her another quick, sideward glance. ‘Don’t you get it, Eliza? There’s only one woman who interests me. And she’s sitting here, right beside me.’
Eliza suddenly understood the old expression about having all the wind blown out of her sails. A stunned, ‘Oh...’ was all she could manage through her suddenly accelerated breath.
Jake looked straight ahead as he spoke, as if he was finding the words difficult to get out. ‘The support group covered dating after divorce. It suggested six months before starting to date. Three months was long enough. The urge to see you again became overwhelming. I didn’t get where I am in the world by following the rules. All that dating-after-divorce advice flew out the window.’
Eliza frowned. ‘How can you say that? You left our seeing each other again purely to chance. If we hadn’t met at the airport—’
‘I didn’t leave anything to chance. After six months of radio silence I doubted you’d welcome a call from me. Any communication needed to be face to face. I flew down to Sydney to see you. Then met with Dominic to suss out how the land lay.’
‘You what? Andie didn’t say anything to me.’
‘Because I asked Dominic not to tell her. He found out you were flying to Port Douglas this morning. I couldn’t believe you were heading for a town where I had a house. Straight away I booked onto the same flight.’
Eliza took a few moments to absorb this revelation. ‘That was very cloak and dagger. What would have happened if you hadn’t found me at the airport?’
He shrugged those broad shoulders. ‘I would have abducted you.’ At her gasp he added, ‘Just kidding. But I would have found a way for us to reconnect in Port Douglas. Even if I’d had to call every resort and hotel I would have tracked you down. I just had to see you, Eliza. To see if that attraction I’d felt was real.’
‘I...I don’t know what to say. Except I’m flattered.’
There was a long beat before he spoke. ‘And pleased?’
The tinge of uncertainty to his voice surprised her.
‘Very pleased.’
In fact her heart was doing cartwheels of exultation. She was so dizzy that the warning from her brain was having trouble getting through. Jake tracking her down sounded very romantic. So did his talk of abduction. But she’d learned to be wary of the type of man who would ride roughshod over her wishes and needs. Like her domineering father. Like her controlling ex. She didn’t know Jake very well. It must take a certain kind of ruthlessness to become a billionaire. She couldn’t let her guard down.
‘So, about that coffee we talked about...?’ he said. ‘Do you want to make it lunch?’
‘Are you asking me on a date, Jake?’ Her tone was deliberately flirtatious.
His reply was very serious. ‘I realise I’ve surprised you with this. But be assured I’ve released the baggage of my marriage. I’ve accepted my authentic self. And if you—’
She couldn’t help a smile. ‘You sound like you’ve swallowed the “dating after divorce” handbook.’
His brows rose. ‘I told you I was out of practice. What else should I say?’
Eliza started to laugh. ‘This is getting a little crazy. Pull over, will you, please?’ she said. She indicated a layby ahead with a wave of her hand.
Jake did so with a sudden swerve and squealing of tyres that had her clutching onto the dashboard of the car. He skidded to a halt under the shade of some palm trees.
Still laughing, Eliza unbuckled her seatbelt and turned to face him. ‘Can I give you a dating after divorce tip? Don’t worry so much about whether it’s going to lead to something serious before you’ve even gone on a first date.’
‘Was that what I did?’
She found his frown endearing. How could a guy who was one of the most successful entrepreneurs in the country be having this kind of trouble?
‘You’re over-thinking all this,’ she said. ‘So am I. We’re making it so much harder than it should be. In truth, it’s simple. There’s an attraction here. You’re divorced. I’m divorced. We don’t answer to anyone except ourselves. There’s nothing to stop us enjoying each other’s company in any way we want to.’
He grinned in that lazy way she found so attractive. ‘Nothing at all.’
‘Shall we agree not to worry about tomorrow when we haven’t even had a today yet?’
Eliza had been going to add not even a morning. But that conjured up an image of waking up next to Jake, in a twist of tangled sheets. Better not think about mornings. Or nights.
Jake’s grin widened. ‘You’ve got four days of vacation. I’ve got nothing to do except decide whether or not to offload my house in Port Douglas.’
‘No expectations. No promises. No apologies.’
‘Agreed,’ he said. He held out his hand to shake and seal the deal.
She edged closer to him. ‘Forget the handshake. Why don’t we start with a kiss?’
JAKE KNEW THERE was a dating after divorce guideline regarding the first physical encounter, but he’d be damned if he could think about that right now. Any thoughts other than of Eliza had been blown away in a blaze of anticipation and excitement at the invitation in her eyes—a heady mix of sensuality, impatience and mischief.
It seemed she had forgiven him for his broken promise. He had a second chance with her. It was so much more than he could have hoped for—or probably deserved after his neglect.
He hadn’t told her the whole truth about why he hadn’t been in touch. It was true he hadn’t been able to forget her, had felt compelled to see her again. He was a man who liked to be in the company of one special woman and he’d hungered for her. But not necessarily to commit to anything serious. Not now. Maybe not ever again. Not with her. Not with any woman. However it seemed she wasn’t looking for anything serious either. Four days without strings? That sounded like a great idea.
She slid a little closer to him from her side of the car. Reached down and unbuckled his seat belt with a low, sweet laugh that sent his awareness levels soaring. When her fingers inadvertently trailed over his thigh he shuddered and pulled her kissing distance close.
He focused with intense anticipation on her sweet mouth. Her lips were beautifully defined, yet lush and soft and welcoming. She tilted her face to him, making her impatience obvious. Jake needed no urging. He pressed his mouth against hers in a tender kiss, claiming her at last. She tasted of salt—peanuts on the plane, perhaps?—and something sweet. Chocolate? Sweet and sharp at the same time. Like Eliza herself—an intriguing combination.
She was beautiful, but his attraction had never been just to her looks. He liked her independence, her intelligence, her laughter.
The kiss felt both familiar and very different. Within seconds it was as if her kiss was all he’d ever known. Her lips parted
