Page 73 of Catching Trouble

He lifted an eyebrow, and at the flare in his eyes, my body shivered, then shrivelled into a needy shell when he slowly shook his head.

“Chloe…”

I tutted.Spoil sport.

Extracting my foot, I nudged onto my elbows. “I know, I know. But you can’t blame a girl for trying.”

He smiled—well, as much as he ever did—before he spotted the mess of papers at my side.

He knitted his brows. “What are you working on?”

I shrugged, scrambling to distract him. I couldn’t let him see the scribbles on my notepad. Sophie handed it to me a few days ago like it was a sacred artefact, trusting me to help with her essay.

If he saw my messy notes, he might realise I hadn’t been entirely upfront about my prowess with written English. With dyslexia and a side of dysgraphia, my writing didn’t always make perfect sense to other people.

He picked up a loose sheet. “Is this Sophie’s school project?”

I sucked in a breath, yanking it from his grip.

I’d tried to make sense of her brainstorming notes and even added a few of my own. But eventually, I admitted defeat and snapped a photo of her page to run through a text-to-speech app. Thanks to Mum’s call, I hadn’t had time to listen to it. Once I heard it aloud, I’d be able to untangle her argument. There was no point trying to help until I understood what she was saying.

“I’d prefer you didn’t look at that. I keep a diary. I was just catching up on the last few days, and I wouldn’t want to make you blush.”

He raised a brow face before bringing a hand to my arm. He brushed his fingertips overmy skin. “Did you mention the boat? If you’d like me to check over what you’ve written… for accuracy… I’d be happy to do it.”

At the fire burning in his eyes, I was half tempted. Only, reliving our time on the boat would do no good for my sanity, or my blood pressure. I shook my head, giving him my sternest look.

“Nope. You can’t have it both ways, buddy. Until Sophie goes back to school, I’ve taken a vow of chastity. And so,” I shifted to sitting, stuffing the loose sheets of paper inside the notebook. “You’ll have to find something else to do.”

At the downturn of his lips, my inner sex kitten pumped her fist into the air.

“What areyoudoing this afternoon?” I asked, crossing my legs beneath me. “I know you have to work later, but why don’t you check in with Sophie? She barricaded herself in her room late this morning. You could offer to help with her school project.”

He blinked at me. “I’ve never helped her with anything like that.”

I sent him a smile. “Then why don’t you start? She’s only here for another week or so. It could be your chance to show her there’s more than fishing and motorcycles in that pretty little head of yours.”

I reached up and knotted my fingers through the back of his hair. His eyes flashed when I gave ita tug.

“I don’t see any water, Chloe.”

I raised a brow at his reference to our special maritime agreement, nodding towards the open bathroom door. “There’s a perfectly good shower in there—with a healthy supply of H2O.”

He looked as if he just might take me up on the idea.

“But,” I continued, “if you want to do the right thing, go spend time with your daughter.”

The grin he sent me was all I ever hoped for, completely transforming his face. Maxime’s smile was a thing of beauty.I’d happily take it upon myself to make it happen more often.

He shifted off the bed and headed towards the bathroom. “Okay, but I need a shower first.” He paused, hovering in the open doorway. The sun from the garden fanned over his shoulders, making him look like a true sea god.

“Last chance to change your mind,” he said, melting my knickers with a single look over his shoulder.

I smiled. “No, thank you.”

He nodded and closed the door behind him.

I ran my hands up and down my arms, trying to shake the goosebumps. As much as I wanted to, I wasn’t about to get between him and Sophie just to share his shower.