The Dare Collection April 2019. Nicola MarshЧитать онлайн книгу.
for one long moment and, no matter how hard I tried to ignore it, the damn thing wouldn’t go away.
And the warmth in my chest just sat there too, getting bigger and bigger the more she smiled at me.
It was so easy to make her happy.
That’s what you want. You want to make her happy.
‘Ajax?’ She was giving me a slightly concerned look now. ‘Everything okay?’
Christ, how long had I been standing there staring at her?
‘Be ready in an hour,’ I said, my voice sounding a lot rougher than I’d intended.
‘Yay.’ She frowned. ‘But where are we going?’
‘It’s a surprise.’
‘Omigod, I love surprises! Do I wear a dress? I mean, there is a dress in those clothes you got me, right? What about shoes? Heels or flats? Do I need a jacket?’
I couldn’t stand it.
Pushing myself away from the doorframe, I strode into the room and over to the chair, bending to take her flushed face in my hands. Then I kissed her hard, stopping her stream of questions.
Instantly her mouth opened under mine, warm and generous, and hungry. If I wasn’t careful I was going to have her right here in this chair and, since I had a few things to do before we went out, that probably wasn’t the best idea.
Releasing her, I stepped back. ‘Wear whatever you feel beautiful in. I’ll take care of everything else.’
‘Can I bring those printouts? I promise I won’t talk at you too long.’
‘Yes. Bring them all. And you can talk at me as long as you want.’ I didn’t think I could say no to her. Not now.
What I did need to do was get out of this room and figure out where the fuck I’d put my distance.
Because one thing was for sure; I was going to need it if I was ever going to give her back to her father.
Imogen
I WAS RIDICULOUSLY EXCITED.
Ajax still hadn’t told me where we were going but, sitting next to him in the plain black car as it slid easily through the Sydney streets, I knew that, wherever it was, it was going to be fantastic.
I was out of his house. Outside. And sure, it wasn’t like I was completely alone and able to do what I wanted, but I didn’t mind that. In fact, having him beside me, all tall, dark, muscular and hot, made it even better somehow.
Knowing he’d organised this for me made it better too.
I’d tried to make an effort with my clothes since he’d obviously made an effort to organise this and, even though I didn’t know where we were going, I thought I’d wear something sexy that we’d both enjoy.
A pretty green silk shift dress with spaghetti straps that felt nice against my skin. The look he’d given me when I’d come out wearing it had thrilled me.
He liked it. A lot.
Well, the feeling was mutual.
He was in his usual jeans—he never seemed to wear the suits hanging up in his closet—along with a black T-shirt and battered black leather jacket. Casual clothing that fitted him like a second skin, highlighting his height and powerful muscularity, making him look deliciously dark and broody.
I could hardly drag my gaze away.
His mouth curved as he caught me staring. ‘Feel free to stare at me, little one,’ he murmured. ‘I don’t mind.’
I flushed. ‘I was wondering why you never wear all those suits in your closet.’
‘Because I don’t like suits.’
‘So why did you buy them?’
Dark humour glittered in his gaze. ‘Leon thought they would make me more...accessible.’
I grinned. ‘He’s right. You were very accessible the night you kidnapped me and you were wearing a suit then.’
‘I’m not sure kidnapping you was me being accessible.’
‘Well, I didn’t mind it.’
‘I’m glad.’ There was a blue flame burning in his eyes now. ‘Because I’m pretty fucking happy I kidnapped you.’
My cheeks heated, something inside me glowing at how blatantly appreciative the look he gave me was. ‘I hope I won’t be too overdressed,’ I said breathlessly. ‘Or underdressed. Or whatever.’
‘You’re perfect.’ His smile was hungry and a touch feral. ‘Completely perfect.’
It made me shiver in the best way.
I hoped we’d be somewhere private, where we could maybe indulge our mutual hunger, but then the car pulled up and Ajax looked out the window.
‘We’re here,’ he said.
Here turned out to be a marina with a lot of expensive sleek boats moored on long jetties that stretched out across the dark water. The place was brightly lit and there were a number of people moving among the boats, either unmooring or tying them up.
I peered curiously out the window. ‘What are we doing here?’
Ajax’s smile turned enigmatic. ‘You’ll see.’
My surprise turned out to be one of those sleek yachts that sat low in the water. It had a covered deck and an interior like a five-star hotel. Low, soft couches, gleaming wooden floors and windows on all sides. A table was set up on the deck outside, complete with silverware, crystal glasses, candles and a spray of roses. A wine bottle stood waiting to be opened.
I stared around in wonder. ‘It’s a boat,’ I said after Ajax returned from talking with the yacht’s captain, coming around the table to pull out my chair. ‘A bloody boat.’ I sounded ridiculous but I couldn’t help it. ‘I’ve never been on a boat before. Is it yours? Where are we going? Are we really going to have dinner here?’
‘Sit down and I’ll tell you,’ Ajax said, amused.
Obediently I did, biting down on my questions, looking around at the marina. There were yachts with graceful sails and huge super-yachts—basically a rich man’s playground.
Ajax had said he’d wanted to sail away over the horizon as a kid, so this boat had to be his, right? And now he was inviting me out on it. So cool.
His gaze was full of warmth as he sat down opposite me and it made my heart beat faster.
‘It’s not my boat,’ he said, reaching for the wine bottle and opening it, pouring white wine into both our glasses. ‘But I’m considering buying it. This is a test drive.’ His blue gaze caught mine. ‘And, as to where we’re going, we’re going on a tour of the harbour while we have dinner.’
Oh, I was up for that. So up. I’d been to the harbour, of course, but never without guards. Never on my own with someone I liked for company.
And I did like Ajax. Sure, he was uncompromising, not to mention arrogant and bossy. But his heart was in the right place. And he made me feel good. And he was really interesting. I liked the way his mind worked. He saw the whole, while I tended to focus on the different parts.
Such as him, for example. I was seeing different parts of him, but I had the sense he was only showing me the parts that he wanted me to see.
Not the whole of him.
And I wanted to see that very much.
Maybe I would tonight.