Page 35 of Moonstone Angel
The air was warm, and the water appeared calm as they stood on the sand, holding hands while they peered across the azure expanse. “Come in with me, Cara.”
He tugged gently on her hand.
She eyed the water warily.
“Still scared, love?”
She nodded. “I don’t mind watching you from the shore.”
He looked disappointed as he undressed.
“Drat, now you are going to make me be brave. I am not a coward but promise you won’t let go of me.” She took a deep breath and slipped out of her robe. However, she kept her shift on for modesty, not that it would hide anything of her body once it got wet. Nor did she feel the need for modesty around him, but what if the dolphins reappeared?
Well, those dolphins would not care what she was wearing.
Rowan emitted a hearty chuckle when she told him what had been going through her mind. “Keep your shift on, love. Your body is for my eyes alone. I am not sharing you with anyone, man or beast.”
He took her hand and was beyond patient with her as they inched deeper into the water until it came up to her chest. “I’ll be right beside you, Cara. Why don’t you try to swim?”
“Will you swim with me?”
“Yes, love.”
“All right.” She thought she would have difficulty, but it took her only a few strokes to regain her ability. Soon, they were swimming side by side and it felt wonderful. She had not done up her hair, so the long strands fanned out behind her as she moved through the water.
“Can angels also be mermaids?” Rowan teased, obviously enjoying the sight of her.
“I am neither, I assure you.” Certainly no mermaid when she was still too afraid to swim out where the water was over her head.
Nor did Rowan force her.
She made her way back to shore a short while later and watched as he went into deeper waters when the dolphins returned to frolic with him. She enjoyed watching him cavort with them from her spot of safety.
She was not afraid of them after watching the care they took with Rowan. But being comfortable in those deep waters was something she would have to work harder to achieve.
The memory of that violent, unforgiving sea all those years ago was not something easily overcome.
She would in time.
Especially with Rowan beside her.
It was not long before the dolphins headed back out to sea, and Rowan swam back toward her. He proudly neared the shore, his body wet and glistening as his feet planted on the sandy bottom, and the water swirled around his chest. “Did you see me ride on them, Cara?”
She was hopping with excitement. “I did! You were splendid! Neptune, god of the sea.”
She waded in to meet him as he came toward her and lifted her in his arms. “Lord, you make me happy.”
“The feeling is mutual, Your Grace.”
He carried her back on land and used his shirt to dry her off. He laughed as she squealed when he tossed off her soaked shift and rubbed her body down. Then he helped her don her robe before tending to himself. He put on his breeches but merely slung the damp shirt over one broad shoulder.
They sat on the sand, she in his arms again so that her back was to his chest, and his arms were closed around her while they listened to the soft whoosh of the waves rushing to shore and the occasional caw of a bird hovering over the water in search of a morning meal.
He brushed her hair back and kissed her neck. “Cara, I mean it. I’ve never been happier. You feel so soft and perfect in my arms.”
“It is this place, Moonstone Landing. The bracing salt air. The warmth of the sun. The glistening sea. This place calls to you. Like the ebb and flow of the tide…you may leave here for a while, but you always come back. It draws you back.”
He kissed her again. “No, love. It is beautiful, and I hope we shall spend many summers here, but—”
