And she wanted that.
She wanted it so badly she couldn’t think straight.
“Can we go home?” Drugged and dizzy, she eased her mouth away from his just enough to speak. “Can we—”
“Yes.” His voice was thick and he loosened his grip on her, keeping his arm around her until he was sure she was steady on her feet. “Let’s go.”
Walking on legs the consistency of jelly, Brittany helped him gather up their belongings and carry them back to the plane.
It was the first time she’d taken off from water and she might have been a little anxious had there been room for anything in her head other than sexual awareness.
She heard the powerful sound of the engine and then they were moving across the water, gaining speed.
She watched Zach’s hands, hypnotized by the skilled, quiet movements of those fingers.
And then, in the few seconds before takeoff, a lobster boat emerged from the far side of the island.
Brittany wasn’t sure whether she screamed out loud or whether the sound was trapped in her head.
Zach yanked off the power and pulled back on the wheel, stopping the plane i
n a shower of sea spray.
Brittany closed her eyes. “Crap, that was—”
“Yeah, we almost ingested a few hundred crustaceans.” He waited a beat. “It would have been our first dinner date. You could have had lobster for supper. Right there in your lap, already diced. Let me know if you want fries or ketchup.”
She started to laugh, grateful for his cool and even more grateful for his skill. “Take me home, Zach.”
And he did.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
AS PROMISED, two weeks later, Zach flew Brittany to the hospital to have the plaster removed and afterwards drove her home.
After weeks of being restricted it was wonderful to feel the air on her skin.
“I have exercises to do, and one more appointment in a few weeks to check everything looks good, but I’m free. Thanks for flying me. I’ll cook you dinner as a thank-you.”
“We’re going out.”
“We are?” Surprised, she looked at him questioningly and saw something in his eyes that she hadn’t seen before.
“I booked a table at The Galleon.”
Her heart did a little dance in her chest. Since the picnic on the beach they’d spent almost all their time together, although little of it had been in public. But although the sex was incredible, she sensed nothing had really changed for him. Even in bed he had an air of cool detachment, as if part of him was separate from all the things they did together. “Is this an actual date?”
The corners of his mouth flickered into a smile. “I thought after ten years, it was about time.”
“Right.” She tried desperately not to read anything into it but her mind was already throwing out questions. “If you buy me dinner, there will be gossip.”
“There’s always gossip.” Zach took the road that led down to Castaway Cottage. “At least we’ll give them something juicy to gossip about.”
Brittany smiled. “And at The Galleon we won’t have Kirsti telling us our fortunes and slipping a magic potion into our food. Ryan takes Emily to The Galleon when he wants a romantic evening.” The moment the words left her mouth she wanted to bite off her tongue. “Not that I’m saying—”
“You don’t have to watch your words,” he said evenly. “You shouldn’t have to look before you take a step, Brittany. I booked the place because we’ve spent most of the last two weeks naked and feasting off grilled cheese sandwiches at two in the morning. I wanted to show you that your body isn’t the only thing that interests me. I wanted to have dinner with you.”
She was floored. Speechless. And confused.