Harlequin Desire January 2021--Box Set 1 of 2 by Maisey Yates (inspirational books .TXT) 📗

lavish hotel room was cloaked in shadows. Julian leaned over Nina’s sleeping body and rubbed his chin, rough with stubble, into the softness of her thigh until she stirred and lifted her head off the pillow. Her eyes shone black in the darkness. Groggy still, she extended a hand, an invitation. “Come back to bed.”

He was tempted, but he had other plans for her. “Let’s go for a swim.”

She raised herself on one elbow. “Now?”

“Trust me. You’ll like this.”

She kicked back the sheets, murmuring something about being too sleepy to argue. Minutes later, she came out of the bathroom in a simple black bikini. She reached for a silk tunic draped over the back of an armchair. “Ready.”

“Are you sure that’s all you’ll need?”

“Oh, right.” She found her flip-flops and slipped them on.

“We’re going to stay awhile,” he said.

She went into the bathroom for a bottle of sunscreen. “Okay. Ready.”

Julian crossed the room to retrieve her weekender bag hanging from a peg in the closet and tossed it to her. “You’ll need a change of clothes.”

“Oh!” She brightened. “You should have said so.” She did a quick job of packing. “Almost done.”

Julian watched as she darted from the nightstand to the writing desk. Then with a sigh of frustration, she grabbed her purse and dumped the contents on the bench at the foot of the bed.

Julian checked his watch. He wanted to head out early. “What are you looking for?”

“My…um…nothing…” Although she’d stopped fretting, her brown eyes betrayed her worry. “It’s not important.”

“If it’s not important, forget it. Let’s go!”

Pete brought the car around. Julian raised the partition between the front and back seats as he had started to do whenever Nina was in the car. Two hours later, they pulled up to mile marker thirty-three on the Overseas Highway. Julian had reserved a simple boat, a twenty-foot Sportcraft with a Bimini top. He extended a hand to help her aboard. She turned to him, her face flush with delight. “Julian, where are you taking me?”

“I’ll be honest. I have no idea.”

“Do you know how to drive this?”

He laughed. “Just climb aboard.”

Julian didn’t have a final destination in mind. He was motivated by the need to escape the hotel. They’d been back in Miami for weeks now and, in a way, Sand Castle was home. Since their return, they had fallen into an easy rhythm, starting the day with conference calls with their financiers, production team or casting agent. Afterward, they parted ways. She stayed in, chained to her writing desk, wrist braces in place. He left to scout locations, approve props or hold auditions. Evenings, after dinner, they lingered at the table. Nina would give him her honest opinion on everything from costumes to set design.

Everything was shaking into place, just as she’d said. Nina had turned in a brilliant script, elevating his basic story to a richer and more nuanced one. Bettina signed on for the part of Amanda and went so far as to recommend Pierce Alexander for the role of Luke.

“Anything you’d like to tell me about you and Pierce?” he’d asked Bettina.

“Anything you’d like to tell me about the woman you’ve been photographed with all over Miami?”

“I can tell you this—the rumors are true.”

“You won’t find any rumors about Pierce and me. We’re discreet.”

“I’m happy for you, Betty.”

Julian was just about happy for everyone—full stop. He was a barrel of joy, his work life and private life running on all cylinders. But at the moment, he and his lady needed a break.

* * *

After they’d sailed out a mile or so, Julian chose to drop anchor over a reef bathed in turquoise waters. Nina stood on deck, taking in the view. Her black hair was in her signature braid. Tendrils broke free and played in the breeze. He slipped off the hair tie at the end and loosed the three sections. Her hair broke into cascading waves down her back. He thanked God that his camera was at hand. He asked her to stand still and snapped a few photos, although he’d never forget how she looked standing there in the fresh morning light.

She leaned over the rail. “Think we can dive off?”

“I expect you to, my little mermaid.”

“I don’t know if you picked up on this, but I’m not a world-class swimmer.”

She stripped off her silk tunic, revealing taut toffee-brown skin. Julian dropped the camera and reached for her. He toyed with the ties of her bikini bottom. “May I?”

She slapped his hand away. “What if they see us?”

“Who?” He struggled to spot a single sign of human life in any direction.

“I don’t know. Pete or some photographer lurking somewhere.”

At this point, Julian couldn’t just chalk her concerns to paranoia. He had taken extra precautions with this outing and had not provided Pete, or anyone, with an advance itinerary. “We’ve left Pete on land.” He tested the clasp of the bra. “Shouldn’t we free these beauties? They’ve been cooped up for so long. They need the sun.”

She tossed her head back and laughed. Her large black sunglasses slipped out of her hair and tumbled onto the deck floor. “They’re not cooped up. They’re fine!”

In order to convince her, Julian would have to put skin in the game. He stepped out of his shorts and dived headfirst into the water. He braced himself for the frigid bite of the Pacific, except the bay was warm and welcoming. He broke the surface in time to catch Nina slipping off her bikini top. She dived in after him, the breeze making a sail out of her loose hair.

Julian swam over and caught up with her beneath the surface. While his hands explored her slick body, he closed his mouth on one of her tight nipples. He sucked hard until a faint plea escaped her. Then he kissed her full lips.

When he broke away, she splashed him with water. “Happy now?”

Julian turned his face up to the sun. “I may die of happiness!”

She giggled. “I love you when