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She was so languid and warm, she might have let him toss her right back under the covers. But her stomach growled. So loudly it was practically the roar of a lion.
“Hmm, sounds like I’d better feed you first.” He waggled his eyebrows, so cute and absolutely too seductive. “We need to keep your strength up.”
* * *
For Daniel, their night together had been flawless, dazzling. Tasha was inside him now, part of him. Even while they finished their breakfast outside on his deck, he wanted to pounce on her and have his wicked way with her in the glorious sun and the fresh air.
He could still taste her on his tongue, seducing his senses with her scent, and relished the memory of how she’d trembled against him. Even better, he understood there was no way Tasha would have allowed herself to make love to him if she hadn’t felt at least an inkling of forgiveness and acceptance. Surely by now a part of her had to believe that not everything about her family’s con was her fault.
All he could think as she got up to clear their plates was that no one had ever made dishwashing sexy. Until Tasha.
He was such a goner. And he couldn’t have been happier about it.
“So,” she said, “what can I help you with today?”
A good half-dozen naughty responses leaped to his tongue. He was still picking his favorite when she held up her hand, clearly reading his dirty mind. Probably because she had one too—he’d confirmed that last night to the best of his ability, after all.
“While wearing a tool belt,” she clarified.
Oh yeah. There were of plenty of fun things they could do together while she had on a tool belt. In fact—
He leaned forward to tap the bill of her cap. “We need to get you a special ball cap that says I do everything better with my tool belt on.”
“Daniel.” She pursed her lips and raised an eyebrow like a schoolmarm. The sexiest damn schoolmarm on the planet. And she was trying so hard not to smile. “We should work on your house.”
Yesterday, he’d convinced her to take a little time off, but he obviously wouldn’t get away with it twice. Still, even doing carpentry, he planned on getting away with plenty—teasing her until she begged, touching her on the sly, kissing her until she was delirious.
“Okay, we can get to work. But let’s head up to your place, since finishing the paneling in your cabin is a two-person job and I’ve only got a day or two left before I need to head back to the office.”
Tasha paled at his words, and though he never wanted to cause her pain, his heart gave a little kick at seeing her react to the idea of his leaving.
“I’m amazed you’ve been able to get away for this long.” She was attempting nonchalance, but from where he stood, it seemed like she couldn’t quite take in enough air.
He hated the thought of leaving her. Then it hit him: What if she came with him?
He’d spent his whole life looking for perfect, assuming that was where he’d find real happiness. Yet he’d found his greatest joy in the middle of what anyone would call a big fat mess.
A week ago he’d thought messes were to be avoided at all costs. Yet now he wanted that messiness with everything he was. Maybe the road was supposed to have bumps. Maybe working through those bumps together made you stronger.
The one thing he knew for sure was that Tasha belonged with him.
The only question was, how the heck to convince her to go back together?
Chapter Twenty-One
The fleeting time Daniel had left in Lake Tahoe played around and around in Tasha’s head as they worked on her cabin’s paneling.
He’d given her a taste of how wonderful they could be together. How good it was to talk, to work side by side, to play with the puppies together. Not to mention the tantalizing, sexy feelings he evoked in her.
Delicious sensations that bubbled up every time his hand brushed hers when they lifted a panel. Or when his touch lingered after he’d handed her a tool. Or when he stood so close she felt faint from the delicious heat of his body and his spicy scent.
With his shirt off, his jeans riding low on his hips, and his tanned skin covered in a sheen of sweat, he was the epitome of the sexy construction worker.
Tasha’s mouth watered.
“Hold it here,” he directed, and his words, especially his tone, dragged her back to last night in his sleigh bed when he’d given her the most glorious sensual commands imaginable.
As she held the panel in place against the wall, he shifted behind her, his body sliding against her, the scent of the soap he’d used in the shower surrounding her.
