Max cupped her shoulders. Then carefully set her away. Renshaw moved forward, but Max kept her firmly at arm's distance.
Apparently make-out time was over.
Too bad the crashing waterfall muffled their conversation, but even without the words, it became increasingly clear Max was giving her the brush-off. Not surprising since he hadn't shown more than a short-term interest in any woman since Eva.
Eva.
The need to hurt Max, badly, surged to the surface. Robin tucked the beach bag closer. The hefty 9mm inside rasped along the rough cement surface, taunting with how easy it would be to tuck inside the bunker, make use of those gun slits and end it all, warrior-style.
Wasn't two and a half years long enough to wait?
But to act prematurely would toss away meticulously plotted revenge. Years of subtle torture. Watching Max shred himself up with guilt had been downright entertaining.>"Ohmigosh!"
A rusty chuckle slid from Max's throat as he palmed her waist again. "Easy, now, Lieutenant."
Beneath the clear water, the dolphins circled in perfect harmony until they stopped just shy of the ledge. Side by side, their heads popped above the water.
Max knelt. An elbow resting on his knee, he extended a hand. "Hi, there, girls." He glanced up at Darcy. "I thought you'd like to meet them face-to-face."
She crouched beside him, unable to resist this peek into his world, a world so different from her own. "I understand intellectually how fast they are. But seeing all that power unleashed firsthand. Wow! It's just so..." She shrugged, picked at loose coral along the edge and flicked them into the water. "That probably sounds silly to you."
"Not at all. The day you lose respect for their strength is the day someone gets hurt."
Her gaze jerked to his face. Did he mean his words as a warning about himself, as well? One she should probably heed.
Each dolphin nudged his hand and received a stroke in turn. Those broad hands broadcast a similar restrained power. Magnetic strength.
Darcy pushed aside her fears as well as thoughts of taking a stand. Why not simply enjoy this moment with a man she found surprisingly as captivating as the prospect of a flight takeoff? "Which is which?"
He pointed left. "Lucy." Then right. "Ethel."
She stared at the pair of dolphins, both with gray-green backs fading into a white underbelly. "How do you tell them apart?"
"Every dolphin has a distinctive face and body markings. If you have a kennel full of beagles, they all look different. Or a pasture of horses. Or a room of people. Same with dolphins." A tree rustled behind them. Loose coral skittered down the cliff path. Max hooked a finger under her chin and guided her face toward the dolphins sticking their heads above water. "Look. Closer. Tell me what you see. Think details rather than the whole picture."
She narrowed her eyes until the two animals became more than just a bobbing duo, more than just twin 'Flippers'. "Lucy has a longer, uh—" Darcy gestured a circle around her mouth ''—uh, snout?''
"Rostrum."
"Right. And Ethel has a bigger bump on her head. What's it called?"
"A melon."
"Melon? Really? Cool." So the ivory-tower dude lived within the dangerous hunk after all. How many layers were there to Max Keagan? "What are all those marks along the side?"
"Laminar flow lines. Friction marks from the water rushing along the rostrum and melon."
His words barely registered in her distracted brain. She stared into Max's eyes, eyes as changeable as the blue-green ripples of the ocean. In spite of all that water slapping the rock face, her mouth dried right up.
He turned away, thank heavens, before she made a fool out of herself. Again.
Max reached low and patted the rocks until Lucy moved closer. "Go ahead and pet her if you'd like."
Darcy stroked the bulbous melon, the rubbery skin damp and cool to the touch. A gray snout nudged her arm until she fell back on her bottom.
Laughing, she righted herself, sitting on her heels so as not to be caught unaware again. "Surprised me, didn't you, Lucy?" Darcy inched her hand forward, then hesitated to glance at Max. "What should I do differently?"
"Nothing. Keep on with what you're doing. Careful and steady." He reassured her as she rubbed the rostrum. "Watch for signs that they're agitated. Yes, they've been trained, but don't forget for a minute they're wild creatures first."