“And what might those be?”
“You’ll find out.”
“So you think you’re going to win?”
A devilish gleam entered his eye. It sent her flying across the room to the chests he’d referred to.
Within seconds she found a drawer with half a dozen bikinis.
She grabbed the most modest one she could find. It was blue with tiny pink flowers that looked as if it would fit. Then she hurried into the en suite bathroom to change.
Hoping it was all right to use one of the bath towels, she rushed back down the stairs with it and opened the heavy door to the courtyard.
“No—” she screamed because Luc was already there dressed in black trunks waiting for her.
“Please, no—” But her frightened laughter and cries went ignored. His powerful arms and body fought off her puny struggles.
“In you go, ready or not.” Merciless to the end, he carried her to the deep area of the pool. But instead of dropping her like a hot potato, he took them both to the bottom.
The sensation of their legs and bodies intertwined with bubbles was more intoxicating than the Riesling she’d drunk with him last night. She scarcely noticed the cold water.
In reality it wasn’t cold, but Luc had created a fever inside of her. She felt like a fireworks sparkler that was sizzling beneath the surface of the water.
His dark eyes danced as she popped above the surface.
“Oh, no—my towel—” She could see it floating beyond his broad shoulders.
“You don’t need it,” he murmured.
They trod water together. Her eyes traveled to his dark brown hair sleeked back to reveal his handsome features.
The late afternoon sun bronzed his olive skin.
“You look like the off-duty captain of a pirate ship,” she teased to cover her emotions.
He burst into deep laughter. The joyous kind.
That remote, aloof side of his nature he sometimes displayed had gone into hiding. She wanted him to stay this way for ever.
“You look like the woman on the masthead of my ship come to life at my whim.”
Afraid he could see her blushing, she somersaulted away from him and headed for the side of the pool.
He was right at her heels, cleaving the water in a few long, masterful strokes.
She reached for the tiled edge. When she turned around, there he was, inches from her.
His eyes followed the line of her lips. “Before I have to be back on duty, my one desire is to taste my private treasure.”
So saying, he placed his hands on either side of her and lowered his mouth to hers.
Rachel had wanted this for so long, she met the pressure of his mouth with shocking urgency.
She’d kissed and been kissed by different boyfriends over the years, but this was different. So completely different it frightened her because she knew she’d never be the same again.
Her whole being felt swallowed up in him. While he drove their kiss deeper and deeper, she forgot they weren’t one flesh of heart-throbbing need.
She made a little moan of protest when he lifted his mouth.