Trusting Danger (Danger, #2)(9)
As the driver pulled up to the resort entrance, Gabe stood waiting for Claire under the portico, dressed in a short-sleeved Polo shirt and khakis. A breeze lifted a few locks of his light brown hair from his forehead as he spoke on his phone, revealing hazel eyes that widened when he caught her eye as the car stopped. He ended his call and came forward to open her door, helping her out and dropping a quick kiss on her lips as the driver retrieved her bags.
“How was your flight?”
She looked up at Gabe’s face, pink from the round of golf he’d played that morning. “It was good.”
“Sorry I couldn’t meet you at the airport. I had a conference call.” Gabe gave the approaching bellhop their room number, then focused back on her. “How did your meeting go this morning?”
Claire shook her head. “Can you believe that I overslept and missed it? I’m in really hot water with my professor.”
He gave her a mischievous grin. “Tell him it’s my fault.”
“He’s a she, and I’m definitely not her favorite person right now.”
“Impossible.” Taking Claire’s hand, he led her toward the entrance. “Let’s go upstairs. I can’t wait to show you the suite.”
The resort was nothing short of opulent. Potted palms lined the lobby’s limestone floors, and an enormous bouquet of tropical flowers sat atop a round teak table. Claire squeezed Gabe’s hand as they headed toward the bank of elevators.
Gabe slid a keycard into the brass panel and pressed the button for the top floor. Once the elevator doors slid closed, finally leaving them alone, Gabe cupped Claire’s face in his hands and gave her a longer kiss. He attacked her mouth, his kiss hungry and demanding, leaving her breathless.
“I’ve missed you so much,” he whispered. He pressed his hips to hers as he backed her into the elevator wall, his desire evident.
Claire kissed him back, then pressed her hands to his chest to create a little room between them. “I missed you too.”
Brushing her hair from her face, she glanced up at the discreet security camera in one corner at the ceiling. The last thing she needed was to be caught in a compromising position in public. Her parents had drilled that lesson into her head since she hit high school. Between her father’s political aspirations and her mother’s social climbing, Claire had spent most of her life in the spotlight. She hated it.
She had missed Gabe, though. He’d been traveling for much of the past month, and the different time zones had made connecting a challenge.
The elevator doors opened and Claire blinked in surprise as they stepped out into a small foyer with a single door.
“The suite takes up the whole floor?”
Gabe grinned and opened the door with his keycard, revealing a suite as lavish as the lobby but with an elegant, contemporary flair. On the far side of the seating area, white floor-to-ceiling plantation shutters framed the oversized sliders that opened onto a flagstone terrace overlooking the ocean. A full-sized dining room table was to the left, set with elegant china, and what appeared to be a late lunch for the two of them was waiting under silver domes. A bottle of champagne snugged in white linen rested in an ice bucket.
Claire noted several doorways leading off the living area. “How many bedrooms are there?”
“Three.”
She nodded as the reason he’d rented the penthouse became clear. “So your clients are staying here too.”
“No. The suite is just for us, although we’ll be having a dinner party here tomorrow night.” Gabe rubbed the back of his neck, not meeting her eyes. “Actually, Claire, I’ve gotten an update on their travel plans. There’s been a slight delay.”
Thoughts of how expensive a suite like this had to be flew out of Claire’s head. “They aren’t coming in today?”
“No. They’re flying in tomorrow afternoon.”
Shock and dismay stole Claire’s breath. She’d just missed one of the most important meetings in her law school career for nothing.
Keeping her tone even, she asked, “When did you find out?”
“Just as you drove up. That’s who I was on the phone with.”
Claire nodded, pushing aside her disappointment. It wasn’t Gabe’s fault. Just like her parents, he expected her to go with the flow. Playing that role was easier than pushing back and causing trouble.
Forcing a smile she didn’t quite feel, she said, “We’ll just have to make the best of it, right?”
Chapter Seven
On the drive back to DC from Pennsylvania Saturday morning, Grayson half-listened to the radio as the interstate spooled out before him. His ringing phone interrupted the radio, and a robotic voice came through the car speakers.
“Call from . . . Camden Taylor.”
Grayson pressed a button on the steering wheel to answer the call. “Back from your honeymoon already?” he asked his former partner.
“Yeah, we got back a few days ago. It was amazing. You wouldn’t believe how relaxing the Caribbean is.”
“You had good weather?”
“We did. The only rain we had was just as we got to Saint Lucia, but it was beautiful the rest of the week.”
“How’s Autumn?”
Camden’s tone softened. “She’s amazing. Just got her GED and is taking cooking courses at the community college—excuse me, pastry arts courses.” He chuckled. “She found Gran’s cookbook and has been going crazy trying all the recipes. She wanted to bake the cake for our wedding, but that got nixed when we decided to get married in the Caribbean.”