To Win His Heart

They were an odd mixture of Croatians, Germans and Danes, all of whom knew a little English. For the next hour she had a great time while they teased her and laughed over her mispronunciation of words.

The one named Lars told her they were moving on to a discotheque and asked her to come. Though he seemed nice enough, she knew a guy on the make when she saw one.

Claiming fatigue, she declined with a thank you and ran into the water. Not to be daunted, Lars followed after her. By the time she’d reached the Gabbiano, he caught hold of one foot as she was climbing the ladder.

“Seriously.” She turned to him. “It’s late.”

“Tomorrow you sleep. Tonight you party.”

Before she could say another word, hands of steel gripped her upper arms and lifted her bodily into the boat.

“Take your party elsewhere.” Luc’s forbidding tone and presence had the guy doing a back flip away from the ladder. He took off like a flying fish.

Olivia had to admit she was relieved. But she refused to give Luc that satisfaction or tell him she was sorry if he’d hurt his leg helping her get away from Mr. Hands. Instead, she hurried below.

Nic was in the galley. She said hi as she rushed past him to get some things out of her suitcase.

After her shower she dried off and put on a new pair of cotton lounging pajamas that were perfectly modest. When she opened the door to the passageway and started for the stairs, Luc was leaning on his cane, blocking her exit.

His eyes played over her damp curls before wandering to her mouth. She could imagine him kissing her like he had done the other night. Her body turned to fire.

“You made a wrong turn. The cabin’s the other way.”

“I’m going up on deck to enjoy myself.”

“Not tonight, and not in that outfit. The deck is Nic’s domain after eleven at night. Considering the long day he has put in, he’s bushed. Not that you would care about his exhaustion.”

It took every bit of willpower to hold on to her control. “Apparently you’re not that worried about it, either,” she struck back, deriving pleasure from seeing the way his lips formed a pencil-thin line. “I had no way of knowing he would put himself at your disposal at a moment’s notice without concern for his own welfare.”

“Well now that you do, I suggest you climb up in your bunk so we can all go to sleep.”

“You can try,” she said in a husky voice. With great daring she raised up on tiptoe to brush her lips against his. “There’s more where that came from. All you have to do is call out my name in the night. I promised your mother I would accommodate your every wish.”

Frozen gray shards stared back at her. “You didn’t fool her you know.”

“Of course not. She has to be an exceptional woman to have raised a son as brilliant, troubled, paranoid and dense as you, and still be alive. If Monaco gave out a prize for the best mother in the Principality, she would win hands down. Good night, my proud Falcon who flies alone. Sweet dreams.”

She went to bed and pulled the covers over her head. The routine established a pattern for the next three days; sailing lessons interspersed with water sports and good food.

It was the perfect regimen to keep from thinking about Luc who lay around on deck with his nose in a book. Except for spotting her when she went waterskiing, he pretty well ignored her. Any remarks were addressed to Nic. Mostly they discussed theories about who stole the family jewel collection.

In the evenings Nic took Olivia to the local bars and they danced or walked the streets of the little towns of Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore, all part of the Cinque Terre region.

Snorkeling in and around San Remo’s grottos had been an especially memorable experience for her. Luc joined them for part of a morning. Though he wasn’t any friendlier to her, he seemed to enjoy the exercise and knew all the little secret spots where the tourists didn’t go.

The next day they docked at Nice and spent time exploring the Chateau D’Eze positioned thirteen hundred feet above the impossibly blue water. By the time her head touched the pillow that night, she slept the sleep of the exhausted.

Unbeknownst to her, Nic had taken advantage of the wind during the night. While she was oblivious, he’d sailed them past Monaco. When she looked out the window of the cabin the next morning, the unforgettable vista of Cannes lay before her eyes.

She still had a hard time believing she’d been to places on the Riviera she’d only seen in movies and books.

Per usual Luc had gotten up early and prepared their breakfast. Since it involved no heavy lifting, that was the one job he could do using his cane without straining his leg too much.

The three of them ate on deck while the two men laid out her walking itinerary for the day with Nic. Tomorrow they’d be moving on to Marseilles, then Perpignan. In the days that followed they would sail to the famous ports along the Spanish coast.

Olivia’s greatest fear was that they would reach Marbella before Luc showed any sign of wanting to be alone with her. Maybe if she bought him something he would really like, it would soften him up a bit.

When she and Nic went ashore, they spent a full morning sightseeing, but after lunch at the Carlton on the famous La Croisette seafront, she asked him to take her to a book shop that catered to science fiction buffs.