*
The candlelit pool called to Charlotte in the middle of the night, and she crept out of bed for a midnight swim. They had fallen into bed, gorged and happy, after a sumptuous supper and several bottles of rice wine. Bly slept soundly, sated with love and sex and Charlotte. She stood naked on the steps of the pool with the candles burning down and flickering out. The night sky mirrored the glittering terrace; it was a blanket of candlelight thrown across the heavens, nature’s own grandly romantic gesture. She waded into the exquisitely warm saltwater pool, and swam to the far end that balanced precariously over the edge of the ocean.
Bly was next to her in a matter of minutes, his smooth/hard chest against her back, his arms enfolding her. He lifted the dark, heavy curtain of her hair and trailed hot kisses across her neck as she turned to face him. Her lips parted and his tongue invaded her mouth, savoring the feel and taste of their desire. His hands cupped her breasts, then moved to her sweet little ass, lifting her up as her legs circled his waist, her hips eagerly pressing into him. She moaned at the feeling of his hardness straining between them, the broad length and ridges, hot and huge, throbbing against her belly. She didn’t just want him inside her, she wanted to taste him, she wanted to share every intimate pleasure with this man who was both her lover and her truest love.
To his great surprise, she peeled her body away from his, swam to the far end of the pool, and waited for him to join her.
“Hmm, you have that look in your eyes that means I’m in for some pleasurable trouble, or you’re about to seriously rock my world,” he said, settling onto the steps as she kissed and licked her way down his body. He couldn’t help but groan with anticipation when she looked into his eyes and said, “Both.”
*
“What is that noise?” Charlotte sat up in bed the next morning, and although her head was pounding from too much rice wine, she smiled at the view. Bly stood naked, drinking a glass of orange juice as he watched a helicopter touch down on the driveway. Her heart leapt as he turned and walked slowly toward the bed. God, he was without a doubt the sexiest man alive. And he was hers. How could she have forgotten that mind-and-life-altering fact? His power and his money meant they could live without worries or restraints, and that was an excellent bonus. But it wasn’t the things he owned that made her love him, it was his inherent goodness, his heart and soul. Of course, if she was going to be truthful, it was also his powerfully masculine body, and his stop-the-clock gorgeous face. He had that enchantingly unruly lock of hair that constantly fell across his forehead, and the sexiest blue-green eyes she’d ever seen. Not to mention those amazingly etched lips and strong, square chin with a deep dimple that made her weak in the knees. To top it all off he was a little too well endowed and she wasn’t the least bit ashamed of her constant longing for their special brand of loving with a hint of pain.
“We’re leaving tonight, going back to California,” he said, leaning over the bed, resisting as she tried to pull him down, lifting her up instead and holding her as if he’d never let go. “I thought you might like to see the island from above. It’s an incredible sight, and there’s something special I want to show you.”
“Something special? I’m intrigued. Let me grab a cup of coffee and get dressed, which you might want to do as well, unless you want me to take advantage of you…”
“I do love it when you take advantage of me, and just thinking about your bold, beautiful mouth last night makes me want to climb in bed with you right now. But we have the rest of our lives for every pleasure we can dream up. Let’s get dressed, then you’ll have to indulge my romantic side once more before we leave Bali.”
She dressed in a sarong and a linen blouse, then pulled her hair into a sleek ponytail and tied it with a bright batik scarf. He held her hand as they walked toward the helicopter, and then they were inside, buckling seat belts and covering their ears.
From above, Bali was a small bright emerald adrift in an endless watery world. The bays and the ocean surrounding the island caught the rays of sun and reflected them like a prism burning with variations of blue, turquoise, azure, and rich indigo until they the horizon swallowed them up. The helicopter veered away from the coast and climbed into the verdant hills dense with trees and boulders, and it seemed to Charlotte that this must have been the first piece of earth that God had created. There were tears in her eyes as she took in the pristine beauty of it all, committing it to memory. Memory was a tricky thing, and she wasn’t sure that hers was fully intact, but she knew unquestionably that she was in love with Bly and she also knew that no matter what, that was unchangeable.