SEALed With A Kiss(46)

Lace wasn’t interested in the sharks swarming in the water. She liked the one standing so close the heat from his body warmed her head to toe.

But Dex only cupped her elbows, and she’d given him ample opportunity and implicit permission to touch so much more.

Now that the quaking had stopped, she felt her face grow hot. Lace drew away and began to offer him a small smile of apology, but his slitted gaze made a quick trip down her body. Oh. Maybe she hadn’t blown this first encounter after all. Could she use that hint of attraction to wrangle an invitation for drinks after they reached the villa’s dock?

She licked her lips and pouted them. “I guess I should be getting back to my boat…”

“No more shivers?” His voice was deep and slightly husky.

“Only where it counts,” she whispered, arching a brow.

His mouth twitched, but he set her back, his hand trailing from her arms ever so subtly.

Her breath hitched, and she was glad she was already soaking wet because her body was warming, and the evidence of her desire could have been embarrassing.

Dex shot a glance over his shoulder. “Bring the boat around to the platform.”

The engine fired. The escort boat made a slow circle of the yacht, Dex’s large hand at the small of her back to keep her steady. When they bumped softly against the rubberized edge of the platform, he held her hand, not letting it go until she’d stepped safely up onto the lower deck platform. He dropped his hand and began to turn.

Lace reached across and tapped his shoulder.

His face slowly turned, his jaw jutting to reveal a stern, hard line.

Good Lord, that mean look made her hot. “Can I offer you a drink…later…seeing as you saved my life?”

Soft laughter came from his equally well-built friend. Blond brows rose over dreamy brown eyes, and he gave her a slight shake of his head.

She wasn’t deterred. Instead, she steadied her gaze on the dark-haired man with the glacier eyes. “I promise I don’t bite.”

“We’ll see,” he said, then turned away from the platform.

His firm voice didn’t give her an ounce of hope he was serious. Sighing, she turned, giving him a look that conveyed her disappointment, and then walked away. So maybe the sway of her bottom was anything but natural, but since she was wearing a thong, she knew exactly where his gaze went.

Lace wasn’t giving up. That attitude wasn’t in her DNA. When she wanted something, she went after it. And she wanted him. Yes, every one of his security team members was equally lovely, but he’d challenged her. She flipped back her red hair, but the effect was spoiled as water-soaked tendrils slapped her shoulder.

The sound of the skiff’s motor roaring into life again gave her Dex’s direction. A plan began to form.

One of the crisply uniformed crewmen stepped forward with a towel. “Is there anything else I can bring you, miss?”

Grateful for the distraction, she gave the crewman a smile. “A martini. Very dry. And I want a chaise moved to the high deck.” The skiff was currently bobbing beside the starboard side of the yacht. She’d drink her favorite cocktail atop the upper deck platform—very slowly—and make sure Dex knew she was watching him. And maybe she’d take off her top—to catch the late afternoon rays. None of the wives or girlfriends of the wealthy men who’d actually paid for the trip—she’d been given hers gratis—had been the least bit shy about stripping. So, she wouldn’t be breaching any of the boat’s rules.

The potent drink would give her a little Dutch courage. And maybe he’d think the blush that washed over her skin was solely due to too much sun.


Dexter Haygood didn’t have long to wait before he caught flak.

“Mmm-mm. Don’t know how you passed that up,” Justin Walsh, the team’s combat medic, said, his face reflecting disappointment in his friend.

Seated at the side of the skiff, Hank Jones, their machine-gunner, shook his head. Always silent, the big man’s expression spoke his disgust. His dark face was screwed up in a frown.

Dex snorted. “I’m not part of the amenities.”

“Halloran gives us free rein of the villa. And he didn’t say a thing about keeping away from the passengers. I think he likes giving them the thrill of rubbing elbows with ex-SEALs. And…we have our own cabanas.” Justin gave another irascible waggle of his brows. “You could invite her for a little some-some and no one would bat an eye.”

“We’re here to do a job,” Dex said, feeling annoyed that he hadn’t managed to hide his attraction to the redhead from his team. Now he’d never hear the end of their teasing. Not something he was accustomed to, as he rarely protected beautiful women in his line of work.