Jo nodded slowly, as she put her knife and fork down.
“Yes, she is,” she murmured. She reached out and brushed a finger along Cadie’s jaw-line. “Having second thoughts, Arcadia?” she asked calmly, trying to still the butterflies in her own stomach.
Damn Cadie, when are you going to learn that she’s terrified of the effect her past might have on how you feel about her? Cadie kicked herself mentally.
“Not for even a millisecond, Jossandra,” she said aloud, capturing Jo’s long fingers and tangling them with her own. “You are the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”
A hesitant grin creased the Australian’s face.
“I am?”
Cadie smiled back and leaned forward again seeking another kiss which was willingly given. For several long, pleasant seconds they explored each other, a gentle wash of passion sweeping away any other concerns.
“You are,” Cadie answered on an irregular breath as they broke apart briefly.
“C’mere,” Jo growled as she wrapped her arms around the younger woman’s waist and pulled her closer. This time the kiss was deeper and lasted longer. Jo slid her hands inside Cadie’s shirt, trailing fingertips along the blonde’s bare skin. She felt her ribs expand as she inhaled sharply at the touch.
“Goddess, Jo,” Cadie gasped, suddenly wishing they were somewhere other than the narrow space between the cabin’s table and the hull.
“Mmmmmm?” Jo replied. She smiled against Cadie’s neck, loving her partner’s responsiveness to her touch. “So tell me, Miss Jones, what would you like to spend today doing?”
Cadie giggled.
“You mean apart from ravishing you?”
“Mhmmmmm.” Jo nibbled at the soft spot just below Cadie’s ear.
The blonde groaned again.
“Well, you could ravish me,” she said, laughing weakly.
Jo chuckled.
“Sounds like a full day,” she said wryly. Cadie’s barely clothed body was warm and soft against hers and the thought of spending a day in bed was very tempting.
Very.
Cadie ducked her head and placed a kiss on the Jo’s neck, leaving a trail of goose-bumps as her lips brushed the soft skin.
“Tell you what,” the blonde murmured between kisses. “Why don’t we… mmmm… finish breakfast… and then… we can figure out… what to do next… mmmm…” She had made her way along the taller woman’s collarbone and Jo threw her head back, savoring each and every touch. Cadie backed off, enjoying the look of quiet arousal on her lover’s face. “Your breakfast is getting cold, Jo-Jo,” she teased.
“It’s about the only thing that is,” the dark-haired woman murmured.
Cadie laughed and gently patted Jo’s stomach.
“Come on, skipper. Let’s eat, before we completely lose track of what we’re doing.”
It just doesn’t get any more gorgeous than this, thought Cadie as she stretched out on the cowling of the Seawolf’s cabin a few hours later. It was another perfect day in tropical far north Queensland. The sun blazed out of a cloudless blue sky and the yacht bobbed gently on a calm jewel-green ocean. They were anchored on the fringe of a small reef close to the outer edge of the Barrier Reef. If Cadie listened really closely she could hear the muffled roar of the open ocean away to the east. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, loving the scents of the sea and exposed coral. Mmmmmm perfect.
On an impulse Jo had decided on this trip just after lunch yesterday when there finally appeared to be a break in Cheswick Marine’s need to have her around constantly. She had arrived back at her Shute Harbor home to find Cadie knee-deep in an online conversation with one of her stable of authors, and more than ready to take an extended break.
While she had wrapped up her business, Jo had collected the boy-cat and a couple of boxes of supplies and loaded up the Jeep. Together they’d packed enough clothes for a few days on the water and headed back down to the company’s marina, where the Seawolf waited for them.
Jo had picked a small lagoon she called Horsehead Reef that wasn’t marked on any of the tourist maps and they’d headed for this little piece of paradise, reaching it by sunset. Dinner on deck was followed by moonlight skinny dipping, a unique experience Cadie had found sinfully enjoyable.
Lately, every day is a brand new experience, she thought, grinning at the memory of the warm water sliding over her bare skin. The reef had glittered in the silver glow of the moon, phosphorescence shimmering off the tips of the slight chop. The night creatures had flashed and darted below her and it had all felt like …
Like heaven, she sighed.
Cadie pulled herself up into a sitting position, raising her face to the sun and just savoring the warmth and peace. After a few minutes she opened her eyes again and reached for her laptop, flicking it on and waiting for it to boot. She had some research to do and outstanding emails that needed a reply.
“Awwwwww, shit.”
Cadie looked up from the screen as a string of distinctly Australian curses continued to float up from the stern of the Seawolf. The blonde was sitting cross-legged, the small computer balanced on her knees. One glance at her lover, who was standing on the flat transom at the very rear of the yacht, told her Jo was less than impressed.
“What’s up, love?” she asked, watching as Jo hauled on the dinghy’s tethering line, pulling it towards her.
“I think I just found the source of the Stink from Hell,” Jo replied. Sure enough, another wave of the all too familiar stench wafted up from the bottom of the dinghy as she drew it closer. “Geez, that’s awful,” she grimaced. Fish heads didn’t smell great at the best of times, but after several hours in the late summer sun, the rotting mess was bordering on the unspeakable. Jo sighed.
“M’gonna have to wash this out,” she grumbled. She looked up at Cadie who was grinning back at her. “You laugh now, but I’m going to need your help to get this thing out of the water,” Jo warned.
“Ewww.” Cadie put down the laptop and uncurled, pushing herself to her feet. “I guess that means no snorkeling for a while, huh?” she asked as she made her way aft and stepped down onto the transom.
Jo nodded.
“Probably not a good idea, no,” she agreed. “The bities are gonna come from miles away when they smell this stuff in the water.” She glanced at the blonde. “Sorry about that.”
Cadie smiled at her lover.
“It’s okay, sweetheart. I’m sure we’ll find other things to do,” she teased as she leaned in for a quick kiss.
“Well, yeah,” Jo replied, kissing her back. “There’s all that paperwork you needed to catch up on and there’s that patch I need to put in the spare mainsail, and …” She yelped as Cadie reached around and slapped her backside playfully. Jo grinned down at a pair of twinkling green eyes. “Or we could snuggle some more.”
“Mmmmmm.”
They had spent most of the morning in bed after breakfast had devolved into more teasing and touching. Eventually they had given in to it and retreated to the comfort of the double bunk. Cadie reached up and brushed Jo’s cheek with her fingertips.
“You know, only you and I could even contemplate sex with that smell in our nostrils,” she murmured.
“So let’s get it cleaned up,” Jo decided quickly, grinning at Cadie.
“Mhmmmm.”
Jo unclipped the boat hook from its holders and swung the six-foot pole out over the dinghy.
“First off, we need that,” she muttered as she hooked the handle of the upturned fish bucket, lifting it up and out onto the transom.
“Yuck,” said Cadie, wrinkling up her nose.
“Oh yeah.” Jo gingerly moved close enough to pick up the bucket and tip its rancid contents over the side. Then she crouched down and rinsed it out with seawater. “Now we need to empty out the dinghy without swamping it. If it fills up with water it’ll be too heavy for us.”
“Okay,” Cadie said uncertainly, eyeing the long length of the aluminum tender as Jo t
ugged on the rope, pulling it closer. They both crouched down, each gripping one end of the little vessel.
“Ready?” Cadie nodded. “One, two … three!” On three they yanked the dinghy up and onto the edge of the transom, dumping the spoiled fish remains into the ocean. “Good thing the yacht’s as big as it is or we’d never be able to do this,” Jo muttered, grateful that the transom was wider than the length of the dinghy. “You got it?” she asked.
Cadie braced herself and nodded as Jo tentatively let go of the balancing boat long enough to refill the bucket with seawater. She began sluicing out the bottom as Cadie held it steady.
“Okay, that ought to do it.” Jo put down the bucket and rejoined Cadie. Together they slid the dinghy back into the water. “Good job.” The tall woman grinned at her lover who was watching the activity where Jo had dumped the fish.
“Wow, look at that,” the blonde said pointing. As predicted, fish were coming from all directions, including a couple of long-jawed barracuda with impressive rows of razor-sharp teeth. Mephisto appeared from nowhere and crouched on the edge of the transom in a pose of pure feline alertness, his eyes glistening at the feast swimming just out of reach.
“Careful Mephy,” Cadie warned.
“One of these days he’s going to find himself part of the food chain,” chuckled Jo, leaning against the rail next to Cadie as they watched. “Nature at work.” She slid an arm around the shorter woman’s shoulders and kissed the side of her head. “Thanks for the help.”
Cadie smiled up at her.
“No problem, sweetie,” she replied. A small reef shark joined the feeding frenzy and Cadie watched, fascinated. “I’ve never seen one up close before,” she said, admiring the sleek creature’s aerodynamic lines and dominant presence. “It’s beautiful.”
Jo smiled.
“Mhmmmm. Sharks are so misrepresented,” she said, settling her elbows on the rail and leaning her shoulder against Cadie’s. “When I first came up here, I was as misinformed as everybody else. Any time I was in the water, I figured every shark I saw was out to get me.” Cadie nodded. “But they’re just doing their thing, trying to survive. Most times, when they do bite, it’s because they’ve misidentified you, or like now, they’re in a feeding frenzy.”
The shark below them cut through the pack of smaller fish, seemingly not picky about whether it captured alive or dead prey.
“I’m guessing that right now would not be a good time to try and pat him on the nose.” Cadie grinned.
“Um, no,” Jo agreed wryly. She glanced at the blonde’s smiling face, noting that the tension lines that had been normal for Cadie in the last few weeks of her relationship with Naomi were now completely gone. The result was lovely. “Do you have any idea how beautiful you are?” she asked quietly, unsurprised to see a very becoming blush rising on her lover’s cheeks.
Eyes close to the color of the ocean they floated on turned to Jo, one blonde eyebrow rising. Cadie cleared her throat self-consciously.
“Where did that come from?” she asked, bumping Jo with her shoulder gently. Her dark-haired companion shrugged nonchalantly.
“Just telling you what I see,” she answered with a smile.
Their relationship was still in its infancy, Cadie knew, and they were learning new things about each other every day. One of the most pleasant surprises had been discovering just how romantic her new lover could be. Now that they were free of Naomi’s presence and her obligations as yacht skipper, Jo thought nothing of saying exactly what was in her heart. It was in stark contrast to the first few weeks they had known each other and it was impossibly endearing.
Cadie reached up and gently swept the errant lock of black hair off her lover’s face. Then she planted the tenderest of kisses on Jo’s cheek, provoking a soft smile from the older woman.
“What was that for?” the skipper asked.
“That was for knowing just how to melt my heart, Miss Madison,” she whispered close to Jo’s ear. The soft words and warm breath on her skin sent tingles down Jo’s spine.
Mmmm, magic, she thought as she turned to face Cadie. They kissed, a long, slow exploration that left them both gently enervated by the time they broke off.
“Unless you want to spend the afternoon in bed as well as the morning, we’d better find something else to do,” Jo grinned.
“Mmmm, goddess that sounds tempting,” replied the blonde. “But you’re probably right.” She nibbled on Jo’s bottom lip teasingly. “Can we go walk the reef?”
“You bet,” the skipper answered. “Maybe we’ll find a few things to supplement dinner with. It might work off some this energy too.” She smiled.
“Mmmm, don’t count on it,” Cadie laughed. “I’m enjoying being alone with you when we haven’t got 17 other things to think about. I’m going to make the most of it.”
Jo laughed.
“Easy, tiger,” she said. “We’ve got all weekend.”
“I know,” Cadie replied. She looked up into gorgeous blue eyes and suddenly felt herself wanting to explain something. “The last couple of weeks have been kind of strange, Jo-Jo,” she said softly. “Everything happened in such a rush for us, and since then it’s been go, go, go.” She cupped the angular cheek above her with the palm of her hand. “I want to get to know you all over again. My heart knows you, and god knows my body has more than a half-clue.” She grinned up at Jo who matched it with one of her own. “But now I feel the need to talk and talk and talk. Does that make sense?”
Jo nodded, taking the blonde’s hand and squeezing it.
“I’m sorry. I keep forgetting how different all this is for you,” the skipper said softly. “You’ve changed my life, but yours has been changed, turned upside down and flung to the opposite side of the planet. It must feel very weird for you.”
Cadie shook her head slowly, giving her lover a reassuring smile.
“Actually one of the ways I know that I’ve made the right decision is that I feel completely at home here,” she said. “Everyone’s been very welcoming and being with you has been … is … the most perfect feeling I’ve ever known.”
A charmed smile was her answer.
“That’s mutual, my love,” came the murmured response. For a few long, pleasant seconds they just swam in each other’s gaze before Jo cleared her throat. “How about a walk on the reef, then lunch?”
“Yes, please.”
Jo couldn’t remember the last time she had felt so contented. Her belly was full, the ocean was calm and tranquil, and her lover was snuggled up against her. The late afternoon sun was warming their backs as she and Cadie wound down from an energetic day spent exploring the small coral atoll nearby.
Jo yawned. She was curled on her right side, resting her head on her hand, her back against the deck cowling in the bow of the Seawolf. Cadie sat cross-legged in front of her and was resting against the tall woman's stomach. The blonde had her computer in her lap and she was trawling through website after website.
Jo found herself fascinated by a long thin scar that ran the length of the back of Cadie’s upper right arm. She trailed a finger tip down the faint white line, chuckling when it produced the slightest of shivers from her blonde companion.
“Ah, you’ve found my one blemish,” Cadie said wryly, as she tried to focus on the computer screen despite the rather pleasant tingles Jo’s touch triggered.
“How did you get this?” Jo asked as leaned forward to kiss the scar.
“Ice skating on the lagoon at Tenney Park, when I was a kid,” Cadie replied. She turned from the computer and brushed her fingers across Jo’s cheek. “I’m guessing that ice and snow haven’t figured too much in your life.” She grinned.
Jo thought about it for a moment.
“I’ve never seen snow, actually,” she said, looking up into wide green eyes. “Well, that’s not so unusual, honey. We don’t exactly get a lot of it here.” She shrugged. “When I was living in Sydney I sometimes thought about going up into the Snowy Mountains fo
r some skiing, but I never seemed to get around to it. Apart from Tasmania, way down south, that’s about the only place to see snow. And the only ice I’ve seen is in my scotch.”
Cadie laughed.
“I’m really looking forward to showing you my hometown,” she said softly. “Especially in winter. It’s going to blow your mind.” She hesitated when Jo’s face took on a slightly grim expression. “What’s wrong, love?”
Jo sighed.
“I think the chances of your government letting me into the US with my criminal record are really, really remote,” she said honestly, meeting Cadie’s somber gaze. “It’s not like I can hide it, or play it down.” She lowered her eyes again, suddenly ashamed. “I was what I was. And there’s no way they’re going to just shrug their shoulders and say ‘okay, come on in, Miss ex-Assassin’.”
Cadie slid her fingers under the dark-haired woman’s jaw and tilted her chin up, forcing the blue eyes to look at her.
“Your record was expunged,” she said quietly. “That has to count for something.”
Jo shook her head slowly.
“No,” she corrected. “I was given immunity from prosecution for turning those guys in, but nobody’s pretending I never did the things I did. I killed people, Cadie. For a living.” Her eyes were fierce now, darkened by her emotions. “There’s no getting away from it, and it’s there for all to see. And if something happens, and I reoffend...”
“That’s not going to happen,” Cadie soothed, cupping Jo’s cheek. “We’ll figure something out, sweetheart. Perhaps Ken can help us out.”
Detective Superintendent Ken Harding. Jo smiled at the thought of the big Sydney cop she’d surrendered to all those years ago when all the killing had become too much. Harding was, in many ways, a complete caricature – overweight, balding, crude and rough around the edges. But he had a soft spot for her, Jo knew. And he’d come to her rescue a few weeks ago when he’d helped take down one of her old Sydney cronies who had come seeking a little revenge. Yeah, maybe old Ken can help, she thought affectionately.
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