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“Cold?” I ask, instantly concerned. We had to leave our clothes in the cabanas, and I glance down to see her bare, red-polished toes moving through the dew-covered grass. “We’ll get the heat going and warm you up in the car.”
She stops walking, turning to face me. “I can think of another way. Because, yeah, I enjoyed it. Thoroughly.”
My heart thumps madly and I step closer. “Really?” She looks up at me through her lashes, and I take her soft face in my hands, gently trailing my thumbs over her cheeks. “Do you have any idea how beautiful you are?”
Her face tilts up to mine, awash in silver moonlight, and before she can comment, I capture her lips in a long, sensual kiss. Our mouths meld, tongues sliding against each other. Meeting, retreating, tasting again. As the kiss deepens, she presses her body against mine and I relish the feel of every curve. Curves I want to explore much more thoroughly.
“Where are you, Knox?” Addie’s voice blares through our earpieces and we reluctantly pull away, ending the perfect kiss.
“Almost there,” I respond in a raspy voice, lacing my fingers through Hunter’s. Neither of us says another word as we make our way across the rest of the golf course. I help her through the hedges and we climb into one of the waiting SUVs.
“You got it?” Addie asks.
I reach into the robe’s pocket and pluck out the emerald, lifting it up. “I got it.”
“Good job. Both of you.”
I look at Hunter, my attention dropping to her kiss-swollen lips, having every intention of kissing her in other places, too.
“As soon as we get back, we have a call with The Man,” Addie says.
My hopes for more sexy times with Hunter deflate. Hopefully, the call won’t last long, because I have things I want to do with her. So many delicious things.
∞∞∞
The call goes better than expected, and The Man wants us to lay low until morning. We don’t want to draw any unnecessaryattention by making a hasty exit. So, we’ll remain at his villa until things cool off a bit. And he is getting no argument from me.
I can’t stop eye-fucking Hunter and, I swear, she’s reciprocating each heated glance. But I know she could still run from me, and that’s the last thing I want. After the call, she talks to Addie about leaving early in one of the SUVs to prepare the jet for our departure, and Addie approves.
The second they’re done, I grab her hand and tug her closer.
“Are you still opposed to the idea of having dinner with me?” I lift her hand and brush a kiss along her knuckles.
Instead of rebuffing me like I’m half-scared she’ll do, she flushes prettily and shakes her head.
“So, you’ll go on a date with me?”
“Sure,” she says slowly.
“Great. Give me twenty minutes.”
She blinks. “You want to go on a datetonight?I thought we’re supposed to lay low.”
“We’ll do it on the back patio.” I can’t help the wicked grin that curves my mouth. “The date, I mean. Me, you, a pizza, some wine and the stars.”
“Okay,” she whispers.
I reluctantly release her hand and watch her walk away, missing that tiny, red bikini. But her hair is still down, long and loose, and I can’t wait to run my fingers through it. She tosses me one last look over her shoulder before disappearing down the hall to her room.
Go-time.
I head straight to the kitchen and pull out the frozen pizza I saw earlier. Not exactly gourmet, but I don’t have time to cook much else. I doctor it up with some fresh basil I pluck from a pot outside, add extra mozzarella cheese and drizzle a dash of olive oil. There’s a bottle of red wine in the cabinet which I uncork and then fill two glasses.
In less than twenty minutes, I place everything on a tray and carefully carry it down to the back patio. Some of my crew are hanging out between there and here, and I steel myself for the comments I know they’re about to sling.
“Well, well, well.” Ryder pauses clicking through TV stations, his voice full of amusement. “What’re you up to, Casanova? Got a hot date?”
“Actually, yeah, so stay away.”