‘I don’t believe you. I reckon you’ve forgotten how to wind down, Olivia. If you ever knew.’
‘That is ridiculous. I am an expert at taking it easy.’ She took another defiant gulp of beer. The taste was welcome, smooth, and cold as it slipped down her throat.
Adam followed suit and her hungry eyes watched, mesmerised by the sturdy column of his throat. Enough. They were supposed to be past the attraction—and, hell, if Adam could get past it so could she.
‘I’ve bulldozed past that ridiculous attraction thing.’ She waved her hand in the air. ‘And I’m the Queen of Chill.’
His smile widened into what could definitely be classed as a positive grin. A wolfish grin. ‘Good. That’s sorted, then.’ He lifted his glass. ‘To our holiday.’
‘I’ll drink to that,’ she said, and drained the glass.
Caution tried to rear its head and was instantly decapitated by the Queen of Chill. True, her head was spinning a little. True, she’d had no sleep and little food. But both those things could be remedied. Soon. After maybe one more drink.
As if reading her mind, Adam rose. ‘I’ll get you a refill. And some water and some food.’
‘Fabulous.’
Picking up their empty glasses, he strode towards the bamboo enclosure. He was so tall, so broad, so damn imposing and oh, so very delicious. His every stride was adding to her head-spin. Hell, by the end of a week with Mr Hotter Than the Core of the Universe she’d be eligible for a starring role in a horror movie.
Nope. Nope. Nope.
Get with it, Liv.
The attraction had been annihilated and they were on holiday. Chillaxing.
May all the gods help her!
NINE
After conferring with Saru on the question of food Adam exited the dim interior of the bar and paused in the doorway to absorb the dusky beauty of the evening sky.
His thoughts raced. A holiday with Olivia, brought about by Zeb’s all too predictable runner. Adam had asked Gan not to mention Adam’s arrival, but even so Zeb would have suspected something was up. After all it was Zeb who had taught Adam his poker table skills; he had uncanny instincts and an ability to read body language the way other people read magazines. A spooked Zeb would have seen an impromptu sailing trip as the perfect solution—would hope that by the time he came back the trouble he’d scented would be long gone.
Well, he was in for a surprise, because Adam was going nowhere.
Instead he and Olivia were going to stay here and have a holiday.
He must be nuts. Stellar idea, Adam. Give the man a medal. For sheer foolishness. But Olivia was in evident need of a break and the words had somehow fallen from his lips without permission from his brain. Enjoy some chill-out time. Have some fun. Past the attraction. Amazing he hadn’t been struck by lightning for such an enormous fib.
But the point was this attraction was under control. His control, not his libido’s. At the end of the day Olivia was a beautiful woman, but one who was off-limits. He was a grown-up, and he was perfectly capable of spending a relaxed few days with Olivia.
Adam glanced out to the sea, where the sun was just beginning to dip down. The sky was an electric, vivid orange speckled with tinted tangerine clouds. It was the perfect way to start any holiday.
He flicked his gaze to her, wanting to see her reaction.
‘For Pete’s sake,’ he muttered, and strode across the sand.
Olivia looked up from the napkin on which she was industriously scribbling notes from the illuminated tablet on the tabletop.
‘Tha—’ she began as he placed the tray down.
Adam walked around and placed his hands on her already sun-kissed shoulders. The warmth of her skin tingled his palms as he gently turned her upper body to face the horizon.
‘Oh...’ She sucked in a breath of sheer wonder and his whole body stood to attention; the sound that fell from her lips held the same resonance as yesterday in the limo. For a second the sunset dimmed—a mere backdrop to the memory of her astride him, flushed and needy.
Olivia gave a small wriggle of her shoulders and he kneaded his fingers into the tight knots of her shoulders. Relaxed? This woman had a long way to go before she was anywhere near. And he didn’t have far to go until the silken texture of her skin, her small huff of pleasure as he dug deeper, pushed him to the brink of discomfort.
Come on, Adam. Past the attraction, remember? Yeah, well, he was only human. Perhaps a friendly massage wasn’t the best way forward.
Releasing her shoulders, he stepped backwards and walked round to his seat, the distance between them a welcome one. He gestured to her list. ‘So what’s that?’
‘It’s a list of things to do this week,’ she said. ‘I was researching Ko Lanta.’