her closer, and crushing her against his body. One hand traveled up her neck, into her hair.
Out in the hallway, someone laughed. The sound was enough to re-engage the rational part of her brain. Someone might enter the room and see them. What am I doing? This is the president. This is the PRESIDENT!
She pulled away so quickly he flinched.
Every cell in her body urged her to close the small distance between them and enjoy more touches, more caresses, more kisses. They were so close, so connected; it seemed impossible that such a thing could be wrong.
No. Panting, Elizabeth tried to restart her higher brain functions despite the tumult her senses. She reached deep for that well of fury that had powered her since Fitz’s words in the limo, conjuring up the image of Jane’s stricken, tear-stained face. Why would the man who had treated Jane and George so cavalierly care about me? It was an act. It was all an act.
He had brought her in here with the idea of putting those beds to use. Here she was, thousands of miles up in the sky with nobody around except the president’s staff. Okay, so the kisses were amazing. Phenomenal. Life changing. But the man’s character was rotten. Don’t forget who this guy is.
“I can’t tell you how long I’ve been waiting to do that,” he crooned, allowing his fingers to play along the skin revealed by the V of her blouse. “I wanted to stay away. I’ve been trying to avoid…entanglements. But every time I see you…”
Despite her misgivings, part of her soul drank up the words like water in a desert; what an honor to have this man say them to her.
But how many other women had he said them to? How many women had he said them to in this room? She couldn’t be blinded by the mask of his charisma or fooled into believing he experienced genuine feelings. He was a politician. Charm was the primary weapon in his arsenal, and every word was suspect.
The president was still speaking. “Those two months when we were apart…God, I thought about you all the time…” He closed in for another kiss, and Elizabeth felt the pull, the desire. But she forced herself to scramble backward, sliding off the sofa and stumbling to her feet. His hand grabbed empty air.
“I-I don’t think this is a good idea, Mr. President.”
A crease formed between his eyebrows. More puzzled than put out. “Please call me Will.”
“Okay. I don’t think this is a good idea, Will.”
“I don’t understand.” He stood as well.
“I-I’m sorry if I misled you by kissing you back. I was just so startled…”
He scowled. “Startled? You knew where this was going!”
Elizabeth barked a laugh. “Yeah, maybe I should have. Maybe I’m the only person on this plane who didn’t know, but I didn’t have a clue that you were interested in me.”
His mouth opened in shock, but he shut it with an abrupt snap. “Now you know,” he snapped. Closing his eyes briefly, he took a deep breath and spoke in a gentler tone. “You don’t have a boyfriend, do you?” She shook her head mutely. “So is it a problem?”
“Is it a problem?” Where to begin? She gave a slightly hysterical laugh. “You called me ugly and stupid. You’ve been rude to me and my family in just about every way possible. Do the words ‘nouveau riche’ ring a bell?”
He couldn’t have been more startled if she’d hit him on the head with a frying pan. “But I apologized! You’re still upset about that?”
Laughter bubbled out of her. “Of course I am! You may be a snob who apologized, but you’re still a snob!”
