Chapter Ten
Jade went through the next few days in a happy fog. Somehow Joshua made her forget about all the issues between them, kept her away from Curtis and crew, though he did have to have dinner with them one night and spend a little time on a training one afternoon. The thing she didn’t like was he made her forget about Jesse. The thing she shouldn’t like was he made her want to kiss him. It was horrible to refrain.
She had to call him out several times on accidentally touching her. He’d just smile and promise to do better.
They rode four-wheelers through St. John’s, Antigua, to an incredible beach where they snorkeled and relaxed. Jade had never felt such soft sand or enjoyed relaxing and flirting quite so much.
On the way back, they stopped at a little restaurant and ate some delicious and spicy chicken mati, then they toured a church and graveyard that had been wrecked by the recent hurricane. The damage made her sick, and she thought it was so sweet when Joshua dropped a couple of hundred-dollar bills into the restoration fund. She noticed that he didn’t flaunt his money, but he was quick to pay for everything and then smoothly tell her she could get the next thing. Yet he never let her. She appreciated a gentleman and she knew his net worth was insane, but she was used to being independent, and there was still the fact he thought she’d stolen his money, so it rubbed her the wrong way.
The next day they were on St. Lucia. A friendly taxi driver took them on a far too long drive to the volcano, telling them howPirates of the Caribbeanhad filmed some scenes here. She wasn’t surprised. The scenery was absolutely exquisite, as lush and pretty as the rain forest in Puerto Rico, but she was tired of sitting on the hard bench and more than ready to get out of the vehicle at the volcano. They toured the volcano. It stunk horribly of rotten eggs making Jade certain she couldn’t handle the mud baths that were being touted to take twenty years off your skin. Joshua teased her about her sensitive nose. She simply smiled and eased closer to him so she could smell his delicious scent.
They went to a beautiful waterfall next, laughing as the pool was obviously manmade and only knee deep. When Joshua pulled her under the spray with him, she had to remember to focus on the pounding water on her head and not the incredible feel of his arms around her. She’d asked another tourist to take a picture of them, but the look of concern on Joshua’s face had her retracting her request. She would love a picture with him, but she could respect that he liked his privacy.
After lunch at a great beach restaurant overlooking a quaint harbor, they drove back to a beach closer to the ship and relaxed. That night Joshua was scheduled to have dinner with Curtis and crew. She hadn’t asked him about what his investigator was finding out and hated the thought that maybe he was just with her to try to expose her, but he never treated her like that. He treated her like he thought she was amazing and he was loving every minute of being together.
The next day they were on Barbados. They went snorkeling and saw lots of turtles and then just enjoyed the gorgeous beach, drinking strawberry daquiris, and swimming in the ocean. It was a nice, relaxing day.
Every night she talked with Priest over the barrier and recounted her day. He sometimes shared snippets of his but mostly listened, and sometimes counseled her through her confusion over how she was falling for Joshua when she knew she shouldn’t and how she was committed to get back to Jesse and see where that went. She liked Priest, a lot. She sure hoped she wasn’t falling for him also as Joshua and Jesse were more than enough competition in her brain.
Friday night was their second to last night on the ship and Jade had very conflicting feelings. She couldn’t believe how much she’d loved this time with Joshua and how she’d been able to put the ugliness of the accusations or embezzlement from her mind, and simply enjoy Joshua. He was an impressive, fun, and smart man. She could almost admit to herself that she was falling hard for him. If she didn’t still feel that loyalty and tug to Jesse, she’d be in huge trouble. Who was she kidding? She was in huge trouble.
She got ready for dinner carefully, dressing in the same fitted black evening dress and jade jewelry she’d worn the night she’d kissed Jesse. Ah, Jesse. Why hadn’t he shown her his face? Why had he been so incredible yet she was having a hard time remembering the time spent with him in light of the appealing presence of the charming and irresistible Joshua Jewel.
A soft rap came on her door. She slid into her strappy heels, stuck her key card in her bra, and hurried to get the door. Flinging it open, she had to lean against the wall.
“Whoa,” she grunted out. “You look fabulous.”
“Hey, that’s my line.” Joshua pushed a hand through his wavy chestnut-brown hair, grinning at her. He looked incredible in a navy-blue suit that fit his body perfectly and made his blue eyes deeper. With that irresistible grin and his dimple so pronounced she wondered if it would count as her kissing him if she simply kissed the dimple. Her stomach heated up.
“Oh yeah? Why didn’t you use it immediately then?” She arched an imperious eyebrow and tried to stay sassy when inside she was crumbling. This man was everything she’d ever dreamt of, not just physically but emotionally, mentally, spiritually. He was the complete package. She could almost admit it: she wanted him more than she wanted Jesse and she could wait to resolve their other issues. She wasn’t in any hurry. Except how badly she wanted to kiss him.
“Okay, I will. Actually, I’ve got a better line.” Joshua stepped in closer and his lovely cologne infiltrated her nostrils. He tenderly took her hand in his and said, “Jade Jardine, you are exquisitely beautiful. You take my breath away. Will you please go to dinner with me?”
Jade wanted to just throw her arms around his neck and kiss him, forget eating. Instead she squeezed his hand and said, “I would love to.”
Joshua tucked her hand through his arm and escorted her down the stairs to the dining room. He treated her like a queen and she loved being close to him.
Dinner was fun as they teased and laughed together about some of their day excursions then shared stories of family. She wanted to meet his family, all of them. It was interesting that Teal had married into a huge family. The Strong Family reminded her of the Jewel Family as Joshua described them. Would Jade marry into a large, amazing family as well? That thought made the salmon stick in her throat instead of melt like it had been doing.
They finished dinner and thanked the assistant waiter, the regular waiter, and the head waiter. These people were great and they knew how to spoil somebody.
The other nights they’d gone to some of the shows or walked the deck. Tonight, Jade wanted Joshua all to herself, but she was still uncertain. The issues between them hadn’t disappeared, and as days went by, she wondered if Joshua was just going to try to sweep the embezzlement under the rug. That didn’t seem like the Joshua she knew, but she also knew he was in a quandary regarding her quitting and the entire nightmare. A million dollars was a lot of money, and he couldn’t just allow somebody to steal from his company. She wished the real thief would be caught.
Instead of suggesting they go for a walk on the front part of deck thirteen, where it would be dark and quiet and he would know exactly what she wanted to do, she said, “Karaoke?”
“No.” He laughed easily. “Dancing.”
“Okay.” That was almost as good as kissing, almost. She wasn’t losing that bet. While she wanted him to “show her exactly how it felt to be kissed by him,” she also still wanted to interview him for her site. Even more so now that she knew how incredible he was.
They walked down to deck four, where a small area had a singer with Latin music playing. Jade loved to dance. She started moving and swiveling and just letting go with the beat. Joshua danced comfortably, flowing easily with the beat but he mostly just stared at her, as if drinking her in.
“What are you staring at?” she asked, easing in closer to him.
He bent down and murmured in her ear, “Perfection.”
Jade laughed, but heat was tracing through her. He wrapped one hand securely around her waist and grasped her other hand, tugging her in close to his chest. Jade’s breath rushed out. It felt too good to be held by him.
He said in her ear, “Is it okay if I hold you while we dance, or is that breaking our initial rules?”