Page 46 of Natural Temptation

I grip her arms, dragging her into me, our lips nearly touching. "I love you, Meredith. No one has ever meant more to me than you do. I don't that you can't have children. I don't care that you're nine years older than I am.I love you."

A deafening crack of thunder drowns out my words, making us both jump.

So, I tell her again, more loudly. "I love you."

"Yeah, I heard you the first time." Her lips curve into a playful smile. "But maybe we should go to the dining hall. That's where everyone is hanging out."

I smirk. "How can I fuck you in the dining hall? The elderly folks might have a heart attack."

"Sorry, sweetie, no sex during a cyclone. My screams of ecstasy might be mistaken for someone in distress."

Despite myself, I feel a smile tugging at my lips. But the moment of levity is short-lived as another gust of wind rattles the windows, reminding me of the very real danger approaching.

I loosen my grip on her arms. "We need to get you to safety. Your bungalow—do you have any weather-appropriate clothes there?"

"I packed some just in case. Jeans, boots, the works."

"Good. We need to hurry. This storm is getting worse by the minute."

As we move toward the door, I worry about the cyclone outside but also how the guests will handle being stuck in the main building for the duration. Before we head for Meredith's bungalow, I take us on a detour to check on all the guests and my staff. Many of the guests who have rooms in the main building had decided to stay in their quarters. The rest took shelter in the dining hall, the game room, and other public areas.

Inside the building, controlled chaos reigns. Emilio's voice rises above the din, his usual cheerful tone replaced by calmauthority. "Everyone, please remain calm and follow the staff to the designated safe areas."

The staff volunteered to handle room service. The dining hall is packed with guests who were told to leave their bungalows or rooms in other parts of the resort. Every structure on the island has been storm proofed. But I'd rather have everyone crammed into the main building instead of spread out in various locations.

I catch Marley as she's dashing around helping guests. "You guys have everything under control. I'm taking Meredith to her bungalow. Call me on the walkies if you need me. Cell phones might not work."

"Yes, boss."

A deafening crack rips through the air as we reach Meredith's bungalow. The ground trembles beneath our feet, and I instinctively pull her close, shielding her body with mine as a massive palm tree crashes down mere thirty feet away.

Meredith gasps, her fingers digging into my arms.

"We need to move, now!" I shout over the howling wind. Without thinking, I scoop her up and sprint toward her bungalow. My heartbeat is pounding in my ears by the time I set Meredith down just inside her door and slam it shut. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Ryan, that was insane. Like something out of a disaster movie."

"I know."

Now that we're cocooned in her bungalow, the roar of the wind is less noticeable. The mountain and the trees muffle it just enough that we can relax a bit. We have no television, since the signals come from satellites and the storm is blocking them. I have a walkie talkie for communicating with my staff, but otherwise, we have no way to communicate until the brunt of the cyclone moves away from us. Meredith and I pass the time by playing gin rummy—she wins more than half the time—and alsoby talking. I want to ask about her past, but it feels wrong for me to start that conversation.

Instead, I tell her more about me. Maybe that will encourage her to open up too. We're lying in bed, fully clothes, while the storm rages, though less powerfully than earlier.

"When I took this job," I explain, "I had no idea how my family would feel about it. But they were surprisingly broad-minded about the nudist resort thing. Of course, they still don't know that I've gone naturist too, thanks to a certain bewitching guest."

She feigns innocence. "And that guest would be...Zara, right?"

"Ha-ha." I tickle her belly, which always makes squirm and laugh. "My family would love you."

"Even though I'm a post-menopausal woman who never had any children?"

"Once they meet you, they won't care about your age." I pull her closer. "We could visit family sometime. Then you could get to know my brother and sister, my parents too."

She lays her arm across my chest. "My parents live in South Dakota, but I moved to Seattle with my husband not long after we got married."

"You're divorced, then?"

"Not exactly." Meredith's face pinches up briefly, then she relaxes against me with a sigh. "Brian was very sweet when we were dating and for several years after that. But then he had a stroke and couldn't work, even had trouble walking and speaking. I had to get a second job to pay for his medical expenses. Brian would curse at me and even throw things at me. I knew it was the stroke, but I still felt...defeated. Four and half years ago, he had another stroke and passed away."

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