by Suzanne Rock
“Aw, I had my heart set on treasure,” Simone said.
“Next time, baby,” Rex soothed. “I need Caine to help me with the equipment. For today, we’ll just go out and enjoy the sunshine and quiet. I have some fishing gear here.”
“It’s in my truck,” Caine said over his shoulder.
“Ooh, can you get it?” Simone asked.
“Hell, I can’t walk back up that hill with my leg. We’ll just go for a ride,” Rex said. “Is that okay, baby?”
“But I—” Simone’s nasally voice faded as Caine hurried up the path after Jenna. Her backside swished back and forth in front of his face, like a tempting piece of fruit.
“Jenna, wait. Let me explain.”
“Oh, I think you’ve explained enough for one day, don’t you?” She walked ahead of him, swinging her tempting ass and causing a stirring in his cock. “I can’t believe that you brought me here, Caine.”
“Jenna, wait. Once you see the shipwreck—”
Jenna stopped abruptly and turned to face him. “I don’t want anything to do with that stinkin’ excavation site.” Before Caine could respond, she stormed off again up the path.
Caine let out a curse and followed. “Jenna, hold up.”
She marched under a covering of trees, obscuring both the castle and boat from view. In the distance, Cain heard the roar of the boat’s motor as Rex and Simone went off on their morning excursion.
“Aren’t you going to go with them?” Jenna asked. “After all, they might take some of you treasure.” The way she said treasure made it sound like a dirty word.
“Jenna.” Caine grabbed her elbows as she started to walk away once more. “It isn’t what it looks like.”
“Oh?” She pulled her arms from his grasp and shifted her bag from one shoulder to the other. “It looks like the owner of the island hired both you and your cousin to excavate a shipwreck for his private collection, but instead of doing your job, you both decide it would be better to give the owner the less expensive trinkets, while selling the more expensive pieces and keeping the money for yourself.”
Caine rubbed the back of his neck. “I guess when you put it that way, it does sound sort of bad.”
Jenna made a very unladylike sound and stormed back up the path before he could catch her. A few feet later, the path split. Instead of taking the one up the hill and toward the castle, Jenna veered left, going deeper into the brush and trees. The path led to a small waterfall and garden, not her room. He had no idea what she was up to, and he sure as hell wasn’t going to leave with her angry at him.
Suddenly she stopped again, whirling around and causing Caine to stumble. “I just want to know one thing.”
“What?”
She turned and started marching away from him again. They had only made it a few paces before she stopped. “How did you plan on selling the items without someone questioning them?”
“On the black market. Rex has already found a potential buyer.”
Jenna shook her head. “Unbelievable.” She lowered her arms. “And what do you plan on doing with all of this money? Are you going to waste it like you wasted the money from my mother’s company?”
Cain inched closer. “I already told you, I didn’t take your money.” He heard the bubbling of the waterfall in the distance. Jenna loved fresh flowers almost as much as she loved diving. If he could just get her to that garden, he knew that he could soften her heart.
“Yeah, right.”
“I didn’t.” He took another step closer until only a thin breath of air separated them. His fingers itched to touch her, to hold her and make her understand. “I’m doing this for you.”
“For me?” She raised her brows.
“Yes, for you.” On impulse, he reached out and cupped her cheek with his large palm. His muscles relaxed slightly when she didn’t pull away. “The whole reason why I’m on this island is because of you.”
“Of me.” She stared at him, uncomprehending.
Caine’s mind struggled to find the worlds to make her understand. She was standing so close, and her skin felt so soft. Desire warred with his logical thinking and tried to gain control. He thought back to the exhibition room and how he almost possessed her. He had brought condoms with him this time. He had hoped…Well, he had hoped a lot of things, and none of them seemed to be working out the way he had planned.
“Everything I’ve done since we’ve parted has been for you.” He leaned forward until his lips were only inches away from hers. He could smell her sweet scent, feel the heat from her mouth. Cain shifted his gaze to her ruby lips and tilted his head. “All of this is for you Jenna. For us.”
He heard her breath hitch, saw her shutter her eyes as desire took hold of her body. Instinct took over as he closed his lips over hers.
Jenna tasted like a little piece of heaven. He forced himself to keep the kiss soft, when all he wanted to do was throw her down on the ground and possess her. He imagined heir naked bodies entwining, of his cock entering her wet heat.
She tried to pull back, but he held firm, working his lips over her mouth and silently begging her to understand. He moved closer, framing her delicate face in his large hands. He ran his tongue along the seam of her lips and heard her bag drop to the ground. He worked harder, concentrating on pouring every last ounce of affection he had into the kiss. After a few, long, tense moments, he felt her body relax. With a sigh, she parted them in invitation and he took advantage, sliding his tongue along hers and savoring her taste.
Ah, Jenna. His Jenna. He would never get enough of this woman. He rubbed his thumbs against her cheek as her body softened against his. The kiss reminded him of their days on St. Lucia. That was back before the call from the owner of the island, before Rex guilted him on going on this crazy expedition. Back then there was only Jenna and diving. It was the one time in his life that Caine had been truly happy.
Jenna slid her hands up his arms and grabbed his wrists. She tried to tug his hands off her face, but it only made him want her more. He had always liked it when Jenna fought back. She was a feisty one, and her squirming was making him harder than granite.
He eased her back against the tree, pushing his large body against her small one. Even though he towered over her, he wanted her to know that she had nothing to fear. He’d take care of her now, and always. All she needed to do was to relax and enjoy the moment.
“Ow.” Pain blasted in his mouth, causing him to stumble back in confusion. “What the hell…” He put his hand over his lip, tasting blood.
Jenna’s eyes burned with contempt. “Do us both a favor, Caine, and stop lying to me. I’m tired of it—and I’m tired of you.”
Caine stared at Jenna in shock as she picked up her bag and stormed away.
Chapter Five
“What are you talking about?” Caine glanced at his hand as he hurried to catch up to her. The bleeding was already starting to subside, thank goodness. She must not have bitten him as hard as he thought.
“Stop saying that you’re doing this all for me,” she called out over her shoulder.
“But I am.” The trees thinned and the sun broke through, shining light on the blossoming flowers at his feet.
“I never asked you for this.” She waved her arms in the air as she walked. “I never asked you to leave and take all of my money with you.” She stopped at a crevice in the hill where water trickled down into a small, shallow pool. Flowers grew out of the cracks between the boulders and around the edge of the water.
“I didn’t take your money,” he said, trying to ignore the beautiful picture she made against the backdrop of water and flowers.
“Stop it.”
“Stop what?”
“Lying. I just want the truth.”
“The truth?” He lowered his hand and took a step closer. “The truth is that I’ve never stopped loving you.”
She snorted. “Love? You have a funny way of showing it.”
He stepped forward, close enough so that
she had to look up to meet his gaze. “Every day, I’ve thought of you, Jenna. You’re like a disease.”
She scrunched her nose. “A disease?”
His body tensed at the sarcasm in her voice. This was getting him nowhere. Caine was never good with words. He always seemed to mess things up. He’d have to show her his intensions in some other way.
He took a deep breath. “That’s not what I meant.”
“Then what did you mean?”
“I’m trying to make a future for us.” Every muscle in his body longed to hold her, but he wasn’t sure if she’d accept his touch.
She shook her head. “I don’t want a future built on deceit, Caine.”
He glanced over her shoulder at the small waterfall. “I’m not offering you a future of deceit.”
“No? Then what exactly are you offering me? Because from where I’m standing, it seems like all you have is a life of crime.”
Anger bubbled up in his chest. “Get off your high horse, Jenna, and see how the rest of the world lives for once.” He pushed her back into the waterfall. She gasped as the water fell down on her head, temporarily blinding her. Her bag fell into the shallow pool beside her.
Caine grabbed her wrists, pulling her from the fall. Before she could get her bearings, he kissed her hard, then jerked back before she could bite him again. She moved to hit him, but he grabbed her wrists, immobilizing her. With a quick step, he maneuvered her back against a tree, kissing her neck, jaw and ears.
“Wake up, Jenna.”
“I am awake.”
“I’m trying to build us a life.”
“Of stolen money.”
“And least I’m trying. I don’t see you trying, Jenna.”
“Fuck you, Caine!” she screamed. “That business was all my mother and I had left. My father took everything else when he ran off with a maid half his age. You didn’t only take our livelihood, you took our hope.” Tears streamed down her cheeks. “You left me, Caine. You left me.”
“I may have left you then, but I’m here now, Jenna. And I’m offering you everything.” Caine dipped his head and feasted on her skin. “I want to give it all back, Jenna. Everything I have, is yours.”
Tension drained from Jenna’s body as Caine slid his wicked tongue over her neck. God, she loved how he felt, how he smelled. Against her better judgment, Jenna closed her eyes and focused on how delicious his tongue felt against her skin, and how his long, hard body pressed up against her own.
He rubbed his hips against her, and she groaned as his hard length slid against her lower abdomen. She had fantasized about this so much times over the past several months. She wanted more, needed more.
He loosened his grip on her wrists, sliding his fingers down over the bare skin of her arms. “Jenna,” he whispered as he kissed a sensitive spot behind her shoulder. “God, Jenna.”
He trailed his fingers along the sides of her breasts, lingering there until they swelled and pressed against her thin bikini top. She gasped as he grabbed her ass—he had always said that he liked her ass—and tugged her against him. She raised her arms as she fell forward into his strength, and wrapped them around his neck.
“That’s it, Jenna. I know you remember.”
God help her, she did. She remembered how good he tasted, like bourbon and sun. She remembered how he smelled—like the beach on a hot summer day. She had loved this man once, loved everything about him. As she relaxed and molded her body against his, memories resurfaced, bringing with them old feelings of lust and childlike innocence.
“Caine,” she whispered as he tugged at her T-shirt. “Please.” Whether she was begging him to stop or keep going, she didn’t know. All Jenna knew was that she hadn’t felt this needy in a long, long time.
Caine leaned back just far enough to pull her shirt over her head. Then he was on her again, his kisses becoming more needy and desperate.
Jenna felt more desperate, too. She slid her hands down over his broad shoulders, memorizing every dip and curve of muscle. “Your turn.”
He let her tug the T-shirt off of him and then he was on her again, kissing her, touching her. One by one, Jenna’s nerve endings were set on fire. He slipped off her bikini top and tossed it to the ground. Before she could react he was there, on her, pressed skin-on-skin. Jenna had never felt anything more wonderful in her life.
“God Jenna, I need you.” He tugged her off the tree and knelt before her. Jenna threaded her fingers in his hair as he tongued her breasts, teasing and stroking them into sharp peaks. Jenna hung on, clinging to his head as desire raced through her veins. As he worked, he shimmied first her shorts, then her bikini bottoms off her body.
“Oh my God,” he whispered as he glanced down between her legs.
“What?”
He looked up at her and grinned. “When did you start shaving?”
“Soon after you left,” she said.
He ran his fingers over her mound, his expression almost reverent. “I thought I felt something different in the exhibit room, but things were happening so fast—”
“Do you like it?” she asked.
He stood and slid his hands around to her ass. “I love it.”
Jenna let out a feminine yip as he lifted her off the ground. On instinct, she wrapped her legs around his trim hips as he carried her toward the waterfall.
“What are you doing?”
Instead of answering, he kissed her, filling her mouth with his wonderful taste. It had been a long time since Jenna felt so possessed, so thoroughly claimed.
Back at the spa, her job was to dominate the clients who craved a strong woman, but the situation lacked a certain appeal for her. She didn’t want a submissive man, but one who was her equal, one who would fight and fuck just as hard as she.
“Ah,” she let out a cry as he backed her into the jagged rock edge. Pain blasted through her body, then quickly subsided under the warm water. The waterfall was enough to cover the back half of her body, leaving the front free so that she could breathe. Jenna gasped as the cold liquid ran over her skin and stared at Caine with wide eyes.
“I don’t want you getting away.” He chuckled and grasped her wrists once more. “Not this time.” He pinned her wrists above her head and Jenna winced as the rocks bit into her skin. Pain infused with pleasure, creating a heady mix that sent her desire soaring.
This was new. The Caine of St. Lucia would never have used pain during sex. As his mouth descended on hers once more, Jenna realized that she liked this new Caine. She liked him a lot.
She struggled against his firm grip, trying to touch him like he was touching her. Caine’s eyes flared with hunger, and his mouth descended on hers once more.
Jenna fisted her hands and struggled against him, wanting to slide her fingers over his tanned chest and abs. Her efforts were in vain. Caine had no problem holding her immobile as his kiss became more urgent.
“I need you, Jenna,” he whispered as he shifted from her mouth to her jaw. “I need to be inside of you.”
“Yes.” She leaned her head back on the rocks, letting the water tumble over her head. She needed this, needed him. Water had always reminded her of Caine and the time they had shared together. I seemed right that this should happen under a waterfall.
“Condom,” she gasped as she leaned forward.
“I have one.”
“No, use mine. It’s in my pocket.” When he flashed her a questioning glance, she offered a seductive smile. “Trust me.”
He slid his hand into her shorts and Jenna took advantage, grabbing his hair at his nape and pulling him back until he grimaced with pain. “Put it on.”
It was a bold move, one she had used at the Ecstasy Spa many times before. She wondered if Caine would like her new, more dominating side.
He stared at her for a split second, his eyes going wide. Jenna knew this was new to him, but it was a part of her now, as natural as breathing. He might have changed, but she had changed as well. Working at the spa had caused Je
nna to shed her shy innocence. She was no longer a timid girl, but a woman who knew what she wanted. She wanted him.
She attacked his mouth, plunging her tongue deep and taking him by surprise. He growled against her and fumbled with the condom. Jenna tilted her head as she ran her tongue along his. Her sense of urgency escalated until she wanted nothing more than to have him inside of her.
He tightened his grip for a split second, then let go of her wrist. Jenna pulled away from his mouth as he struggled to open the package.
“Give it to me.” She would’ve smiled at his shaking hands, if she didn’t feel so needy herself. Jenna quickly opened the wrapper, then rolled the condom down his thick length.
“Ribbed?”
“I wanted to try something new.” She touched his shaft, causing him to gasp.
Caine braced himself against the rock wall behind her, placing his hands in the fall and causing water to splash out around them like a halo.
“Now, Caine,” she whispered as she positioned him at her opening. “I want you now.”
“Yes.” He grabbed her ass, spreading apart her cheeks as he drove himself into her body. Jenna cried out as he filled her, clawing at his back and arms. The ribbed condom heightened the friction, causing long tails of pleasure to whip through her body.
“More,” she whispered.
“I can’t go in any farther.”
She spread her legs apart, relying on his strength to hold her upright. The movement allowed him better access and he inched himself deeper. Jenna groaned and grabbed his hair once more, tugging his head back until he met her gaze. “Harder.”
Before he could respond, she kissed his lips, commanding him to bring her to the point of ecstasy. He tasted good, so good. Jenna started to lose herself in the kiss, then realized he wasn’t moving.
She pulled away from his mouth and sneered. “What are you doing?”
He flashed her a seductive smile. “Waiting for you to finish.”
“To finish?”
“Now that you’re done…” He pressed harder against her hips, shoving her into the rock face. Jenna ground her teeth as the sharp points dug deeper into her lower back.
