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Replacing the strap, she replied, “My way, I guess. Orderly. No surprises.”
“None at all? I thought women liked surprises.”
She huffed. “Maybe flowers or dinner or something.”
“What about an adventure?” Suddenly he wanted to take her off this ship and show her what fun the unexpected could be.
“I think I’ve had enough adventure to last me. Nice and quiet works from here on out.”
She blinked then looked away. He didn’t know her well enough to know her tells yet, but he’d bet his next summer’s paycheck she was lying. Maybe even to herself.
“So why’d you come on this cruise? This doesn’t seem nice and quiet.”
She rolled her eyes, a smile peeking at her lips. “Ashley told me it was a gift from her company. I just thought we’d spend some time hanging out, getting some sun. I didn’t know it was a singles cruise until we got here.”
He nodded. That might explain why, although she was here on this cruise that claimed it could make people find love, or at least lust, she seemed hell-bent on finding neither.
* * *
Courtney looked down at the now damp paper crumpled in her hand. If she kept looking at Seth and his sparkling blue eyes and those dimples that were even more prominent now that he’d shaved, she was going to start drooling or stammering or . . . something worse maybe. Though really, what was worse than drooling and stammering in front of a Grecian god?
“They . . . uh.” She cleared her throat. “They said maybe we should try some of these questions if we’re having trouble with conversation.”
He raised that damn eyebrow again. “Are we having trouble with conversation? I wasn’t aware.”
She nodded. “Just goes to prove how much you need this sheet then.”
When his eyes opened wide, she couldn’t help but smile. Of course, that only made him smile again, this time brighter, and suck the breath right out of her. She glanced at the sheet. “What’s your spirit animal?”
He chuckled. “My spirit animal? Really?”
She nodded.
“Okay.” He pursed his lips, which only drew her attention and forced her to stare at them. They were the most perfect pair of lips she’d ever seen. Which was utterly ridiculous. They were lips. Just lips. Just simple every day, plump, kissable, hard but not too hard . . . damn it. She snapped her gaze back to his eyes. Immediately she realized his eyes were no safer, so she found a spot over his shoulder to stare at.
“I’m a tiger,” he answered without any of the joking she’d expected.
Her gaze snapped back to his. “A tiger?”
“Yep. I run on instinct. I trust myself enough to know what I want and how to get it. Typically, I act quickly and without much debate when I feel the need.”
Her pulse quickened and something warm pooled in her belly. “Is that so?”
His gaze slid from her eyes to her mouth. Reflexively, she pulled her bottom lip between her teeth. A low sound, somewhere between a sigh and a moan, came from Seth’s throat. She could’ve sworn she felt it right between her thighs—a place that hadn’t felt anything in nearly three years.
Seth cleared his throat. “What about you? What’s your sprit animal?”
Right now she felt very much like a rabbit being hunted by a very large and dangerous cat. “A deer,” she informed him instead. He didn’t need to know he made her nervous. Somehow, although she didn’t think he’d purposely hurt her, she was certain he’d enjoy the idea of making her uneasy.
“A deer?” He shook his head. “Who told you that?”
“No one. It’s just what I am.”
His blue eyes narrowed, taking in each inch of her face. He shook his head again. “I don’t think so.”
She huffed. “You don’t think so? You met me five minutes ago, how do you know what I am?”
He gave her a cocky wink. “I’m a tiger. I trust my instincts and my instincts recognize a likeminded spirit.”
