She slanted disobedient eyes sideways to see that Annalise was fast asleep against him, mouth half open, her long, dark lashes fluttering in sleep while he held her effortlessly with one arm. Sophie shivered as she noted the flex of muscle in his forearm, the definition of sinew and the suggestion of leashed strength.
He was a magnificent blend of grace and power and she was so busy staring that she had to drag her brain back into gear when he said, with amusement, ‘Am I about to get a telling off?’
Sophie smiled, relaxing at the teasing lightness in his voice. ‘It seems a waste if it’s just left here bobbing about on the water, waiting for you to pop in for a visit now and again to make sure the engine’s still ticking over and there are no cobwebs on the decks.’
Niccolo burst out laughing then stifled his laughter as Annalise shifted against him, her eyes fluttering open for a few seconds.
‘You have a colourful way with words, Sophie,’ he whispered.
She realised she quite liked the way he said her name, as soft and sensory as the brush of a feather against her skin.
‘Well, you have to admit that it’s an awfully big toy for a rich guy.’ She glanced sideways to the view of a lavender sky announcing the end of day. ‘Do you have people on board all the time even when it’s not being used?’
‘If I said yes,’ Niccolo drawled, with a thread of laughter still there in his voice, ‘would I get a few brownie points for alleviating any unemployment problems in this part of the world?’
‘No!’
‘That’s very harsh. Up this flight of stairs is the master suite and two adjoining rooms that have prime position with excellent views of the ocean from all angles. I have arranged for us to occupy these quarters.’
Suddenly the mega-yacht seemed to shrink to the size of a matchbox.
How private could bedrooms be on a yacht, however big the yacht was?
Big enough, she discovered seconds later, to accommodate a suite for Niccolo and mini-suites for her and Annalise, each with generously proportioned bathrooms. They were connected by a sitting area where they could all relax.
It was the last word in luxury and yet all that occupied Sophie’s mind was the fact that Niccolo’s room was directly opposite, and to make matters worse he inserted, casually, ‘If you need anything, you just have to knock on my door, or...’ he nodded to a small gadget on the wall by the thick glass window that looked out on a dazzling view of sea ‘...that will summon someone.’ He nudged open one of the doors that led to the smaller of the rooms and gently deposited his daughter on the bed, which was beautifully made up with just the sort of brightly patterned linen that a child would love. ‘For now, we will have dinner brought to us here. That way Annalise will have familiar faces around her if she wakes unexpectedly, although it’s my experience that being on this size yacht on calm water is actually very conducive to sleep.’
Sophie, still playing with myriad images of him sleeping in his own quarters practically within touching distance, nodded vaguely and watched, eyes glazed, as he settled Annalise.
‘You’re hovering,’ he pointed out, helpfully. ‘Your luggage will already be in your bedroom. Why don’t you unpack while I organise something for us to eat?’
He was already pulling out his mobile phone, which was probably the most efficient way of contacting his chief steward on a yacht the size of a small town.
‘Go on,’ he urged, looking at her with amusement, ‘feel free to shower and change if you want. I’ll wait here just in case Annalise wakes up. Then we can eat, and you can tell me how wasteful I am having a yacht this size and I can defend myself.’
He grinned, and just like that Sophie was swept away on a rush of something warm and uncomfortable and alarming. It was as though all those nebulous responses had finally coalesced into a pool of hot, naked attraction that made her heart leap with frenzied panic and brought a surge of hot colour to her cheeks.
He was teasing her. For a moment, she saw past that remote, powerful, charismatic stranger to someone utterly charming and insanely sexy.
And her body was reacting like the young, red-blooded woman she thought she had safely confined to deep freeze after all the business with Scott.
Dampness pooled between her legs and she had to resist the urge to squirm. Her breasts, pushing against her cotton bra, felt heavy, and her nipples were stiff and sensitive.
She was horrified because all she could think was,I want them to be touched...played with...sucked...by this man.
She almost put her hand to her mouth in shock.
‘I’ll unpack,’ she said on a deep breath, ‘but I’ll leave the shower for later. And there’s no need to justify why you own this lovely yacht.’ Her brain had cranked back into gear and was shrieking that the only defence against this unwelcome attraction was to make sure she didn’t lose sight of the fact that theirs was a working relationship.
He was her boss.
He gave the orders and she obeyed.
There was a little bit of socialising but that was to be expected. In short, there were lines that were not to be crossed and she was upset with herself for looking at those lines and then stepping over them.
She fled to the safety of her bedroom, keenly aware of him outside, metres away.
It was huge, with a double bed beautifully made up in deep burgundy linen, exquisitely soft to the touch. The carpet was thick and plush, and everything was fitted, seamlessly blending together in shades of pale wood, from the bedside cabinets to the generous bank of wardrobes nestled around a sleek dressing table. The bathroom was even bigger than the bedroom and she was briefly tempted to actually do as Niccolo had suggested and have a shower, but instead she unpacked quickly, more to give herself a bit of breathing space than because there was any need to actually hang anything up.
