“Your fault entirely for being so damn irresistible.”
“You won’t even own up to your flaws? You’re even worse than I thought.”
“I see. No redeemable qualities?”
“If I think about it hard, I could come up with one or two, but you’re welcome to prove to me you have more.”
“Your wish is my command, wife.”
Chapter Eighteen
Josie
“This was amazing. Amazing.” I felt like jumping up and down on the boat. Scratch that. I was jumping up and down. This had been our first scuba dive into the ocean. We’d practiced in one of the pools before, until we got the hang of breathing and managing the equipment.
The scuba instructor smiled, maneuvering the boat back to shore. Hunter sat on the back bench, giving me a lazy smile. He watched me the entire time I took off my scuba diving suit.
My skin warmed up everywhere he looked, as if he had his hands on me... or his mouth.
“You’re not saying anything. What did you think?” I asked him later on as we walked to our lounge chairs. I elbowed him lightly. He reacted immediately, wrapping an arm around me, pulling me into him.
“I think that you look fucking irresistible in your bikini.”
I rolled my eyes. “I meant what you thought about scuba diving.”
“I think I absolutely need a reward for the act of bravery.”
He let me go as we reached the lounge chairs, sat on the nearest one. I parked my hands on my hips, tilting my head.
“A reward?”
“Yes.”
“And what would that be?”
His smile turned into a wolfish grin. “Beggars can’t be choosers.”
“So, if I reward you with an ice cream, you’ll be happy?”
He pulled me closer. “I didn’t say anything about not persuading you to give in to the kind of rewards I want.” He placed a kiss just under my belly button. My skin broke out in goose bumps the next second.
“Hunter. We’re on a beach.”
“And I just can’t get enough of you.”
Somehow, he’d pulled me between his legs again. My outer thighs were touching his inner thighs, but even that small contact was enough to send a sizzle through me. He lazily moved his hand at the small of my back in tiny circles. The man simply seemed incapable of keeping his hands off me. But who was I to judge? I touched him every chance I got after our first night together three days ago. The lines between us were blurring, and I didn’t know how to bring that up, or if I should. I was just afraid that I couldn’t keep my heart out of this.
“Sooo... what do you think about skydiving? Or a safari?” I asked casually. Hunter stared at me.
“You’re doing this on purpose? To torture me?”
“Maybe.” I had no idea what had gotten into me, but I suddenly wanted to experience everything with him. Besides... loosening up wouldn’t hurt him. Not everything was controllable, as evidenced by the fact that his visa hadn’t been extended, prompting the need for a green card.
I did understand why he felt the need to—or at least I thought I did. When his dad lost the business years ago, it threw his family into a spiral downward. Everything was out of his control. I could understand the drive—the need to ensure you never got in that situation again.
“You’re different, somehow,” he said.
“What can I say? You’re right. As your wife, I keep developing new skills. Nagging, for one. Talking you into trying out silly things for another. What do you say, husband?”