Rich Love

by Zoe Adams

  She had been in love with the huge panoramic skies of the prairie, yet she still had huge views of the sky sitting on Royce’s yacht and in his airplane.

  She had worked hard at every single thing, but still hadn’t been living a full life. She had known it at the time, and chosen it. Right now, she wondered if she would choose it again. She leaned back in the chaise lounge. Right now, she didn’t have to decide anything, she could just sit enjoy the masculine entertainment in front of her. It would be a while before her feet were back on the ground. Her head was in the clouds. It was so easy to appreciate Royce. He knew how to live, and right now, he was fun to watch.

  Royce and his people kept to a strict routine of mobility and direction every day. Susanna knew that on land there were usually six men in eight-hour shifts around him. On the ship, he was completely untethered by bodyguards, and she could understand why he liked it.

  The ship consisted of a crew of about fifty people. Daily, the crew exercised various maneuvers of fire drills, escape plans, or other forms of security or protection.

  Susanna sat on the solarium deck with a book in her hand. Reading was forgotten as gas guzzling water toys were unloaded from the yacht. All the Jet Skis were flat black and utilitarian. Royce rode one and looked like a sea serpent to be feared. His black hair shook over very wide shoulders, and his frame dominated the Jet Ski.

  Susanna could easily follow Royce’s lumbering self that abused the water toy deep out on the water. There was a boat idling in the distance. They took turns jumping over a floating platform, and Royce jumped and flipped his Jet Ski over the vessel.

  Susanna gasped and leaned forward. He landed with a sputter on the surf and turned around to face the yacht. He stood up and waved at her, and she waved back. It was impossible for her to relax into the seat. He flipped around and was back in the competition that flung themselves into the outer realm of sanity. She was attracted to the garish display of masculinity, and couldn’t stop watching.

  “Pretty impressive, aye?” It was the captain of the ship, and Susanna gave him a quick smile before looking back out to the ocean.

  “Yes,” she agreed. “Have you ever seen any of them get hurt?”

  “Aye,” he growled, “about once a year, around this time.”

  “Don’t say it.” Her stomach dropped.

  The captain put a hand out in protest, before dropping it by his side. “’Tis always the young ones. Don’t worry, Royce hasn’t wrecked, ever.”

  “Never?” Susanna echoed hollowly.

  “I’ve never seen it, and have known Royce his whole life,” the captain grunted into his pipe.

  Susanna recalled a deer accident, and even that was not an official accident, since he had jumped off his motorcycle, and then, of course, gotten up and walked away.

  She was lost in silent contemplation when Royce appeared alongside her on deck.

  “Come on, baby. Jump down and I’ll give you a ride.” His smile was dangerously sexy, and she stood up without a second thought.

  Susanna walked to the edge, and everyone else was forgotten. She slipped the dress over her head and dropped it on the deck. In her nude colored bikini, she straightened her shoulders and puffed out her chest. She climbed the railing, and stood up slowly.

  “Don’t move. I’ll be right there.” Susanna held up her finger, before flipping her hair over her shoulder. With a powerful leap, she dove like a charging eagle. She soared over his head, and their eyes locked as she curled into a painless dive.

  Her head popped out of the water several yards from Royce, and his massive hand hauled her up.

  “You’re trying to scare me to death,” he growled.

  “Oh yeah? What does that feel like?” She smiled at him widely.

  She planted her feet on the skis and tried to pull Royce in the water. He must have given in to her, because she was easily covered in saltwater and flesh. She came up from the choppy surf sputtering into Royce’s soft mouth.

  “This is so much better,” he said.

  They were kissing and groping, while kicking to stay afloat in the water.

  “We still haven’t had sex in the ocean,” Royce commented.

  “That is not going to happen,” she said defensively. “I don’t want you to pound all of those microbes into me.”

  Royce was laughing, and not completely deterred. “Whatever you say, prairie princess.”

  “It is more like, whatever you say, but thanks anyway.” She put up a brave fight when she slipped from his slick grasp.

  “You try so hard,” he accused. “My prairie princess.”

  Susanna rolled her eyes and tried to dunk him under the water.

  “I doubt that a princess would try to do that,” she said, and tried to dunk him again.

  Royce deflected her two palms off his head easily.

  They were laughing, as she said, “A princess wouldn’t do this.”

  She tried to take off on the Jet Ski. Royce had her in his grasp in a wink, and she played dead in the lion’s clutch.

  He growled, “I love it when you give in to me.”

  They were both subdued by the word love, and their frolicking came to an end. Royce climbed hastily atop the watercraft and pulled her on board. They raced the waves as he pulled away from their spectators. Susanna had her arms wrapped around his waist and was holding on dearly.

  He stopped the engine and turned around to face her on the narrow saddle seat. In this position they hardly fit on the seat, so he settled her onto his lap. He smiled smugly at her, and their magnetism bound them in a hot embrace.

  “I have to have you right now. I’m going to lie back on this seat, and let you ride me,” he hissed at her.

  Susanna looked around them, suddenly very alert, but the only thing she noticed was the look of annoyance that crossed over his dark features. She sat back from him and adjusted her bathing suit. She was ready, and so was Royce. She settled slowly into a comfortable position, and they let the ocean do most of the rocking. Slow, passionate, and sensual, the light of day was witness to the love they shared.

  Finished, they remained straddled to the Jet Ski, as the sun began to settle into its descent.

  “Look, there’s a dolphin,” Royce said, and Susanna instinctively lifted her feet from the floorboards. He looked at her in surprise.

  “They’re so big,” she whispered.

  Royce could not let this opportunity pass and said, “Let’s swim with them.”

  They slipped into the water, and Susanna remained in his shadow.

  “Don’t be scared. The dolphins like to be petted,” he said, holding out his hand.

  She held out her hand, and a blubbery dolphin skimmed it. The scarred toughness of skin was a shock. An unsettling image of how that dolphin’s skin had toughened came to mind. Susanna was very aware of all muscular mammals, and that included Royce.

  If Royce could do it, so could she. She petted the dolphin again. This time she forced her hand to stay in place and not jerk back in shock or protest.

  She giggled, and Royce looked at her questioningly.

  She answered him loudly, “Being in the water and stroking something blubbery is totally different from standing on land and tagging a buffalo.”

  Royce smiled at her. “Yes it’s different, but kind of the same.”

  She leveled her chin. “This is nothing the same. Which water animal can you ride like a horse, or fence in like a cow?”

  “Well…” Royce looked around.

  “See?” she admonished lightly. “You can’t do anything when your hands are treading water. The ocean is nothing like the prairie.”

  Royce laughed. “Maybe I will hold onto a dolphin’s fin and catch a ride that way.”

  “You might get pulled all the way to Australia. I know your yacht would be lonely without you.”

  The light playfulness shrunk with the space between them. The yacht was pulling into their vicinity, and the approaching steel blasted a horn. They emerged
from the ocean, pruned and spent.

  The following days were a delectable haze of charming mornings and blistering afternoons. The oversized yacht would soon be approaching South America. The southern route was a drastic change in form. In this dangerous part of the world, they spent their time creating space between themselves and strangers.

  Every day, more changes were adhered to the ship. Royce and Susanna made daily rounds of their floating vessel. Her green thumb was now combined with his engineering. Things like her cold frames were sporadically placed on the decks. Fresh tomatoes and other fruits would soon be normal onboard the ship that already had many futuristic improvements. Royce’s yacht was on its way to being completely self-contained.

  The couple was growing more and more attached. As their relationship matured, Susanna knew she had adjusted herself well to being a rich man’s girlfriend. She loved the balance of true friends and sexual equals.

  The super yacht crossed the southern tip of the world. The next day the sun rose on the other side of Royce’s private cabins. Susanna fell into a complacent life of wealth. Exciting news, like the change in the sun’s pattern, was the talk of the day.

  “Have you been to that island?” Susanna knew she was begging.

  “Yes, but not in a long time. There are some great dirt-biking trails, but the island has been getting more dangerous,” Royce said, weighing the matter.

  “You brought me all of the way here, and I only get to window shop? I don’t think so.” She was ready to dig in her heels.

  Royce looked at her and threw back his head in laughing approval. “All right, matey, prepare to go above decks.”

  He had put on his best pirate drawl, and Susanna giggled.

  She hid under a huge straw hat and applied more sunscreen before adjusting herself under the retreating shade of the umbrella. She soaked in the view with a curious eye.

  A picture-perfect island slid by. Royce was making plans with someone, in another room somewhere.

  She had been secluded with Royce the last couple of days and wasn’t ready for the people swarming the decks. Most of the passengers were men, and it kept her in a mild state of alertness. She was starting to acclimate to Royce’s constant approval, but felt uncomfortable about inviting attention.

  A sundress covered Susanna in her comfortably sexy way. Sitting up, she straightened the skirt back down to her calves, but she left the buttons that Royce insisted be open.

  “Can someone please get me a beer?” she called out to no one in particular. A chilly bottle was instantly deposited in her hand.

  “Thanks,” she said. “What’s your name?”

  “Charles,” said a man in comfortable chinos.

  “Thanks, Charles. Cheers.” Susanna saw him start to walk away and continued nonplussed. “Next time, I can open my own beer.”

  She took a lasting swallow that drained a chilly neck of beer. When the bottle was lowered, the man was gone. The beer was refreshingly crisp, and after a few pulls, she set it aside.

  The island was still far away from the ship. It looked lush and rugged with dark brown sands and tight, green trees. From this distance, it didn’t look to have much habitation. She set down her binoculars and decided to shop for a bigger shade umbrella.

  She finished and set down her computer. When she shut the lid, her watch clanked across the table. She looked at the watch quickly. She still hadn’t figured out how to unclasp the band, and this puzzle had become a source of time consuming interest for her. Royce knew how to grab her wrist and make the watch fling open. On the rare occasions she was allowed to take it off for repairs like the scratched face or missing diamond, she hadn’t been paying attention to how he had pushed those buttons.

  He was a slick man. He could whisk the watch on or off her hand at will. There were other things he could get her to do as well. Susanna bore it in stride. Now, she was learning how to take care of gemstones and gold.

  She looked up as Royce joined her in the shade. He’d brought them each a chilly drink, and took a satisfying sip.

  “What’s up, baby?” she asked.

  “There is a good landing spot that should be pretty easy for us to visit. Think you can wait until tomorrow?” Royce took another sip.

  Susanna’s eyes lit up with relief. “That sounds fun. I’d like to stand on still land for a little while.”

  “Yes, this is a very pretty island. I’ve stopped here before, but not in a long time. It’s been too dangerous to stop by recently, because of piracy, but it does sound fun. We will go tomorrow.”

  “Cool,” Susanna smiled.

  Royce was ready to fill her time. “Let’s get out the clay pigeons.”

  ***

  The next day, they boarded the designated landing craft. It was a mini barge made to land anywhere. Six other people were going with them. They each had maps of the island, extensive combat training, and black utilitarian motorbikes packed down with supplies. They approached the gleaming shoreline, and Royce and Susanna waited on the bench seat until the boat ran aground.

  There were already guards on land who had set up a perimeter. Royce’s party began to exit via landing ramp. Two minutes later Royce drove off the boat.

  Susanna was anchored tightly to the back of Royce’s motorcycle as they drove up the hill and away from the beach. Riding over the top, they came to a road. It was un-kept and rough, making forward progression difficult. Royce drove slowly in the middle of the pack.

  Eventually the motorcycles were pulled off the road and parked. They were at a very secluded hillside that faced the ocean.

  “How’s this?” Royce asked as he kicked the stand out for his bike.

  “It looks great,” Susanna said loudly over the running motors. She was pleased to be on solid ground and stretched her feet before her carefully.

  Royce handed her a bottle of water and said, “This is the life. Jetting around an island and having picnics with a beautiful woman. ”

  “Thanks.” Susanna took the water. “I have to admit, it’s sexy to ride on the back of a motorcycle. I like being your passenger, and you’re a good driver, totally opposite of my first impression of you.” She gave him a kiss. “You make me feel like relaxing.”

  “Really?” Royce growled. “You make me feel invigorated.”

  She was ready to give him what he wanted, and she gave him another kiss.

  Royce pleaded with her, “You’re being bad.”

  She straightened her back and started the separation process. She dropped her leg that was wrapped around him, and once her legs were equally spaced on the ground, she repositioned herself in his arms.

  “You make me so dizzy,” Susanna accused him with a big smile on her face.

  “Yes. It’s all me. It has nothing to do with yachts, airplanes, motorcycles, and money.” Royce happily took the blame.

  She stiffened slightly at the reference of love and money. “Yes, it’s you. Money has to do with business, and what happens in my bed is separate from business.” She gave him a small smile that was accompanied by less of her.

  He put his finger on her chest. “That’s one of the reasons I like you. But you have to admit, we spend a lot of money on sex. Your sexy little outfits cost something. All of those little toys we use aren’t free.”

  “Yes, but that’s just the price of upkeep.” Susanna excused them away. “It’s like comparing deodorant and lube.”

  Royce nodded, but a distant look took his sight over her shoulder.

  She knew what he was thinking. “I’m sorry. I don’t want to stress you out. I know men are way different than girls. Whatever happens, happens. As long as no one is getting hurt or calling the cops.”

  Susanna was proud of herself for establishing a boundary. He always liked to call her ‘his.’ She was happy with that, as long as he remembered she was not his employee. She reasserted her free will and kissed him, then leaned back and smiled. “I don’t want to worry or wonder. Let’s just go for a walk.”

&nb
sp; Royce picked up Susanna’s hand protectively, and they started to walk.

  They came to the top of the hill and looked down. Trees and rock formations dotted the landscape. There was a row of them down one side of the valley, and other trees were placed randomly across the other mountain.

  Below the hill line and slightly to their left was a large shade tree. Beneath it, a familiar black slatted table and its matching two chairs had been unfolded. Royce pulled out the chair for Susanna.

  “This is so romantic,” Susanna purred. “It reminds me of when you came to my house the first time. It’s sexy that you like picnics.”

  He smiled. “Yesterday, when you were calling for drinks on deck, my men were already planning to come ashore. Half of them stayed overnight, to ensure our privacy right now. My guys are very good. I’ve been friends with some of them since grade school. We went to the same schools, and our parents went to the same functions. They come from the same places as me and know what I want.”

  Susanna’s eyes widened. She was so relieved to hear him open up about his life that she didn’t know what to ask first. That did explain why there was so much familiarity between them. She sipped her water while Royce cut a pineapple.

  “My grandmother raised me, and as much as I loved her, I couldn’t wait to get out from under her thumb. I graduated high school when I was sixteen, and had my Master’s degree by the time I was twenty-one. Then I was brought in to my current position, and I’ve been protecting my family’s wealth ever since.”

  “So, you have offices and landing pads in every city?” she asked.

  He laughed. “Not quite every city, but the important ones. I work and travel a lot. I put in adequate time working for my family even when on cruises and vacations.” Royce fed her a morsel of fruit. “I’ve always been focused on procuring as much of the best as possible. Right now, I only want to seduce my future wife.”

  Royce sat back and popped a piece of pineapple in his mouth. He chewed his bite like it was fruit from the gods.