'Yes, of course. I'm not a simpleton.' Beth gave him a nasty glance, then looked from Dex to the back of the boat and took a deep breath. What she knew about boats would not cover a postage stamp, but she wasn't going to tell him that. She glanced back and saw he was already at the wheel. Slipping her shoulder bag off her arm, she laid it on a box-like thing and staggered to the back of the boat.
She bent down and tried to get her fingers round the rope. She moved around slightly, to get a better grip.
Dex started the engine and yelled, 'Ready, Beth?'
At the sound of his voice she jerked up, taking the rope with her. The next thing she knew she was flying through the air. She screamed! The rope slipped from her grasp and she hit the water flat on her back.
I'll kill the bastard, was the first thought in her head, and then she swallowed what felt like half the Mediterranean and sank like a stone. Her next thought was survival, as the cold black water closed over her, pressing her down. Kicking out with her feet, she pushed for the surface, but her heavy clothes hampered her. Struggling to hold her breath, she tore at the buttons of her jacket and wriggled out of it. Her lungs felt as if they were bursting as she kicked out again. Finally her head broke the surface of the water, and she took a great gulp of air before a wave smashed down on her, pushing her under once more.
Fighting again for the surface, she managed to gasp a few more breaths of air. She could see the jetty some ten yards away, and a metal ladder which disappeared under the water. She might not know much about boats but she was a good swimmer, and, mentally gritting her teeth, she struck out for the ladder.
Suddenly an arm shot around her neck, knocking what little breath she had straight out of her body. Panicking, she struggled wildly, and then she felt a sharp blow, and nothing more.
Beth's eyelids fluttered, and then she coughed, and coughed again, water streaming from her mouth. She groaned and slowly opened her eyes. Her head was pressed against a broad shoulder and two strong arms supported her and carried her along. But she was soaked, and frozen to the bone.
'Grazie a Dio! You are alive. . .' Dex's deep voice echoed in her head. 'Don't try to speak, my love. I have you safe.'
Her eyes fluttered closed again. She was shaking so much she couldn't speak, her teeth would not stop chatteri
ng and great shudders racked her small frame. She was vaguely aware of being lowered to her feet, that gentle hands were stripping off her sweater. She opened her eyes again. Somehow she was back in her bathroom, and it was Dex who was supporting her, with one arm around her waist, while with his other hand he was peeling her sodden jeans off her legs.
She tried to lift her hands to resist, but another wave of shivers convulsed her. Then once more she was lifted from the floor and suddenly she was being held under a cascade of water. She flinched, bowing her head as the hot water stung her numb flesh, then gradually some of the numbness faded and the warmth of the water began to sink through to her frozen bones.
Also it began to sink into her shocked brain that she was being supported by two strong bare arms. 'What. . .?' was as much as she got out.
'Shh, shh, Beth.' And she was wrapped in a huge fluffy towel, and strong hands began to rub her all over. 'I will take care of you.'
Take care of her! Suddenly it all came back to Beth: the boat, the sea—everything. Somehow finding the strength, she slapped his hands away.
'What the hell do you think you're doing?' she cried hoarsely, her throat raw from the sea water. And, staggering back, she grabbed the towel, wrapped it toga-style under her arms and knotted it.
'You need to get warm. You've had a severe shock.'
She whipped the tangled mass of her wet hair out of her eyes and lifted her head, and got an even bigger shock. Dex was standing in front of her, water droplets dripping off his black hair onto his broad shoulders, trickling down his muscular chest, his flat belly. She gulped. Her eyes flew wide open and trailed down to the brush of black curls, protecting the beginning of his masculine sex, and lower, to his long, muscular legs. He was stark naked.
'You. . .you. . .get out,' she squeaked, still shivering with cold but intensely aware of his magnificent all-male body.
'This is no time for modesty, Beth. I have to get you warm. You might have hypothermia.'
She was more likely to hyperventilate if he didn't put something on—and quickly, she thought distractedly, glancing wildly around the bathroom, anywhere but at the naked man towering over her. Her eye caught a towel on the rail. 'So might you,' Beth choked, and, reaching out, snagged the towel and shoved it at Dex. 'Here.'
His large hand covered hers and pulled her towards him. Taking the towel from her nerveless fingers, he casually slung it around his hips. 'Your concern is touching, Beth.' He chuckled deep in his throat. 'But seriously, you were in the water a lot longer than L' Reaching out, he pulled her into the circle of his arms and held her pressed tightly against him. 'Humour, me, h mm?' he murmured when she tried to pull free, and he gently stroked her back and buttocks through the towel.
For a long moment Beth gave herself up to the unaccustomed comfort of being held in Dex's arms. Gradually her shivering stopped and a slow warmth spread through her body. Her jaw ached and she cushioned it gently against the hairs on his chest. There was nothing sexual about it. Maybe she just needed the sense of care and protection Dex was offering.
'Better now, sweetheart?' Dex asked, rubbing his chin on the top of her head. 'Come on, let me get you into bed.'
The mention of 'bed' broke through her dazed brain. My God! What was she doing? She was supposed to be on a plane to England. Instead she was standing almost naked in a bathroom. . .and it was all Dex's fault.
Beth looked up at him. 'You've got to be joking.' She couldn't control her anger. He was smiling down at her. Clad in only a towel, he looked wickedly attractive, and a swift stab of regret pierced her heart, but she quickly vanquished her wayward feelings. 'You bastard.'
The smile left his eyes and his hard face tautened arrogantly. 'Bastard, yes. But I only mentioned bed for you—for warmth. Not for me. I can't help it if you have a one-track mind,' he drawled mockingly, his arms falling away from her.
Free and furious, Beth registered his mocking insult and it was too much for her fragile emotions. 'Why. . . you. . . you. . . supercilious swine. You're crazy. . .stark, staring mad. . . First you punch out my godfather, and then you try to drown me. Not content with that, you almost strangle me, and then you knock me out.' The pain in her jaw, she realised, was from when Dex had grabbed her in the water. Rubbing her hand over the bruise, she glared defiantly at Dex. 'What happens next. . .a knife in the gut?'
She had no idea how incredibly lovely she looked, her green eyes flashing fire, nor how heartbreakingly young and vulnerable, with one of her hands clasping the precarious knot in the towel around her slender body.
Beth was not aware of the fierce tension tautening Dex's large frame, her eyes were suddenly filling with moisture. The after-effects of the traumatic shock she had suffered were catching up with her.