Page 22 of Impossible Thrills

“He’s worse,” Hays countered.

The captain walked up to them. “Good evening. I trust your day went well.”

“Very well, for all of us but Jagger,” Darcy answered, giggling as Jagger protested.

“We’ll be under way to our next destination in a moment.” He gave a slight smile. “So possibly hold off on dunking Captain Lemuel and making his day even worse.”

“Ruin all my fun,” Darcy said.

She grinned at the captain and the three men. She was having fun. There wasn’t a lot of time for fun in her daily life. The babies made her happy and the toddlers, especially Samuel, made her smile and laugh a lot, but she was mostly very, very busy. ‘Running around like a chicken with your head cut off,’ she heard from May quite often.

She liked the fun of this day, but she loved the human connection even more. She worked with Gary and May and some local ladies rotated through their Tecate house. They were all great, but …

Brothers. Tough brothers who would watch out for her. She had to remember it was only for the next few days. Especially when she wanted to fall for Nick and make him much more than a brother.

“Have a nice dinner.” The captain nodded to each of them and turned, walking crisply up the rear staircase.

“We’ll meet you at dinner,” Jagger offered, giving Nick a sly wink.

“Don’t wait for us,” Nick teased back.

Darcy’s stomach pitched in a very pleasant way. Don’t wait. Was he going to kiss her before dinner? What if they went and sat in the hot tub up on the top deck and watched the sunset after dinner?

Stop it, she commanded her brain. She wasn’t getting involved, especially not with a flirtatious man who would break her heart sooner or later. Nick would be gone from her life soon. Johnny had lied to her and promised her the world and made her feel like she was special. She didn’t think Nick could ever lie to her, but he would disappear and it would hurt even worse if she kept letting down her guard.

Nick placed his warm palm on the small of her back and escorted her to the steps leading down. She glanced up at him as they stopped outside her suite door, and he turned to face her. Not even Johnny had made her want to swoon with one glance of his powerful, sultry deep brown eyes.

That only meant she needed to be more careful.

“Darcy.” Nick’s voice was low and husky. He rested his hand on the doorframe next to her head.

Darcy clutched the shopping bag to her chest like a shield between them. Unfortunately, some cloth and lace wouldn’t be enough to keep her safe from the likes of Nick Jacobs’ charm. What was she going to do?

She blinked up at him, wondering what she should say when he propositioned her. He was going to proposition her, right?

“Yes?” She licked her lips. His gaze dropped to her lips, then met hers again. She was hot all over.

“Would you …” He paused as if not sure how to proposition her properly. She hated that. “Like to sit in the hot tub with me after dinner? Alone?”

Ah, that was how it would be. Hot tub. Alone. She’d had similar thoughts a moment ago but now she realized she could not give in to those ploys. She had to be smarter and not fall so easily.

“Nick. I can’t do any kind of serious relationship. My focus is my babies and toddlers and traveling around to make certain they’re all safe, well-fed, and loved.”

“I could …” He paused again, brow furrowed.

“What? Follow me around to my children’s homes after knowing me for five days?” She raised a challenging eyebrow. Part of her wondered if she was making a complete fool of herself. Nick had asked her to sit in the hot tub, not marry him, but part of her knew she had to shut the player down. No matter how he made her feel, she couldn’t be special to someone like Nick. She was simply the only female around this week.

He straightened away from her, and his dark eyes were troubled. Once again, she sensed there was something he wasn’t telling her. That scared her as much as him being a charming flirt. “You’re right. I don’t … a relationship wouldn’t … you’re right.”

Darcy’s gut churned. He agreed. She’d instigated this conversation, and he had agreed. It still hurt.

“Darcy.” Nick placed his palm on her bare arm, and heat shot through her.

She gazed into those deep-brown eyes and almost threw herself at him.

“I’m sorry,” he murmured.

He was sorry. Because he couldn’t see a relationship working? He was too busy with work? He was a confirmed player? She didn’t know.

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