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He’s not ready for this to end. Not when he’s had the best days of his life. Not when he has an emotional connection with this girl that rivals their sex, bests it. Not when being with her feels like home. Not when he…
Not when he loves her.
He whisks his thumb over her knuckles. Takes a hard breath. “Ash. Listen…”
The door opens. Augustus pokes his head in. “I hope I’m not interrupting.”
“No,” Ash says, smiling bright. “Not at all.”
Nathaniel leans in to press a kiss to her forehead. Shoves up to standing and turns to his grandfather. “She’s all yours.”
He’s almost to the door when his grandfather lets out a smug, knowing chuckle.
Augustus turns to Nathaniel, his eyes soft and bright. “That’s where you’re wrong, my boy. That’s where you’re wrong.”
It’s a night of lasts. Last sunset. Last mai tai. Last kiss.
When they get back to the hotel, Nathaniel all but bullies her into climbing into bed and resting. His will, not to mention that stern, furrowed brow of his, is too strong for Ash to fight, especially in her weakened state. After a hot shower and a weepy telephone call with Tessie where she tells her best friend about her close call on the island, it’s time for the luau.
Wrapped in a fluffy white towel, Ash stares at herself in the mirror. Instead of the myriad of worries and anxiety carousing through her brain, all she can think is:
Nathaniel.
A hum that warms her blood.
No one has cared about her like that in a long time. Sure, she was improbably close to lapsing into a coma and dying, and he is a doctor, but his Hippocratic oath didn’t cause the tremor in his voice. The fear in his eyes.
He cares about her.
For ten days, she’s been trying to ward it off. Now, she doesn’t want anything else.
Suddenly, she craves the sight of him.
Oh god. It’s madness.
Ash slips on her sandals, pulls on a simple black dress. Gold jewelry. Black cat eye. Red lipstick. She checks her blood sugar (fine, thank fuck). Then grabs her purse, her room key, then walks out the door.
The sight of Nathaniel brings a smile to her face.
He’s leaning back against the wall in the hallway, arms crossed, waiting for her.
So handsome it makes her heart stall.
He pushes off the wall and exhales, attention locked to her face.
“You’re staring,” she says.
His eyes sharpen. “You’re beautiful.”
She blushes. Her heart takes off at a sprint.
“You okay?” he asks. He tucks a lock of hair behind her ear, using the move to check the temperature of her skin.
“I’m more than okay.” She narrows her eyes at him. “But if you ask me that again, you won’t be.”
“Threats before dinner,” he says dryly. But there’s heat in his gaze. “I see you’re just fine.”
He offers her his arm, and, heart squeezing, she takes it. Together, they walk to the elevator.
