Page 21 of Jilted

Chapter Eighteen

A my’s heart thundered in her chest and ears as the boat slowed and dropped anchor.

Brett squeezed her hand and smiled. “Relax, it’ll be fun,” he said.

Fun? Yeah, right. She was seriously reconsidering her decision to go scuba diving with Brett.

He’d literally begged her last night and when it came to Brett Hudson, she just couldn’t tell him no – especially when it was something he really wanted to do.

Plus, he’d been so sweet to her all week, making more than one of her fantasies a reality.

So, after a rather intense session of love making, she’d agreed.

And even though she was terrified, she did want to do this for him.

They’d spent all morning in a class that taught them everything they needed to know.

It still didn’t calm Amy’s nerves any. There were quite a few people on the boat who’d never dived before, so she was in good company.

It’s not like she was a novice among a group of experienced divers.

And she had been sure to ask a ton of questions about the safety procedures for ensuring everyone was on the boat before going back to the island.

Everything would be fine.

Besides, Brett promised to stay by her side the entire time, and she trusted him completely. One by one, people stood, put on their masks and mouthpieces, and then jumped into the ocean.

When it came to their turn, Amy sat, paralyzed with fear. “I don’t think I can do this,” she said.

Brett crouched in front of her and put his hands on her knees. “Look at me, baby.” Slowly, she lifted her gaze to meet his. He smiled. “You can do this. I know you can.”

“Uh-uh.” She shook her head adamantly.

“I will be by your side the entire time.” He kissed her softly on the cheek and whispered, “Trust me.”

“I do,” she said.

“Then you know I’d never let anything happen to you, right?”

“Yeah.”

“And if a shark does attack, I’ll offer myself up for bait, okay?”

Amy laughed. “If you do that, you’ll be breaking your promise to stay by my side.”

It was his turn to laugh. “Okay, then I guess we’re both getting eaten.” He winked.

She stood and nodded. “All right, let’s go get eaten by a shark.”

“That’s my girl.”

The smile that formed on her face couldn’t be contained. That’s right. She was his girl! And dammit, she wouldn’t let him down.

Twenty minutes later, they were a hundred feet deep in the ocean surrounded by the most colorful, vibrant sea life she’d ever seen.

During their instructional class, they were shown images of the various types of fish and coral they would encounter.

So far, Amy had seen six different species of fish, each one more awe inspiring than the previous.

Brett grabbed her shoulder and pointed at something off to her left – a Spotted Eagle ray. Wow! It was beautiful and graceful. It floated by them as if they weren’t even there. Brett gave her a thumbs up, and then motioned for her to follow him.

She did, and they encountered a breathtaking coral landscape. A school of grayish colored fish swam within reaching distance from them. Amy was so glad that Brett talked her into doing this. She was even happier that they hadn’t encountered a single shark or jellyfish.

He took her hand, and they made their way up to the surface. Once on the boat and out of their gear, Brett pulled her into his arms and kissed her. “My God, that was amazing wasn’t it?”

Amy laughed at this excitement. “Yes, it was pretty friggin’ amazing,” she agreed.

They took their seats and waited as everyone else climbed aboard. A final head count was done, and then the boat headed back toward the island.

Brett took Amy’s hand and gave her knuckles a kiss. “It’s our last night here. What do you want to do?” he asked.

She’d be happy spending it in bed with him. “I don’t care. Whatever you want.”

“We’ll go out,” he said.

Now that the power was restored, normal activities on the island had resumed and as much fun as it was spending the past couple of days in bed, she was excited to be able to get out and do stuff again.

Brett stood by the bar with Jason, sipping a beer while Amy and Emma danced to the island band’s unique music.

Brett hadn’t taken his eyes off Amy all night.

She looked downright gorgeous in that flowery, blue sundress.

She’d left her hair down and pulled back one side by tucking a large, white flower into it.

“You’re a lucky man, Brett.” Jason patted him on the back. “She’s a beautiful woman.”

“I know,” he said, keeping his gaze focused on Amy.

The way she moved her body to the music entranced him.

Her movements were graceful, elegant, seductive.

He wondered if she realized just how sexy she was, or how many men she had watching her.

It didn’t bother Brett too much that other men were staring at Amy because he knew that she was all his, that it would be his bed and his arms that she would be in tonight – And every other night for the rest of their lives, too, if he had his way.

His cell phone rang, momentarily distracting him. He pulled it from his pocket, expecting it to be his mom checking in again. It wasn’t. It was Vanessa.

Brett’s finger hesitated over the answer button.

She’d been calling twice a day every day since the wedding.

He should just answer and get it over with.

Tell her that he wasn’t angry with her and that he wished her the best in life.

But then he glanced up and saw a man talking to Amy.

The man repeatedly tried to reach for Amy, to touch her, and each time she’d shake her head and pull away from him.

Oh, hell no! Looking was one thing. Touching was another. Brett quickly rejected the call and approached Amy. He put his arm around her waist and pulled her to him. “Is there a problem here?”

Amy looked relieved to see him. She put one hand on his lower back and the other on his chest. “No, there’s no problem.” She smiled at him.

“Yeah, no problem here.” The man slowly backed up with his hands in the air.

Brett continued to glare at him until he turned and walked away. “Are you okay? He looked like he was grabbing at you.”

“I’m fine,” she assured him. “Thanks for coming to my rescue though.”

He pulled her to his chest as if they were dancing but kissed her instead. “Anything for you, baby.”

She smiled against his lips and then kissed him again. “You haven’t danced with me all night.”

“I was waiting for the right song,” he said as he began to move around the dance floor with her. “Besides, I was having fun watching you dance with Emma.”

Amy gave him a strange look. “That’s not some sick guy fantasy about lesbians, is it?”

Brett laughed. “No.” He spun her around and then yanked her tight to his body. “I just like watching you dance. Always have.”

“Always?” Her voice was full of disbelief.

He nodded. “You’re very sexy, Amy. I don’t think you realize the effect you have on men.”

She rolled her eyes.

“I’m serious. There wasn’t a single man in here that didn’t have his eyes on you earlier.”

“I think you’re exaggerating.”

He simply smiled and shook his head. That was the difference between Amy and Vanessa. Vanessa knew she was beautiful and used it to her advantage, whereas Amy didn’t realize. Or if she did, she didn’t try to flaunt it, which only made her more desirable in his eyes.

“Were your eyes on me, too?” she asked playfully.

Brett pulled her closer and put his mouth near her ear. “I haven’t stopped looking at you since we got here.” He felt her breath hitch when he kissed right below her ear.

The slow music they were dancing to switched to something faster, more energetic. “I need a cold drink,” she said, fanning her face with her hand.

Taking her hand, Brett led her to the bar and ordered her a glass of Dom Perignon and an ice water. He stood by her side, hand on the small of her back, and watched as she sipped the champagne.

She reached into her water, grabbed a piece of ice, and rubbed it around her neck like she’d done that night at Nefarious.

And it had the same exact effect on him, too.

Worse, actually, since every time he saw a piece of ice all he could think of was Amy in that chair, him licking her with ice in his mouth.

Brett kissed her temple and whispered, “Watching you do that is making my cock rock hard.” He’d learned very quickly that Amy enjoyed dirty talk. Lucky for him, he did, too.

She gave him a seductive little smile. “So, it probably won’t help to know that I’m not wearing any panties.”

He lowered his hand from her back to her ass – definitely no panties. He groaned. “C’mon, I think it’s time to leave.”

Amy laughed. “I think you’re right.”