Page 34 of One Forbidden Night In Paradise (Hot Winter Escapes)

‘This is why I wrote that note,’ she said finally, avoiding his eyes. ‘Because I don’t know how to do this. I thought I did but I don’t. You see, I lied to you. Before. I told you I didn’t do relationships. That wasn’t true.’

She felt his green gaze narrow on her face. ‘You have a boyfriend.’

‘No.’ Finally she looked up at him. ‘Not any more. But I did. His name is Nick. He cheated on me. That’s why I came to Bermuda. Why I’m having this holiday. My brother and sister thought I should get away. Go somewhere new. Be someone different. Let my hair down. They sorted it all out, and I went along with it because—’

‘They’re a force of nature.’ He finished the sentence for her.

‘Yes, but then I met you.’ Her pulse skipped forward as she remembered that moment at the harbour when he had swaggered out from behind the counter. ‘And I wanted you, and you made me want to be this cool, impulsive, wild woman so I let you think that was who I was.’

He said nothing, just stared at her, waiting.

‘It all seemed so easy in the moonlight but then when I woke up I panicked.’ Had she been the expert she claimed to be, she would have casually informed him the night before that she had an early start. Instead she had ended up creeping around in the dawn-lit cabin, terrified that he would wake at any moment and the spell would be broken, and that night of fantasy would be lost and forgotten among the awkward goodbyes.

‘I know I acted like it was something I do all the time, but I’ve never had a one-night stand and I didn’t know how it worked.’ She swallowed. ‘It was so perfect, I didn’t want to ruin it, so I got up and left. And it would have been fine if we never met again.’

She saw him swallow, saw a muscle tighten in his jaw.

‘Only we did. And it was too late to tell you that I’d never done anything like that before. But then you knocked on my door and I realised that it didn’t matter what I told you because I knew the truth. I knew that it wasn’t fine. That I still wanted you, and I don’t want to feel like this, but I can’t seem to stop myself.’

But she did stop now. Lowering her face, she breathed out unsteadily. She had never admitted half as much to anyone but then she had never felt so physically connected to any man.

‘And I feel the same.’ Pulse trembling, she looked up to see his pupils flare. ‘So why run from it?’ he said hoarsely.

Her belly clenched, his question stabbing at her, slicing through her defences.

‘I don’t.’

‘Yes, you do. It’s like you said. You know the truth. We both do.’ His green gaze burned into hers. ‘So what’s the point of running? Or hiding? Or pretending that you don’t want this?’

Heart thudding, she gazed up into his beautiful, sculpted face, her insides tightening, her body betraying her, the raw, sexual challenge of his words pounding through her like a drum roll. For a moment neither of them spoke or moved, and then he reached out, tugged gently at the band in her hair, and she stared at him transfixed, unable to move, helpless, fascinated by his touch.

‘You came to let this down.’

As her hair tumbled loose, he twisted the blonde strands, winding them into a rope as Rapunzel had done so that the prince could climb up the tower to rescue her. But instead he used it as a pulley to draw her closer to him. ‘To have fun, and go diving. And I get that this is all new to you. But that’s not a reason to leave. So why not stay here with me on theMiranda? Just until the beach house is fixed? I have an event in New York coming up but other than that I’m all yours.’

It was just a phrase, she told herself, but his words made her body ache.

He untwisted her hair and let it hang loose. ‘I can make all those things you want happen.’

A moment earlier she had wanted him to leave. Now her heart was beating against her ribs, his suggestion catching the sunlight like the divers’ watches, pulling her in. This was only supposed to be a day trip. But then this was only supposed to be a one-night stand and what he was suggesting would mean being here on theMirandafor several days. The thought sent a fast twitch down her spine. Was that wise? She had already let it go further than she’d planned.

Then again there was still an end date, and it wasn’t as if Chase were proposing marriage. Like her, he wanted to have fun. A pulse of heat pirouetted across her skin. So why walk away now? Why not have fun with him? And if she spent a little longer having fun out here with Chase, then maybe back in England she would be less likely to return to her old, bad habits.

‘Is that what you want?’

She could see the dark flush in his cheekbones and his eyes were full of heat, but she needed to hear him say it.

‘Yes,’ he said simply, and he took the bag from her hand, tossed it onto the floor. She didn’t say anything. She just stared at him, her heart pounding, and then she sidestepped past him and shut the door. As she turned to face him, he crossed the room in two strides and kissed her hungrily, his mouth drawing the heat from hers, his hands gripping her waist and pulling her back towards the bed.

CHAPTER SEVEN

PRESSINGHERFACEagainst the submersible window, Jemima was lost for words, her mind empty, the questions and uncertainties of the last few days soothed away by the view through the glass. Only this time it wasn’t just the sea life that was mesmerising but the water itself, she thought as the sunlight slipped away and the colour palette moved through a light curaçao to a bruised blue.

‘What do you think?’ Chase’s voice made her jump and she turned to find him watching her, his green gaze shimmering as it met hers.

‘I think it’s very cool,’ she said carefully.

He tipped his beautiful head back and laughed. ‘I know, it’s a bit of a toy, but it does serve a purpose. It means we can check out deeper sites without having to send divers down. Although, to be honest, we probably wouldn’t even use the submersible until we locate a suitable wreck.’

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