In Safe Hands (Search and Rescue #4)(95)

His laugh regained its gravelly texture. “I like it when you cling.” He tightened his arms, as if to demonstrate.

“Me too, but it makes going outside a little tough for you.” Although she tried to laugh, one of his hands slid over her butt, turning the sound into more of a hiccup. His face was in her neck again, and she almost melted, only remembering his necessary errand the second before she forgot everything except his mouth.

Reluctantly, she released him, her legs unhooking from around his waist and her arms dropping from his shoulders. His grip kept her dangling several inches off the floor.

“Chris?”

“Hmm?”

Loving how the sound felt on her neck, she shivered and resisted the urge to reestablish her hold on him. “Supplies, remember?”

For a moment, she thought he would ignore her. Daisy was surprisingly okay with that. Just as she was losing herself in his ministrations, he sighed and gently lowered her until she was standing on the floor. Her legs were as wobbly as they ever got post-panic attack, and she grabbed him to keep her balance.

“Okay?” he asked once she’d steadied.

She smiled up at him. “Perfect.”

As he looked at her, his grin turned predatory. He leaned down but then stopped. With a groan, he took several steps back and turned his face to the side. When his gaze met hers again, Daisy could feel the heat of his eyes, even across the space that separated them.

“Be right back.” The slam of the inner door came shortly after his words.

Dazed, she stood for a moment, smiling. Then she realized she was wasting precious preparation time. Glancing down at her clothes, she cringed and ran for the stairs. Her usual yoga pants and hoodie did not scream sexy, and she wanted Chris to look at her and not be able to breathe—but in the best, non-life-threatening way, of course.

Skidding around the top of the stairs and dashing into her bedroom, she dug through her dresser drawers.

“Why do I have so many sports bras?” she muttered, slamming one drawer closed and yanking open the next. “Would it be too much to ask to own one thing that’s sexy?”

Time was ticking, and Chris would be back knocking on the front door in just seconds, so she gave up on her lingerie treasure hunt. Vowing to do some online shopping as soon as she could, Daisy pulled her hoodie over her head. Her tank top underneath was formfitting, so she was just going to have to be satisfied with that.

When she glanced in the mirror, she bit back a startled shriek. The quick removal of her sweatshirt had charged her hair with enough static to make the strands float around ear level. Her face was red from exertion and nerves, and she pressed her palms to her hot cheeks with a groan as she headed for the bathroom.

A little water and a quick brushing tamed her hair, although there wasn’t much she could do about her red cheeks except calm down, which wasn’t going to happen anytime soon—not with Chris getting supplies. As if the thought had conjured him, she heard his distinctive, aggressive knock. She hurried to the front door, took a second to get herself together, failed at regaining any kind of composure, and pressed the unlock button.

Before she could even take a bracing breath, Chris was inside and had her pressed against the wall in the entry. Her nerves vanished, overtaken by excitement and arousal and sheer happiness as she returned his kiss. Without letting go of each other, they made their way upstairs, tripping on the steps and bouncing off doorframes as they blindly found their way into her bedroom.

Pulling back to yank his shirt over his head, Chris paused with just his abs revealed as he stared over her shoulder.

“What?” she asked, tugging impatiently at the fabric.

“Your window’s open.”

She turned to stare at it, unable to believe she’d forgotten. The whole time she’d been frantically searching her underwear selection, there’d been nothing between her and the world except for a flimsy screen. “I know.”

His gaze snapped to her. “Did you open them, or did Fire?”

“I did.”

He searched her face, and then he smiled. “Good for you.”

Although she glowed with pride on the inside, she tried very hard to keep her expression blasé. “Thanks. Now are you going to strip, or what?”

After staring at her for a startled second, he laughed and yanked the shirt over his head. “Happy?”

Her eyes fixed on his chest. In the fading evening light, the shadows and highlights made him look like a piece of artwork. Daisy raised her hand, wanting to touch, but she hesitated before making contact. Losing her nerve, she started to drop her arm to her side, but Chris caught her fingers.

Pressing her palm to his chest, he held it there until she started moving her hand, stroking over the wiry hair and soft skin that covered the muscles beneath. She’d seen him without his shirt before, and she’d wanted to touch so many times. It was hard to believe that she actually had her fingers on Chris now. A laugh escaped as she raised her other hand to join the first.

“What’s so funny?” he asked, his smile starting to grow.

“Nothing,” she told his belly button as her fingers traced the grooves between his ab muscles. “I’m just glad we’re doing this.”

Skimming his hands up her arms and over her shoulders to cup both sides of her jaw, he tilted her face toward his. Dropping his head, he brushed his lips over hers, connecting with the slightest of pressure. “Me too.” He paused, hovering just over her mouth. “God, you have no idea how glad.”