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“Topaz!” His outraged shout followed me across the water.
I laughed so hard I almost drank half the Atlantic. Unfortunately, my head start lasted approximately twenty seconds before he caught up with me. Those long-ass arms sliced through the water, and he passed me like I was standing still.
“Cheater!” I shouted.
He reached the swim platform first and turned around, grinning.
“Nah, baby. That’s called superior athletic ability.”
“That’s called having arms longer than the damn boat!” I grumbled.
He laughed and reached down to help me onto the platform. I accepted his hand then tried to pull him back into the water. His ass was immovable. Instead, he tightened his grip and hauled me against him, trapping me between his body and the yacht.
“Now, why would you do some shit like that?”
“Because you cheated!”
“How?”
“By being too damn tall!” I groused.
He rested his forehead against mine and laughed. I loved that sound.
We spent another half hour playing near the beach, where the water barely reached my waist. Saadiq insisted on teaching me how to float without tensing every muscle in my body. He kept one hand beneath my back and the other against my stomach.
“Relax, Apple,” he instructed.
“I am relaxed.”
“Then why you holding on to me like I’m about to throw you off a building?”
I glared at him. “Because I’on trust yo’ ass.”
He chuckled. “You trust me.”
I looked up at him. He was right; I did. I relaxed.
“Look, you taught me something,” I said after a minute.
“I hope it was how to trust me.”
I turned my head to look at him. His expression was unusually serious.
“You know you can, right?”
The question caught me off guard. I lowered my feet until they touched the sandy bottom and stood facing him.
“Yeah. I know.”
I slipped my arms around his neck and pulled his mouth down to mine. This time, I kissed him. I could tell he had absolutely no complaints.
By the time we returned to The Maroon, I was a little tired, slightly sun-kissed, and even more attracted to my boss.
Saadiq walked me to my villa, his fingers intertwined with mine.
“Come have dinner with me tonight.”
I leaned against the doorframe. “Another date?”
