Page 80 of On The Edge

And I heard the falter in his footsteps when he saw me.

But I keep my eyes closed for a few more seconds to bolster my courage so I can go through with this. So that I can seduce Cruz Navarro.

While a shot of liquid courage would do wonders about now, I wanted to let this play out with a completely clear head. Something I didn’t have the first time.

And now, I’m slightly regretting that decision.

“Madds?” His voice is a hoarse syllable of sound. Perfect.

Time to reclaim that shit.

I flutter my eyes open and pretend to be startled. “Oh. Hi.”

The look on Cruz’s face is priceless. Jaw lax. Eyes wide. And his fingers twitch like he’s itching to touch.

He works a swallow and then scrapes his eyes up my body until they meet mine. “Hi.” It’s a throaty syllable.

I know exactly what I look like right now. Every damn thing about this moment has been thought of and planned out.

The white bikini that covers just enough skin but leaves plenty to the imagination. The gold belly chain that shines in the sunlight. My freshly painted fingers and toes that match the red on my lips.

Because while we may have felt each other’s skin in the dark, it’s a whole different thing seeing all this skin on display in the daylight. Or at least that’s what I’m counting on because I never realized how much I still wanted more of Cruz Navarro until this moment. Until he’s standing before me with his nostrils flaring and by the growing bulge in his pants, in obvious need of relief.

And this time, I’m playing this game to win.

“How was your flight?” I ask as I use my spray bottle and casually mist cold water over my skin. I might accidentally spray a bit too much on the bra cups of my bikini, knowing the fabric liner is thin and so just a hint of the pink of my nipples will be visible because of it.

“Christ.” He scrubs a hand through his hair and shifts on his feet. “I mean . . . good. It was good.”

“And your family . . . event, was it?”

“Event. Yes. A dinner. It’s monthly. Done. Over with.” His eyes roam again as his tongue darts out to lick his lips. “What have you been up to?”

I make a show of swinging my legs over the side of my chair and then standing up. A slow bend over with my ass toward him to position my sandals so I can slip them on when I could have just used my feet. “I went into town. Wanted to celebrate so I went shopping to buy myself a little something.”

A glance over my shoulder tells me he’s taking in my ass. Perfect.

“Shopping for what?”

“A new bikini.” I turn and hold my hands out. “What do you think? Cute, huh?”

Another rough swallow. “Cute isn’t exactly how I’d describe it.”

My throaty laugh is my answer.

“What exactly are we celebrating?”

“We are not celebrating anything.” I’m toying with him. “I am celebrating putting the finishing pieces on a market analysis I’ve been doing for months for Kevin. For coming to the realization that I wasted eighteen very good months of my life with Michael, a guy who was nice, but who didn’t give me that sweet ache every time I looked at him. And for making a new friend and having a dinner date with them later tonight.”

He eyes me with a mix of curiosity and lust. I know which one I want to win in this personal battle he’s waging.

“You’re going out? What happened to you not wanting to deal with the press? What changed all of that?”

I shrug nonchalantly and then reposition my belly chain, drawing his eyes to linger there. “My best friend, Tessa, gave me a pep talk, and I realized while this might be miserable for you, having me be your shadow, it’s a chance of a lifetime for me. That I need to embrace it for what it is and take the hits that come with it as the trade-off.”

“Miserable is one way to put it,” he murmurs, thinking I don’t hear it. By the desire glazing his eyes, I know he means misery in the best way possible.

I’m pretty sure I’ve got my answer. He wants me as much as I want him.