By the time Kai came out of the shower, he was mostly calm. His mate had agreed to not give up on the ocean, and he’d mostly gotten over the shock of her being in danger when he’d only taken his eyes off her for a minute.

Regardless, he wasn’t going to do it again. No one could tell him he was too paranoid anymore. His mate was beautiful. Other men saw it, and they would take her from him if he wasn’t careful.

He could hardly wait to get her to agree to be his so he could take her back to the mansion where she would be safe.

He still didn’t know how to get over the whole “I’m an ancient sea dragon” thing, though.

That would have to be figured out in time. He was far too exhausted today.

He got dressed in another pair of jeans and a tee shirt, this time throwing a blazer over the top. Red had put that in his luggage, saying every man needed a blazer, and Red seemed to know how males should dress.

He put his hand in the pocket and frowned as he felt something odd and crinkly. He pulled out several metallic packets and looked down in puzzlement at them. He rummaged farther in the pocket and realized there was a note. He pulled it out, looking down in confusion.

Use these for protection. Human women expect it, even if there is no way we can harm them. PS: It goes over your dick.

He winced at the crude word and shoved the packets back in his pocket. He supposed it was a presumptuous thing to carry around, and he didn’t really want Renee to see them.

He grabbed his wallet and walked into the living room to see her sitting there looking coy. Her pants had dried, and her hair had come loose out of her braid, but despite what they’d been through, she seemed oddly happy.

“What is it?” he asked suspiciously.

“Nothing,” she said, standing and coming over to take his arm. Her breasts pressed into him pleasantly as she did, and he looked down at her, feeling his body responding. “Come on. I’ve planned dinner.”

“Where?” he asked, instantly wary. The last thing he wanted was to end up somewhere they could see Liz again. He didn’t think he could take any more stress today.

“It’s a surprise,” she insisted, tugging him toward the door.

He dug in his heels. “I don’t know.”

“Trust me. You’ll love it.”

“I want us to be alone,” he said, somewhat sharply. She looked at him in confusion, and he hoped he wasn’t giving anything away. He hadn’t figured out what to say about Liz yet.

“Yes,” she said. “We’ll be alone.”

“Just us? No one else?”

“No one else,” she said. “For certain.” She pulled him toward the door again, and this time he let her. “Actually, this is the best possible place for us to go if we want to be alone together.”

“Okay…” he said, letting her pull him. He was used to dictating things, not used to going along with someone else’s plans. It always made him uncomfortable.

But he wanted to make his mate happy, so he would go.

She kept her hand in his all the way to the front lobby. She told him to wait, that she had to stop at the front desk at the moment, and he waited as she asked for what looked like some keys. Probably something she needed for her room.

They started walking again, and he was surprised when she walked past all of the restaurants and toward the front doors leading out to the beach.

Was she planning a beachfront rendezvous? That would be pleasant.

But she wasn’t looking at the beach at all. In fact, she was pulling him assertively toward the sole dock in view, at the end of which was… a boat.

He stopped for a second, stunned. She couldn’t mean…

But then she jerked him forward, and he followed. She hesitated before stepping up onto the dock, taking him with her, and he felt his heart rise like the sun over the ocean.

“What are we—”

“Shh, you’ll see,” she said, pulling him along.

When they got to the end of the pier, she handed him something, and he realized they were the keys she’d picked up from the front desk.

Keys… to a boat.

His eyes widened as he looked down at her.

She smiled in pleasure, fidgeting slightly.

“Do you like it?”

“Like it?” Those weren’t the right words. He wanted to cry he was so touched. But dragons were too tough for that, so instead, he simply stepped onto the boat—which was large and white with a deck and a railing with seats all around and a large steering wheel up in the front—and held out his hand to help her on.

To his surprise, she jumped forward, and he caught her, swinging her onboard. He settled her on a chair with her back to the railing and went to untie the mooring ropes.

He’d been on a few boats in New York, when the dragons had taken him to the sea to see if they could find something to mollify him other than living in the ocean.

He’d liked the boats, liked the improvements from his day, though he sort of missed the old, creaking, wooden strength of vessels from his time.

“Do you know how to drive them?” Renee asked, tucking her hair behind one ear. “I mean, I just assumed, given what you said about growing up on the water.”

“Yes, I do,” he said. “But what about dinner?”

“It’s all ready, below deck. We can eat here or take her for a spin and drop anchor.” She looked out at the waves around them. “Whatever you want.”

He stopped undoing the ropes and sat next to her for a moment, putting his hand in hers. “Are you sure?”

She nodded, looking slightly nervous. “I mean, you’ll be here, and there are lifejackets.” She blinked, focusing her golden-brown eyes on him in a way that made him feel like the center of the world. “And you’ve been so good to me. I wanted to be good to you.”

He smiled. “You are. This is amazing. Unnecessary, but very much appreciated.” Though, if he were honest, it was necessary. Being on the ocean made it easier to breathe, and after a day like this, he needed that freedom.

The fact that she understood that made him surer than ever that she was the perfect mate. He only hoped he could be the perfect mate for her as well.

He would try harder and harder to be more human for her.

He busied himself untying the ship and then pushed off, getting to the helm so he could steer them away from the dock safely. He took them far out into the ocean, stopping to drop the anchor just as the sun started to set in front of them.

They brought dinner up above deck and ate it on the cushioned white chairs instead of the fancy table below because they didn’t want to miss the spectacular sunset.

Rays of orange and blue clashed over the ocean, mingling with clouds lined with silver. The waves reflected the colors, splashing with little sprays that caught the light.

Kai sighed happily as he chewed his steak, his gaze going between his beautiful mate and her face in the rays of the sunset and the view all around him of his ocean, his home.

Now they were both his home, and it was amazing to feel them together.

“What are you thinking?” she asked. “Sometimes you seem a million miles away.”

“I was thinking you and the sea are beautiful, and I love both.”

She stared at him, blinking as she set her plate down. “Love? Don’t you think that’s a little strong?”

“What do you mean?”

“People don’t really say they love each other until they know each other better,” she said, seeming slightly nervous.

Oh no, had he spoke out of turn?

“Maybe you were just using it for the ocean, though. Meaning you really really like it.”

“Oh,” he said. “Right. That’s what I meant. I really, really like the ocean, and I really, really like you. Did I mention you were beautiful?”

“Maybe a couple times,” she said, flushing.

But he knew he wasn’t telling the truth. When he thought of his feelings for her, love was the correct word. It described what she meant to him, his willingness to die for her, to do anything for her. The way she meant more than anything in the world.

But he knew there was no way for a human to understand that.

That meant it would probably be a while until she felt it for him, and the thought was oddly disappointing. He loved her, and he was greedy for her to love him back.

He’d heard the other dragons say it to their mates and heard the mates say it back to them, and he wanted it for himself.

He wondered how it had gone for Seaton, his brother, and Jenny.

“You’ve gone away again,” she said. “Did I say something to bother you?” She put a hand over his, and he felt a tingle of excitement. They were here alone, on the water, where he felt most comfortable.

And he remembered what Red had said about being where you were comfortable…

“No,” he said. “I’m just glad to be here with you. It’s everything I could have wanted. More than I could have hoped.”

She looked out at the ocean with him. “I guess I can see what you like about it. It is pretty beautiful.”

He turned to her, easing a hand behind her ear to stroke her hair lightly. He cupped her head and brought her forward for a kiss, unable to resist any longer.

As his lips closed over hers and the ocean breeze blew around her, he felt totally at ease. His body was relaxed and enervated at the same time.

Minutes passed, and the sky slowly grew darker as he kissed her deeply. She kissed him back, relaxing into his caresses as the boat rocked gently on the waves. He felt he could stay there forever, except he wanted so much more.

He wanted all of her and finally felt ready to give it.

He leaned forward to whisper in her ear. “Should we take this downstairs?”

When she nodded, he felt like the luckiest dragon in the world. He reached out a hand to help steady her, and together, they made their way down below deck.