This will get his heart pumping. I look in the mirror and shake my head. This morning I wanted Dex’s heart to stop for good, and now I want to get it pumping.

“What is wrong with you?” I ask the reflection in the mirror. “He is the enemy.”

I pick up the sweet-smelling perfume on the counter, ignoring the disapproving face in the mirror as I spray it on my neck. I wonder if the enemy would like this smell.

“What?” I ask the reflection staring back at me. “It’s chemical warfare. Definitely not trying to impress him.”

I step onto my toes and take one last look at my outfit before walking to the door of the bathroom. I picked a fitted yellow dress from the communal closet that I’m sure Dex will love.

Not that I care. I hate it when he’s constantly staring at me.

He sits up on the bed with wide eyes when I walk into the room, and I have to turn to hide my smile.

“Wow,” he says, gawking at me. “Riley Coyote, you look absolutely phenomenal.”

“Thank you,” I say, feeling sexy in the tight dress.

He grins as he glances at the wall of drawers down the middle of the bed. “Maybe we can put the drawers back in the dresser where they belong,” he says, biting his bottom lip as he looks me up and down.

“Only if you promise to keep your drawers where they belong.”

“On the floor?” he asks, smirking.

“Try again.”

“Stuffed in your mouth while I take you from behi—”

“Okay!” I say, raising my hand as I interrupt him. “You were a gentleman for half a second before you blew it. Congratulations. It’s a new record.”

He laughs as he gets off the bed and follows me to the door.

“I’ll be a gentleman all night if I get to see you slip out of that dress after,” he says as we leave the room.

“I’m sure you will,” I say, flipping my hair back as I look up at him. “But you’ll be back to your asshole ways in the morning.”

“Probably,” he says as he laughs. “But things will be different because you’ll be in love with me.”

“Oh, really?”

“Really,” he says, looking sexy as hell as he nods his head. “You’re already in love with me. That’s why you hate me so much. You’re suppressing your feelings of attraction, and they’re coming out as hate.”

I want to wipe the arrogant cocky grin off his face. With my lips.

He may have a sliver of a point there. I’m not in love with him. At all. I’m not even sure I like him. But I do hate him less than I did yesterday.

He’s growing on me. Like a big brutish wart, he’s growing on me.

Marv intercepts us in the hallway before we can walk into the dining room for dinner. His face is red, and it’s not from the sun-filled day. He looks pissed.

“This has gone on long enough,” he says, trying to shout and keep his voice low at the same time. Somehow, he does it. “You two have to help me out and sell him those fucking yachts. That’s why you’re here!”

I jerk my body to the side, dodging the index finger that he’s waving around.

“It’s time for you to earn your commission,” he says to me with a fierce glare. He turns to Dex and narrows his eyes on him. “And it’s time for you to earn what we agreed upon.”

I still haven’t found out what that is, and by the way Dex looks all closed up and rigid, it appears that I’m not going to be finding out now.

“Good evening,” Prince Kalib says from inside the dining room when he sees us. “Come in, come in.”

“I mean it,” Marv says, rubbing his forehead like he’s trying to massage his brain through his thick skull. “Let’s close this deal so we can get the fuck out of here.”

When Marv turns, he’s a completely different man. “Is that steak I smell?” he asks, opening his arms with a big smile on his face. “My stomach is rumbling. That smells delicious!”

Prince Kalib looks pleased as he walks over. “Go get yourself a drink,” he says, waving Marv to the bar. “I want to drink in my lovely guests.”

Marv shoots us a warning look before charging over to the bar and sulking on a stool.

“You look ravishing,” Prince Kalib says, slowly looking me up and down. He grabs my shoulders and kisses me on both cheeks. I can see Dex’s body stiffen out of the corner of my eye. Did he just growl?

“You two are so in love,” Prince Kalib says, giving us each a warm smile as he looks at us. His eyes settle back on me, and I can hear Dex’s violent breathing from here. “It’s so wonderful to see true love.”

I nod, swallowing hard. It’s time to put my business hat on. It’s time to sell this spoiled Prince way too many yachts.

“You know,” I say, hooking my arm around Dex’s, “our relationship really bloomed when we bought our Gladstone yacht. Everything from the king-sized bed in the master bedroom, the granite countertops in the bathrooms, to the five gas fireplaces on-board really helped sail our love into a new direction.” I glance up at Dex to see if he’s impressed by my sales pitch. I mentioned three features and slipped in a pun!

“Laying it on a little thick,” he whispers.

He doesn’t know what he’s talking about.

“Do you have anyone special in your life, Prince Kalib?” I ask him. “Someone who you could watch the sunset with aboard a Gladstone yacht, the second largest luxury yacht producers in the world?”

“Yeah, he’s got sixty of them,” Dex mutters beside me.

I flash him a dirty look and then turn back to the prince with a smile brewing on my lips. “Anyone?”

“Not yet,” he says, smiling sadly at me. “But I have my eye on a special someone.”

Dex tenses up beside me. “I’m sure you do.”

I watch in confusion as the two men stare each other down like two alpha males about to fight over a steak.

Wait a minute. Am I a steak?

“Let’s eat,” Prince Kalib says, breaking first. He waves us into the room and Dex reluctantly walks in.

“What is going on?” I whisper to him when the prince is out of earshot.

Dex just ignores me and marches off to the bar.

“That was rude,” I whisper to myself.

Kara is sitting at the table, only looking slightly better than she did on the boat. Her hair is a blonde mess, her eyes are bloodshot, and her skin still has a slight shade of green that I’m hoping is now permanent.

She gives me her patented evil glare as I walk by.

This time I stop and face her. “What’s the matter, Kara? Not used to puking before the meal?”

She opens her mouth to respond but then gags instead. I giggle as she jumps out of the chair and runs out of the room clutching her stomach as she dry heaves.

“Is she okay?” Prince Kalib asks, pointing at the doorway.

“She’s fine,” Marv says, not bothering to look up.

“I was hoping to serve you some barbecued marlin,” Prince Kalib says, shaking his head in disappointment, “but unfortunately you know what happened there. Our dinner escaped.”

Thank God. He’s probably in the middle of the ocean right now, sword fighting a shark with his nose to save his princess. And it’s all because of Dex.

Kara still hasn’t returned when we sit down for dinner, and Marv doesn’t bother to go check on her. I can’t blame him there. He’s probably used to her spitting vile out of her mouth every time she speaks, so he looks unfazed.

Prince Kalib turns his attention to us once the wine is served. “Do you two plan on having children?” he asks.

“Definitely,” Dex answers without hesitation. “Lots of them.”

“Oh, really?” I ask, raising an eyebrow as I turn to him.

“Of course,” he answers, looking at me with a straight face. “I can’t wait to put a baby in her.”

My back straightens, and I hold my breath as he slides his hand over my stomach, smiling at me.

“Dex, honey,” I say, feeling my face get hot. “Let’s not have any inappropriate touching at the dinner table,” I say in a low voice.

“There’s nothing inappropriate about a husband touching his beautiful wife,” Prince Kalib says, smiling as he watches Dex’s hand on my stomach. Dex takes back his hand and a cold shiver shakes through me as a sense of loss settles in my belly.

I’ve never met a guy that I liked enough to even consider having kids with, but I decide to indulge in the fantasy a bit. It is all pretend after all.

“Would you like to start with a boy or girl?” I ask, trying to hide my smile as I look up at my pretend husband.

“It doesn’t matter to me,” he says, taking his napkin and placing it on his lap. “I would love to have a little boy to roughhouse with and toss around on the couch, and I would love to have a little girl to put on my shoulders and treat like a princess.”

I lean toward him, trying to erase some of the vast distance between us as I picture him having a tea party with his little daughter. In my fantasy, her hair is the same color as mine.

Marv interrupts, trying to steer the conversation back to yachts, which I don’t mind at all. It gives me a few minutes to envision the scenario a little more. I imagine what it would be like to be Dex’s wife and have his children. He’d be frustrating as hell with his cocky attitude, but something tells me that I’d be laughing a lot in between the bouts of frustration. He’s a clever guy, a talented pilot, and it’s getting harder and harder to deny the physical attraction between us. Especially now that I have to look at him shirtless for most of the day.

He’s not real husband material. I have to remind myself of that. I want to end up with a guy who will not only be good to me but who won’t run out on our future kids like my dad ran out on me.

I refuse to fall for a man like that-a man who doesn’t see the worth of children.

Dex seems to want kids, but I can’t tell if that’s part of the act or if it’s for real.

“If you buy fifty-nine yachts,” Marv says, speaking to the prince, “I’ll throw in the sixtieth yacht for free.”

“Are you okay?” Dex whispers, looking down at me.

I nod, smiling despite myself.

He takes my hand in his and gives it a gentle squeeze. It’s all part of the show, I tell myself, even though our hands are below the table where Prince Kalib can’t see them.

We keep our hands like this until the dinner arrives and we’re forced to break apart so we can eat.

The staff serves fresh sushi, and for once I wish Kara was here. I would love to see how she handles raw fish in her condition. Actually, I just want to see her puke all over her perfect body.

“What can I do to make you close the deal?” Marv asks the prince. Our boss is looking pretty desperate now. He was hoping to be off this island after a quick lunch and thirty something hours later, and he hasn’t made any progress.

“In my country,” Prince Kalib says, lifting up his wine glass. “We don’t talk business at the dinner table.”

“You don’t talk business anywhere,” Marv mutters as his angry eyes drop to his lap.

After dinner, Prince Kalib orders us some snifters of Brandy and brings us to a large empty room with a high ceiling. It looks like a banquet hall but without any tables-just the gorgeous marble floors and the large open windows that look out onto the dark ocean.

Prince Kalib sits down at a Grand Piano in the corner and smiles as his fingers tap on the keys playfully.

“Oh, great,” Marv moans behind us. “This should be horrible.”

I’ve had one too many glasses of wine at dinner and I’m having a good time. “You should probably go check on Kara,” I say, giving Marv an out.

His face lights up as he looks at me. “I should,” he says, placing his drink down on the piano and straightening his sports jacket. “Excuse me, Prince Kalib. I must go attend to my sick wife.”

“Of course,” Prince Kalib says with a nod.

Marv shoots me a look of gratitude as he hurries out of the large room.

I’m on a private island, in one of the most gorgeous villas on the planet, with a sweet drink in my hand, the warm Caribbean breeze floating in through the open windows, about to listen to a private show beside a smoking hot pilot. I’m not about to let a cranky billionaire like Marv ruin my vibe.

“What would you like to hear?” Prince Kalib asks as he fiddles with the keys, the random tones echoing throughout the vast room.

Dex walks around the piano and whispers something in the prince’s ear.

What is he doing?

I can’t take my eyes off of him as they exchange a few hushed words. The prince nods, and Dex comes strutting over with one hand tucked behind his back and the other hand in front of him like he’s offering it to me.

“Is this some kind of trap?” I ask, leaning back as I watch him with narrowed eyes.

“Can I have this dance?” he asks softly. There’s no hint of sarcasm or ridicule on his face. He looks genuine as he waits for my answer with his bright blue eyes making my knees weak.

I get lost in his eyes for a moment as warm desire flutters through me. I take a deep breath, getting ready to tell him where he can shove his dance. I don’t dance with my enemies; I crush them. The only time I’ll dance with him is when I’m dancing on his grave.

My mind is ready to tell him that, but my hand doesn’t seem to get the memo, and before I know it, I’m sliding my palm against his and stepping toward him.

One dance won’t hurt. It won’t change things.

Every nerve ending in my body is tingling like fine champagne as Dex guides me to the dance floor. He moves with the grace of a panther, and I’m worried my clumsiness is going to cramp his style.

Prince Kalib begins playing the piano softly, and I immediately recognize one of my favorite love songs: Elvis Presley’s Can’t Help Falling In Love.

“I told him this was our wedding song,” he whispers as his hand slides down to my lower back. He pulls me in close with his eyes fixated on mine. My body trembles under his firm eye contact, and before I know it, we’re moving around the dance floor as he takes the lead.

“I love this song,” I say, looking up at his handsome face. His skin is bronzed from the sun, lighting up his gorgeous eyes in a blue fire. My eyes slowly travel down along his sharp jawline to his lips. I wonder what his lips feel like. They look so soft.

“I’ll tell you what,” Dex says as Prince Kalib starts singing softly. He’s no Elvis, but he’s still pretty good. “When you marry me for real, we can dance to this song.”

“Marry you for real?” I say, laughing despite my face getting hot. “It’s going to cost you more than a few hundred thousand dollars for me to agree to that.”

“I can give you my heart,” he says, holding me close. “It’s all I got.”

I tuck my head on his chest as we dance softly. I’m listening to the music as I contemplate his words.

“Where did you learn to dance like this?” I ask, smiling at him. “I’m impressed. You haven’t stepped on my toes once.”

He smiles. “I learned from the best.”

“Ex-girlfriend?”

“My mother.”

“Oh,” I say, smiling as I picture a little Dex dancing around the living room with his mother, bumping into the coffee table as an old radio crackles out a song from the kitchen.

“She was under the belief that a real man should know how to dance with a lady.”

“Your mother was right,” I say, letting him spin me around. I wonder if I’ll ever meet her.

“She loves to dance,” he says, his eyes softening as he looks to the side. “My father and she were always dancing around the house every night. I used to love watching him swing her around. She would always fall into his arms, giggling at that part. When he died, my mother was so lost. She would just sit at the table and stare at the wall for hours with a blank look on her face. I tried everything to make her feel better but nothing worked. Then one day, I turned the radio on and asked her to dance. It was the first time I saw her smile, really smile, since my father passed. We danced almost every night afterward.”

I let him hold me a little closer, breathing in his musky cologne as the song plays. Maybe I was wrong about him. He’s actually kind of sweet.

The song ends much too early and I’m forced to let go of him.

“Thank you for the dance,” I whisper, feeling empty without him in my arms.

“Anytime, Riley Coyote. Anytime.”

I walk back to the piano and turn around in surprise when Dex walks in the opposite direction.

“Wonderful song,” I say to the prince who is grinning proudly. “Beautiful piano playing.”

“Thank you,” he says, clearly touched by my words. He starts to explain how he took lessons during his time at Harvard University. I have one eye on him and one eye on Dex who’s talking to one of the waiters.

Dex slips him a tip and the waiter nods, hurrying away. He snaps his fingers at two other waiters and the three of them rush out onto the beach as Dex strolls back toward us.

He slides his hand around my waist and it feels so natural that I forget to dig my nails into his forearm.

“What was that about?” I whisper to him.

“Prince Kalib,” he says, ignoring my question. “Your company has been delightful tonight, but I would love to have some alone time with my wife. Would you mind?”

He shakes his head as his fingers dance along the piano keys, playing a soft song that I don’t recognize. “If I had a wife as beautiful as her, I would want to be alone with her at all times.”

The sultry look he gives me makes me uncomfortable, so I step a little closer to Dex. Dex may be a creep as well, but I feel safe around him, and as much as we’re at each other’s throats, I know he wouldn’t let anything bad happen to me.

“What are you up to?” I ask, eying him suspiciously.

“What?” he says with a shrug. “Can’t a husband surprise his wife?”

“Of course,” I whisper low enough that Prince Kalib can’t hear. “But I’m only your pretend wife. Does that mean this is a pretend surprise and you’re going to push me in the pool or something?”

He shrugs as he flashes me a sexy grin. “Meet me on the beach in ten minutes and you’ll find out.”