Sun Kissed (Crane Series) by Nancy Warren

she knew that, but she realized she was in no hurry to get back to San Francisco either and leave the most interesting man she’d ever met. He was still inside her body, as though he belonged there, and in that moment she realized he did belong there. She loved him. The thought made her blink rapidly and bury her face in his neck.
    “No,” she said, kissing the warm skin. “I’m in no hurry.”
    “We’ll stay overnight then.”
    “All right.”
    The night couldn’t last long enough. Someday it would be tomorrow, and she would have to face the fact that she’d fallen in love with a man who was completely foreign to her in every way. But, she decided, wrapping her arms around her new lover, she’d deal with it when tomorrow dawned.
     

10
    “That’s him!”
    Jen grabbed Cam’s arm and blinked and blinked again at the man who’d walked into the front reception area of Crane, hardly daring to believe her eyes. No. The man didn’t walk. Swagger was closer, but that wasn’t right either. He had the loose, confident stride of an athlete and something about the easy roll of his hips suggested a potent sexuality. He stood around six two or three, she guessed, and his open shirt revealed a nicely bronzed chest and a hint of copper hair. He wore jeans and the kind of plaid shirt worn by road crews and cowboys everywhere. His hair was sun-kissed brown, his skin weather-beaten, and his smile both boyish and knowing.
    “I have to have him,” she said when her heart remembered to beat.
    “You just had me,” Cam reminded her in an aggrieved tone.
    She smiled at him, thinking the early bout of sex before work this morning seemed to have boosted her creativity. She was full of great ideas.
    “Don’t worry. I don’t want him for sex. I don’t have the energy.”
    Since their time was running out, she and Cam spent every possible second together, usually naked. They couldn’t seem to get enough of each other. He hadn’t mentioned putting off her trip again, but she knew it was on both their minds. She’d never been so happy. Or so terrified. Would she give up everything from her citizenship to her job for this man? Would he even ask her? She wanted to kiss Cam but since that was grossly inappropriate, she squeezed his arm and let go.
    “I’ll see you later.”
    Then she turned back to the paragon, pleased to see he was just as perfect as he’d been twenty seconds ago. He glanced around as though he might have the wrong address and the idea he might leave again had her almost racing across the foyer, intercepting him before he could vanish.
    “Hello,” she said, extending her hand and giving him a warm smile. “I’m Jennifer Talbot.”
    “Steve Jackson,” he said, shaking her hand and giving her a smile that could melt chocolate.
    Strong, masculine hand. Nice hint of callous. Up close he was as utterly perfect as he had been from twenty feet away. Maybe even more so, from here she could see that his eyes were a stunning blend of gray and green, that he handled himself with innate confidence, and that his voice was incredible. Deep and rich, but also approachable. If she didn’t sit down soon, she thought she might swoon.
    “Are you here to see me?” she asked. One of the agencies must have sent him. Whichever it was they were going to get a fat bonus along with their fee.
    “I suppose,” he said. “I’m here about the job.”
    “Wonderful.” He followed when she led the way to her office. “Did you bring a portfolio?” she asked when they were sitting. She couldn’t wait to see how he photographed.
    “A portfolio? You mean like a CV? Didn’t think of it. Sorry.”
    Okay, no portfolio. She could live with that. Somehow she knew the camera would love him as much as she did. “Do you have any television or film experience?”
    “Television?” He was even gorgeous when he wrinkled his forehead in a puzzled frown. “I’m a steelworker. Just finished up a bridge.”
    “But you are here about the