Once he got waist-deep into the ocean water, he reached for Allyson and pulled her closer to him. With her hand in his, he managed to swim far out enough for the water to reach his shoulders. He wrapped his arms around her waist, pinning her perfect naked body to his. She held on to his shoulders and stared deep into his eyes.

“I don’t want today to end,” she said suddenly.

“It doesn’t have to,” he said. “Just say the word and we can stay out here forever.”

“Dane, that’s crazy.”

“Is it? We’ve been so caught up in work and family and what other people want. One day together here and we both feel freer.” He let his hand caress her waist.

“We can’t run away from our problems.”

“Why not?”

“Because…because we just can’t.” The corners of her lips curved into a tiny smile. “That isn’t a very convincing reason, is it?”

“Nope.” He kissed her neck. “This is a convincing reason to say.” He kissed the top of her breast. “This is another… and another.”

She sighed.

He lifted his head. “What’s up?”

“Sometimes I feel guilty about all the money you have.”

Money had always been a source of some tension between them. Days ago, she had wanted to sort through their issues but he hadn’t listened. Maybe now, away from all the craziness back in New York, they could finally sort through them. “Why? If we’re together, what’s mine is yours.”

“You’ve spent so much money on me and I didn’t do anything to earn it.”

“Why’re you looking at the money like it’s something to earn?” He wished he could make her see. “Allyson, being with me shouldn’t be like a job. You shouldn’t have to think about earning money, or waiting for some feedback report. I love you. I like spending money on you.”

She chewed her lower lip, lost in thought. “I’m just afraid that I’ll get lost. Like I’ll lose touch with who I am and end up acting like some spoiled heiress.”

“I get that, and you have the right to be concerned about how wealth might affect you,” he said. “But if my opinion means anything, I’ve known you for years. You’ve been in proximity to a lot of money and it hasn’t changed your values. You stood up to my mother when she tried to pay you off. You refused to spy on Nicholas even though I asked you to. That doesn’t sound like a lost person to me.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Oh, so you admit it was wrong to ask me to spy?”

“I admit that I was a jackass, trying to get you to spy on another jackass.”

She laughed, the soft, thrilling sound mingling with the roar of the waves crashing on the shore. “Oh, Dane, what am I going to do with you?”

He held on to her waist as they floated together, adrift in the ocean. “Whatever you want.”

They stayed wrapped around each other, the moments passing by in silence.

She lifted her head and stared into his eyes. “I don’t want us to run away from everything. But I don’t know if I’m good enough to fit in your world.”

The setting sun’s rays illuminated her. Bathed her in golden, fiery light from the top of her glossy black hair down to her exposed breasts that were crushed up against his chest. She looked like she was lit from within, a beautiful, sexy siren who had somehow managed to seduce him. He planted a kiss on the corner of her full mouth. “Allyson, if you could see what I see, you’d never say something like that,” he said softly, seriously. “You’re better than what my world deserves. It’s not your fault if a bunch of rich snobs refuse to see that. Hell, people take the sun for granted. That doesn’t mean it isn’t beautiful or important.”

She wrapped her legs around his waist, suddenly making him want her more than he had wanted anything in his life.

“Take me inside,” she whispered into his ear.

Holding on to her he carried her out of the water, then across the sand, until he set her down gently on the patio by the small outdoor shower. He turned on the faucet then gently guided her under the steaming jet of water. Dane got under the water with her, pulling her close. Their lips met and he kissed her until all the sand and seawater had washed away.

When they stepped out of the shower they didn’t bother toweling off. He lifted her up again, enjoying the sensation of her naked body so close to his. As she clung to him, he headed back into the villa, stepped into her bedroom, and set her down gently on the king-sized bed.

A tropical breeze came in through the huge open windows and the double doors. He stared down at her, taking in every inch of her perfect, creamy skin. Dane was already rock-hard, aching to be inside her. Her pink nipples were hard, and he got down on the bed beside her to take one into his mouth.

“Yes,” she gasped out.

He swirled his tongue gently around her nipple, licking the water away. As he moved his attention to the other nipple, her breathless moans filled his ears.

When he pulled away to look at her body was flushed, her bright green eyes hazy with lust. The same lust that coursed through his veins.

“There are condoms in the drawer,” she said, pointing to the nightstand. “I saw them earlier.”

He quickly opened the drawer to retrieve the condom, tore open the wrapper, and put it on.

“I want you.” She spread her legs, giving him a glimpse of the bare flesh between them. The sight nearly made his mind explode, but he forced himself to focus on her pleasure. Today was supposed to be about helping her. Putting her at ease.

Dane propped himself up on his elbows, covering her curvy body with his. She wrapped her legs around his waist again and he looked deep into her eyes, wanting to show her that he was right here with her. That, as long as she wanted him with her, he was never going to let her go.

Allyson wrapped her arms around him, and she lifted her hips to meet his as he slowly guided his hard length into her slick, wet heat. He groaned. Being inside her felt so good.

As he thrust into her, her hips met each thrust, and they created a rhythm all their own. She moaned out his name, and her arms gripped him so tightly he felt her nails dig into the skin of his back. The sweet pain spurred him on and he pounded into her. She writhed under him, breathlessly begging him not to stop.

Pleasure shot through his body and he fisted the sheets, desperately trying to hold on to control. Trying to make the pleasure last as long as possible for her.

“You’re so tight,” he choked out.

The sensation of her hot skin against his drove him wild. He rocked into her faster, plunging deeper and deeper into her. She clenched around him and he was on the verge of finding his release. Her cries grew louder and he knew that she was on the edge, too. His climax came hard and fast, and when the first wave of pleasure hit him he groaned into her ear, “I love you.” From the way she moaned his name he could tell she’d climaxed at the same time.

He rolled away from her, then gathered her into his arms.

“I don’t want you to leave tomorrow,” she whispered.

“Then I won’t.” He kissed her cheek gently.

Dane spent the rest of the night in Allyson’s bedroom. They ate dinner, watched TV, and talked about nothing important. More laughter and joking. Then they made love again. Finally, he wrapped his arm around her while he drifted off to sleep, feeling more at peace than he had in a long time.

 

*  *  *

 

The next three days went by in the most beautiful blur for Allyson. Time almost lost all meaning. Every night, before they went to bed, she asked Dane to stay one more day. And he did. Mostly they spent time in bed, or lounging on the beach, or by the pool, or sleeping on hammocks by the ocean. It was bliss.

One morning she walked down the beach, a pail in one hand while she looked for seashells. She knew they would go into town later today to check out the souvenir shops, but she wanted something from the beach to remind her of her time at the villa. As she picked up a lovely pink seashell, something gnawed at her.

Time had slowed down so much during her time here, yet it felt like everything had gone by so quickly. Life was short and precious. She knew that. Especially after Dane’s father had ended up in the hospital for weeks. Especially after she had seen how close Holly had come to losing everything. Love was precious, too. Maybe just as precious as life. Maybe for her, love and life were the same thing.

Love had given her life meaning. No matter how difficult things got with her family, she still loved them. Just like she loved her friends and her job. They had made life special. Now she loved Dane. One day without him was hollow and empty. A lifetime without him was impossible to contemplate. Yet she had been so quick to throw all that away because she had gotten scared in the hospital. Dane deserved better than that.

“Looking for something?”

Dane’s voice made her turn around. He was standing several feet from her on the beach, dressed a t-shirt, khaki shorts, and tennis shoes—clothes that had been stored at the villa. Her stomach did little flips at the sight of him.

She smiled and put the pink shell in her pail. Then she headed over to him. “I’m just taking some seashells. Maybe I could make a wind chime with them.”

“Where would you put it?”

She shrugged. “In my apartment in New York.”

“I see.” Sadness flashed in his blue eyes. It was brief, but she detected it. She could sense that he didn’t want her to go back to her old life. The truth was, she didn’t want to go back either. But how was she going to tell him that?

“Dane…” She paused, desperately trying to come up with the right words. “I’m sorry for how I ended things between us.”

He frowned. “I understand why you did it.”

“Maybe I shouldn’t have.” She bit her lip, not sure how to explain that she still wanted to marry him. Now, more than ever, she wanted to be his wife, and she had no idea how she was going to find the words to tell him.

“Are you…” He paused. “Would you like to set a date?”

Her vision blurred with tears. Of course, he could tell what she was thinking. No matter how difficult and scary things got, he always understood what she was feeling. “You still want to marry me?”

Dane reached for her hand and held it gently. The tender gesture touched her. Moved her beyond words. “I want to spend the rest of my life with you,” he said with a smile. “I’ve wanted to marry you since the first time I saw you.”

“You’re not angry with me?” she asked. “Even though I hurt you?”

“You didn’t intend to,” he said. “You were trying to do the right thing. Which is one of the things I love most about you. Allyson, if you hadn’t had doubts after what happened to Holly, you wouldn’t be the woman I fell in love with. Of course, you would care that deeply about your sister-in-law. Of course, you would try to find a way to fix it the best way you knew how.”

“I love you,” she said.

He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it. “Then let’s get married.”

She sighed and then gave a small laugh. “A big wedding seems so daunting after days of idle leisure.”

“I imagine a society wedding might be hell on earth for you. It would for me,” he said with a chuckle. “We could always have a small wedding—”

“Or we could get married here,” she whispered.

He straightened, his eyes lighting up. “Really? At the villa? We could fly everyone in and—”

“Or we could just get married on our own,” she said softly. Her heart started hammering. She knew it was sudden, and probably crazy, but she wanted to marry Dane more than she wanted anything in her entire life. And she wanted to marry him right here. Right now.

His lips were suddenly on hers and he lifted her off the sand, spinning her around as he kissed her. He ended the kiss, but still held her off the ground like she weighed nothing. “I want to marry you today. But you have to me a favor before we do.”

Warmth spread through her, moving from her heart down to her soul. She had never felt more alive. “Anything.”