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I woke slowly, my body deliciously sore. My eyes felt sticky and my throat was raspy. My arms ached as I pushed myself upright.
The floor was littered with our clothes. His dark suit and my flimsy lace undergarments.
I turned, taking in his sleeping form. He was on his back, my red nail marks stark on his chest. His eyes were closed and he looked almost…innocent.
Fuck that, after last night I was convinced this man didn’t have an innocent bone in his body.
He’d done the dirtiest things to me last night. He’d called me things that should have made me cry, but made me come instead. He’d seduced and conquered me like he did everything else.
I sank back into the bed and he stirred, rolling to face me. His lashes fluttered open and his eyes skimmed over my body. I looked away, heat creeping up my cheeks.
“Cariad,” he said huskily.
He propped himself up and wrapped an arm around my waist, pulling me to his chest. His eyes were concerned.
“Did I hurt you?”
“No, no,” I breathed. “It was just a lot.”
The old Merrick was back. Gentle and worried about me. He tugged the sheet down and his hands skimmed over my body. Coming to rest on the tiny bruises scattered on my thighs.
“Fuck,” he swore.
He looked genuinely upset. I gripped his stubbled jaw and gently kissed his mouth.
“If I had wanted you to stop, I would have told you to,” I said.
He nodded and I reached up, stroking my fingers through his hair. His shoulders relaxed and I bent and kissed his mouth. The raw feeling between us faded and he pulled me into his arms. Our bodies melded, warm and languid.
I didn’t want to move. I just wanted to stay here and feel him breathe.
“Alright,” he said finally. “We’re here, so let’s get dressed.”
He set me on my feet and began putting on his pants and shirt. I slipped my lingerie back on, but it seemed a bit embarrassing to walk out in my dress from last night.
“Is there a robe or do I need to do the walk of shame?” I asked.
He pulled a drawer at the end of the bed out and tossed me a wad of white cloth. I unwrapped it to reveal a…swimsuit cover up?
“It’s a bit cold for this, no?”
His mouth turned up and he crossed the room, hitting the button. The door hissed open and I blinked in the bright light. I padded to his side and gasped, elation sweeping through my chest.
Miles and miles of blue. Churning, roiling, smelling of salt and freedom. Pale yellow sand stretched out as far as I could see. And an enormous, Grecian style compound in the distance.
I whipped around. “Where are we?”
He kissed my temple. “Paradise.”
“No…really. Where are we?”
His jaw worked. “It’s an island. That I own. But I use it for business so I’m not going to tell you what it’s called or where we are.”
He could be so stubborn. I gave it up and pulled the cover up over my lingerie and practically ran down the ramp.
The sun burned overhead and the sand was hot under my feet as I tore across the beach to the water. He followed me, at an easy pace. A confident pace I knew so well.
Euphoria filled my chest. Built up from the last several weeks and the chaos of last night. There was no one around but two men from the crew and a bodyguard by the plane. I pulled my cover up off and ran into the ocean.
