Page 44 of One Forbidden Night In Paradise (Hot Winter Escapes)

Chase Farrar might be the most beautiful man she had ever met, possibly the most damaged. But he wasn’t hers to fix for that very reason. She was here for fun, not to dole out therapy, and it didn’t matter that she felt so close to him. In fact, that was a reason not to get any closer. Getting closer would increase the risk of him finding out who she was and what she’d done, and she knew how he’d react. Even just thinking about his face changing made her hands shake so much she nearly dropped the book.

No, this needed to stay simple. She needed to sideline everything she was feeling for him, and just embrace the physical need they felt for one another.

They ate lunch on the deck. It was the most perfect of days, she thought, gazing across the deck. The sea stretched away from the boat in every direction, gleaming blue beneath the hazy sun. As for the meal...

Today’s menu was the most wonderful food she’d ever eaten. Lobster salad with mango puree and tempura followed by a chocolate and hazelnut eclair with banana ice cream and salted praline.

‘Do you like it?’

She glanced up. Chase was watching her, his green gaze resting on her face. He was dressed casually, his feet bare, blond hair still damp from the pool, and just looking at him made her palms itch to touch him.

‘It’s delicious, but I don’t understand how Gianluca does it. How does he come up with these flavour combinations?’

‘It’s what he’s trained to do.’ His eyes held hers steady and before she even realised what he was about to do, he reached over and picked up one of the shards of praline and bit into it.

‘Hey, hands off.’ She pulled her plate closer. ‘I was saving that till last.’ But her mouth was pulling at the corners.

‘I’m not that patient. I can’t wait until the end for the best bits. I want it at the beginning. And also in the middle. Especially when I’m with you,’ he added softly.

She laughed. ‘Don’t try to distract me.’ Picking up the last shard of praline, she took a deliberately tiny bite.

He rolled his eyes. ‘I bet you’re one of those people who unwrap presents really slowly so as not to tear the paper.’

‘There’s nothing wrong with that. In fact, it’s the correct way to do it because then you can reuse it, which is better for the environment. Although personally I’m not a fan of wrapping paper.’

‘Really? I thought you’d be all about curling ribbons and tying little bows.’

She held his gaze. ‘You’d be surprised at how few things merit a bow. But as it happens I usefuroshiki, you know, those Japanese fabric wraps.’

He nodded slowly. ‘I’ve heard about those. Can you use any fabric? Like a sheet maybe.’

She frowned. ‘I don’t see why not.’

His dark green gaze simmered as it met hers. ‘Good. Because I can think of nothing I’d like to do more than spend the afternoon in bed, unwrapping you.’

Heart thudding, she stared at him, mute and undone. Impatient. Lost somewhere between the hunger in his eyes and the heat building low in her pelvis.

She cleared her throat. ‘Shall we skip coffee?’

He nodded. ‘Let’s do that.’ Leaning forward, he fitted his mouth against hers and kissed her, his hand sliding through her hair, tilting her face so that he could deepen the kiss.

It took both of them a few seconds to register that his phone was ringing. He made a rough sound in his throat and pulled back. Eyes still fixed to her face, he yanked the phone from his pocket, frowning down at the screen. ‘I better take this,’ he said, getting to his feet and walking towards the pool.

‘Would you like me to bring out some tea and coffee, Ms Friday?’ Peter, one of the stewards, had come to clear the plates.

She glanced over to where Chase was still on the phone. It was impossible to read his expression, but he seemed to be listening intently, one hand jammed into the pocket of his shorts. ‘No, thank you, Peter. I think we’re good.’ Shifting back in her seat, she stared out across the ocean, which was now a couple of shades darker than the sky. She knew Chase kept in contact with his New York office but he left the day-to-day running of his business to his C-suite. It must be something important for him to pick up.

‘Sorry about that.’

He was back. He had only been gone a few minutes but her heart flipped over as he sat down, as golden and beautiful as any of the treasures he brought up from the ocean.

‘Everything okay?’ she asked, more out of politeness than because she expected him to share the details of his call.

‘Everything’s good,’ he said slowly. His eyes switched to her face. ‘That was Marcus. He wanted to let me know that they’re just tidying up at the beach house. You can move back in whenever you’re ready.’

She stared at him blankly, his words buzzing in her head like a sudden, unexpected swarm of bees. This was always going to happen. Only despite knowing that right from the start she hadn’t seen it coming. She’d just let the days bleed into one another beneath the brilliant blue of the sky and got lost in Chase’s glittering green gaze.

And now it was over.

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