Total pages in book: 105
Estimated words: 102166 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 511(@200wpm)___ 409(@250wpm)___ 341(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 102166 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 511(@200wpm)___ 409(@250wpm)___ 341(@300wpm)
Iris’s head tipped to the side, watching him closely for a moment. “You’ve really given Selene a lot of thought.”
Arden stiffened.
“Excuse me, sweet sea creature, I am merely an astute observer of character. And Selene has that ‘secretly soft, hex-you-but-don’t-tuck-you-in’ energy that demands to be noticed.”
“I don’t know. I think I sense a spark.”
“No spark. I mean, in a purely theoretical, ‘if we were stuck in a cursed tower with only one bed’ way, who knows. But only in theory.”
“Uh-huh.”
Arden shook his head. “You get laid, and now you’re out here trying to hook everyone else up. Anyway,” he sniffed. “Back to you. Have you broken any furniture with your carnal activities yet?”
Iris smiled and laughed her way through his constant—and increasingly absurd—sex questions through the bathroom door as she stripped, put on the nipple stickers, and then the cover-up, before stepping out.
“Be still, my heart,” Arden said. His hand went to where his heart should have been. “Where is that bird of yours? He would have a lot to say about you looking paparazzi-ready. But for you and your lady business, let’s hope your man has arranged a very private venue so the two of you can commune carnally without violating public decency or accidentally awakening a dormant sea god. Ah,” he said when there was a knock on the door. “I believe that is your ride.”
Sure enough, there was a driver on the other side of the door, so the two of them followed him down to the street, where the driver waited beside a black car.
“I’m so happy for you and not at all jealous.”
“You should go and see Selene,” Iris said. “See if she wants to hang out. And maybe make some … spicy magic.”
“Enough, you,” Arden said, poking her in the nose. “Have a shamefully sexy time.”
With that, Iris was tucked in the back of the car and driven out of the city. Her curiosity grew as they drove down the shore until they reached the bay marina.
“Are you sure this is right?” she asked, leaning between the front seats.
“Yes, ma’am,” the driver said. “I’m supposed to tell you to walk down to the end.”
“It was Finn Westrock who hired you, correct?”
“Yes, our future mayor, Mr. Westrock himself.”
Huh.
Okay, well, it made no sense. But she could practically hear the ocean calling to her.
“Thanks,” she said.
Stepping out onto the dock, Iris paused, lifting her head to the sky, feeling the sun beat down on her as she sucked in a greedy breath, smelling the salt water and brine.
She could feel the ocean humming in her veins, just begging her to dip in a toe, to shuck off her cover and dive in.
She resisted the urge to jump in and continued down the dock toward the end, where Finn was standing in a pair of white swim trunks and a blue-and-white-striped top, left open in the front.
The wind kicked up, making his hair flutter and his shirt whip backward, exposing his chest and stomach.
Iris’s footstep stuttered as her belly flipped, her desire seemingly always simmering just below the surface.
“You look beautiful,” Finn said as she approached.
As soon as she was within reach, his arm slid around her, pulling her flush to his chest, and then he ducked his head to claim her mouth with a long, deep kiss.
“What are we doing here?” Iris asked. Need was humming through her, but there was no way for them to give in to those desires right there.
“We are taking a boat out on the water.” Finn gestured toward the side where a new-looking cruiser sat, just waiting for someone to board.
“A boat? You want to go out on a boat?” Did she even want to go on a boat? Sure, she’d seen thousands of them cutting through the surface of her home before. She’d never considered if she would want to be the passenger on one.
“I want to take you out on a boat,” he said. He moved away to step onto the boat, then held out a hand for her.
She tamped down her concerns about his safety. She could certainly save him if he fell overboard. Then she placed her hand in his and let him help her aboard.
He led her from the swim platform and into the galley, which featured a table and wrap-around cushioned seats. They moved through to the cockpit.
“Why don’t you catch some sun?” Finn suggested. He gestured out to the bow sun pad. “I’ll untie the deck lines so we can head out.”
Confused yet curious, she did as instructed, moving out onto the bow to lower onto the cushioned sun pad.
She turned to watch as Finn made quick, effortless work of undoing the deck lines, then moved into the cockpit and took off from the dock.
It struck her that there were clearly many things she still didn’t know about her fiancé. She was going to enjoy figuring it all out.