If she’d been a little unsure about the job at Casa del Sol, once Heather was shown her room, which was so much more than a room, all doubt vaporized. Sherri called it casa de esperanza.

Hope house.

It was perfect.

Built the same as the big house, with bamboo walls and thatched roof, esperanza was a much smaller version, only it was better because her house sat directly over the ocean. It was set far enough from the main house that she would have privacy, but it was close enough that she’d be able to take care of things there and easily get back and forth.

The room held only a bed, a dresser, and a chair, but the real living would take place on the wraparound deck. She left her backpack on the bed and walked outside. There was no rail on the deck. Instead, there were hammocks strung in each corner, oversized wooden chairs against the walls, and the best part of all—a large wooden swing suspended just right so she’d be able to swing into the beautiful blue water below.

But that would have to wait.

She had to finish unpacking and then formally accept the job. Sherri had explained it as the manager of the bed-and-breakfast: handling the bookings, client relations, and overseeing the basic staff she had who did cooking and cleaning. It sounded perfect, and if it meant staying in this little corner of paradise, it pretty much didn’t matter what the job was—she would take it. From the moment she’d set foot on the dock, she’d felt at home somehow. In only a few minutes, she was calmer, more settled than she’d been in five years in Shelter Bay.

“Knock knock.” The voice came from somewhere around the corner of her house. “Anyone home?”

There was no real door, but large sliding shutters that would protect her in the event of heavy rain or a storm, so Heather walked around the porch to greet her visitor, although she already knew who it was. Her body did, too. The heat that flooded her was immediate, intense and unsettling.

Ash leaned against the bamboo wall, looking sexy as hell, totally at home. And damn, did that man not own a shirt?

“Come on in.” She hoped she sounded relaxed and casual, but she doubted that was the case. “I was just getting settled in.”

She turned, knowing he would follow, and questioned the sensibility of being alone with the man. After all, they’d only just met; she knew nothing about him besides he was somehow connected to Sherri and her new job, although Heather still couldn’t figure out how. And she did not want to risk losing a job she hadn’t even started yet because of a man she didn’t even know.

“This was always one of my favorite bungalows at Casa del Sol. Sherri’s done such a great job with all of them, though. It’s a very special place.”

Heather turned to see that Ash had walked right through the room, and was out on the porch in the very spot where she’d just been standing. She left her bag still unpacked and joined him outside in the growing darkness.

“It really is a special place. I’m looking forward to getting to know it.”

They stood so close, she could feel the heat of his body and smell the salt on his skin.

“I’m looking forward to getting to know you.” He turned to face her, the look in his eyes leaving no question that the attraction she’d felt for him was entirely mutual.

A moment later, when he cupped her face in one hand and used the other to pull her close, any hesitation she had about getting involved with Ash dissolved into the night air. All she could think about was the thrumming in her veins and the need to have his mouth on hers.

It was Heather who closed the distance between them, pressing her lips to his in a kiss. He answered her need by pulling her even tighter to his hard body. His tongue parted her lips, clashing with hers. Heather’s hands slid up his bare skin; her fingers dug into the muscles on his back in a misguided effort to control the sensations that flooded her.

Ash’s hand left her face and slid down her body to the hem of her shirt. His fingers easily slipped beneath the fabric of the T-shirt. The shock of his touch on her bare skin stopped her.

What was she doing?

From somewhere behind her, Thor, who’d been waiting just outside her room, whined. It was just enough of a distraction to bring her senses crashing down. Heather pulled out of Ash’s embrace. Her hand moved to her mouth; her fingers danced uneasily on her lips while she composed herself.

“We shouldn’t…I shouldn’t… I mean, I’m not saying I don’t want to. It’s just…well, I just got here.”

“Later then.” Ash chuckled and when she finally brought herself to look at him, he was grinning. “I understand,” he said when their eyes met.

She wasn’t sure he did, but he didn’t seem all that upset by her sudden change of heart, and that made it less awkward somehow. Although she got the impression that Ash probably didn’t get upset about much.

Heather looked at him for another second before she turned out to stare at the darkness. The stars were starting to pop out on the black canvas. It never failed to surprise her how quickly it got dark in Panama compared to Idaho. They stood in silence for a few minutes.

Ash spoke first. “Anyway, that wasn’t the real reason I came out here.” She could see the lie on his face. “I just came to see if you needed help finding your way back in the dark.”

She nodded. “That would be good.”

“It can be tricky if you don’t know where you’re going.”

She doubted that.

“Are you ready to go? I think Sherri was going to put out some food.”

The mention of food made her stomach grumble. She could eat. “Sounds good.” Besides, she probably shouldn’t spend too much more time alone with Ash. Not that she didn’t want to. She did. She really did. That was the entire problem.

* * *

“You were gone awhile.”

Ash looked directly at Sherri, who stared at him pointedly when they walked back into the big house.

“Not long enough, Sher,” he said just loud enough for her to hear. He didn’t want to make Heather feel any more uncomfortable than she clearly already did. That was never his intention. In a different situation, he might think he’d read her wrong, but the way she’d kissed him left no room for doubt.

No, he’d certainly not read that wrong.

“Something smells fantastic.” Ash left the women and went directly to the kitchen and the source of the delicious smells that were coming out of it.

He was greeted by a beautiful smile. “Gracias, Ash.” Camila, the young woman Sherri had hired to help out with the cooking and cleaning, stood in front of the stove. Her apron was tight across her chest and the heat of the kitchen had left a sexy sheen on her skin. “Would you like a taste?” She tipped her head and parted her lips, making it clear that the only taste Camila was offering would be a taste of her lips.

Any other day, he wouldn’t have hesitated, but the familiar attraction he usually felt with Camila wasn’t there. The girl was gorgeous and he knew exactly what she had to offer, having been the lucky recipient of her affections on more than one occasion. But today was different.

“I’ll wait to eat with the ladies,” he said smoothly. He tried not to notice the disappointment on her face. She was a nice girl, but he’d never made her any promises.

He never made anyone any promises.

Not anymore.

He spied a platter of tamales and crossed the room. “Are these ready?” Without waiting for an answer, Ash grabbed the tray and headed back out into the main room and away from Camila’s questioning stare.

“Looks like dinner’s ready.” When he walked in, Sherri and Heather lifted their heads from their discussion. “Am I interrupting anything?”

Sherri shook her head. “Of course not, honey. You’re never an interruption.”

He knew he wasn’t but the wink Heather gave him helped to reassure him.

Sherri stood and gestured to the table. “Set it down, Ash. I’ll get wine. We need to celebrate.”

“Celebrate?” Heather looked between them. “What are we celebrating?”

“You, silly girl.” Sherri put a decanter of wine on the table next to the tamales. “You’re here at Casa del Sol and I just know you’re going to be perfect.”

Ash poured the wine. They raised it in a toast to Heather and drank deeply before they tucked into the homemade tamales and the locally famous salad Sherri liked to make with local ingredients. Ash refilled their glasses at least twice more before they were done eating and he cleared the dishes, ducking them into the kitchen quickly before Camila saw him. On his way back to the table, he stopped at the bar to refill the wine.

Heather had been fairly quiet during the meal, but that was probably to be expected considering Sherri was filling her in on everything there was to know about Casa del Sol and the gardens, including the crop of sea grapes that could be accessed across the channel with a quick snorkel and dive. Ash was only half listening to Sherri talk about the food options, it was nothing he hadn’t heard before. It was more interesting to watch Heather.

She definitely had a history. Sherri’s description of every woman having a story replayed in his head. But despite a few well-placed questions about her past, all he could figure was she’d been in Panama for five years but had never been to Bocas. She was single. That much he could tell from her ring finger and the fact that she was there alone. And of course, the kiss.

Damn, that kiss.

To say Ash had kissed his share of women would be a ridiculous understatement. But as many kisses as he’d had, kissing Heather earlier had been different. Very different.

He knew exactly how long it had been since he’d had that kind of reaction from a simple kiss. It was a lifetime ago.

Watching her across the room, listening closely to everything Sherri was telling her, it took all the self-control he had to keep from crossing the floor and pulling her back into his arms for a second round.

He hadn’t realized he was staring until Sherri looked up and caught his eye. Her mouth was set in a firm line. She shook her head once, but Ash caught it. Sherri was the only one who knew the details of Ash’s past. They’d talked about it one time and by unspoken agreement, it had never come up again.

Not once during their friendship had Sherri ever said a word in judgment about his personal life. Except to tell him to stay away from her guests, a fact Ash had always respected. It was no secret that he enjoyed the company of women. In fact, he and Sherri had enjoyed long conversations about the benefits of exploring one’s sexuality and embracing a free love style of life. Granted, those conversations had often been after a few bottles of wine but that didn’t make them any less valid. It had been a lifestyle that had worked well for him for the last four years.

Mostly.

“Ash.” He blinked hard, refocusing on Sherri, whose frown had been replaced by her usual bright smile. “It’s not much of a party without music. Find us something fun on my iPod and let’s dance.”

* * *

“iPod?” Heather had to ask. Sherri had just finished explaining to her that they tried to exist as sustainably as possible with solar energy, rainwater, and a garden full of fruits, vegetables, and herbs. Many of which, she’d never heard of. The mention of an iPod seemed at odds to everything she’d just learned.

Sherri laughed at Heather’s reaction. “We don’t totally live in the dark ages, honey. Music is good for the soul and until I can get my own live-in band, the iPod is the next best thing. Fire it up, Ash. And bring some more wine over here. I wanna dance.”

Ash laughed from behind the bar, where he was digging around for something. “You don’t need wine to dance, Sherri.” A moment later, music filled the small space. “I don’t even think you need music.”

Sherri tipped her head back and laughed long and loud. It was refreshing to see someone so carefree and in touch with herself. Sherri was the second woman Heather had met who seemed to live her life only for herself. Just like Josie in San Blas, the two women shared many similarities. Watching Sherri was beyond refreshing. It was downright inspirational.

“Come on.” Sherri was on her feet and held a hand out to Heather. “Dance with me. There’s no better way to tune into your very essence.”

Heather wasn’t much of a dancer but that was probably only because of her past. Joe hated dancing with her and told her she had no rhythm. Whenever they had a band brought in to Shelter Bay Marina, she’d sat out or claimed to be not feeling well, or more often than not, she’d make up some excuse to leave early because it was way too hard to sit by and watch everyone else have fun when she only wanted to join them.

She should have.

There were a lot of things Heather should have done over the years.

But one thing was for sure: she was done sitting out.

She took Sherri’s hand. A good dancer or not, she didn’t care. She just wanted to feel the music. And that’s exactly what she did. For the first few songs, which were a mixture of steel drum bands and rock and roll, Heather closed her eyes, put her arms in the air and let her body go.

At first, her movements were a little stiff, but she didn’t let that dissuade her. She just kept moving. Feeling the rhythm through her body, all the way down to her toes. It didn’t take long before she opened her eyes to look into the serene face of Sherri, lost in the beat herself.

“This is amazing.” It seemed like such an inadequate word. Maybe it was the wine, or the long day, or simply the fact that the pounding bass had permeated her brain, but Heather couldn’t think of a better word to describe how she felt in the little lodge of the bed-and-breakfast. She turned and her stomach did a ridiculous flutter when she saw Ash, reclining in a chair, his feet on the table, his eyes fixed on her.

Emboldened by the music and wine, Heather crooked a finger and beckoned him to the dance floor. His smile was slow and so sexy it almost hurt, but he shook his head.

Trying not to feel rejected, Heather turned and faced Sherri again. “He doesn’t dance?”

“Oh, Ash dances.” Sherri spun in a circle.

Heather looked over her shoulder. Ash tapped his foot, but wasn’t dancing.

“He’s not.”

“He will. I can tell by the way he’s watching you.”

“That doesn’t make sense.”

“Honey, it makes perfect sense.” Sherri laughed and grabbed Heather’s hands, taking her along for a spin. “I’ve seen that look in his eyes before.”

“What’s the look?” She was pretty sure she knew, but she needed to hear it from her.

Sherri pulled her in to a turn. “Like he wants to devour you.” She winked and Heather laughed because that was exactly how Ash was looking at her.

A thought stopped her, and Heather stopped dancing, jerking Sherri to a stop as well. “I just want you to know that I really want this job and I’m excited for…what I’m trying to say is I’m not going to screw anything—”

“Oh, you’ll screw something, honey.” Sherri winked. “But whatever your personal choices are, you won’t screw up this job with them.” With strength Heather didn’t expect from her, Sherri grabbed her hand and flung her out into a spin before she pulled her back in. “Just be honest.”

“With him?”

Her smile was kind. “With yourself.”

She didn’t have time to process what that even meant before she was once again spinning across the floor.

Heather closed her eyes and let herself go. It wasn’t until two arms—two very strong, masculine arms—circled her waist that she opened them and looked directly into Ash’s deep-green eyes. She wished her stomach hadn’t done that flip, that her skin didn’t spark at his touch, that her center didn’t turn to straight-up liquid heat when he touched her.

But it did.

When it came to Ash, she was definitely in over her head. In her whole life, she’d never felt her body light up the way it did when he was near, and dammit, she owed it to herself to pursue that. But Sherri was right. She needed to be honest with herself. Whatever that meant.

But she had a sneaking suspicion it meant figuring herself out before getting involved in any way with anyone else.

There was a lot to process.

Ash had started to move, Heather in his arms. She could have pulled away from him right then and there. Maybe she should have. But at that moment, she needed a dance more than she needed to figure out her thoughts. Besides, a dance was just a dance.

That was all.

At least that’s what she’d keep telling herself.

She’d figure out the rest later.