Priceless Treasure(10)

Okay, she could lie to herself all she wanted, but she’d seen the look in his eyes. It wasn’t as if she’d never been kissed before. She had — plenty of times!

Who in the heck was she kidding? She’d been kissed a few times, and the first one hadn’t been until her freshman year of college. That kiss had sucked. The next few guys hadn’t gotten much better.

So she bailed out. Why fool around with college boys, at least until she at least found a guy who lit her on fire? That had yet to happen. Sure, she’d had plenty of opportunity. College guys were just plain horny, ready to rock all around the clock. But she didn’t want her first time to be with some drunken frat boy who stuck it in her and then fell asleep with her pinned beneath him.

It wasn’t asking too much to hold out for more, was it?

And even though her boss had stirred more feelings in her in the span of a few minutes than any other man — or boy — ever had, she was not going to act on that. The man had a fiancée, after all. And Savannah was determined never to be a homewrecker.

If only she could convince herself to quit lusting after him. It was hormones. That’s all it was. She knew science, and she could get over this.

“Are you going to answer my question?”

Ashton’s voice snapped her out of her daze. Wow. He was irritated.

“I’m sorry. I missed what you said.” Embarrassment heated her cheeks. Only one thing saved her pride — that he had no clue where her mind had just been. If he knew, she’d have to quit right then and there.

“I said that I’m going to start training you to be able to go out on our cruises. I’m short-staffed in that department right now, and I expect all crew members to know their cruise jobs inside and out. Within a month, if you do well, you’ll be able to go on a voyage. Are you interested?”#p#分页标题#e#

“Oh, yes, yes, for sure,” Savannah told him, elated at the possibility of hitting the ocean. “When does the cruise leave? Which ship are we taking? Where is it going?” She fired questions off without giving him a chance to answer.

“Most likely our Alaskan voyage, where we stop in Sitka, Glacier Bay, Kodiak, and Dutch Harbor before heading back home. I’ll have someone train you for the main ship when their schedule frees up for them to do so. This is where we have approximately two hundred and fifty guests on board. You would work the cleaning crew.”

“I’ve cleaned before. It won’t be a problem. What about free time? Do we get any?” she asked, then thought that sounded clumsy and decided to clarify. “I didn’t mean that I don’t appreciate the job opportunity or that I won’t work hard. But I love cruising the seas, and I’m excited about going to new places, really getting to see them.”

“You’ll work specific hours. The rest of the time, barring emergencies, you will have plenty of free time.”

“How long are we in each port?”

“Since we limit our stops, we’re normally in each place for two days and one full night. We cruise overnight to each new location.”

“Thank you for this opportunity, Mr. Storm. I promise you I won’t mess it up,” she told him. She was beyond ecstatic, and without thinking, she jumped over to him and threw her arms around his neck. “You don’t know how much this means to me.”

Big mistake. She realized it the nanosecond her arms were around Ashton’s neck. But before she was able to pull away, he was clasping his hands behind her back and drawing her against him.

“I’m so sorry,” she gasped. “I don’t know what I was thinking.”

“I happen to like this impulsive, affectionate Savvy,” he said, not allowing her to escape.

Panic set in. She couldn’t allow him to do a repeat tango with her on his office floor. Why didn’t she think before acting? She’d been asking herself this for a very long time.

“Well, it’s inappropriate,” she told him, tugging against his hold again.

This time he let her go. She took several steps back and did her best to create as much distance between them as humanly possible.

“How so?” he said, an obvious challenge.

First she sputtered at him. Then she did what she always did when she got overstressed. She closed her eyes for a few seconds, counted to ten, then took a cleansing breath. When she reopened her eyes, he was looking at her strangely, but he hadn’t moved. That was good.

“Did you forget that you have a fiancée?” Wow. Her voice was calm, rational. She was very proud of herself.

“What does that have to do with our sharing a moment together with a friendly hug?”