“This front we’re putting up aside, you need to stay away from him if I’m not with you.”

“I can handle Brent.” Chin jutting into the air, she pushed up from the bed to face him head on.

“You can’t. Maybe you could before.” Not likely. “But you can’t now.”

She opened her mouth to argue, and he waved her off. “If you want me to continue this charade, then you’ll do this one thing for me.”

She bit her lower lip and then nodded. “But I do need to talk to Kristen.”

“What the hell did I—”

“Away from Brent. I need to get her alone. See if I can help her get away from him.” She poked at his chest and he suppressed the urge to grab the offending hand and pull her closer. “You’re the one who said he wasn’t safe.”

“She slept with your boyfriend and you’re worried about helping her?” Was she, really? Or was this just an attempt to get Kristen and Brent to break up? That would certainly give her another chance at the jackass. Fuck. No way could he let her do that.

“Fiancé.”

“Yeah, I got it.” he said through gritted teeth. “Are you sure this is about helping Kristen? Maybe you want another chance at Brent.”

“Excuse me? How stupid do I look to you?”

“That’s not what I—”

Her hand waved, cutting him off. “I get why you might think that, but the last thing I want is another chance with Brent. I’m just not sure Kristen deserves to be stuck with him for the rest of her life because of one mistake.” She frowned. “Although, they do deserve each other.”

“I still can’t believe you were going to marry that buffoon.”

She took a step toward him. “Stop judging me, Mr. High and Mighty. And anyway, who says buffoon anymore?” When she looked up and met his gaze with her warm eyes, so full of annoyance and caring, the force of the whole night rushed over him in a flood of emotion. Rage and anger and lust assaulted him. And a fierce protectiveness he couldn’t remember feeling since he’d left his humanity behind came with it.

Her eyes widened at whatever expression crossed his face, but she didn’t look afraid. Her tongue flitted out, wetting her lips.

Before his good sense could kick in, he crossed the short space between them and closed his mouth over hers. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he knew he’d moved too fast. Inhumanly fast. But he didn’t care. Her sweet scent filled his nose and swirled around them both. And her soft lips greeted his eagerly.

She melted into him and he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close. A soft noise escaped her throat and he growled against her lips. She was soft, so soft. Warm, comforting, and passionate. Her hands slid up his chest, leaving fire in their wake, before settling around his neck. She opened her mouth to him, and he slid his tongue against hers.

He hardened painfully in his jeans and kissed her a bit more forcefully. She moaned and pressed her body closer, writhing against his hardness. A small part of his mind screamed that this was a terrible idea.

But the rest of him didn’t care.

Then her mouth was gone from his, and he stared dumbly. Still in his arms, her face was flushed and her mouth slightly open. Her eyes were bright with wonder and she looked so sexy it was all he could do to keep himself from kissing her again. She took a step back, forcing him to loosen his arms around her and release her. His body cried out at the loss, and he fisted his hands at his sides to keep from reaching for her again.

“I’m going to go take a shower,” she said, finally, breaking the silence and whatever bond that had kept his eyes affixed to her.

He turned and opened the heavy curtain leading to the balcony. Moonlight lit the outside of the ship, as did the lights from the ship itself. And the ocean was clear and dark. Alone. “Okay.”

Shuffling noises sounded behind him as she no doubt fished out more of those sweet-smelling toiletries to tantalize him with. Less than a minute later, the bathroom door clicked shut behind her.

He let out a long breath and opened the door to the balcony. What the hell just happened? Air heavy with humidity and laden with the salt of the ocean surrounded him, and he gazed out over the endless sea, as if it could offer him answers. But its only reply was the sound of waves lapping against the ship.

Chapter Four

Alice blinked at the dark room and suppressed the urge to hide under the covers for the rest of the day. What a night. She pushed up onto her elbow and looked at the digital clock sitting on the desk across from Noah’s sleeping form. Ten o’clock. They’d be late for brunch.

Noah’s too-tall body looked awkward on the loveseat’s pullout. The bed couldn’t have been designed for anyone over five and a half feet tall, and Noah stood over six feet. He lay from corner to corner.

Why hadn’t he taken the bed, for crying out loud? She was only five-three, the pullout would have been perfectly serviceable for her. But no, the man had to be stubborn about it. Just like he was with everything. The idea of ever being agreeable without argument had probably never even occurred to him.

But sleeping, he looked so peaceful. Quiet. Awake, he carried an energy with him at all times, not violent exactly, but…powerful. Like he expected and was ready for action everywhere he went.

She touched her lips with her fingertips. She could still feel him there, his mouth pressed against hers, his clever tongue teasing her into oblivion. She could taste his drink in her mouth and smell his scent. Feel his arms wrapped around her. Holding her close. Burning her up. Pushing her to the brink with the slightest caress.

Like it had been carved from stone, his jawline was smooth and perfect, and she ached to slide her fingers down its surface, feel the roughness of his dark five o’clock shadow.

She half wanted to kick herself for pulling away from his kiss, but the other half remained convinced it had been the right thing to do. Noah was gorgeous and sexy and seemed to be a genuinely good man, but she wasn’t ready to jump into a new relationship. Trusting someone that much again…no. Last night had proven she wasn’t ready yet. The second she felt herself losing control with Noah, panic set in. And she couldn’t run away fast enough.

But oh, what a kiss.

It wasn’t as if she hadn’t noticed him before. Heck, he was the reason she organized neighborhood parties and went out of her way to drop in at least every few weeks to borrow something or just say hello. He hadn’t exactly said he enjoyed seeing her outright, but she always felt his gaze linger on her body.

As if sensing her eyes on him, Noah’s fluttered open. Their gazes met for a brief moment, and she could almost imagine no time had passed since she’d been in his arms. Catching herself, she broke the moment by looking away as though she hadn’t been watching him sleep. Which she most certainly had been. If he felt uncomfortable, Noah didn’t show it. He glanced at the clock and grimaced.

“Are we late?”

“Kind of.”

“Better get going, then,” he said, voice rough with sleep. His hair was tousled and sexy. The man looked good right out of bed. That should have been a crime.

He avoided meeting her eyes as they got ready, and an awkwardness settled over them. Every instinct in her body told her to break it before the gap grew too far between them, but she couldn’t think of the right thing to say. Should she apologize for breaking up the kiss? No, that was a stupid idea. Make light of it? That didn’t seem right either.

So she let the discomfort settle over both of them, so thick she thought it bordered on being visible. By the time they walked to brunch, they’d been reduced to one-word questions and answers and a whole lot of pointing.

Brent and Kristen were nowhere to be seen at the morning brunch, at least not in the nook her family had reserved for breakfast on each day of the trip. Her mother and sister sat with their heads together at the table, and her mom said something to make Cindy laugh and appear mortified at the same time. Cindy looked radiant and so happy—every bit the glowing bride—that Alice found her mood lifting despite her worries about Noah.

“Good morning, ladies,” Noah said, and the tension he’d carried in his shoulders all morning seemed to dissipate. Now that they were no longer alone.

“Anything planned for this morning?” Alice asked.

“Oh yes, a Shepard family volleyball tournament.”

Alice groaned. She was no slouch, but the tournaments always ended with Brent and Robert battling for supremacy.

“Don’t worry, they aren’t teaming up this time,” her sister said, knowing exactly what Alice was thinking. “In fact, it’s a couples’ tournament. So you’ll be competing with Noah on your team.”

Noah raised an eyebrow.

“He’s got a bit of a sun allergy, so I guess we’ll have to sit this one out,” Alice said. Thank goodness. Maybe there’d be a way out of the tournament. She didn’t relish playing volleyball with Brent and Kristen on the other side of the net.

Cindy’s eyebrows shot up at that, but she didn’t argue. “Darn. Guess it’ll be our responsibility to make sure Brent doesn’t win.” She smiled at her soon-to-be husband and he took her hand in his.

“Guess so,” Alice replied.

“You know how competitive Brent is. He’ll have a big head about it the entire week if he wins.” Cindy waved her fork around as she spoke, and Alice caught sight of her pancakes. Her mouth watered. While they were playing volleyball, she could enjoy the cruise ship’s excellent breakfast menu. She wiggled in her shorts. Yes, she still had room. The gym would be waiting when she got home.

“Nonsense,” Noah cut in. “Of course we’ll play.”

“But your allergy—”

“I’ll be fine, Alice.”

“Great!” Cindy said. “We need to head over there soon. I only have the courts booked for a couple of hours.” She glanced at Alice. “You guys should eat something. Maybe grab a banana to go.”