“Let’s hope it’s a month. Though I doubt the hospital would be happy about that.”
Jocelyn locked the door behind them. “Come on, I’ll show you the bedrooms.”
“A woman after my own heart,” he said.
Fighting the thrill that charged through her like an electric current, Jocelyn poked him in the chest. She couldn’t afford to be knocked off-kilter by something as minor as a suggestive joke. “Behave yourself, Doctor. Our rooms are on opposite sides of the cabin.”
Gathering her composure, she picked up her bag and led the way across the open concept kitchen and living area, to the bedroom on the ground floor. A four-poster pine bed stood against the wall; white wicker furniture was arranged in a corner beside the glass sliding doors that led out onto a deck.
“I’ll take this room,” she said, then led him across to the other side of the cabin, where they climbed stairs to a loft.
The master suite had its own balcony and private bath, as well as a skylight over the bed.
Donovan set down his bag. “That’ll be great for stargazing.”
“For sure. You’ll be comfortable enough here?”
He walked to the bed and pressed his hands onto the mattress. “Well, let me see…nice and firm. It’s perfect. Want to come try it out?”
She laughed. “I’ll trust your diagnosis, Doctor, and stay on this side of the room, thank you very much. Besides, I’ve already tried it out, the last time I was here.”
His eyes narrowed playfully. “Alone, I hope.”
Jocelyn folded her arms over her chest. “That is none of your business.”
He raised his hands in mock surrender. “You’re right, I’m sorry. I’d just like to know you better, that’s all, and I’m curious about certain things.”
She gazed at him intently. “About what, exactly?”
“About your life before I met you. Did you bring other clients here? Or were you here just for pleasure?”
Jocelyn sighed, wishing she didn’t feel so inclined to answer his questions, wishing that this desire to be closer to him on an emotional level would go away. But ever since the night in his bedroom, when he’d told her about his past and she’d told him things about her personal life, she’d felt more connected to him. She had felt like she was talking to a friend she’d known for years.
“I wouldn’t exactly call it pleasure,” she replied, “but it wasn’t for work reasons, either.”
He sauntered toward her. “Now you’ve got me really curious. You can’t leave me hanging.”
Her pulse began to race as he approached, stopping in front of her, close enough that she could smell his musky male scent. Oh, this was going to be a very difficult assignment over the next few days….
“All right, I’ll tell you. I came here the first time with my mother when I was fourteen, just after my father left us. She wanted to get away, so she wouldn’t have to answer the phone and explain to everyone what had happened. We stayed for two weeks. Then I came back alone, years later, after Tom and I broke up.”
Donovan stared at her for a long moment. “So this place doesn’t exactly have pleasant memories for you.”
She shook her head.
“Why did you choose it?”
“Because it was the safest place I knew, and I’d basically already done the advance. I know the layout of the property and the inside of the cabin like the back of my hand.”
“Always a professional,” he said.
“I try.”
He gazed at her pensively for a few more seconds, then thankfully dropped the subject. She had the feeling, however, that it would come up again at some point….
“Want to get the groceries out of the car?” he asked.
“Sure.” Jocelyn led the way down the stairs.
They brought in the food—a week’s supply that Tess had picked up for them and delivered just before they left Chicago in the middle of the night. They stowed it away in the fridge and cupboards.
“What would you like for dinner tonight?” Donovan asked, checking out the cooking utensils in the drawers. “I don’t want to influence you, but I make a perfect barbecued steak.”
“Sounds great.”
If his steak was half as good as his chicken and lemon sauce, and he continued to be such an enjoyable dinner companion, Jocelyn was going to find it very difficult to remember that she was not here on a quest for pleasure. Epicurean or otherwise. She was here to do a job.
That evening after dinner, they walked down to the beach. The water was calm, except for tiny, circular ripples from fish bobbing to the surface. The sun was setting just beyond the treeline on the other side of the lake.
It was a hot night, so Jocelyn had changed into a black T-shirt and khaki walking shorts with Nike sandals, but Donovan still wore his jeans. Jocelyn spread a blanket on the sand.
“Listen to the crickets,” he said. “What a gorgeous night.”
He began to unbutton his shirt.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
He unbuttoned it all the way down and shrugged out of it, then hopped on one foot while he pulled off a shoe. “I’m checking out the lake.”
“Are you wearing a swimsuit under those?” she asked, pointing to his jeans, trying not to stare at the sheer magnificence of his bare chest in the glimmering, red twilight.
“Nope.” He pulled off the other shoe.
“Hold on a second!” Jocelyn blurted out, realizing what he was doing. “You can’t do that here!”
“Why not? It’s a scorcher tonight, and there’s no one here but us.”
“Us being the operative word! I’m here, and I don’t particularly want to see your—”
Good God.
He pulled down his jeans, and she caught a flash of his bare hip just before she shut her eyes and whirled around to face the other direction. The next thing she heard was the sound of bare feet running onto the wharf and a huge, resounding splash.
Jocelyn opened her eyes, turned and looked down at Donovan’s clothes on the blanket at her feet.
All of them.
Right down to the baby blue boxers.
She walked to the edge of the wharf just as Donovan resurfaced. “The water’s great!” He flipped his wet hair back off his face. He was one beautiful man. “You gotta come in!”
“I will most certainly not come in!”
He laughed. “Why not? It’s a gorgeous night, Miss Executive Protection Professional. There’s no one here. Relax for once, just for a little while.”
“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Donovan—that’s precisely when something would happen—as soon as I relaxed in my duties. You’ve hired me to do a job, and I intend to do it. I’ll watch.”
She chose not to tell him that watching felt equally as dangerous. For her, anyway.
“Have it your way.”
He dove under the water, and she saw more than she wanted to see—a tight, muscular bare butt to die for. Her insides quivered with excitement. Was he trying to drive her mad on purpose? She cupped her forehead in her hand and shut her eyes again.
Feeling slightly desperate, she glanced all around, looking for anybody who might suddenly appear for some unknown reason. The owners, perhaps? A lost hiker? Of course there was no one—it was only wishful thinking on her part—so she looked back down at Donovan, frolicking in the water and damn well driving her insane with both exasperation and yearning.
He treaded water and looked up at her with a tempting smile. “Sure you won’t change your mind?”
“I’m sure.” But she wasn’t sure. What she really wanted to do was dive into that lake and cool off. Because she sure as hell needed to.
“I can see you’re changing your mind,” he said teasingly, still treading water.
How in God’s name did he know that? she wondered miserably. Was it written on her forehead in great big letters—I’m Hot For You, Doctor Knight?
He continued to try to coax her in. “Just fo
r five minutes. You said yourself no one could possibly know we’re here. Why can’t you just enjoy yourself?”
Now he was making her feel like a prude. A boring old stick-in-the-mud.
Which she was! When was the last time she’d enjoyed herself? Or gone out on a date that didn’t involve work? When had she laughed, outside of these last few days with Donovan?
“I’d like to, but…”
“No more buts. Just dive in. I’ll even turn around while you get undressed.”
She stood for a few more seconds, considering it while Donovan continued to tread water with his back to her. Oh, what would it hurt? Five minutes. He was right. She’d done her job and done it well. No one could possibly find them here.
“All right,” she said reluctantly, pulling her T-shirt off over her head. “But I’m not getting naked. I’m wearing undergarments that are perfectly respectable for swimming.”
She was glad she’d worn the new black bra and matching panties that Doris had picked out for her, to go with the black dress. It almost looked like a real bikini.
He laughed. “Whatever floats your boat.”
Shaking her head, Jocelyn stepped out of her shorts and folded everything neatly in a pile. She walked to the edge of the wharf.
“Okay, you can look now.” She reached her arms out in front of her, paused, then did a double forward flip through the air into the water.
As soon as she surfaced, she heard Donovan clapping and whooping. “That was amazing! What, you were an Olympic diver in your past life?”
She rubbed the water from her eyes. “No, but I was on a recreational swim team when I was a kid.”
“You do everything well, don’t you?” He swam closer.
She shrugged, trying not to think about the fact that he was completely naked in the water, not two feet away from her now, and she was in her underwear. If she moved any closer, she’d be able to touch him.
Lord, how she wanted to. Her body was practically humming with the desire to wrap her arms around his neck. To feel his cheek next to hers.
She wanted to let go of all her inhibitions—just this once—and do what Tess had suggested. Take advantage of this romantic summer night with the most handsome man on earth here beside her….
She took a deep breath and dunked her head, still trying to cool off, but realizing it was hopeless and she might as well resign herself to a painful, heated lust for the next half hour or so.
They dipped and dove and swam around each other as the sun disappeared behind the trees. The sensual feel of the water on Jocelyn’s skin was sinfully erotic.
After a few minutes, Donovan came closer, treading water. “I have a goal,” he said. “Concerning you.”
She managed to keep her breathing steady as she spoke. “What is it? You’re not going to teach me to cook, are you?”
“No.”
“To perform heart surgery on a raccoon?”
He laughed. “No.”
“What then?”
Donovan’s eyes smoldered with determination. “I want to make our time here pleasant for you.”
As she gazed into his glimmering eyes, she couldn’t think of a single thing to say. She wasn’t quite sure what he was suggesting, though something about it made her feel warm inside.
Thankfully he elaborated. “The last two times you were here were some of the worst times in your life. This is a beautiful place, Jocelyn, and you should have happy memories of it. Feel as if those sadder times are over.”
Beginning to understand his meaning, she slicked her wet hair back. “You mean you want to cleanse the cabin of its past for me?”
“In a matter of speaking, yes.”
She was now treading water, very close to Donovan. “Why?”
He slowly blinked. “Because I want to see you smile.”
“You’ve seen me smile.”
“Not very often.” The way he was looking at her now—with tenderness and caring—it was softening all her female powers of resistance. She didn’t think she could keep herself from touching this incredibly charming man.
Yet it wasn’t a sexual seduction that was going on here. He was just being inconceivably nice to her.
“What’s this about?” she asked.
“It’s about me wanting to make you happy.”
She grinned at him. “That fortune cookie was right. You do like to fix things. It’s why you want to open that grief counseling center to help children. It’s why you became a heart surgeon. It’s why you want to work on me now.”
“I don’t want to work on you.”
“Yes, you do, but I’m not complaining. It’s nice. No one’s ever wanted to make me happy before. They always wanted to use me for their own happiness. But what about you, Donovan? You deserve joy in your life, too. Maybe I should have a goal as well.”
They swam in circles around each other. “What are you suggesting?” His voice was a low murmur.
It was almost completely dark now. The moon was high in the sky, stars were sparkling. “I’m suggesting that if you feel the need to do something nice for me, I should do something nice for you in return.”
“You already are. You’re here, protecting me from a stalker.”
“And you’re paying me to do that, so we’re even in that department.”
“But if I try to make you happy while we’re here…”
“Then I should do something similar for you.”
Her heart was pounding against her ribs now. How far was she going to take this?
“And how do you intend to do that?”
She swam closer until she was nose-to-nose with him in the water. The magic of the night enveloped her; a brief shiver rippled through her body, followed by a juicy, delectable arousal between her legs.
She was tired of being the consummate professional, day in and day out, every minute of her life.
For once, she just wanted to be a woman.
“Like this.” Then she slowly pressed her lips to his.
Nine
The kiss was hot and wet and way overdue, Jocelyn thought, as she stroked her hands over Donovan’s dripping hair and settled them on his shoulders. He folded her into his strong embrace, and in response, she let go of her reserve and wrapped her legs around him. His erection was already rock-hard, pressing against her, sending waves of wicked pleasure straight to her womanly center.
Before she knew what was happening, she was spinning slowly and deliciously through the water, then he was carrying her toward shore.
They emerged out of the water onto the beach, her legs still wrapped around his torso, his hands supporting her behind. Kissing deeply and passionately, they reached the blanket and Donovan sank with ease to his knees. He laid her on her back and came down smoothly on top of her.
Jocelyn opened her legs for him and tipped her head back and whimpered, while he kissed her neck and shoulders and heated her blood, and made her feel free and out of control. She could hardly believe this was happening—a beautiful, wet, naked man wanted her and was kissing her, outdoors beneath a star-speckled sky.
“Donovan, this is crazy,” she whispered. “What if someone comes by?”
His discerning gaze scanned the yard around them. “I’ll be listening.”
All at once, she was on the other side of the fence, laying her safety and comfort in the hands of another person. It was peculiar to her, and infinitely wonderful.
Satisfied that he had eased her worries, Donovan pressed his lips to hers again and she swung eagerly into the pleasure he offered. He slid his hands down the side of her body, over the curve of her hips and back up to her breast, where he unhooked the front clasp of her bra, then began to stroke her. Tingling waves of delight moved through Jocelyn, followed by a sharp, intense ecstasy when he took her nipple into his mouth and brought her to the brink.
“Are you cold?” he whispered in her ear a few minutes later, his hot breath sending glorious little shivers down her spine.
“No, I
’m burning up.”
His gaze found hers and he smiled—warm, open and adoring. “Then I’ll try to cool you down, though it won’t be easy, love, considering I’m on fire, too.”
He was still smiling when he kissed her again, and she cupped the strong muscles of his buttocks and pulled him tight against her. He continued to kiss and stroke her until she felt a surge of wild, impetuous lust. Her patience dissolved like sugar in liquid. She took his hand and guided it down, and like a skillful, insightful artist, he began to pleasure her with his finger.
She took him in her hand as well, and tried to give him the kind of pleasure he was giving her, but soon it was not enough and she wanted more. She wanted to feel him inside her. She was tired of holding back.
“Please tell me you have protection in your wallet,” she said breathlessly.
“As a matter of fact, I do. I was hopeful about this.”
She smiled while he reached into the pocket of his balled up jeans, pulled out a condom and put it on.
Jocelyn wiggled out of her panties and slid them off. She sat up, gently pushed him onto his back on the blanket, and straddled him. “I just want to make sure you know that this is me making you happy tonight, and not the other way around.”
He smiled wickedly, taking her hips in his big hands and shifting beneath her. “Ah. You’re trying to set this up so that I owe you.”
“Absolutely. And I’ll expect payback as soon as you’re able.” She reached down to place him where she wanted him, then let her body glide down.
He filled her with a tantalizing completeness that sent her passions soaring.
His voice became breathless. “Don’t worry, it won’t take me long to be able.”
He pushed her hair back from her face and pulled her down for another deep, soul-drenching kiss.
Their bodies moved in the moonlight, thrusting and withdrawing. Jocelyn’s thoughts seemed to come to her on a floating cloud. How long had it been since she’d made love? Years. Not since Tom, and quite frankly, that had never been like this. Tonight she was overcome with rapture. She felt beautiful and erotic. Like a real woman. She felt cared for and protected, all of which was unfamiliar to Jocelyn, who was always on the other end of that spectrum.
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