The childlike question had him biting his cheek not to laugh and Zara’s eyes flashed at him in warning. He really wasn’t making her job easy.
‘Ten minutes, tops.’
Zara combed a hand through her hair, the move sending her scent over him, her neck arching invitingly, and he had to fight to hold himself still—their next private moment couldn’t come soon enough.
And he would tell her all. He really would.
But maybe after...
CHAPTER SIX
THE VIEWING HAD gone well. Julia had oohed and ahhed over practically everything. Daniel, on the other hand... She just couldn’t read him.
Or maybe she was reading him too well and that was the problem.
She looked to him across the back seat of the car and worried over her bottom lip. He was talking business down his mobile, his Swedish dialect washing over her and teasing her to distraction. Between them, Julia sat poring over the property files, acting oblivious to the chemistry thickening the air. Or if she wasn’t oblivious, she was content that her position at least separated them both and made her feel less gooseberry-like.
Christ, gooseberry-like—way to go in making your client feel valued, Zara.
She really needed to get the entire affair under her control before she truly pissed the woman off. It wasn’t fair on her and it certainly wasn’t professional.
What the hell’s got into you?
His eyes flicked to hers, his lips quirking mid-sentence and her body jolted with excitement.
Him. That’s what.
She snapped her eyes away. She needed to get this house-hunt done and dusted like yesterday. Before she committed career suicide, this time at her own hand. No matter how much her body wanted to smash her work ethic to pieces, no amount of fun was worth going through all that again. Work and her client’s satisfaction had to be her priority. Speaking of which, she dialled EJ and asked her to pull together a list of new properties for Julia to go over tonight. There, that was work-focused! Then she threw herself into her emails, anything to keep her attention off him until the car pulled up outside her office building.
Daniel was still engrossed in his conversation so she looked to Julia as she undid her seat belt. ‘I’ll get those new properties emailed across to you later today.’
‘Thanks, Zara.’
She went to open her door and Daniel started, dismissing his caller and pocketing the device in one swift motion. ‘I’ll see you up.’
‘There’s really no need.’
But he was already opening his door.
Julia turned to her. ‘I’d say I’d come too, but I don’t think he wants me to.’
He leant back to send her a brotherly look. ‘Very astute of you, liten syster.’
She dug him playfully in the ribs. ‘Just don’t be long. I have somewhere I need to be.’
He chuckled and stepped out, ducking his head back in long enough to say, ‘Sure thing.’
Zara watched him close the door, disbelief and a far more worrying emotion warming her through and making her smile softly.
She looked to Julia, all set to bid her farewell, and her intent died at the grave expression on the woman’s face—what was wrong?
‘I like you, Zara, I really do.’ She worried nervously over her lip, her eyes tracing her brother’s movement around the back of the car before coming back to pin Zara with their uneasy quality. ‘And I sure as hell love my brother, but...just be careful. Don’t get carried away with him.’
Zara’s eyes narrowed, the hairs pricking at the back of her neck with a sudden chill. ‘Why would you—?’
She was silenced by Daniel opening her door, his voice breaking through the cabin. ‘Come on, she may be smaller than me but don’t be fooled. Julia is capable of kicking both our asses.’
Julia gave her a smile and a shrug that bordered on apologetic. ‘He’s not wrong.’