Her salad finished, Millie propped her chin on her hands. ‘But I thought you don’t have anything to do with the resort.’
‘Not really. But I’m interested in environmental policy, so...’ He shrugged, but Millie wasn’t fooled.
‘Something happened?’
He tensed, and although it was barely noticeable Millie still felt it. Curiosity and a surprising compassion unfurled inside her. What had gone wrong between Chase and his family?
A second’s pause was all it took for him to regain his usual lightness. ‘Do I need to invoke the “no talking about the past” clause of our contract?’
‘That was my past. Not yours.’
‘I assumed it went both ways.’
She smiled sweetly. ‘Fine print.’
Chase polished off the last mouthful of his meal before collecting their dishes and tossing them back into the boat. ‘Fine. I was a bit of a reckless youth, made a few significant mistakes, and my father decided he’d rather I had nothing to do with the family business.’ He shrugged, as if it were such ancient history that none of it mattered any more. ‘So I went my own way, and am happy as a clam. Or a conch.’
Millie gazed at him, sensing the cracks in his armour. He was just a little too deliberate with his light tone, and his story was far too simple. She wasn’t about to press him, though. She’d been the one to insist that this week wasn’t about emotional honesty or intimacy. But then, what was it about? It had been half a day already and they hadn’t even kissed.
Yet she’d relaxed and enjoyed herself more than she’d ever thought possible.
‘Come on,’ Chase said, standing up and reaching a hand down to her. ‘Let’s explore the island.’
‘That should take all of two minutes.’
‘You’d be surprised.’
He hauled her to her feet, his strong, warm hand encasing hers, his fingers sliding over hers, skin on skin. Millie nearly shivered from the jolts that raced up and down her arm at that simple touch. When they did have sex, it was going to be amazing.
Mind-blowing.
Her heart slammed against her ribs as the realisation hit her again. Was she ready for this? Did she have any choice?
‘Stop hyperventilating,’ Chase said mildly. ‘If it sets you at ease, I prefer a bed, or at least a comfortable surface. A beach seems romantic, but the sand can get into all sorts of inconvenient places.’
‘You’ve tried it?’ Millie tried not to feel nettled. Jealous. She’d never had sex on a beach.
‘Once or twice,’ Chase answered with a shrug. He was leading her away from the boat, towards a small grove of palm trees. ‘Trust me, it’s overrated.’
Millie’s mind buzzed. OK, a bed. What bed? Her bed at the resort? At his villa? How were they going to do this? Well, obviously she knew how, but how without it being completely awkward or embarrassing? She hadn’t had sex in over two years and then only ever with one man. What on earth had she been thinking, suggesting a fling? She was the least flingy person she knew.
She also knew it was way too late to be thinking this way. She should have considered all the uncomfortable practicalities before she’d made the suggestion to Chase. Before they’d agreed on a deal.
Before she’d suddenly realised just what this all meant, and that there was no such thing as simple sex.
Yet, even though she was hyperventilating, she knew she didn’t want to back out. She wanted Chase.
Did his sailboat have a bed?
‘Yes,’ Chase called back and Millie skidded to a halt right there in the trees.
‘What do you mean, yes?’
He stopped and turned, so aggravatingly amused. ‘Yes, the sailboat has a bed.’
Her jaw dropped. ‘Did I say that out loud?’
‘No, but I could follow your thought process from here. I hate to say it, but you’re kind of predictable.’
‘You didn’t expect me to jump on top of you from the boat,’ Millie pointed out, and Chase cocked his head.
‘True. I like when you surprise me.’
She’d liked it too. She’d liked feeling his hard body under hers. She’d enjoyed touching him. Just thinking about it now made her blood heat and her body pulse. Why was she waiting for him to kiss her? What if she kissed him?
‘Don’t get ahead of yourself there,’ Chase murmured. ‘Our first kiss needs to be special.’
She let out a most inelegant snort. ‘What are you, a mind reader?’
‘You were staring at my lips like they were the latest stock market report. It didn’t take a huge amount of mental ability to guess what you were thinking.’
Disgruntled, she tugged her hand from his. ‘So where are we going, exactly?’
Chase took her hand back, folding her fingers in his once more. ‘I’ll show you.’
They walked through the palms for a few more minutes, wending their way through the drooping fronds, the ground sandy beneath their feet. Then Chase stopped, slipping his arm around Millie’s waist to draw her to his side. He did it so easily, so assuredly, that she didn’t even think about any awkwardness as her leg lay warm against his, his fingers splayed along her hip.
‘Look.’
She looked and saw a perfect little pool right there in the middle of the trees, a tiny jewel-like oasis, its surface as calm as a mirror. Millie knelt down and cupped the water with two hands; it was clear and cool. She glanced up at Chase. ‘It’s fresh?’
‘Yep, fed by an underground spring, I think.’ She shook her head in wonder, amazed that such a tiny island would have a source of fresh water. ‘Drink,’ Chase said. ‘I’ve drunk it before, it tastes great. You could sell it for five bucks a bottle in the city.’
She took a sip, suddenly self-conscious at how Chase was watching her. When had taking a drink of water become sensual? Provocative?
‘You know what the most amazing thing is, though?’ he said, and she sat back on her heels.
‘What?’
‘You’ve been walking around in your underwear for most of the day and you haven’t even noticed.’
She let out an embarrassed little laugh. ‘And, now that you’ve reminded me, I’m going to notice.’
He grinned. ‘Actually, what I was really going to say is that a couple of hundred years ago there were some shipwrecked sailors on a little atoll just a few hundred yards away, without any fresh water. They didn’t discover this place and they died of thirst.’
She dropped her hands. ‘That’s awful.’
‘I know. If they’d just tried swimming around a little bit, or even making a raft or something, they might have survived.’ He shook his head. ‘But they were just too scared.’
Millie narrowed her eyes. ‘And I’m supposed to make the connection, right?’
He stared at her in exaggerated innocence. ‘Connection?’
She stood up. ‘If those sailors had just been a little more adventurous, they would have survived. Really lived. All they had to do was swim a little farther than they were comfortable with.’
‘I don’t think they could swim at all, actually. Most sailors back then couldn’t.’
She folded her arms. ‘I don’t need the morality tale.’
‘It