When Andrew had first told me he had a private yacht, for some reason, I'd thought that he was joking. Of course, it only made sense, given that he also had a private jet, but where the jet was in some ways practical, the yacht just seemed like an unnecessary splurge.

When he suggested that we take a family outing on the boat for Independence Day, I had hesitated. But after being assured of all the ways that Emma would be safe on the yacht, I'd caved.

I was glad for it now, too. The weather was beautiful that day, and Emma was thrilled to be out on Puget Sound.

I was pretty thrilled as well. Andrew's yacht was just as swanky as I might have expected, with a full bar, a few staff members, and plenty of food for a whole army of people. But other than the staff, it was just the three of us there, having a nice and relaxing day together.

Andrew got the grill going midway through the afternoon and had burgers cooking up in s

hort order. “Can I get you another drink?” he asked me, noticing that my iced tea was empty.

I smiled at him. “I can get it,” I told him. “You just keep those burgers cooking.”

“Relax,” Andrew said, plucking the glass out of my hand. “I have to go inside and grab a few more things anyway. It's not a problem to refill your drink on the way.”

“Can't argue with that,” I said with a laugh, settling back down on the reclining deck chair, soaking up the sun.

Not that I really ever tanned all that much, but it was cozy and warm there, and I was going to take full advantage of it. Emma was off with Janice, trying to spot dolphins at the front of the yacht. I could watch them from a distance, but it was “me” time at the moment.

I watched as Andrew headed inside the yacht with my glass, thinking as he went that I was starting to love the man.

Wait, what? I wondered where that thought had come from. I was starting to like Andrew more and more, the longer we stayed with him, but I didn't know when I had jumped from “like” to “love.” The more I thought about it, though, the more it felt right to me.

It was exactly what I'd told him, once. After Emma was born, I looked for dads for her, rather than just looking for good boyfriends for myself. But Andrew wasn't just perfect with Emma; he was also a gentleman when it came to his interactions with me. And although he'd once been incredibly rude to me and so commitment shy, I started to see those things change.

He’d cut back on work and spent more time with us, and he was friendly whenever he did. He had come up with a couple ideas for our family days, even, although I had a sneaking suspicion he had probably asked Janice for recommendations on places that Emma might enjoy.

Whatever changes he made in his life, I enjoyed them. That said, I knew I had to be careful. I could sense that Andrew was still holding back, that he was still worried about committing to this. He still hadn't said that he loved me, and even though his actions hinted at that, it could also be simple affection. We had been living in his house for a while now. It was only natural that he would start to feel affection for me since Emma was our daughter. It didn't mean that he wanted to marry me.

“Stop thinking so hard,” Andrew said as he handed my newly-refilled glass back to me. He gestured around. “This day is supposed to be about relaxing and having fun.”

I laughed and rolled over on my stomach so that I could watch him better from my chair. “I am relaxing and having fun,” I promised. “Anyway, aren't you the king of over-working? I would have thought you would understand when someone was overthinking.”

“I understand it, of course,” Andrew mused. “But I don't want to see you doing it, today.” He lowered his voice, glancing around to see if there was anyone who might overhear us. “If you're having a hard time shutting off your brain, I could take you on a tour of the yacht.”

The way he emphasized the sentence left no doubt in my mind as to what that tour would entail, and I shivered despite the heat of the sun.

I smiled up at him and shook my head. “Not now,” I said. “But maybe later. I want to enjoy the sun for as long as I can.”

“You should put on some more sunscreen,” Andrew said, glancing towards the crystal-clear sky. “Want some help?”

“Sure,” I agreed, surprised that he would ask.

I sat up, and he sat on the lounge chair beside me, gathering my hair in his hands and then carefully moving it over one shoulder. His hands were warm, strong, and sure as he began to massage sunscreen into my shoulders. I made a soft noise, and he paused, hands drawing away.

“Sorry, was that too hard?” he asked, sounding genuinely concerned.

“No, it's just, I didn't realize I was going to be getting a massage out of having you apply sunscreen,” I admitted, biting my lip as my face flushed.

Despite the smell of sunscreen lingering in the air, there was something undeniably sensual about the feeling of his fingers as they pressed into my skin, kneading out the tension that I hadn't even known was there.

“Just making sure that it's rubbed in properly,” Andrew said after a momentary pause. If I had to guess, he sounded sheepish, but I couldn't picture him being anything other than cool and confident.

He slowly resumed his ministrations, taking far longer than he actually needed to lather up my back and shoulders. The moment was broken, though, when I turned to face him, and he swiped a stripe of sunscreen down my cheek.

I giggled and reached up to rub in the mark. “Thanks,” I told him.

“Anytime,” Andrew said. He glanced over to the grill and swore, suddenly leaping to his feet and going to flip the burgers.

Tags: Claire Adams Romance
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