The Cinderella Deal - Jennifer Crusie [73]
Daisy scowled at him. “Listen, you don’t have to do this—”
“Come here.” He pulled her away from the idiots and through the crush of people and into Bill’s office at the back of the gallery, and she tripped along behind him, her hand cold in his. When they were inside the dark office, lit only by the faint light from the single window, he said, “First of all, you can forget about moving. Chickie can have my bedroom, but you’re staying.” Then he turned her around and unzipped her dress, enjoying the way her flesh and the black lace came back to him.
Daisy tried to move away. “Wait a minute, what are you doing?”
“What I should have done before we came.” He jerked the dress over her head, peeling it over her arms as she struggled to keep it on. When he had it off, he walked over to the window, opened it, and threw the dress out into the alley.
“Linc!” Daisy went after it, and he caught her. He pulled the bow out of her hair and ran his fingers through her curls until they were as free and full as before, and then he kissed her. “I love you,” he told her. “I screwed up out there for a minute, but I’m smarter now, and I love you. You, not whoever was wearing that damn dress.” And then he kissed her again, harder, trying to bring her back to life, the way it worked in fairy tales.
His mouth was hot on hers, and Daisy gave up trying to argue with him and just leaned into his heat. It felt so good to be out of that awful dress, and even better to be back in his arms. The heat flared in her and she wanted him again, the way she always did, and it was like coming home. “I thought you’d never hold me like this again,” she whispered into his jacket.
“I’m dumb, but I’m not that dumb.” He kissed her hair, and her forehead, and her nose, and then her lips, and she laughed until she felt his mouth on her throat and then her breast, and she wanted to give herself up, but there was still too much between them.
She pulled away from him until his eyes came up to meet hers. “I have to tell you, that portrait being here is probably a by-mistake-on-purpose deal.” He frowned with confusion, and she tried again. “I think I told Bill to take everything in the studio because deep down inside I wanted to people to see the Daisy Flattery part of me. I think the Daisy Flattery part of me just couldn’t take being squelched anymore, you know?”
“I know.” Linc put his arms around her again. “I think the Daisy Flattery part of me is what threw the dress out the window.”
Daisy smiled into his chest, but she had to make sure he understood. “Listen, I’m not ashamed of who I am even if I am weird. And I’m not ashamed of that portrait.”
“I’m not either.” Linc held her tighter. “Anytime I’m feeling depressed, I’m going to go look at it and think, This is what Daisy thinks of you. And then I’m going to jump you.” He bent to kiss her, and she felt dizzy and relieved and turned on, right in the middle of Bill’s gallery. And she didn’t have any clothes. “Linc, what am I going to wear home?”
“I don’t care. Your slip’s nice.” He slid his hand over her breast and inside the slip, and she gave up and pressed against him, but then the door opened.
“I know you wanted to be alone with Daisy,” Julia said, squinting into the darkness from the bright gallery. “But if you’re yelling at her, I’m against it.”
“He threw my dress out the window.” Daisy pulled away from Linc before Julia saw. “He messed up my hair and threw my dress away.”
“Good. That dress stunk on ice.” Julia turned to go.
“Get her coat, please.” Linc pulled Daisy close again in the darkness, sliding his hand down her back to her rear end, pulling her even tighter until she felt how hard he was, and she closed her eyes with pleasure. “She’s shy about walking around in her slip. Also, we’re going home.”
“Why?” Julia stopped in the open doorway. “The party’s just started and it’s great. This is Daisy’s big moment. You can’t go home now.”
Linc’s hands moved