Page 44 of Take Hold of Me

While she works, my eyes are drawn to a group of people who gather to check out the excitement. They’re in bathing suits, and no one poses a threat. I keep my head in the game and ignore Emilie’s posing as long as I can. From time to time, her laugh draws my attention. She’s standing in the water with the bottoms of her pants swirling around her ankles in the water. Gorgeous.

After a couple of hours, the shoot wraps. I let the crew precede me and I look out into the blue water. A memory of my sister learning how to surf floods my brain. She picked it up so quickly her abilities surpassed mine within months. My chuckle drops off as I brace myself from falling to my knees on the beach. This is the first memory of Three that has spontaneously come to me, and it made me laugh. No anger, no remorse. Ahead, Emilie runs to the tide and then back toward the beach. It’s because of her. She’s giving me my life back.

What is she doing to me?

Keep it professional, buddy. Remember what happens to people who get too close to you—they get burned.

I pick up the pace and rejoin the group at the cars. Emilie’s bent over, leaning into the SUV, exposing her ass and long legs. I can’t help but admire the view—more alluring than anything I just saw on the beach.

She straightens and turns from the vehicle, waving her cell phone. “Wills! Come back to the beach with me! I want to capture the starfish.”

Not a good idea. Before I can tell her no, she rushes to my side. “It was so amazing out there. Come with me.”

I swallow over my objection. I’m her bodyguard, after all. “Okay.”

She leads the way, the bottoms of her pants now sandy from when they got wet before. “I want to thank you for the FaceTime call before. I had not thought of it, and it made me feel like I was a part of the celebration. You are so thoughtful.” She links her arm in mine.

Thoughtful?Not a word I’ve associated with myself. My father calls meself-absorbed,Mom would say I’mintrospective, while others in the security field would saydetached.But,thoughtful?

She stands at the shoreline again, the waves lapping around her ankles. She bends down and takes a photo of a grouping of many-colored starfish, then turns her screen toward me so I can see her photo.

My eyes never leave her. “Looks nice.”

Her smile makes my heart seize. It’s such an unguarded smile that reaches up to her eyes. The green has almost overtaken the brown in them now. What’s pulling me to her is not that she’s fully done-up with her hair and makeup and clothes. It’s her essence shining through. I bet the professional photographer’s pictures don’t show half of what I’m seeing right now.

“I got the whole family!” She looks to the heavens and laughs. So carefree.

I freeze this moment in my brain. This is my Angel. Right here, right now.

I approach her and touch her hand that’s holding her cell, transferring it to my hand. “Ems, you take my breath away.”

Her laughter stops on an intake of breath. “Wills,” escapes her lips as if on a sigh.

Not caring who can see us, where we are or if any cameras are trained on us, I slip her phone into my back pocket with one hand while wrapping my other around her waist. I close the gap between us and bring my lips in to meet hers. I need to let her know what she’s doing to me. What she means to me, even if I don’t deserve her. I want to thank her for just being her.

This kiss isn’t the frenzied explosion of passion from the elevator. It’s not the sex-throbbed infusion of the club. Rather, it’s an acknowledgement of her inner beauty. A thanks for sharing her light with me.

Our lips graze and nibble and caress. Unknown sensations rock my body. Sensations that have absolutely nothing to do with sex—yet everything wrapped up in Ems. I’m starting tofeel. The warmth of the sun, the light breeze against my skin. Both have been here all along, but I didn’t notice them before. That’s what she does to me.

The realization that we’re in public finally penetrates my mind. I break our kiss. “You’re something special, Emilie Dubois.”

Her hands skim the back of my neck and tangle in my hair. “As are you, Wills Sumner.” Her hands drop from my neck to my back and then hover around my ass. When she slips her fingers into my back pocket, the roar of the ocean disappears over the storm generated from within my own body. I step backward as she pulls her cell phone out of my pants.

“I want to get a photo of us here.”

I can’t deny her. “Sure.”

Emilie sets the camera to take a selfie and extends her arm. I tilt my head toward hers and she leans her face against me, then snaps three pictures in rapid succession. She shows me the photos—she’s all soft and exquisite and light. I’m her exact opposite. Hard. Rough. Dark. Ignorant to my line of thought, she kisses my lips again.

“We’d better be getting back. They must have packed up all the equipment by now.”

We turn and she holds her hand out to me. Feeling an imposter—pretending to be someone who deserves to be linked with her—I intertwine my fingers with hers, and we return to the cars. Once we’re in sight of the crew, though, I disengage from her. “Better that you go on ahead, Emilie.”

Her brows knit together. “I want to be seen with you.”

War.

My body and my head are at war. IknowI’m not good for her yet my head’s losing this battle. I want her too damn much. Still, the rumor mill doesn’t need me to get their tongues wagging. “Not a good idea.”

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