Iris breathed deeply as she strolled beside the man who was never far from her thoughts. The man she dreamed about each night. The man she now knew had not only gotten under her skin but had somehow wiggled his way into her heart. Pam had been right. She did love him. All it took was seeing him tonight, after not having seen him for almost two weeks. The moment she had gazed into his face, she had felt something she had not experienced since Garlan. An emotion so strong she’d almost lost her footing while crossing the room to him.
Now they were here. Walking together and holding hands while desperately finding a private spot where they could—of all things—share a kiss. A kiss she so desperately needed. And from the way he had looked at her when they left the ballroom, he needed it, too.
They passed numerous paintings on the walls and some eye-catching statues along the way. However, nothing held their interest. They didn’t even pause since they were on a more serious mission. She could just imagine what Pam was thinking right now. Iris didn’t care if the look of love had shone all over her face. She would deal with that later. However, now…
“Finally,” Matt said, reclaiming her full attention as he stepped out into what looked like a beautiful flower garden. “I couldn’t imagine this place not having one.”
As soon as the entrance door closed behind them, and he made sure they were alone, he pulled her into his arms. “I missed you so much, Iris,” he hotly whispered in her ear.
She was about to tell him she had missed him, too, when the mouth that came down on hers froze the words on her lips. This was what she wanted. What she needed. His taste. Being held by him, and the presence of his aroused body pressed hard against hers, letting her know he wanted and desired her. She figured, from the way she was returning his kiss, that he knew the feeling was mutual.
When he released her mouth, she dropped her face into his chest and drew in his scent. This man did things to her like no other. Whenever he touched her, she felt like she would incinerate there on the spot, and whenever he kissed her, he stirred sexual energy so powerful, it filled her.
She slowly lifted her head to look at him, and the naked desire she saw in the depths of his dark eyes had heat curling inside of her. “Don’t.”
He smiled. “Don’t what?”
“Tempt me to strip naked here and now.”
He threw his head back and laughed. “Can you imagine the talk that would cause if someone walked in on us?”
She didn’t want to imagine such a scene. “When are you leaving here?”
“I plan to fly out in the morning. What about you?” he asked.
“The same.”
“You and Garlan?”
“No, just me. Garlan is staying an additional day, and then he’s heading back to school.”
He nodded. “What airline are you using?”
When she told him the airline and the time, a smile spread across his face. “We’re on the same flight.”
Her eyes lit up. “It would be too much to hope our seats are close.”
“They will be. I’ll make it work.”
She wasn’t sure how he could, but she knew he would. “We left the party so abruptly, we need to go back before people start getting ideas.”
He grinned. “You’re probably right. By the way, I met Garlan’s friend Mandy. She seems like a nice girl.”
“I think so, too, but he claims they are nothing more than friends.”
He chuckled. “Like Alisdare and Deena.”
“Yes, but at least AJ and Deena are established in their careers, so I’m hoping the ‘nothing more than friends’ thing is for real for Garlan and Mandy,” was her response.
Then he took her hand as they left the flower garden.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Iris shifted positions in bed, squinted one eye open and immediately noticed the hard body pressed against hers. She couldn’t help but smile as she came fully awake. It was hard to believe it was already the third week into the new year. It seemed like yesterday when they had practically danced the night away at the Westmoreland Charity Ball. Every time she had glanced over at Pam, her friend would have an “I told you so” look in her eyes.
Iris figured by now most of the Westmorelands knew she and Matt were an item. He never left her side, and they had danced together more than any other couple that night. The next morning, and she wasn’t sure how he’d done it, they had seats next to each other in first class. When she asked how he had managed to do that when she’d paid for a coach fare, he’d only smiled and told her not to worry about it. So she hadn’t.
Now they were back in their regular routine of spending time together every day. Some nights he stayed over at her place, and other nights she stayed at his. Their football team was in the playoffs, and they were keeping their fingers crossed the team would be going to the Super Bowl. And she loved those times when they cooked meals together, sharing recipes.