The moment we stepped foot on the speed boat that would take us from the plane to the resort, which Winston happens to own, my heart lightened. I felt instantly happy, relaxed, and completely untroubled. The wind sweeping through my locks, the water drops on my skin, and Winston next to me, made me feel incredible.

It’s been a day and it didn’t take us long to settle in. We’re now lying on loungers on the terrace of our luxury water villa, enjoying the touch of the warm sun on our skins, breathing in the salty sea air. It feels like we’re inside a dream and reality seems so far out of reach. It would be a sin to worry about anything in a place as beautiful as this.

“Are you happy?” Winston asks, looking up from his newspaper. He’s wearing midnight blue boxer shorts and no shirt. His tanned abs are on full display for me to admire and be turned on by. My future husband looks fit and fresh and simply handsome.

“Are you kidding?” I bat my eyelashes. “Words are not enough to express how happy I am right now.”

“Just making sure.” He tilts his head back and closes his eyes. “You were a bit hesitant about coming here.”

Our conversation is cut short when our personal butler brings us our cocktails.

“Thank you.” I lift my Mojito off the silver tray and sip the refreshing drink.

We don’t speak until the butler is gone, giving a quick bow in both our directions before making his exit.

“I felt there was so much to do after I lost my job.” I lean back with a pout. “After you fired me.”

“But you understand why I had to do it, don’t you?”

I shrug. “Conflict of interest and all that.”

“And I don’t want my wife slaving around at my company. What kind of husband would I be?”

“I do see your point.” Even though I understand his point of view, I still feel a pang. Despite having worked with a boss from hell, I liked my job. And now I have to look for another. There’s nothing I hate more than writing application letters, sending them off, and waiting with bated breath for someone to respond. I could ask Winston for help, but it feels like cheating. I don’t want to be completely reliant on his influence. I like standing on my own two feet.

“You’ll find another job in no time.” He takes a gulp of his cocktail.

“Just make sure you don’t pull any strings. I mean it, Winston.”

“If that’s what you want. But I have so many connections. You really don’t have to struggle finding a job.”

“I know, but I want to do this on my own.” I stress the last two words so he gets the message.

We continue to lie in the sun, with him reading his paper and me relaxing on a hammock that hovers above the water. The water is crystal clear blue and I can see right through it as if someone scrubbed it clean. “This is the perfect holiday. I’m officially in love with the Maldives.”

“I knew you would love this place.”

I don’t respond as I fight the urge to fall asleep. I don’t want to sleep. I don’t want to miss a moment on this trip. I don’t want to wake up to find that time has flown by and we have to return home. Hell, I don’t even want to blink.

To keep myself awake, I leave the hammock to return to the lounger. I reach for my cocktail and enjoy the last drops while I watch the water dance with the sun.

As far as my eye can see, there’s no soul in sight. This is the purest form of freedom. It’s the hunger for freedom that had sent me running from my small town to the big city.

“I love the Maldives,” Winston says. “I come here at least once a year to regroup.”

“I don’t blame you.” I tilt my head to the side. “It would make the perfect honeymoon spot.”

He raises an eyebrow. “You want us to spend our honeymoon here?”

“Only if you want the same thing.”

“As much as I’d love that, there are so many other beautiful places we could visit. This is your home now. We can come here often.”

I throw my head back and laugh. “My home in the Maldives? That sounds like a dream.”

“A dream come true. Whatever belongs to me, belongs to you.”

His words warm me from within. “That means a lot.” I put down my glass and reach for the stack of books next to me. I bought a few novels before we left New York. I pick an erotic romance novel I’d been meaning to buy and read for a while.

Even though I’m an avid reader with boxes full of books inside my apartment, I didn’t find much time to read in the past months, thanks to Darlene making me work over hours.

My body heats up immediately when I read the sex scene on the first page.

Biting my lip, I glance at Winston. Can I handle more sex today? Since we arrived, this is the longest we’ve gone without having sex or doing other sexual things. Even though my body still craves him, I’m also physically exhausted. He probably is too.

I ditch the idea and read a few more chapters. Every couple of minutes, the butler returns to ask if we need anything, until Winston tells him we have everything we need and he should come back at lunch, which is an hour away.

“What are you reading?” Winston asks when he’s done reading his paper.

I close my book and flip it over in my hand to show him the cover.

He pinches the bridge of his nose. “Romance.”

“The steamy kind.” I bat my eyelashes.

He reaches for the book and flips through it. He reads a few words then looks up with a raised eyebrow. “Why are you reading this?”

“What do you mean?”

“I never thought you would be the kind of woman who reads books like this.” He flips through a few more pages, his eyebrows drawn now.

“Books like this?”

“Romance.” He wrinkles his nose. “I don’t like it.”

“What’s the problem? I don’t understand.” My chest tightens. “Why is it important what I read?”

“I don’t get why you feel the need to read such books when you have me.”

I stretch my hand out to take my book back, but he moves it out of my reach.

“Hey, give it back.” Annoyance makes my nostrils flare. Frankly, it’s none of his business what I choose to read. I read what I enjoy, romance or no romance.

“You’re too smart for this rubbish.” His tight expression tells me he’s serious.

“Are you saying that women who read romance are not smart?”

“I don’t mean it like that. I just don’t get why you search for romance in books when you have it in real life.”

“Because I enjoy reading, Winston,” I shoot back. “I enjoy reading about people finding love, losing it, and finding it again. And yeah, I enjoy reading the love scenes as well. There’s nothing wrong with that.”

“It’s all fake.” He hands me back my novel and disappears into the villa. We don’t speak to each other again until lunch is served and I bring up the topic of when we should get married, even though I’m still upset about our earlier conversation.

“I’ll have a look at my calendar later. As you know, my schedule is tight with all my travels this year. But Angelia will find a suitable date.”

“Why don’t we have a long engagement? We could even get married next year. I’m okay with that.”

“I don’t want a long engagement. When I make a decision, I take action without wasting time.”

My heart sinks. “I’m only a decision to you? That doesn’t sound romantic.”

“What’s wrong with you today?” he asks. “You’re kind of taking things the wrong way.”

“I’m not.” I wipe a sheen of sweat off my forehead. “But you’re treating this like some kind of business arrangement. It’s not. This is our lives.”

“Believe me, I’m well aware of that.” He gets to his feet and drops to his knees in front of me. He cups one of my breasts with a warm hand. “This is all personal to me.”

“Come on, Winston.” I bite on my lip to stop it from trembling. “You keep doing that.”

“Doing what exactly?”

“Every time we have a disagreement you want to shut me up with sex.”

“I never heard you complain.”

“Of course I never complained because I enjoy making love to you.” I cover my face with my hands, giggling. I lower my hands again. “But sometimes I want to have a serious conversation. We should be able to do that.”

“Life is too serious already.”

“You don’t understand. We haven’t even had proper arguments.”

“That’s what you think relationships are about...arguments?”

“Come on. You know what I mean.” I throw my hands in the air. “Forget it.”

The conversation comes to a screeching halt and the rest of the day is strained. We go for walks on the beach, visit the local market, and even have a romantic dinner on the beach, but the tension remains until we go to bed and he tries to make love to me. I let him. It doesn’t take long before I’m panting with pleasure beneath him, hypnotized by his touch. It baffles me that I’m turned on by him while being pissed off at the same time.

Before I call it a night, I go in search of my romance novel to end the day with a few chapters. I love reading before bed.

The book is not on the terrace or anywhere else. I ask Winston if he’s seen it.

“Which one?” He glances up from his laptop.

“The one I was reading during the day. My romance novel?”

“Oh,” he says casually. “That one. I threw it away.”

“What do you mean you threw it away?”

He shuts his laptop and rests his arms on top of it. “Baby, no woman of mine reads that kind of trash.”

“I can’t believe you.” I run a frustrated hand through my thick hair, the curls clinging to my fingers. “You had no right to throw my book away.”

“It’s not a big deal. Read something else. Something less steamy.”

“That’s not for you to decide.” I sink onto the bed, my heart racing so much it makes me nauseous.

“No need to be upset, sweetheart.” He tries to touch me.

“Don’t.” I move out of his reach, heat rising up my neck. Not for the first time I wonder whether we’re meant for each other. I’m discovering sides to him I never knew before. And it’s kind of freaking me out a bit.

“Winston, don’t ever throw my books away.”

“Then read smart books.”

I glare at him. “What are smart books?”

“Books fit for the wife of the CEO of one of the largest companies in the world.”

“Are you telling me I have to follow rules if I want to marry you?”

“I’m simply stating that you should read things that build you up.” He switches off his lamp.

“You know what, this is ridiculous.” I switch off my own lamp and pull the bed sheet up to my neck, still furious.

“Good night, my love,” he whispers in the dark.

I don’t respond, pretending I’m asleep.