succumbed happily to his probing kiss. For a blissful moment, time itself stood still.
I was in one of the greatest cities in the world, standing on the deck of a luxury yacht, in the arms of a legit prince.
I wanted to freeze this moment forever.
He deepened the kiss, his tongue dominating my mouth, savoring every square inch. As amazing as it was, I knew instantly was a mistake. My stomach lurched as the nausea I battled all night reared its ugly head. Whether it was the pregnancy, the heavy food, the long day, the jet lag or the gently swaying yacht, I just knew I was about to set a projectile vomit record. I had to wrench away before I threw up right in his mouth, which I’m fairly certain would have stopped any romance, or book assignment, right in their tracks.
I clapped my hand over my mouth. “Too far,” I managed to mumble, valiantly holding back a mouthful of puke.
Again.
Reading the situation easily, he pointed behind me to indicate the nearest restroom. I scrambled below deck and made it to the bathroom in the nick of time. I thew up everything I ate that day, except maybe the auberries. Ginger ale. That one stupid shrimp. Everything. I heaved and wretched like a cat hacking up a hairball, until there was nothing left. I wilted to the floor, trying to recoup some dignity, and keep down the bile, before I headed back on deck.
I heard a light knock against the door. Had he been waiting there the whole time? I groaned into my hands.
“You know, I’m starting to take this personally.”
As mortified as I was, I managed to chuckle. “It’s not you. It’s me. It’s this,” I said softly.
I heard him slide down the door to sit on the floor on the opposite side. “Wretched timing,” he conceded.
“Yeah,” I said, leaning my head back against the door. “Auggie?”
“Yeah?”
“For what it’s worth, I really did love the song.”
I heard him chuckle. “Thanks, Pea,” he said softly. After a minute or so of compatible silence, I heard him stand to his feet. “Let’s get you back to solid ground.”
I staggered to my feet, washed my face and then opened the door, where he waited. I assumed I looked like a drowned racoon by that point, but his smile was easy as he reached forward to repair any damage. Afterwards, he pulled me into a hug. The strength of his embrace took my breath away. I had never felt so safe, so secure… so wanted.
It was almost painful in its irony.
He kept his arm around me as we went back on deck to head back to shore.
Chapter Fifteen
After we docked, Auggie disembarked to join the party. With his hand at the small of my back, he kept me at his side for the most part, as we socialized with various people while steadily making our way towards the entrance. The members of Tonos de Oros were there, and Auggie made sure to thank them for opening the show.
Both Tony Rojas and Rudy Renfro were ridiculously hot, and even hotter together. Their affection was genuine and unabashed. Auggie greeted them both with a handshake. “Amazing set,” he complimented. It made me feel better that they were every bit as discombobulated by Auggie’s attention as I was.
Young Rudy was genuinely moved by the praise. “Thank you. It was such an honor to open for you.”
“Maybe one day in the future, I can return the favor,” Auggie grinned. He turned to me. “This is Peaches,” he introduced, without filling in any blanks. The couple before us took it in stride, greeting me with all the reverence one might expect standing next to royalty.
Auggie repeated that introduction around the party, to his backup dancers and his crew. Those who had looked over me before took special interest in me after that, making sure I felt welcomed into their merry little circus. He thanked each one for the job they did, praising them specifically with details I had completely missed.
It was a time-consuming process because every person present wanted to get their time with Auggie. I couldn’t say I blamed them. I was falling asleep standing up and yet I got no closer to the door. His touch on my body was a heady drug, even though it was a poor substitute for the fireworks we might have enjoyed had we stayed on the boat.
I couldn’t think about it without gagging a little, so I opted not to