“I think so,” she said, standing in the middle of the airy room. She had a perfect view of the pool with the lights surrounding it, the large round globes shimmering on the ocean beyond. “Is there a bathroom?” she asked, wondering what she would wear to sleep in that night.
“The second door on the right,” he said, nodding to a door on the wall.
“Okay. Thanks.”
“Would you like to go for a swim?” he asked, walking into the room and opened the sliding glass door to let the sound of the surf come through the room.
“I don’t think so,” she said but the air was hot and sticky and the idea of cooling off in the quiet water sounded heavenly.
Michael laughed softly. “You really need to learn how to lie better than that,” he said and opened a closet, then pulled out a black bathing suit a moment later. “This might fit. If not, there are probably others.
Darcy had never felt so much rage rush through her body when he familiarly pulled out the bathing suit. “I don’t think I want to wear one of your girl friend’s bathing suits,” she said and turned around intending to walk out of the room.
Michael’s laughter stopped her short of the door. “You’re incredibly gorgeous when you’re angry. Did I ever mention that?” he said and walked up behind her, taking her in his arms and kissing her neck. Despite her fury, she shivered as his lips caressed the sensitive skin.
“The bathing suit belongs to my sister. She’s a little shorter than you are, but I think the size is about the same.
Darcy’s body relaxed and she turned around, unable to look at his face. She just stared at the buttons on his shirt front. “Oh. In that case, I guess a swim would be nice.”
The rumbling in his chest indicated that he appreciated her jealously. “I’ll change into a suit myself and will meet you outside in a few minutes.”
Left alone, Darcy quickly changed into the borrowed suit and looked at her reflection in the mirror. The top part was a little large but it just allowed extra coverage, which was fine with her.
She stepped out onto the patio and glanced up just in time to see Michael stepping out from the room next door. She held her breath as she watched him walk towards her dressed only in a bathing suit. She had known he was muscular, but seeing him almost naked was definitely worthy of a sculpture. His arms and stomach muscles were well defined and he had a light sprinkling of hair across his massive chest. The stomach muscles were fascinating indeed and she let her gaze wander downward, his strong, muscled thighs and calves indicated a great deal of exercise.
“Do I pass inspection?” he asked and Darcy’s face flooded with color. She hadn’t realized she was being so obvious in her perusal of his body but obviously he had noticed.
His deep chuckled was accompanied by a light hug. “It’s okay. I like it.” He grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the moonlit pool. “Come on, let’s cool off a little.”
He tossed two towels onto a chaise lounger then walked to the edge of the pool. With a swift movement, he dove into the water, appearing moments later in the middle of the large, rectangular pool. “Come on in. The water isn’t cold. I promise,” he said and dove under to swim back to where she was standing.
Darcy knew he would probably pull her in so she dove over his head just as his hands touched the edge of the pool.
The water felt wonderful and instantly cooled her down but Michael hadn’t been lying about the water temperature. The Caribbean sun had warmed the water to a nice, refreshing temperature. She emerged from her dive and floated on her back, gazing up at the stars or the moon, anything to keep her eyes off the stunningly gorgeous man swimming laps on one side of the pool.
Michael swam twenty laps in a short period of time, then dove under the water, emerging right next to her, surprising her so much that she splashed water onto her face. “I didn’t see you coming up next to me,” she said, gasping for air.
“Of course you didn’t since you are avoiding any kind of eye contact.”
“I’m not avoiding eye contact,” she said defensively. “I just like looking at the moon.”
“Okay, without looking up, is it a full moon or a partial moon?”
Darcy was stumped and flustered since he was walking towards her slowly, swishing the water around both of them with his hands. He looked rakish with his hair messed up from the water and Darcy’s hand itched to smooth it back down so he didn’t look so inviting.
“Umm…” she said, licking her lips and taking a step back. She needed space so she could think. Her mind wandered off into dangerous places when he was this close. “Partial,” she replied.
“You guessed,” he said and moved closer.
With each step he took towards her, she took another back. She knew he was going to kiss her and she needed to avoid that.
“You’re beautiful,” he said softly, changing the subject.
Darcy’s throat was tight so she could barely whisper, “Thank you.”
“I’m going to kiss you,” he said and he calculated that there were only a few more steps before she ran into the side of the pool and couldn’t retreat anymore.
“Please don’t,” she croaked out.
“I have to. I’ve wanted to ever since we stopped kissing on the plane.”
“No.”
“Give in to the inevitable,” he said as her back touched the tiles of the pool. He took the last step, eliminating all but an inch of space between their bodies. He looked down at her face, seeing the desire he felt reflected in her face, but he also noted the fear and uncertainty. That was the only thing holding him back from making love to her tonight. He didn’t want any fear in her eyes or any uncertainty between them. He wanted her to be just as sure of that moment as he knew he already was.
Michael bent down and gently touched her lips with his then pulled away slightly. “Yes.”
Darcy shook her head but her eyes were closed and her face was waiting for his next kiss.
Michael put his hands on her hips and lifted her up so she was sitting on the side of the pool. Her face was now even with his. He moved between her legs, then pulled her hips so they were flush against his torso. “Yes,” he said again and kissed her, his lips gently persuading her to participate instead of just receive.
The second touch of his lips was too unsatisfactory for Darcy. She needed more, so much more. She sighed against his mouth and wrapped her arms around his neck, her body giving him the permission her mind could not articulate.