until she spotted him again. Hidden behind her shades, she studied his broad shoulders, his sculpted chest and arms and the strong lines of his handsome face. He started across the pool, and she was fascinated with his powerful strokes and by the play of muscles in his back as he swam. Have mercy! She stared until he disappeared from her vision. Dropping her head, she once again tried to concentrate on her novel.
She had finally managed to get back into the story when a shadow fell over her. She immediately thought Mr. Toupee had returned but went still when she heard the low, sexy voice.
“I see you’re still fighting off the masses.”
Karen’s head popped up. It was him. Her mouth went dry. Rivulets of water ran down his golden chest and sculpted abs before disappearing beneath his black trunks. The wet trunks clung to muscled thighs and drew her attention to the impressive bulge resting at his groin. He wiped at his face with a towel, glanced down and chuckled, bringing her out of her lustful thoughts. Gathering herself, she said, “Um, something like that.” His heated gaze burned a slow path from her face, lingered at her breasts and continued down to her exposed legs and back up. Her breath caught.
“Maybe you should find yourself a bodyguard.”
“Are you applying for the position?” she asked flirtatiously.
His brow lifted. Before he could answer, one of the men she had seen him with yesterday called out to him. He held up a hand, signaling for them to wait, then turned back to her and angled his head thoughtfully. “You never know.”
“Hmm, interesting.”
“You have no idea.” Blessing her with another heart-stopping smile, he said, “I’ll see you around.”
“That man is too fine,” she mumbled to herself as he sauntered off. Karen had no idea what had gotten into her, flirting with him like that. But she couldn’t help herself. Something about the man fascinated her. She had always been bold by nature, and when she was growing up, her mouth had gotten her into trouble more times than she could count. Her mother often said, Karen, one of these days your mouth is going to write a check your butt can’t cash! She wondered if this might be one of those times.
* * *
Damian was still chuckling when he reached Troy and Kyle. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d flirted with a woman, but their verbal play stimulated him and filled him with newfound energy. A bodyguard? He’d be more than happy to guard every inch of her sexy body.
“Damian, didn’t we have this discussion yesterday? You need to find a woman who just wants a one-night stand. Don’t waste your time. She’s not interested,” Kyle said.
“She’s not interested? How do you know she’s not interested?” She had seemed to enjoy their exchange as much as he did.
Kyle threw his hands up in exasperation. “Trust me, she’s not. Remember—relationship, permanent, keeper? Not a cruise-week hookup.”
“Kyle, you haven’t even spoken to the woman.” Damian turned to Troy. “I guess you have something to say, too?”
Troy held up his hands in surrender. “Hey, I’ve decided that you’re a lost cause. You’ve smiled more in the last twenty-four hours since meeting her than you have in the last twenty-four months. Any woman who can draw you out of your funk that fast...I say go for it.”
He shot a glare at Kyle, then clapped Troy on the shoulder. “Thanks.”
Kyle folded his arms across his chest. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
“Your warning is duly noted,” Damian drawled. “I’m going to shower. I’ll meet you guys at the grill in half an hour,” he called over his shoulder as he headed for his room.
Once there, he stripped, turned on the shower and stood under the warm stream. While he was washing, his thoughts wandered back to the woman on the deck. Yeah, she did make him smile, and laugh, too. He frowned. He hadn’t even thought to ask her name. Again. “I’ve really been out of the game a long time,” he muttered, shaking his head. Next time, he promised himself.
* * *
Karen woke up Monday morning, read over the list of ship activities and found a morning Zumba class. She didn’t make it to the gym as often as she liked, but so far, things were still holding firm. Since she planned to enjoy herself over the week, she figured she might as well offset some of those calories by taking the exercise class. She arrived on the crowded deck just as the class began, found a spot near the edge and jumped into the routine. Halfway through the session, she had second thoughts about her choice. The muscles in every part of her body burned, and she could barely catch her breath.
“Lord, have mercy! I don’t know what I was thinking, interrupting my sleep for this torture session,” the woman next to her said, breathing heavily. “You can best believe I’m not doing it again. I’m gonna need an extra cocktail later on to make up for this.”
Karen let out a tired laugh. “I hear you.”
When class ended, Karen trudged back to her room and collapsed on the bed with a loud groan. Knowing she needed to shower, she lay there awhile longer, then dragged herself up and into the bathroom. In the shower, she let the hot water stream over her aching muscles until they loosened up. After washing up, she slipped on a robe and pulled out her novel.
When she glanced up and checked the time, she realized it was almost time to meet Janae. Karen discarded the robe and put on her red halter dress. She used the flatiron to style her chin-length hair so that the strands fell in soft layers, framing her face. She told herself she wasn’t taking extra care with her appearance just in case she ran into Mr. Eye Candy again, but she knew it was a lie. At the last minute, she slicked her lips with gloss, stepped into her jeweled sandals and left.
Janae was already waiting when she arrived.
“Girl, I can’t believe you beat me here,” Karen said. “Your sexy husband let you out of his sight?”
“Barely,” she answered with a chuckle. “He told me the rehearsal wouldn’t last more than a couple of hours and that he’d find me as soon as he finished.”
“Well, let’s not waste time. I’m starving, and I know you need to eat. Gotta keep up your strength.” They burst out laughing and headed to the buffet.
There were so many offerings that Karen had a hard time choosing what to put on her plate. She settled on a mixed green salad, baked tilapia with lobster cream and smoked Gouda macaroni and cheese topped with panko bread crumbs. She placed the plate on a table, then went back for a drink.
“I see you got the tilapia, too,” Janae said when she returned.
“That lobster cream smelled heavenly, and I couldn’t resist.” They ate in silence for a few minutes before Karen asked, “Do you miss San Jose and teaching?” Janae had taught a special education class at the same school where Karen taught, but she’d recently relocated to Los Angeles, where Terrence lived.
“Not too much. So far, I like LA. Some days I miss teaching, but Terrence turned one of the rooms in the house into an art studio, and I’ve been painting.”
“Girl, those landscapes are breathtaking. I know you don’t like the spotlight, but
