Niko's Stolen Bride (17 page)

Ignoring the heat of the gaze she could feel directed at her chest, she turned and stalked back into the main cabin. She did not look back.

As the morning advanced and the heat increased, Niko and Eduardo used a drill and screws to attach a silver tarp to what was left of the glass door frame, closing it off so that the air conditioning could be turned back on. Niko placed a phone call to the boat yard where the yacht was built and ordered a new door to be shipped in by air. He cursed fluently in Greek when he found out that it would not arrive for a few days. Until then, the tarp would have to do.

Kara climbed up to the top deck and called her father again to explain the situation. She was indignant when he seemed unconcerned.

“They’re not expecting you back at work for a week,” he said, his tone reasonable. “You’re in good hands with Niko. Enjoy yourself while you can. You’ll be back home to the workday grind before you know it.”

“But the family will expect me to be there before they leave,” she said.

Her father sighed. “Honey, the wedding was cancelled, but that doesn’t change the fact that your friends and the family had a chance to visit a famous island resort. They’ve been playing hard. Harry and Jenny rented jet skis, your uncles went fishing and golfing. Last night at the tiki bar, they compared sunburns over every flavor of margarita known to man. They’re fine. Stop worrying about them and focus on yourself.”

She was silent, stunned by the image of her family living it up while she was going through one of the most traumatic weeks of her life. It seemed that no one cared as much as she had thought. For a moment, she felt alone and somehow betrayed, then she shook herself mentally. She had spent a wonderful afternoon in Key West and had incredible sex with a gorgeous man. What was so distressing about that? If she wasn’t sitting around morosely dwelling on the failed engagement, then why would her family?

“Remember your mother’s advice,” her father said gently. “Plans change–”

“–but there’s enjoyment to be had in the moment,” she finished for him. It was something her mom had said a hundred times, usually because her father had been tied up at the office, unable to make it home for some family event. So Mom had kept a smile on her face and made those days special for her only child. There was no doubt that, had her mother lived, she would be the one repeating that advice today.

“Go and find your moment, honey.”

She terminated the call and moved to stand on the edge of the fly deck, looking down on the lower deck below and out to the island resort. It was hot, but when she lifted her hair, she felt the slight breeze cool her skin. The colors of the flowers and the buildings were intense shades of blue, pink and orange with splashes of green palms. The slap of waves against the hulls of the docked ships was offset by the far-off tinkle of a steel drum band. Here with the sights, sounds and colors of the Bahamas surrounding her, she thought she could understand how her family felt back on Sanibel. Normally, she would have jumped at the chance to extend her stay, but this wasn’t a normal week and she’d lost her customary good sense.

Her gaze focused on Niko on the deck below. He was shirtless, his taut skin gleaming with perspiration as he helped Eduardo put away the tools they had been using. She felt a flush heat her cheeks as she recalled their lovemaking. She suspected that she’d already had her moment.

Perhaps, as Niko had hinted, the fates had brought her here, with the intent of delivering more pleasure than the original honeymoon would have held. It was a ridiculous thought, one she dismissed immediately. A person made their own destiny, or at least struggled to make it what they wished.

Still, the man below seemed to be at the cornerstone of her problem. In fact, he was the problem. If she were honest with herself, she’d admit that it wasn’t anger at being outmaneuvered or manipulated that made her desperate to get off the island. It was Niko himself – his self-confidence, his ease with his own body and his place in the world. He didn’t seem to share the ordinary person’s worries.

Any relationship with him would be brief. A sip of nectar from a goblet on Mt. Olympus, then a long tumble down the mountainside.

She closed her eyes as she remembered the feel of his weight against her and the breadth of his shoulders above her. She had never felt so protected, so cherished as she had in those few hours with him. She longed to feel that way again. She opened her eyes to find the man himself staring at her, his face tilted upward, the beginnings of a quizzical smile edging across his lips. It was almost as if he sensed her change in attitude.

Suddenly Kara had no doubts. Few people ever ascended to Mt. Olympus once. A few bumps and bruises from her long fall would be a small price to pay for soaring above the clouds with Niko again.

Shortly before lunch, Eduardo and George left the ship with small overnight bags, hopping on the golf cart that had been called to take them to the crews’ quarters.

“I feel terrible that they’re not staying on the ship,” Kara said as she and Niko stood on the fly deck, watching them depart.

Niko leaned to rest his hands on the railing next to her. “They’re used to it. At least Eduardo is. When the yacht is leased and they port here, the crew always stays ashore to give the guests privacy. If they get bored with the resort, there’s usually something going on in the crew lounge to entertain them, a game of soccer to watch or a hand of poker to sit in on. They’ll be fine.”

She turned her back to the view, leaning her elbows on the railing, facing him. She swallowed hard, searching for the strength to tell him that she’d changed her mind about her enforced stay, that she was ready to enjoy it. “And here I was thinking that you’d sent them off so we could be alone.”

He was still for a moment, then his shoulders relaxed and a slow smile curved his lips. Her heart nearly stopped beating at the beauty of that knowing grin.

He stepped in front of her, caging her in with a hand braced on the railing on each side of her, his arms solid bands that she couldn’t escape if she’d wanted. “What if I did?”

“I’d be glad,” she said softly.

“Any sane man would wonder what brought on this change.”

She was unwilling to share her philosophical musings about the fates with him, in case he thought her a complete nut case. “A smart man would take it and run.”

As always, he seemed almost eerily attuned to her emotions. “So we take what we can, no regrets?”

“No regrets,” she agreed.

He leaned close as if to kiss her, then stopped. “Just to be totally honest, I was also afraid George would fall off the ship.”

She laughed, reaching to clasp her hands around his neck. “What shall we do with all the time on our hands?”

“Shop for clothes.”

She widened her eyes as she stared at him. “How did you know?”

“My mother lives and breathes clothes. She’d be having a fit now if she had to wear the same thing two days in a row.” His hands shifted from the railing to grasp her lightly around the waist. “I’m impressed that you haven’t complained about your limited wardrobe. You should be rewarded.”

“And how do you plan to do that?”

He lowered his head to place a kiss against her neck. She arched back allowing him access as his lips trailed further down toward her collar bone. “First, I’m going to buy you a dress that makes you look like this.” His hands slid up from her waist to rest just under her breasts, lifting them so that the curves were spilling over the scooped neckline of her tank top. “Once I’m done showing you off in it, I’m going to bring you back here and take it off of you. Slowly. Tasting every inch of your magnificent skin as I uncover it.”

The thumb of one of his hands slipped between her breasts, pushing aside the fabric of her faded green tank top to brush through the deep cleavage he’d created. Her breathing hiked up several notches as the ache of desire settled low in her abdomen. The promise in Niko’s eyes assured her that he would ease that ache.

It was hard to believe how close she’d been to walking away, to never experiencing this moment. It would be unbearable if he didn’t feel the same. Reaching around him, she slid her hands down his hips and cupped the firm muscles of his rear end. “You don’t want to take off what I’m wearing now?”

“Oh, yes.” His voice dropped to a low rumble. “Right now. In front of every boater in this marina, but this is a family resort and I’m trying to restrain myself. So remove your hands from my rump or we’ll never make it to the shops before they close.”

She laughed and released him, her gaze locked with his. Humor mixed with blatant sexual desire had smoothed the lines on his face, making him look younger. Happier. With a sense of awe, she realized that she had done this for him. It was a small return for all he’d done for her, but for now, it was enough.

* * *Shopping with Niko was an adventure. He pulled her into every store at the resort’s Crystal Court, looking at watches for him, leather handbags for her and sunglasses for them both. He even spent some time in the fragrance isle of a duty-free shop, requesting her opinion on the merits of several men’s colognes. It might have been flattering if she’d thought that he was sincerely interested in wearing a scent that appealed to her. However, their time with each other was measured in hours, not months. Soon, there would be another woman bending close to breathe deeply of his special blend of cologne and pure commanding male.

The sales clerks practically draped themselves over the counter to get as close as possible to him. The fact that he was with her today did make her the tiniest bit smug, but she couldn’t help wonder why he’d chosen her. It could be as simple as the fact that she was available. Even more than that, she needed him. For now, he appeared perfectly content to provide her with the perfect antidote to being jilted: a handsome, charming companion who seemed to be totally into her. It wasn’t the stuff of fairy tales, but it was a fantastic substitute.

Finally they made it to the clothing. Once she’d purchased some shorts and casual blouses, Niko practically dragged her into the Versace shop, though she protested that she needed a simple dress for dinner, not a gown for a televised award show. The sales clerk there was a tall, slim woman with beautiful cinnamon-colored skin and dark, straight hair. Completely ignoring Kara, she wrapped her long peach-tipped fingers around Niko’s wrist and leaned close to him.

“I get off work at ten tonight.” The invitation in her tone was unmistakable. “Or I could make it earlier. Anything you like.”

Kara didn’t wait for Niko’s reply. Digging her fingers into his other forearm, she stepped close enough that she could feel the heat from his muscles and smell the tang of the aftershave he’d tried earlier. “He’s with me,” she said with a sharp glare in the girl’s direction, “and we don’t care for
ménage a trois
.” Tugging on his arm, she pulled Niko back out into the marble-lined walkway between stores.

His smile wide, he lowered his head, leaning close to slide an arm around her shoulders, his breath a warm swirl against her cheek. “I guess I’ll cross a threesome off my list of fantasies.”

“Until I’m gone,” she said with slow deliberation. She forced her lips to curve into the closest thing to a smile she could muster. “After that, you’re free to indulge all your most kinky urges.”

The smile faded from his lips, but he didn’t release her. “What about you? Any kinky urges I can assist you with?”

Oh yeah. There were a few that had crept into her mind lately. She turned her head to brush her cheek against his, loving the way the slight stubble of his beard grazed her. With warm promise in her voice, she said, “Later.”

A short distance down the white and black marbled court, she found a shop with a sensible older woman staffing the women’s dress section. Niko helped her select a few garments to try on, sorting through the racks like a seasoned pro, rejecting certain colors and styles out of hand. He should have looked awkward standing among the clothes, but he didn’t. Perhaps it was his own ease with the situation that made it seem perfectly natural that a six-foot-three man with shoulders as wide as the aisle in which he stood was fingering fabrics and discussing waist styles. The sales woman shot Kara a look of inquiry as he pulled out a dress in a beautiful silvered brown and asked her to place it in the fitting room that she was holding for them.

“This one will look fabulous on you, Kara,” he said. “Definitely going to be a keeper.”