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"No need. You’ll find everything you need there," she replied.

I nodded my head. "Thanks, Rosie."

She beamed. "Anything for you and our king."

If I had been paying more attention, I might have noticed a glint in her pink eyes or her nose twitching in excitement.

I followed her instructions and soon found myself swept away to a magnificent place I had never visited before. It was as if I had entered a sea cave–the walls were made of coral, massive shells adorned a sandy floor, and in the center was a massive porcelain pool with bubbling, steaming water.

At my immediate left a free fall of water fell into a large clamshell basin. I supposed I should rinse off before entering the main tub, so I quickly stripped out of my gardening clothes and hopped in. I rubbed my hands together under the water, loosening the dried soil and watching the water turn black. Then I ran my hands along my body, giving myself a quick rinse. I lingered on my sore neck and shoulders, massaging.

I exited but didn’t see any towels. No matter. The room was warm enough, and I saw a large pool of water in the center of the room. I made a quick dash for it.

Gentle steam rose from the pool, and little white and pink blossoms floated along the top of the water. I sat on the edge of the pool and slid into the water. The water was perfect, absolute bliss. It was just deep enough that if I stood, the water came just above my navel, exposing my bare breasts. I could practically feel my worries fading away.

I sank under the water and let it work on my sore neck and shoulders. Then I floated serenely on the top of the water with my eyes closed. Not a worry in the world. This was amazing.

Until I knocked into something warm and hard. My eyes flicked open. Still floating on my back, I looked up into a set of brilliant green eyes, sparkling with mirth. "Hello, little sparrow."

The warm, hard object was Forrest’s bare chest. I screamed then pulled my entire body underwater.

Just above me, I could hear him chuckling. "It’s a bit too late for that, don’t you think? Come back up."

With horror, I realized he was right. How long had I been blissfully floating naked? Minutes. Definitely minutes. He had seen… everything.

I was so embarrassed I could die. I would have to stay underwater forever. I couldn’t possibly face him. I would rather drown than see his smug face. Except I really did like breathing. So, regretfully, I surfaced and shrieked, "What are you doing in here?"

His smile grew broader. "I should be asking you that. You see, I was here first. Didn’t you see me?"

No, I had been in a state of hot water bliss. The pool was large and curved with alcoves, and the rising steam obscured my view once I was in the water. But mostly, I just hadn’t looked. It never occurred to me that someone else might already be here.

He waded toward me, letting his hand trail idly along the edge of the pool. Everywhere his fingertip touched crystalized salt and seashells formed. He was powerful. He was magnificent. He was… looking at me like a cat about to eat a bird.

Finally, he reached me and tipped my chin up to look into his eyes. "Do you see me now?"

I nodded. I could feel my cheeks and chest coloring pink.

Oh, I saw him. Above the water, I could see his hard bare chest. He had some sort of tattoo over his heart, and I longed to reach out and trace it. From there, his abdominal muscles traveled down to his strong, narrowed hips. The skin there looked delicate. I could even see that dip of muscles leading toward his… Oh stars, I was staring.

I was going to kill that rabbit.

"You seem tense," he purred, placing one hand on each side of the tub caging me. "What have you been up to, little sparrow?"

I couldn’t think of anything but the proximity of his body to mine. Finally, I mumbled, "Just a bit of gardening."

He leaned forward until his lips were just inches from my ear, and he breathed, "Mm, gardening is such difficult work."

As his warm breath caressed my ear, my breath caught.

And when he whispered, "Would you like a massage?" my traitorous head nodded yes. After all, he had already seen everything there was to see, and the muscle to the left of my neck felt tight and painful.

To my surprise, he lifted his body out of the water and sat bare-assed on the side of the pool. He pulled me gently backward until I stood between his legs. He began to trace his hands from my bare shoulder to my collarbone.

I shivered, imagining where he might run his hands next.

He delicately traced the space between my collarbones, teasingly lowering his fingers until they trailed at the tops of my breasts. I sucked in an audible breath.

He moved his hands back to my neck and massaged in earnest. I moaned softly.