He flashed her that disarming grin. “I’m gonna go dunk my head now. I need to cool off.”
And then he slipped beneath the water without another word, not surfacing again until he was several feet out. Leaving her alone, aching with want. Aching to follow him.
But she didn’t.
Rhett pushed his wet hair away from his forehead, the saltwater stinging his eyes. It was stunningly cold, and the water helped clear his head, cool him down. He swam as far as his body could take him, always conscious of his limits, not wanting to put himself in any real danger.
He may be temporarily running away from temptation, but he wasn’t a complete idiot.
Treading water, he watched Gabriella as she wandered deeper into the ocean, until she was nearly submerged. Just as quickly as she dunked her body, she emerged from the water, her skin glistening, the thin black fabric of her bikini clinging to her like a second skin. Her nipples were hard, he could make them out even from this distance and just like that, he was hot for her. Hard for her.
Damn, he was pitiful.
He remained out in the water until he couldn’t take it anymore and finally, reluctantly, he went back to shore. She stood waiting for him, an excited look on her pretty face, her soaked hair dripping on her shoulders, little beads of water glistening on her skin.
He wanted to lick every droplet, taste every bit of her damp flesh.
“I need your opinion,” she said as soon as he drew close. “Plus, I need to experiment on you.”
“What do you mean?” he asked warily. This couldn’t be good.
Reaching out, she grabbed hold of his forearm, her slender fingers gripping him. She stepped closer and lifted his arm, bringing it up to her face and she sniffed delicately.
He stood paralyzed, waiting for her to say something, anything, but she remained silent. Continued to hold his arm so close to her face, he could feel her warm breath wafting across his chilled skin. She pressed her thumb into his flesh, sniffed him again before she carefully let go of his arm.
“Salty.”
“A given,” he tossed back with a slight smile.
“Undoubtedly. But there’s more. A hint of green, of sun, of clear, cloudless air.” She thrust her arm toward him. “Here, smell me.”
Glancing around the beach, he realized no one paid them any mind. Which was probably best, considering they looked strange smelling each other like animals in the jungle. He took hold of her wrist and lifted it to his face, sniffing so close, his nose brushed against her skin.
The first scent he detected was the salt. Then floral, which made him think of her natural fragrance. Beneath that the heat, the sun like she mentioned, and something else he couldn’t quite place.
“I’ll smell different, of course. And the salt is drying on our skin, which will alter it even further in the next few minutes.” She tried her best to sound diplomatic, but he heard the slight tremble in her voice, felt the quiver run through her. Slowly he stroked his thumb across the pulse point at her wrist. Back and forth, back and forth, keeping a lazy rhythm, falling under the spell she somehow cast upon him with her sparkling eyes.
“You smell amazing,” he murmured, because she did. Good enough to eat. At the very least, good enough to lick, nibble and suck…
She laughed nervously but didn’t try to pull from his grip. “I’m sure I smell like sweat.”
“Mmm, if you do, then I like it.” He brought her wrist to his mouth, pressed the softest kiss to the delicate skin. The throb of her pulse beat against his lips, a rapid tattoo that revealed her nervousness.
He was nervous too, which was odd. His heart raced, his breath became short and he wondered what the hell was wrong with him.
“Rhett…” Her voice drifted off, a little sigh escaping her when he licked delicately at her skin. Salt lingered on his tongue, the taste of her, the mystery of her, and his cock jerked against the front of his damp swim trunks.
“I’m tasting you,” he explained. “For the greater good of the future Worth perfume.”
“No one can taste anything in a perfume,” she protested weakly.
“I’m going to have to protest that statement. Taste and scent are closely related, don’t you agree?”
“Of course I agree, but what you’re doing is completely unnecessary.”
“Really, Gabriella? Do you mean that?” He stared into her eyes, bringing their linked hands down between them though he continued to hold onto her. “Because I’ll stop. Say the word and I’ll stop right now.”
He wasn’t referring to the simple kiss on the inside of her wrist and she knew it. He saw it in the way her eyes widened, how her breath quickened. She wanted him, the flash of arousal in her gaze unmistakable, yet he tamped down the surge of triumph that wanted to overtake him.