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  “Jade knows her name. She’ll see her coming from a mile away.” Tanner rubs my back, lifting his gaze to the ocean’s horizon. Clouds are looming, a storm brewing in the distance. An ominous roll of thunder echoes over the hue of teal, the clouds moving in and casting grey shadows over its surface. “Lana will need to be careful. Meticulous. She won’t hesitate to sue for slander.”

  “Jade’s deal with Four Corners Elite will go public. It’ll be no secret that the magazine is partnering up with you and Simmons International. Favoritism will be expected. There won’t be any slander. Lana will review the ship truthfully. The feature will just have her personal….flair. Together, we’ll make your ship shine, and we’ll see to it that any and all of the Crown Jewel’s little secrets are exposed. It’s all about shaping the story, painting things in a certain light. The goal will be to convince the public that Simmons International is an unsuitable fit for partnership. You’ll have the perfect excuse to back out of the merger, and the Trident Voyager will come out on top. You won’t need the Crown Jewel’s money once this is over.”

  Tanner’s concerned gaze drops back down to me, and a little smile springs up. The crease in his forehead smoothes out as the tension evaporates from his expression. “My, my.”

  “What?” My brows knit together.

  “You’re quite crafty, Miss Banks.”

  “I have to be. This is my career, here. And your father’s ship. I won’t let Jade destroy what we’ve worked so hard for just because she stomps around in Prada and can afford a house in Monaco.”

  Tanner’s smile blinds me now, spreading from ear to ear. He pulls me tightly against him and kisses my nose, a warm chuckle emanating from deep in his throat. I breathe him in. He’s so damn delectable in his snug jeans, sitting low on his waist. They show off those sexy tan lines, cutting across his hipbones. “My sassy, sneaky girl. Remind me to never be on your bad side.”

  “Hey, I had to fight for everything I’ve earned. I worked hard for it, unlike your blushing bride.” He digs at my hip and I jerk to the left. “I’ve read up on her, you know. Simmons International was handed to her on a silver platter, passed down from her grandfather. Before taking over the company, she never worked a day in her life. Never attended college. Never had to lift a finger. No way am I letting that woman trample all over my job. Or my man.”

  My cheeks flame and my breath hitches.

  “Is that what I am, Miss Banks?” His brow quirks and his grin turns crooked.

  “I just meant, well I mean—well, you did say I needed a man, not a boy. And you’re a man. A really sexy, strong, capable…man.”

  “That I am.”

  “Tanner—”

  “Anya, kiss me.”

  My gaze sweeps up, slowly, cautiously, and the blush tinging my cheeks disappears the moment I lock eyes with him. Intensity churns. His blue irises approve. Heat blooms in my chest. I reach up on my tiptoes to obey his command, and he welcomes me, his mouth greedy.

  He kisses me long and hard, then pulls back slightly, his breath fanning my lips.

  “Hey. Come inside. Let me make you something to eat.” His warmth cradles my back. It soaks into my skin, the sensation so comforting, I never want to leave this beach. Not to mention he just kissed the breath right out of me. The very last thing on my mind is food.

  “A sandwich?” I laugh softly, kissing his chest.

  His lips drop to my neck and an amused hum vibrates beneath my ear. “Prepared with an apron, if you wish.”

  “Jade could show up any minute.”

  “She won’t.”

  “How can you be sure?”

  “She has back-to-back meetings this afternoon. Besides, she hates this house.”

  My shoulders stiffen and the warmth I’ve just been cocooned in dissipates. My eyes close.

  “Anya,” Tanner cups my face, “look at me. You’re not the other woman. That’s not what this is.”

  “Isn’t it, though?” My eyelids drift open, and I’m greeted with his deep, cerulean pools. I dive into their depths, despite the sinking feeling in my gut. I’ve gone from a carefree affair with a supposedly unattached bachelor, to being a floozy mistress.

  “No. This is me having made a grave error in judgment. I’m responsible for this. I will not allow Jade to interfere with your career. We’ll find a way to make this work.”

  “But you need me to play along.”

  “Yes. For now.” I bite my lip and avert my gaze, but he doesn’t let me escape that easily. His fingers find my chin and he tilts my head up. “I know what I’m asking for here, baby. I know it’s unfair. But if you think you can handle it, we can still see where this goes. We can still enjoy the cruise. I can still worship my work of art.” His mouth touches down, trailing along the corner of my mouth, and shivers snake their way up my spine. I lift my head higher and lean into him, snuggling into the warmth. I want my cocoon back.

  “I’ll try,” I whisper, searching for his lips again. “Now, pay up.”

  “Fresh,” he breathes, giving me what I want. His lips part and he opens for me, exploring my tongue and lifting me from the ground. I willingly climb into his arms and let him carry me back inside the beach house. The moment we enter, we bypass the kitchen and enter the master bedroom. A wave of thunder cracks in the distance, and a flash of lightning illuminates the dim hallway, like lightning bugs being shaken in a jar.

  He tosses me onto the bed and stands at the edge to get a good look at me. His gaze roams up and down my body, ensuring he gets a good fill. He thumbs open the top button of his jeans and straightens his back. A primal edge flares hot in those cobalt eyes, pushing me to action. I sit up and crawl forward, reaching for him. More lightning pours into the room, sheathing his face in pale, blue light, whispering over his cheek and throat.

  His hand snaps and catches my wrist, and his mouth follows, bending to scrape his teeth along my palm, biting down on my thumb. I remain on the edge of the bed, on my knees, while this man does what he does best—plays my body like a perfect musician. His head floats up and he locks his gaze with mine, his thumb skimming my bottom lip. “Open,” he instructs. I do as he says, opening my mouth, keeping my eyes on him, until two fingers slide slowly, leisurely, into my mouth, along my tongue. I accept them fully and close my lips around them, sucking lightly. A muscle along his jaw pops; his throat bobs. It’s usually him ensnaring me in his trap, falling victim to his irresistible, seductive web, but this time, it’s me doing the ensnaring.

  I moan softly, closing my eyes.

  His fingers leave my mouth and his hands grasp the backs of my knees, flipping me onto my back. I land on the comforter with a gentle thud and my lashes flutter open. He’s hovering over me, his erection straining against the seam of his fly. Every delicious ripple of his abdomen is on full display as he leans forward to yank my bikini off. I shift for him, letting him have his way with me.

  “Open your legs,” he grinds out, once I’m completely bare for him. “Hands above your head.”

  “Tanner,” my hand floats up to brush against his groin, “I want you.”

  “I know, baby. Do as I say, and I’ll give it to you deep and hard. Come on. Hands up.” He presses into my caress, letting me stroke him for a moment before nudging my wrist away. I can feel a pout form as I lift my hands above my head, but it quickly diminishes. I know whatever he has planned for me will be mouthwatering and decadent, so I don’t fight it, just give into the divine torture.

  He tugs my leg, pulling my thighs open, and inserts the fingers I’ve just tasted inside of me. My tongue’s moisture still coats them, mixing and complementing the wet warmth. His thumb swirls over my clit as he begins a slow, teasing pump. My hands ball into fists and my nipples harden, my hips pushing up, begging him for more. It’s only been a few days, but I’ve missed this man’s hands on me. I want every inch of him on me, smothering me in his hard heat.

  “No one touches you like I do, Anya,” he says, voice throaty and raw, “and no o
ne ever will.” I whimper and squirm, wanting his fingers deeper, wanting more friction. “What do you need, baby?” His head cocks slightly and he wets his lips, watching in delight as I writhe beneath him. He’s owning me, just as he owns the sea, watching his force take the reins, securing me to the mattress beneath him. I’m at his whim, he knows it, and like the rolling waves of the ocean, my body roars, shifting and reaching, yielding to his control. “Come on, Anya, speak up or I won’t be able to please you.”

  “Deeper,” I moan. “I want you deeper.”

  His fingers glide, pushing in and up. My back arches and I bite my lip, rolling my head to find his gaze.

  “That’s not all you want.”

  I shake my head.

  “Go on, baby. Tell me.” His free hand rests on the outside of my thigh, his thumb stroking the skin gently, deliberately.

  “Spoil me.”

  A devious smile curls his lips. “With my mouth? With what, Anya?”

  I smile back, wanting to play his game because it’s just so damn fun, but not wanting to play because it only encourages his already massive ego. “Smug.”

  “Fresh.” He pinches the curve of my ass. “What’ll it be, Miss Banks?”

  “Take your jeans off and fuck me. Don’t tease me. I want you, and I want you now.”

  The deep cobalt of his eyes swirl with lust and something deeper, an adoration that makes heat trickle over me from head to toe. I can’t stop it, can’t slow it down. All I can do is surrender to it and let it overtake my senses. He doesn’t waste any time once the declaration passes my lips. He tugs his zipper, shoves his jeans and boxer briefs down to his knees and grabs his cock, lifting my legs and sliding me to the very edge of the bed, thrusting into me with one swift, hard push. He exhales as he fills me, his sweaty fingers rolling over my knees, and immediately begins pounding away, a sharp hiss escaping his lips. “Does this please you, Anya?”

  “Very much.”

  Setting my ankles on his shoulders, he hammers hard, his eyes never leaving mine. My arms fly down, smacking the sheets near my hips, but a low growl unfurls from his chest, sending them scrambling back up above my head. I cross my wrists and clench the sheets with my fingers, plummeting into thick, spiraling ecstasy. The sensations he’s creating are so fierce, reaching straight through my core and to the dirt of the earth. I crumble beneath him, a warm tear sneaking out as I shout his name. Another breaks free and the dam bursts, deep sobs wracking my body as he claims me inch by inch, broken breath by broken breath.

  As quickly as he’s driving into me, he withdraws and flips me over, dragging me up on my knees, pulling me against his chest, my ass flush with his groin. A hand claws at my breasts, groping and kneading, while another clamps across my torso, fingers gliding down to the apex of my thighs. They tease, precise and rough, his teeth burning the crook of my neck.

  “Have you ever had a man fuck you so hard, you cried when you came, baby?” He rasps against my skin, positioning his cock between my thighs.

  “No,” I breathe, my head rolling back onto his chest.

  He sweeps the hair from my shoulder and brushes my cheek, swiping at the tears as he speaks huskily into my ear. “This is a first?”

  “Yes.”

  “It won’t be the last. I may have failed to be a man of my word. I may have hurt you. But this is a promise I can keep. I will be the man to make you cry when you come. And I will always wipe away your tears. Count on me for that.” His teeth sting my earlobe and he sinks into me again, dipping his hips. He slows his pace, rolling forward in a rhythmic dance, working me to the brink of orgasm.

  I gasp as he pushes deep, then rolls, repeating the motion in perfect tempo. Our bodies shake, my frame trembling against his, and he breaks, cracks in half, so loudly the snap’s echo bounces around the room. My name is on his lips as he empties himself into me, and I reach back, gripping the back of his neck, pulling his sweaty forehead down onto my shoulder.

  My body sags as he crashes against me and we collapse, falling face down onto the cool sheets.

  “Tanner,” I mumble into the comforter.

  He grunts.

  “Tanner!”

  “Hhhmm?”

  “I can’t breathe,” I laugh. My hair’s in my mouth, choking me. “Move, Mr. Christensen.”

  “Don’t want to.”

  “Tough.”

  He grunts again and rolls onto his side, pulling me against him in a spooning position. “Feel good, baby?”

  “No,” I pant. “No bueno.”

  “You sounded satisfied to me, Miss Banks.”

  “Not good. Chocolate is good. Massages are good. The beach is good.”

  He chuckles deeply and adjusts my hair, brushing it from my neck to drop a kiss beneath my ear. “If you have a better adjective to describe what just happened, I’d love to hear it.”

  “Boom,” I sigh. “Just…boom.”

  “Boom?”

  “Oh, yeah.”

  “Wait. Isn’t that a…verb, or something?”

  “It can be used as an adjective. In this case, it’s definitely an adjective.”

  Tanner smoothes his hand down my hip and squeezes my ass.

  “Ouch!”

  “Quit being a baby.”

  “That hurt!”

  “It feels good. You just want me to do it again.”

  “I dare you to do it again.”

  Pressure clamps down on my cheek and I spring onto my back, reaching for his side, ready to retaliate.

  “Oh no, you don’t,” he laughs, dodging me. His hands fly out and capture my wrists, and he body-smacks me back down onto the mattress, crawling on top to straddle me, pinning me with his thighs. “Only I get to pinch.”

  “How is that fair?”

  “Haven’t you learned anything in Tanner Christensen 101, Anya? I don’t play fair.”

  “Tanner, let me go.”

  “What you’re really saying is, make me come again.”

  “God, you really need a leash for that ego of yours. It’s out of control!” I bite his bicep and he doesn’t flinch. Just watches and laughs, his lashes drawing down as he eyes my mouth, that crooked smirk wreaking havoc on my libido. This man pulls me in. Continuously. I cannot get enough of him. And right now, while we’re wrapped up in his sheets, in this beach house in the middle of the Bahamas, all I can think about is escaping with him.

  Permanently.

  But a certain faux fiancée is waiting in the wings, ready to pounce at the perfect moment and snatch him away from me. An uncomfortable tingle, something possessive and foreign tickles behind my ribcage. I’m not sure what to make of it, I only know that we have a mess to sort before I can even begin to examine its meaning.

  “What’s going on in there?” Tanner asks, kissing my forehead.

  “Nothing.” I stretch and yawn, then sit up to wrap my arms around him, curling my body into him, latching on like he’s my own personal pillow. His face is buried in my hair while he sandwiches me between his hard body and the mattress.

  “Anya.”

  “Hhhmmm.”

  “I can’t please you if you don’t tell me what you’re thinking.”

  “You pleased me plenty just a few minutes ago.”

  “Talk to me.”

  “I want to play with you.”

  He pulls back and arches a brow, grinning down at me.

  “Switch positions.”

  “Do you mind telling me where you’re getting this bossy streak from all of a sudden?”

  It’s me who arches the brow this time.

  “Ohhh, fresh.” He cups my breast and thumbs my nipple. “Careful, Miss Banks, or I’ll have my way with you again.”

  “There would be worse things in the world, Mr. Christensen.”

  “You have me there.”

  “Switch.” I kiss his chin and nudge him with my nose. He complies, sliding off me to roll onto his back. He lifts an arm and props it beneath his head, lying back, giving me a mouthwatering di
splay of his toned, firm chest and tight abdomen. I crawl over his waist, planting my knees next to his thighs and a lazy grin forms on his face, his gaze dropping down to my breasts and then lower, down to my navel.

  “My beautiful work of art. What will you do with your plaything now that he’s at your mercy?”

  My lips swish to the side as I wander off into thought and I place my palm on his stomach, tracing a finger along the ridges of his abs. “First, I’ll start with this.” I bend and lick along the trail, kissing intermittently as I go. His hot skin contracts, and a hand floats down, cupping my head gently.

  “Anya, you’re dodging my question.”

  “I’m distracting you,” I mouth against his hip.

  “It’s working.”

  “Not well enough, apparently.”

  His fingers curl, gripping at the nape of my neck. “Get up here.”

  “I happen to like it down here.”

  “I like you down there, too. But we need to talk, and we need to talk now.”

  I sigh and worm my way up his body, snuggling into his chest while he plays with the curve of my breast, running a lazy trail back and forth, along the underside. “I don’t know how we’re going to get away with this. Two weeks of sneaking around on the ship, hiding from Jade.”

  “You have no reason to hide. When our time on Alvita is up, you enjoy the remainder of the cruise just as you would if you were a regular guest. I mean it, Anya. No hiding out in your cabin.”

  “I’d still like to go home.”

  “Do you really mean that?” His voice goes soft.

  “No,” I whisper. “It would just be so much easier. Than facing everything.”

  “Then don’t.” He moves to sit up on his elbow, gazing down at me. “Don’t let Jade run you off. She’s my problem, not yours.”

  “That’s not true. She’s trampled all over my career with her fancy stilettos.”

  “Would going home really make things easier? We’d still have to fix this, one way or another. I’d still want you.”