AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“That might be the right word,” I admit. “Even if it is a hundred years old.”
“Along with rogue.”
“Scoundrel.”
“Ne’er do well.”
“I do certain things very well, actually.”
She gives me a reluctant grin. Then her eyes go wide. “That’s yours?”
“I told you it was a yacht.”
“That’s not a yacht. It’s a freaking cruise ship.”
She exaggerates. A little bit. It’s a custom-built superyacht with two pools, a hot tub, a glass bottom, an IMAX theater, and a crew of twenty. They’re not here. The boat is quiet on the water as I hand Eva out of the car.
“Not that one,” I tell her, leading her past the craft used for events to the fifty-foot bluewater sailing yacht. It’s the one I take when I want a long, peaceful ride through the ocean. It also offers some of the best views of the stars in Bishop’s Landing.
I climb aboard and then help her make the hop to the deck.
She wobbles a little in my arms, and my hands immediately go around her waist. I steady her in a split second, but I hold her for several heartbeats after that. Her eyelashes brush her cheeks. Demure? Nervous? Then she glances at me, and I see something else entirely.
A fiery passion that’s been banked for years.
Heat rushes through my body in implicit answer.
I force myself to let her go, except for a loose link of our hands. The boat isn’t in motion, but it sways gently. I don’t want her tumbling overboard. I lead her to the back, where a platform can be used for boarding or sunbathing.
I throw down a couple of outdoor pillows, making us a nest.
Then I pull her down with me.
After an initial stiffness, she relaxes against my side. I’m stretched out flat on the deck, my arm around her. My gaze is on the sky, instead of her, but somehow that makes this moment feel more intimate. I run playful fingertips down her arm, teasing out more goosebumps.
“Beautiful,” she says, looking at the stars.
When you lie down like this, you feel insignificant. That’s what I like about it. Like I’m a speck of cosmic dust. Like the fate of my entire family, as well as several thousand other families, doesn’t rest on my shoulders.
I look down at Eva’s face in profile—her strong brow, her faintly upturned nose, her full lips. Her black silky hair tickles my nose. “Beautiful,” I murmur in agreement.
Her dark gaze meets mine. “Thank you for tonight.”
“For almost getting you arrested?”
“For taking pity on me. I know that’s why you did it.”
I don’t pretend not to understand. “Alex fucking Langley.”
She makes a face. “I mean, he’s nice. But going to my mom instead of me, the whole arranged-match thing…I hate it. I’m sure you must get that, too.”
“Something like that.”
There’s a ticking clock where I’m concerned.
Get married while you still can, my mother implies with every society chick she introduces me to. I’ve already told her I’m not getting married.
And I’m sure as hell not having children. Not ever.
