by Lynn Turner
“Serves you right,” Emanuela said, wrinkling her nose at him. “Ugh, I can’t wait to take a nice, hot shower.”
Finn looked her up and down.
“Alone.” She smacked him again.
****
The speedboat ride from Phuket to the smaller, secluded island of Koh Yao Noi was an experience in itself. Stunning sheer limestone karsts towered over them on every side, jutting from the emerald waters of Phang Nga Bay. Finn documented everything he could on video, promising to dust off the footage in fifty years to remind Emanuela of how much she loved him when he was young and hot.
The boutique resort was built into a mountain, a hideaway on a remote part of the island overlooking the bay. Their open-air room was high on the magnificent hill, nestled among tropical trees with the most gorgeous view of the bay. Finn was sold on the room when Emanuela mentioned there was a Jacuzzi. And there it was, built into the private terrace with a direct view of one of the island’s mighty limestone cliffs across the bay.
They dropped everything, clearing away the rose petals and “Happy Honeymoon” spelled out with twigs, and falling into the luxurious bed together. Comfortably shielded by mosquito netting, they drifted off to the distant call of the hornbill. They awakened many hours later after nightfall, recovered from the fatigue of a full day’s travel—and ravenous. Finn arranged a romantic candlelit dinner on the beach, complete with soft torchlight and table service. They stuffed themselves on seafood salad, spicy Massaman curry, and fragrant Tom Yam Goong, finishing off with local fruit and plenty of champagne.
“I can’t move,” Emanuela moaned.
“That was amazing.” Finn gazed at Emanuela, who looked very much like a satisfied Cheshire cat.
“Have I told you how beautiful you look?”
“Not for an hour now,” she said. “I almost thought you’d forgotten.”
He chuckled, leaning back to take everything in. “We could move here. Build a house on one of these hills.”
“We’d have to buy a hill first. I guess we can afford it now, with our additional ten percent stake in SimLife Laboratories…”
His heart thudded heavily in his chest. “Emmi?”
“I figured now was a good time to tell you.” Her lips parted in an elated smile.
“Philip?”
“Mmhmm.”
“Wow.”
“I know, but it’s not a consolation, Finn. We earned it. You earned it.”
“I don’t know what to say,” he said, still reeling. “This is huge.”
“It is, but you don’t have to say anything right now.” She stood and walked over to him then, sitting in his lap. “Finn?”
He rubbed her back softly, his questioning eyes lifting to hers.
“What did you say to my dad the night you two met?”
That night came to mind and he smiled, meeting her probing eyes with his.
“That he didn’t need to worry about you,” he said. “I told him I understood his fear, but I’m strong. You’re strong. Whatever happens, we can handle it together, like him and your mom. I told him I admire them, the love they have and the strength they’ve shown in spite of everything. If I could be half the husband and father he is, then we’d be okay.”
“You said all that?”
“And meant it.”
Emanuela lowered her parted lips and moved them softly, slowly over his. She pulled away before they could get carried away, reaching for the camera atop the table. After fussing with it a bit and enduring his chuckles at her expense, she finally got the damn thing on and adjusted for darkness.
“Who are you with, baby?” she said in a singsong voice.
Finn’s lips twitched. “My love.”
“And where are we?”
“Paradise.”
****
Finn lay on his side, naked but for his boxers, which hung low on his hips. His head was propped up on one hand to gaze out into the purple night sky and wait for Emanuela to join him. She went to the bathroom to freshen up a little in spite of his willingness to ravish her just the way she was. He wasn’t waiting long before faintly familiar music began to play. Its distinctly seductive tone tingled his spine. She finally emerged, and he nearly choked. His eyes took their fill of her hair, which was fuller in the humid air, her sultry dark eyes, and the expanse of creamy brown skin in nothing but red sequined panties and extraordinary golden body ornaments. His mouth went dry at her wicked grin, and he spoke only one word. “Tassels.”
A word about the author…
Lynn Turner is dedicated to writing stories that normalize diversity and celebrate what it means to be imperfectly human. She enjoys romance, historical fiction, science fiction, and anything with a healthy dose of travelogue and food. She and her husband share their home in California with their two extraordinary children, and a collection of books that has outgrown its shelves.
Thank you for purchasing
this publication of The Wild Rose Press, Inc.
If you enjoyed the story, we would appreciate your letting others know by leaving a review.
For other wonderful stories,
please visit our on-line bookstore at
www.thewildrosepress.com.
For questions or more information
contact us at
[email protected].
The Wild Rose Press, Inc.
www.thewildrosepress.com
Stay current with The Wild Rose Press, Inc.
Like us on Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/TheWildRosePress
And Follow us on Twitter
https://twitter.com/WildRosePress
Also available from The Wild Rose Press, Inc.
Saving Shelby Summers
by Margaret Sutherland
http://a.co/bKzRrNA
Australian Shelby Summers struggles with traumas from her past. She’s rescued from death by a mysterious stranger, but is her luck about to change or will the past prevent her from living a life filled with love?
Widower Nathan Monroe hopes to get a fresh start for himself and his young daughter when he leaves his rural veterinary practice and moves to the city. Dealing with the challenges of a new job, a new home, and a traumatized four-year-old are more than he can handle alone.
Maybe a dramatic meeting will be just the catalyst each needs to heal from the scars of the past and work together to build a new life.
Also Available
Need You Now
by Dei Araujo
http://a.co/8YoqEuP
Nothing compared to the horror Amaranth Wallace felt upon discovering her babysitter beaten and her autistic son missing. To get him back, she must put all her faith in her ex-lover, the very man she vowed to avoid forever.
One steamy and mind-blowing night with Amaranth and Nicholas was hooked. But when she chose his half-brother over him, Nicholas turned his back on her and love. Now fate has brought them back together, and Nicholas must revisit old wounds that run deep with the woman who broke his heart.
Can Amaranth and Nicholas put their torrid history aside to find her son and get a chance at love?