The two men just laughed, and Kassidy led Dag to the kitchen still shaking her head. She slanted him a glance as she opened the fridge door. “Coke? For breakfast?”
Dag grinned. “Yeah. Why not?” He watched her open the fridge, her movements graceful and smooth.
She glanced up at him through her eyelashes as she shrugged and reached inside for a can. “Seems weird.”
“It’s got sugar and caffeine. Same as a cup of coffee. Why not?
She handed him the can then a glass, her gaze skittering over his body. He hadn’t put a shirt on, in fact he literally wore nothing but his jeans and they weren’t even buttoned. He hadn’t thought before wandering out of the bedroom half naked. And Kassidy was clearly aware of his bare chest.
Like he was aware of her bare legs below the hem of the khaki shorts she wore, her feet small and pretty with rosy-pink polished toenails. He dragged his gaze up and away from her legs.
“Are you hungry?” she asked. “We just had toast…”
Dag shook his head. “Nah. I never eat much in the morning. Coke’s good, and then I’ll head back to the hotel.”
She nodded and picked up her mug of coffee then padded over to the couch where Chris sat. She curled up beside him and he absentmindedly slid his arm around her and pulled her closer, his hand going into her hair and playing with the silky dark strands.
Dag watched Chris’s long, tanned fingers caressing Kassidy’s hair, slowly rubbing a strand then dragging his fingers down the length of it. Something clenched inside him and he felt like he couldn’t take his eyes off the mesmerizing motion.
He lifted the glass and took a big swallow of nose-stinging fizzy Coke. He had to get out of there. Now.
He walked across the living room to the arched window overlooking the tree-lined street. Nice neighborhood. The sun lit up the fresh green leaves of the maple trees, the sky above a perfect clear blue. He turned back to the couple snuggled up on the couch together, Chris absorbed in the news show he was watching, Kassidy watching…Dag. Heat suffused him.
He guzzled down the rest of his Coke. “I’ll uh…get dressed,” he said. “And get out of your way. I’m sure you have a lot to do.”
“No rush, man,” Chris said. “What are you doing today, anyway?”
Dag paused in the hall. “I have some business stuff to go over. To get ready for my meetings later this week.”
“Oh. Okay.”
Dag returned to the bedroom where he’d slept, found the rest of his clothes and quickly dressed. He pulled the sheets and blankets off the bed, folded the mattress back up into the sofa frame and replaced the cushions. Then he gathered up the bedding in his arms and took it out to Kassidy.
“What should I do with this?” he asked her.
“Oh, thank you, Dag.” She rose from the couch and accepted the bundle of laundry with a smile. “You didn’t need to do that. I’ll just toss it in the washer right now.” And she disappeared into a small room off the kitchen.
“So I’ll call you later this week,” Chris said, standing too. He followed Dag to the door. “We’ll get things set up for Friday night. But hey, we can do lunch or something one day. If you have time.”
“Yeah, sure.”
Kassidy came to the door too, and Chris pulled her in front of him, slid his arms around her waist and rested his chin on her head. His forearms sat just below her breasts, plumping them up a bit, which made Dag notice they were braless beneath the soft cotton tank top she wore, her nipples hard little points. Another demonstration of the warm and sexy chemistry between the two of them.
Out. Of. There.
“Thanks for dinner, Kassidy. You’re a great cook.”
She grinned. “Thank you. Any time. It’s been great getting to know you.”
And he got the hell out.
On the leafy street, he sucked in big breaths full of fresh morning air as he walked to his car parked at the curb halfway down the block. Oh man. All the emotional crap twisting and turning inside him was completely unexpected. There was no fucking way he could move back to Chicago.
He rubbed his face as he unlocked his car door then slid into the vehicle. His best plan would be to get through these business meetings he had lined up, and then get the hell back to San Francisco.
Kassidy had the day off Friday and planned to do some shopping. They needed towels for the main bathroom—Chris’s mismatched, well-worn towels didn’t fit in with their new condo. And they needed curtains for both the extra bedrooms. When Dag had slept over, it made her want to do up the rooms nicely. Not that she anticipated having guests very often.
Dag.
She got all warm inside when she thought about seeing him that morning. Jesus, the man was walking sex. Those worn jeans sat so low on his hips she could see the twin indentations at the base of his spine when she looked at him from the back, and facing him…well she couldn’t even look, afraid of what she might see. The lowest she’d let her eyes go was his six-pack abs and even that was dangerous. His silky dark hair had flopped over his forehead and those eyes had looked at her with such heat, she’d almost felt like she were burning up.
She’d felt so guilty for admiring his half-naked body she’d practically jumped onto Chris’s lap to force her attention where it should be—on her handsome boyfriend. Who was equally as sexy. There was just something about Dag that kept pulling at her.
And tonight they were going to see him again. He and Chris had had lunch yesterday but hadn’t invited her along. Not that she’d wanted to go. She’d had lunch with friends from work, as she usually did.
The doorbell rang just as she was checking her purse for cell phone, keys and shopping list, and when she peeked out she saw…Dag.
She didn’t know why her heart started thudding in her chest, heavy and slow, taking her breath away. She unlocked the door and opened it with shaky fingers, forcing a smile.
“Hey,” she said. “This is a surprise.”
He smiled back at her, that wicked sexy smile that crinkled his eyes and creased his lean cheeks. “I tried to call you at work but you weren’t there.”
Puzzled, she tipped her head to one side. “Yeah. I mean, no. I took the day off to do some errands.”
“That’s what Chris told me. I called him to find out where you are. I was hoping to pick your brain.”
“Me? Why?”
His eyes sparkled. “I’ve got this idea…met with a guy yesterday, and it got me thinking. And you’re the perfect one to help me.”
“Idea for what?” Thoughts buzzed around in her head. Why me? What guy? What was he talking about?
“Let me take you out for lunch,” he said, not answering any of her questions. “And I’ll explain everything.”
“Uh…okay. I guess.” She glanced at her watch. It wasn’t even eleven yet. “Kind of early for lunch, though.”
He shrugged and gave a crooked smile that sent a shaft of heat right through her. “I’m hungry.”
“Let me guess. No breakfast.”
“Yeah.” His smile deepened. “Okay, I’ll take you for a late breakfast then. No, you have lunch, I’ll have breakfast.”
“Whatever.” Amusement glimmered inside her. “Fine. Let me get my purse.” She grabbed it from the kitchen table where she’d been checking it then flicked off the lights. “I was just heading out. A few more minutes I’d have been gone.”
“Lucky me,” he said, and the husky timbre of his voice brushed over her. She licked her lips as she locked the door of the condo behind her.