Amaya closed her eyes before responding, "Yeah?""You okay?""Yes. A little dizzy, but erm, I think I’ll have a drink. Would you like champagne? I feel like some, don’t you? This is a good one. Wow, I’ve been to the vineyard. It was amazing, so picturesque." She fumbled with the foil around the top of the bottle, sudden nerves and shyness assailing her.Chase came over, took the bottle from her, and placed it back in the ice bucket. He put his hands on her waist, his expression as tender as she had ever seen it. "You’re nervous. Why is that?" He said it as a statement, not as a question. Amaya pulled at one side of her lower lip with her teeth, her cheeks feeling as if someone had lit a fire under them."It was probably a fluke down at the beach. I might not be able to do it again."He lifted her chin with the tip of his finger, holding her gaze with his. "No one’s keeping time here, wife; we can do whatever we want. Hmmm, what do you want us to do anyway?" He teased her. "You can tak
Chase had worshipped her body, not exploited it. He had caressed it, not coerced it. He had respected it, drawing from her a depth of passion she had never given to anyone else. She hadn’t been capable of it with anyone else. Her body had never wanted anyone like it wanted him. It was as if she was programmed to respond to his touch alone. Chase leaned his weight on one elbow and used his other hand to stroke her cheek. His eyes held hers in a gentle tether that made her feel even closer to him. It was as if he had glimpsed who she really was and liked what he saw.“You are amazing, wife.”Amaya gave him a shy smile. Silly to be feeling so shy after what they’d just done, but still. “I don’t suppose you’ve had too many dreams like this?” He idly curled a strand of her hair around one of his fingers, the slight tug on her scalp making her shiver in delight.“Maybe?”“Good, because it’s nothing any man should take for granted. What pleases one woman might not please another. Communicati
“I wish I’d listened to myself about not agreeing to marry you at that time. It would have saved me a lot of hurt and embarrassment.”Chase raised his brows. He gave her an on-off smile and turned away to shove his feet back into his shoes before he reached for a T-shirt and hauled it over his head. “I’m going up on the bridge to check on things. I’ll leave you to rest or whatever. We’ll have some supper once I secure us for the night in a sheltered cove not far away from here.”Amaya’s shoulders sagged when the door clicked shut on his exit. She was being silly. What did it matter if he didn’t love her? Refused point blank ever to fall in love with her? They could still have a satisfying relationship. Far more satisfying than any relationship she’d had before. Sure, it wasn’t the fairy-tale relationship she secretly yearned for, but how realistic were those yearnings anyway? She knew more than most about the sort of heartache that came from idealistic expectations in relationships. T
Chase closed the distance between them, allowing her enough room to step aside if she wanted to, but she stayed where she was, her dark blue eyes showing nothing of the tug of war her body was undergoing. But Chase could sense it. He could sense her arousal, the silent thrum of it moving back and forth like a radar signal between their locked gazes. The blood surged in his veins, his need growling and prowling through his body in response to her tempting proximity. He glided a fingertip down the hinge of her jaw, stopping below her up-thrust chin, feeling the delicate quiver of her flesh at his idle touch.“So what were you thinking then?" She asked him, her growing arousal making her bold. Amaya wanted him to touch her, the way she had been thinking off. Chase slowly advanced on her, stopping just short of touching her knees with his thighs."Oh, you know... this and that," he responded, his eyes tracing a path from her eyes to her breasts and to her parted thighs. She sat perfectly
Amaya woke up in the quietude a little while before dawn. The only sound she could hear was the gentle wash of the water against the sides of the yacht. Chase was sleeping spoon-like behind her, one of his arms over her waist, his legs entwined with hers. She had never spooned anyone before. It was such a cosy, intimate feeling to be curled up together, skin to skin. She listened to the sound of his breathing, feeling each rise and fall of his chest against the naked skin of her back.She glanced down at the band of his tanned, hair-roughened arm around her waist. The contrast of his darker-toned skin against her creamy white made something tingle and shiver deep and low in her belly. The curtains weren’t drawn as they were so far away from anyone in the private cove they’d anchored the yacht in the night before. The stars were like handfuls of diamonds flung over a dark velvet blanket, twinkling and winking, existing in a timeless and spectacular array. It struck her how long it had
Chase hadn't had a holiday for months, so he kept telling himself that was why he was feeling so relaxed after a week sailing around the islands. He’d chosen a couple of private hideaways he was familiar with, where he and Amaya had swum in quiet coves with the fish darting below them or lain on pristine beaches. But if he were honest with himself, he knew it was because Amaya was proving to be the best thing that had happened to him in a long time.Maybe ever. He woke each morning with a tick of excitement in his blood. Not just because the sex they had was getting better and better, but because the companionship they’d developed had settled into friendship, unlike anything he’d had before with anyone else. He looked forward to discussing things with her—current affairs or business things that came through on email. She had a good mind and sound common sense, and he enjoyed listening to her take on current issues. They cooked together, read together, walked, swam, and snorkelled toge
“If you ever had the pleasure of getting in bed with me again..." Chase narrowed his cold eyes on hers. “You would be the one to catch fire, and we both know it.”“I don't think so. You did all the work on the yacht, remember? ”He frowned.“Oops! Did I hit some nerves, husband, dear? ”With that, Chase curled his finger, motioning her into the conference room. People had begun to trickle straight into it with their coffee cups and sleepy eyes. Amaya obeyed, her catlike, limber walk telling him she knew he was looking.Justin opened the door for them before he walked in.“Hey, lover boy. How's the honeymoon?" He clapped his back.“Call me that again if you want a one-way ticket to early retirement,” Chase muttered.“Mrs. Lover Boy?” He winked at Amaya.“Lover boy, my ass," she saluted.They shared a knowing smile. Chase punched him in the face. Internally, of course. His limits were few and far between, but they were there. Besides, Justin had just another fling, the morning show’s la
“Yes, Chase, I'm not that stupid, but I was expecting you to be so civil with me. The people around here will talk about our marriage. Had I known, I never would have touched you. Just because you don’t have any morals doesn’t mean I don’t, either.”“Know what? Morals? What the hell are you talking about?”Yes, I don't know what I'm talking about either. She thought. “Tell me more about your morals, Mr. Johnson." There, she was being crazy again, changing the subject.He raised a brow, “I don't know what you are trying to ask here, woman, but—you confuse me.” His eyes travelled along her body with boredom. He dragged his long fingers over his jaw.I was foolish for marrying you, but that wasn’t something I was eager to correct him on.She waved a hand at him. “Just say what you want to say and let me get on with my day.” The lies were so smooth, she swore it felt like durian ice cream, kind of smooth. “You said your life is none of my business. I tend to agree with that sentiment, esp