my bucket list, though. Think you can help me out?”
“I might be able to figure something out,” he said, lowering his head to drag his lips along the side of my face and neck. “You ready?”
“Yeah, let’s—” Before I could finish my sentence, his arms wrapped around my waist like vines, locking me in place against him as he launched us off the deck.
I caught my breath just in time, holding it as we hit the warm water and clinging to him to keep from getting separated. I’d never gone swimming off the back of a yacht before, but it seemed like a good idea not to go too far away from it. I was a decent swimmer, but there was no way I’d make it back to the shore if I somehow got left behind.
I’m so getting him back for jumping in with me without any warning.
But I couldn’t deny that the water felt great against my heated skin and being in his arms was as addictive as ever. So maybe I’ll just let it go.
As we surfaced, we treaded water near the back of the boat and Dane released me to slick his wet hair back. He looked stunning with the water droplets on his skin sparkling under the mottled rays of sun that reached us here, his eyes almost the exact same color as the gorgeous sea we were in.
“Before we get to ticking off items on your bucket list, there’s something I want to talk to you about,” he said, moving closer to me but not pulling me close again yet. “Jefferson wants you to film a commercial.”
“Film?” I shook my head, my eyes widening to the point of pain. “No way. I can’t appear on film. Do you know how nasally my voice sounds on all my parents’ old home videos?”
He chuckled. “You can and you will. I’m sure the people we’ll be using will have equipment that won’t make your voice sound nasally.”
“Making a fool of myself on camera was never part of the deal,” I said, flashing him a sweet smile as I hooked my legs around his waist beneath the water. “I suppose I could walk away from the contract since you’re altering the terms.”
His hands closed around my shin and he pulled me closer. I felt him grinning against my skin as he spoke against the side of my neck. “You’ll do no such thing and we both know it.”
“Do we?” I asked, loving the feeling of his hard body between my legs. “I don’t know that we do.”
He rocked his hips forward, pulling back to show me his smirk when I sucked in a breath at the contact. “Yep, we do. There are big benefits worth hanging around for.”
I made a point of rolling my eyes, but I couldn’t quite hold back a smile. “Yeah, yeah. I guess there are a lot of things about you worth sticking around for. Your intellectual capacity, for one.”
He laughed, winding a hand around the back of my neck and bringing my mouth closer to his. “Uh huh. Because it’s my big brain you can’t resist, is it?”
“Of course,” I murmured just before he sealed his lips over mine, and all my worries disappeared from my mind.
Deciding to let the thing about the commercial go for now, I gave into the moment and just let myself live. And what a moment it turned out to be.
Chapter 26
DANE
The yacht was docked back at the marina in Marseilles. Leah and Katie were getting ready for dinner in one of the state rooms while I had a drink with Jefferson on the main deck. Since he was staying away from alcohol because of his heart, he nursed an apple juice in a tumbler while I drank scotch.
The city lights had started coming on and the water was so calm, it looked like we were parked on a sheet of glass. It was a different world out here, with music filtering to us from nearby restaurants and bars filling up for the evening and the tangy scent of ocean and food being cooked in the air.
Jefferson and I sat in the parlor overlooking the city, talking while we waited for our dinner guest to arrive. My boss looked better after having rested this afternoon, but I was still worried about him.
He’d seemed pale when we’d arrived and hadn’t eaten much at lunch. I turned away from the stunning scenery of the lights being reflected on the water, choosing