shut tight and Sebastian’s strong arms still tight around her, she surfaced, gasping for breath. “What the—”
“Now relax.”
“Relax? You’ve half drowned me!” She struggled, trying to get free of his arms.
She looked up at his face as he brushed a strand of hair off her cheek. His expression was serious, his touch deft and careful.
Then their eyes met and her stomach did a weird leaping thing.
Being held close against his warm, wet chest felt anything but safe.
He trod water, holding them both up. His powerful legs created a swell, while his embrace seemed effortless, and strangely soothing.
“Let your legs float. I won’t let go. I promise.”
His deep voice tickled her wet ear.
She fought the ripple of pleasure it summoned. “Why would I believe you after you already dunked me?”
“The Caspian royal family never breaks a promise. Our motto is Honor Omnia Vincit.”
“Honor conquers all, huh?”
“Engraved on my heart.”
He flexed a brawny bicep in her face. There, scrolled into the pattern winding over his arm, were the words he’d spoken.
She tried to brush off the sensations sneaking through her. “I’ve got news for you. Your heart isn’t really on your sleeve. It’s an expression.”
Sebastian’s mouth creased into a smile. “Maybe I should dunk you.” He dipped her a couple of inches.
Her stomach tightened, then softened when he brought her gently back to the surface. Water played over her stomach, echoing the ripple of arousal inside it. “It’s a beautiful tattoo. Does every man in the family get one?”
Sebastian glanced down at it. The pattern of stylized leaves traced the swell of his muscles to ring his upper arm just below the shoulder. “I’ve had it so long I forget it’s there. But no, it’s not traditional.” His eyes sparkled with humor. “My mom almost died when she saw it. I got it when I was sixteen after I went to an Eric Clapton concert in London with some friends.”
Tessa laughed. “That’s such a…regular guy thing to do.”
“Who says I’m not a regular guy, as well as a prince?” He raised a brow.
Somehow that stopped her in her tracks. Not that she was making any tracks, since Sebastian still held her fast in his arms and her feet bobbed near the surface of the water. Royal trappings aside, Sebastian was just a guy. With a mind and heart and feelings. Like everyone else.
Like her.
She ignored the funny sensation in her gut. “It’s lucky I was always strapped for cash as a teen or I might have the New York Knicks emblazoned on me somewhere. What made you decide to get the family motto?”
Sebastian looked at the scrolled words. “Caspia and its people are my team. I might have occasionally cheered for, say, Manchester United, but my heart is always in Caspia, and as you’ve observed, I wanted to wear it on my sleeve. Still do.”
His eyes shone with a mix of passion and humor that made her heart squeeze.
How had their relationship gone overnight from five years of formal and professional relations to half-naked conversations and underwater encounters?
In some ways it was her wildest fantasy come true. The man she’d admired and mooned over for so long was actually teasing and flirting with her. It was hard not to be flattered.
And excited.
Sebastian adjusted his grip, sliding his strong arms under her. “Let your head rest. Let go. The water will carry you.”
“I think you’re doing most of the work.”
“I wouldn’t call it work.” His deep voice had a playful tone.
But what was he playing at? They both knew this flirtation couldn’t go anywhere. Not anywhere sensible, at least.
She shot him a challenging glance. “Me, either. I have phone calls to make.”
“First you must heal and recover. Hydrotherapy has been recognized for thousands of years as a powerful curative.” He shifted one of the hands supporting her torso and splashed a few drops of water on her hot skin.
She swallowed hard, trying to crush the sensations swelling inside her. “You should open a spa. Ancient healing therapies seem to be a specialty of yours.”
“Excellent idea. Why didn’t I think of that? See how valuable you are to me?”
“Oh, stop it.”
“Stop what?” His expression was all innocence.
“Buttering me up so I’ll stay and work for you.”
Or do whatever else it is that you have in mind.
“Can you blame me?”
“Well, no. I am efficient and organized.” She raised a brow. “And I do my best to present a professional appearance. Though that seems to have fallen by the wayside today…” She glanced at her bare stomach. Drops of seawater sparkled on skin that had already started to tan. A result of Sebastian’s unthorough sunblock application.
What was he doing with his fingers? The pads of his fingertips played her waist like a piano, dancing over her until her insides hummed like vibrating strings.
Her nipples poked against the fabric of her scanty top. Heat and moisture gathered between her thighs, making her glad her bikini bottom was already damp.
Sebastian lowered his head so that his breath heated her ear. “As you point out, you are perfect. Which is exactly why you can’t leave. I won’t let you.”
She shivered, the force of his words sinking in.
I don’t want to leave.
She writhed slightly, trying to regain control of her body. The sensations swimming through her were startling and unfamiliar. Warm water swirled around her while the breeze tickled her bare skin above it. Sebastian’s powerful hands held her crushed against his muscled chest. His musky scent wound through the salty tang in the air, threatening to overwhelm her senses.
Suddenly she was panting, gasping for breath, struggling against the firm hold of Sebastian’s arms and the ache of her unwelcome arousal. “I have to stand!” She shoved against him with her elbow.
“It’s too deep.”
Flailing in the water, she started to panic. Frantic kicking had freed her from Sebastian, but now, head reeling and body throbbing, she couldn’t seem to remember how to swim.
“It’s okay, Tessa, I won’t
