Page 92 of Forbidden Hearts

Chapter 41

Alex

The warm sunlight filtering through the window wakes me up. I immediately hear the sound of ocean waves in the distance. Beside me, a shirtless Alonzo sleeps calmly.

I get out of bed as gently as I can, feeling the cool bedsheets on my naked body, and slip into my nightgown. I glance at Alonzo one more time and walk to the balcony of the room. We’re on the uppermost floor of Alonzo’s yacht, surrounded by ocean water. On the horizon, I can see land, the first pit stop of our winter vacation in the Caribbean.

When Alonzo first suggested this vacation, he said he owned a “boat” that we could travel in. I imagined a small sailboat like what fishermen use to catch fish.

But this is nothing like that. It’s a mega yacht with multiple floors and all the luxuries of a five-star hotel. There is even a floor reserved for the staff working the ship. Yeah, that’s a more appropriate word for it. It feels like a ship.

Large arms wrap around my waist, pulling me back into a hard body. My back arches when Alonzo’s lips find the side of myneck, leaving a trail of kisses up to my ear. A groan escapes my lips.

“We’re almost there,” Alonzo whispers behind my ear. His breath feels warm behind my neck, sending warm goosebumps down my body.

“I’m excited,” I say, caressing his large arms around my waist.

“Me too. Although if it was up to me, I would much rather spend the entire two weeks in this room with you.” He twists me around and kisses me.

Our first destination is the largest of the Cayman Islands. Alonzo said it’s beautiful this time of the year. Even though Texas isn’ttoocold during winter, we wanted to escape to a warmer climate. After the Cayman Islands, we are going to travel to various other Caribbean islands.

Never in a million years did I think I would get to visit a place like this. Mom and I had been stripped of cash for as long as I can remember, so being out here is surreal. It’s as if Alonzo took my hand and walked me into a dream.

By afternoon, we’re settling into the presidential suite at the hotel Alonzo got for us. The suite spans two floors, with massive glass windows overlooking the ocean and a private beach for the hotel guests.

“This is incredible,” I say. I still can’t believe this is my life now.

I run to the sliding glass wall, slide it open, and step onto a private balcony. We are several floors high, so the view is incredible, and the wind is rich and salty. On the horizon, the sun hangs full and orange above the ocean.

Alonzo steps onto the balcony and hugs me from behind.

“Can we go down to the beach?” I ask him.

“That’s the plan,” he says. “I read on the hotel’s website that they host candle-lit dinners on the beach.”

“That sounds romantic,” I say.

“Are you feeling hungry yet?”

“Not yet, but I’m sure I’ll be hungry in a few hours,” I say. “I can wait for dinner.”

“Well, Iamhungry, and there’s only one thing on this island that can satisfy this hunger,” he says, trailing the side of my neck with his nose and inhaling deeply. Warmth pools between my legs as one of his hands goes to my breasts and the other between my thighs.

“Oh,” I groan. “In that case, I’m starving, too. Quick bite?”

He scoops me off my legs, carries me into the bedroom, and sets me on the massive bed. Here, the wall facing the ocean is also entirely glass, with the window shades drawn open.

Alonzo hovers over me. His beautiful brown eyes look deep and rich against the sunset filtering into the room.

He puts his fingers between the buttons of my blouse and snaps it apart, sending buttons flying across the room.

“Alonzo!” I yell, instinctively putting my hands over my chest.

“Clothes are forbidden in this suite,mi cielo,” he says before kissing the valley of my breasts, slowly inching his way down my lower stomach.

“You’re shameless, Professor,” I whimper, remembering the first day of class when he had us draw him because his TA was late. It turns out he never had a TA for that class!

I thread my fingers through his dark hair as his lips reach the top of my shorts.

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