Page 114 of Seduced By You

“Where are we?”

“France.”

I rolled my eyes. “I’m sorry I ever put the effort into teaching you sarcasm.”

“Why? Because I’m better at it than you?”

I snorted. “Dream on.”

He laughed, taking my hand. “Come on. It’s not much farther.”

“Will the car be okay?” I glanced up and down the street. “It’s pretty desolate.”

“It’ll be fine.” We crossed the road and ducked through a gap in the hedge. The crystal-clear waters of the Mediterranean Sea twinkled in the evening sunlight, and below, a deserted golden beach stretched for miles. The path down to the shoreline was pretty steep, and I slipped a couple of times, held upright only by Kadon’s tight grip on my hand. He picked his way down as easily as Dash would have, sure-footed and confident.

I kicked off my shoes at the bottom, digging my toes into the warm sand. We trekked along the beach for about five minutes in comfortable silence. The only sounds came from birds flying overhead and large, white-tipped waves crashing to shore.

“This is all rather mysterious.” I side-eyed Kadon, who still wore that smug, secretive look. “I don’t trust you.”

“Charming.” His grin stayed fixed in place, assurance oozing from every pore.

“If you’re planning to murder me, I will come back from the dead and tell Dash what you did, and he will rip your balls from your body with his huge talons.”

Kadon threw back his head and laughed. “I adore your vivid imagination. Although, why it jumped to murder is a little alarming.”

“I mean… take a look around. It’s deserted. No one knows we’re here. It’s primed for nefarious activities.”

“Damn.” He hit his thigh with the flat of his palm. “You got me. Nefarious and me, we’re like that.” He crossed his fingers.

“I taught you too well,” I grumbled.

“Quit complaining. We’re almost there.”

I trundled along beside him for a few more minutes, my mind spinning with what he could have planned. One thing the last few months with Kadon had taught me was to expect the unexpected. He’d taken to having at least every other Saturday off work, and he often organized something fun for us to do. Life wasn’t boring. That was for sure.

In the mouth of a small cave, a wicker picnic basket caught my eye, sitting alongside a large, thick blanket. Something Kadon had said to me months ago sprang to mind. That time we’d practiced for the wedding and our fake relationship, and I’d asked him about the first time we’d had sex. He’d come out with this romantic story about a hidden cove on a beach, a comfortable blanket, and a picnic.

“Kadon.” The cave before me blurred. I blinked to clear my vision. Hands down, this was the most romantic thing ever.

“Come, sit.” He maneuvered me inside. Opening the picnic basket, he produced a bottle of Dom Pérignon. Just like the tale he’d told months ago.

“Are there lobster rolls and caviar in there, too?”

His eyes softened. “You remembered.”

“How could I forget?”

He poured two glasses of champagne and handed one to me. The cool liquid slipped down my throat, bubbles shooting up my nose. I didn’t ask how he’d done all this, including serving chilled champagne. That would ruin the illusion, and he wouldn’t like that.

Sure enough, the picnic basket contained lobster rolls and caviar, as well as tuna sandwiches with the crusts cut off and the most melt-in-your-mouth strawberry mousse I’d ever tasted. As the sun dipped lower in the sky, I finished my glass of champagne and fluttered my eyelashes at Kadon.

“Are you going to kiss me and undress me and make love to me, and then hold me in your arms under a starlit sky until we fall asleep?” He’d promised the same thing all those months ago, and although this wouldn’t be our first time, it’d be no less special.

“No.” He took my empty glass and turned his back to me, putting it in the picnic basket along with his own.

“Oh.” Disappointment did not taste anywhere near as good as Dom Pérignon. “Right. Fine. Whatever.”

He ignored my petulant outburst, although I was sure I spied his shoulders shaking with suppressed laughter.

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