Paradise Point

by Dana Volney

  Her hand grasped his before he could move. “Stay?” she whispered.

  How could he say no? Adam nodded in the dark and she scooted over to let him into the bed. He lay on his back and stared up at the ceiling. The length of their arms rubbed and smashed into each other and there was nothing in the world that could’ve torn him away from her side. He covered her hand with his. She interlaced their fingers and his body relaxed. He listened for the sound of her breathing and closed his eyes.

  As he drifted off, her head snuggled into his chest, her arm glided over his midsection, and her leg lightly captured his as she rolled on her side.

  Adam pleaded with the ceiling and whichever powers that be that were teasing him with her touch, then sneaked a sideways peek. He’d been lucky enough to never experience real torture before, but he guessed this is what it felt like. If this was some sort of trick and she wasn’t asleep, she was a damn fine actress.

  Her relaxed, peaceful face and soft features were beautiful—especially when nestled against his body.

  If he was going to remember anything about this night, it wouldn’t be the fiasco with the boat. It would be the first time he really acknowledged to himself that he had feelings for Liv. Real feelings—more than skin deep. The need she conjured in him perpetuated a force he’d never dealt with before. He didn’t know how to proceed. Could he proceed? In reality, no. She was the boss’s daughter and that meant hands off for sure.

  He wanted to possess her and be possessed by her. Liv didn’t subscribe to average in any way—even the simple act of sleeping, actual sleeping, enticed him more than any woman ever had. And it scared the bejesus out of him.

  Maybe he couldn’t have saved his parents or Vam, but he could save Liv—and he had. He’d been there. He’d always be there.

  He drifted into the best sleep he’d had in years.

  • • •

  Liv rustled as the light alerted her to the morning. I didn’t realize my bed was so soft. She snuggled into the covers and then her brain caught up to reality. I’m not alone. Her eyes shot open and she looked at the body she laid nearly on top of—Adam.

  She stared up at Adam from her perch on his shoulder. The rush of tingling in her body was instant and intense. How could she be automatically turned on by a sleeping man? His arm responded to her thoughts by holding her tighter. How did I get here? Every memory from the previous night flashed into her mind, including Adam’s intensity and their kiss. I kissed him.

  She closed her eyes. The kiss had been toe curling. More satisfying than she’d thought it would be. More satisfying than any kiss she’d ever experienced before. Liv had wanted more—so much more than Adam had been willing to give. The sting of rejection caught the back of her throat. A longing, an undescribed feeling, gnawed. She couldn’t put her finger on the pull that had accompanied their kiss and still prickled her skin. Did he feel something more, too?

  Probably not, she scolded herself. Come on, Barnette, he’s the one who pushed you off. Her skin splayed across Adam turned to wet snow. And she’d been the one to ask him to stay with her last night after waking up from her nightmare—the horribly realistic dream hadn’t been about the boat, not entirely; it involved Adam dying. She’d watched herself with his lifeless body in her arms—which is what caused the scream that brought her out of her sleep last night. He didn’t want me to kiss him and he didn’t want to be in the bed with me.

  Should she duck out? Did she have anywhere to go? Her head pounded. His natural spicy scent allowed her to override her mind and fall back into rhythmic breathing with him. She could really use some more sleep, and Adam didn’t seem to be in a hurry to go anywhere. What would it harm?

  Just as she drifted into a semiconscious state, Adam stirred. “Good morning.” He kissed the top of her head.

  “Good morning.”

  Adam’s kiss sank warmly into her hair. His skin shifted smoothly on hers, tingling spots she never knew could tingle. If she didn’t get out of his bed soon, she would make choices she wouldn’t later be able to blame on being under the influence of anything but Adam’s sex appeal.

  “Sleep well?” he asked, not releasing her.

  “Yeah. I fell right to sleep … once you were here.” Liv clenched her lip between her teeth at her honesty.

  The fact that she managed to sleep next to him all through the night jarred her to her very core.

  Liv couldn’t breathe. She needed air. She sat up and glanced down. What am I wearing? Oh right, Adam’s clothes. They hung loosely on her. Her pajamas had been soaked. Crap.

  “You okay?” His hand splayed on her back and he rubbed her so tenderly, she froze. His touch invited her to melt into him; for a moment she contemplated giving in.

  “Yeah … ah … I need to go get ready.” She turned. “Can I go back home?”

  His eyes swept over her body, taking in every inch. She knew she had fabric covering her body, but she glanced down again just to make sure. The way his gaze seared her body, she wouldn’t have bet money on that fact. I never asked if he had x-ray vision or any other super powers. Liv kind of wanted to stick around now and find out.

  In the light of sun, her face devoid of makeup, in his baggy clothes and the morning still on her face, this wasn’t her best showing. Great way to make an impression, Barnette. She fiddled with the covers and he sat up next, moving away his hot hand. She tried not to grimace or ask for his touch back.

  “I’ll go with you.” He swung his feet around the edge of the lush bed.

  “You don’t—”

  “Your protesting won’t help anything.” He smiled and his disheveled hair complemented his lazy morning grin as he followed her, still wearing just his boxers and T-shirt across the dock.

  I can’t believe I was in bed with him just a few seconds ago.

  He checked out the ties, both around her boat and inside. Satisfied for the moment, they agreed to inspect for damage after the initial work at the marina had been done for the day. She sensed his hesitation to leave her, but he made her promise to call if she needed anything and invited her back for another night if she wasn’t comfortable being alone yet. She said no, but the truth rested somewhere between wanting to jump into his arms and jump into his bed.

  She missed caring for another person. A boyfriend. She hadn’t had that in—well, she couldn’t remember. She tried to think of a name for Adam’s actions so she could add it to the list she kept of the perfect man. Caring? No, that term spoke too general. Attentive? Adam had been so commanding and had taken over the situation, without being asked and without hesitation—definitely attentive.

  Damn, a military man is sexy. Navigating waves, wind, and rain and a drowning person was not something your average Joe knew how to do. Maybe the dating pool she wanted to swim in required a higher level of man. Liv chose a yellow sundress lined with white lace that hit just above her knee, slipped into metallic sandals, and braided her hair to hang over her shoulder in the front. She may have work to do, but today she needed to feel like a lady.

  I’m not dressing up for him. She warned herself to shut up and sought out voices at the marina that would drown her own out.

  • • •

  This whole mess bothered Adam. The storm had been bad, but it shouldn’t have been enough to free Liv’s houseboat from the dock. His morning digging had confirmed his sinking suspicions. The ropes on the dock hadn’t snapped and the tie downs weren’t pulled from the fiberglass. When he’d inspected closer, the ropes had been precisely cut and left hanging off the dock. Someone had maliciously screwed with them.

  Adam opened the program Willamina used to run the security system they’d installed and ran through the video. He started with that morning and watched in reverse. He didn’t believe in playing guessing games by looking at random times.

  He viewed himself pulling Liv out of the water and a chill washed over his body—that had been the most horrifying moment of his life. The screen showed no sign of Liv’s boat, and then i
t slowly came into view. Adam could barely see Liv go overboard; had he not been watching for her, he would’ve missed the flash of skin disappear into the water.

  Adam watched in rewind as the boat drifted back to the dock, slowing down the speed of the video. He didn’t want to miss any detail as he waited to see what he knew in his gut to be true. Bam. The culprit knelt at the ropes and made quick work of destroying their security, then shuffled into the night. Within seconds, the man had almost killed Liv. I’m one lucky bastard to have come home right then. Adam couldn’t bring himself to consider the what-if scenario.

  Adam replayed the video to focus on his new favorite mystery man. He leaned into the screen and watched the movement frame by frame. The hooded criminal kept his head down, except when he turned to leave. Adam froze the screen and squinted. He studied the man’s features. Where had he seen this face before? Adam sat back on his couch and closed his eyes. Vam’s pictures. His eyes shot open and he reached for the thumb drive he’d placed on the end table. This was one of the men Vam had been taking pictures of. Apparently she’d noticed a lot of people coming and going from Neil’s boat and didn’t like the cut of their jib.

  The black bag.

  You bet your ass he’d recovered the bag after Liv told him its new location, even if she wasn’t aware of that. Yet. Sure enough, it had contained a top-grade sniper rifle, bullets, and three keys. Adam had contacted one of this CIA buddies and they were running the barrel striations to see if it matched any crimes on record. Adam didn’t need to wait for the results. He knew it would. He’d withheld the information about where he’d come across the rifle. One step at a time.

  He copied the image of the no-good dirtbag who had intentionally put Liv’s life in danger and emailed it to Willamina. If this guy was in a database, she’d find him. Adam also decided to send her the entire contents of the thumb drive. While she was at it, she may as well search for all their identities.

  He continued the video in rewind and paused when another unwanted visitor on their dock came into view. The time lined up with Neil’s afternoon visit. He must’ve come down here when he left the marina. Adam’s muscles tensed and he balled his fist at his side. Neil moved way up on his hate meter. He watched as the scumbag snooped around Liv’s boat, opened the secret compartment, and pounded on the dock at the emptiness. Neil then proceeded to batter Liv’s door, but she didn’t answer.

  Anger rose through Adam’s chest and tightened his muscles. He should’ve been monitoring the cameras. Why had he installed them if he wasn’t going to use them?

  Because he hadn’t taken Neil to be a serious threat. Big mistake. Or at least, whomever Neil was messed up with should be taken seriously.

  Neil was her former boss, right? Adam remembered hearing something about where she worked before the marina. He opened the intel program on his phone and looked at his watch. Tomorrow it would be time to pay Neil a visit and talk in a little more detail.

  • • •

  As the summer sun set, Liv and Adam got to work retying Silver Lining properly. Liv decided a hurricane could come through and her home would still be exactly where Adam had tied it.

  “I’d really feel better if you stayed with me for one more night. Just to be sure.” He stood with his hands on his lean hips and shook his head at his work. His tan muscles glistened in the setting light, and Liv’s body sang out for him. She pictured him sweeping her up in his arms and having his way with her. She bit her lower lip as her gaze made her way back up to his electrifying brown eyes. She couldn’t help but stare like he radiated sex—because, damn, Adam Lark did. Everything about him, every meticulous movement he made, set a fire in her; one only he could put out, and she wanted him to. Even then she wasn’t sure her cravings for him would ever be satisfied. Her body hummed so loudly she thought for sure he’d hear.

  “You’re not positive we did it right?” She took a deep breath to settle herself down and shifted her feet on the dock. “Do we need to redo something?”

  “No…”

  “Then?” A coy smile crossed her face. “You’re just trying to get me into your bed again?” Part of her prayed he’d say yes.

  “Hey, you’re the one who wanted me to stay last night. I was perfectly happy with the couch.”

  “Did you sleep well?” She hadn’t asked that morning. She could feel the memory of his hard body under her fingertips. She almost reached out, but instead crossed her arms over her yellow sundress.

  He nodded, watching her, and the lines on the sides of his lips started to curve up. “Best night’s sleep in a while. Maybe you’d be doing me a favor by staying tonight.”

  She couldn’t help but laugh. Once she started laughing, she couldn’t stop. It felt good to be spirited. “You want to be nap buddies?”

  He caught her joke, but didn’t seem to find it nearly as funny.

  “I’m obviously Joey.” His hand pointed to his chest and then in her direction. “If you want to be Ross, that’s cool. I won’t judge.” He shrugged slightly and flashed a knee-buckling smile in her direction.

  “I think I’ll be fine.” Her giggles subsided and she thought about retracting her false bravery. “But thanks.”

  “Okay. I don’t lock the door. If you want, you’re always welcome to change your mind. Just come over.”

  He disappeared into his cabin. The ball lay in her court. Liv took one last glance at their knot handiwork and went inside to deal with the carnage from the storm. She straightened and cleaned her home until she couldn’t fully open her eyelids. She crawled into bed purposely exhausted. She didn’t need to have any energy to lie awake and meditate on her life or Adam’s rock-hard body on top of her.

  Liv awoke in a pool of cold sweat and a hoarse throat. Her breath came fast and heavy as her eyes darted in the darkness. She put a shaky hand up to her chest. The other fussed with her hair out of nervous habit. She frantically searched her mind. What was going on? The same vivid images from last night’s nightmare haunted her again. This time her mind had built more into the scenario: blood. Adam’s blood everywhere. Chills rushed over her body.

  She moved her hands over her face. Wet. Was she crying? Oh, for fuck’s sake. She dried her face and slammed her head back on the pillow. She’d caught him looking at her today. Really looking. Not trying to hide it at all. His glances were soft and they locked with hers every time, not diverting like he had in the previous weeks. Her stomach knotted at his bold, brown eyes.

  Could her dream be some type of foreshadowing? Holy crap. Was he okay? That’s insane. He’s fine. I’m just rattled from the storm and Ken and Neil. She inhaled slowly. I’m fine. He’s fine. Right? Many restless hours later, her nagging mind still battled itself. That’s it! She whipped off her covers. She’d just sneak over to Adam’s quickly and verify he, indeed, lay breathing. Then, she’d get a good night’s sleep. Liv covered her cotton slip nightie with her robe, leaving her feet bare. She didn’t want her sandals swatting her foot to wake him up.

  • • •

  Adam heard a door latch and froze; he continued his steady breathing, kept his eyes closed and didn’t move. His ears listened for any motion. The steps fell lightly and he recognized them. Liv. A swirl of excitement started deep in his gut.

  The smell of coconut hit him. He smiled to himself. She’d come to him. She’d climb into his bed and wrap her arms around him, of sound mind and body. He’d deal with the consequences later. If he didn’t have Liv soon he’d go insane and be unfit for work anyway. He almost wished he’d been surprised by her lips sweeping over his—he’d take what he could get though. He hadn’t been able to stop thinking about their kiss.

  He heard her stop and then a creak in the doorway. What is she waiting for? He worked at keeping his breathing steady. He strained to hear her thoughts. Instead, his ears picked up the sounds of feet shuffling away. She’s leaving?

  “Liv?” His whisper carried across the room. He couldn’t let her just leave.

  “Yeah, hi.
” She matched his quiet tone. “I didn’t mean to wake you.”

  “It’s okay.” He propped himself up on his elbow to face her. “Come on in.”

  As soon as his words hit his ears, he regretted them. What the hell was that? She’d been leaving, not intending to stay. He cringed. Her hesitation hung in the air.

  “Now I just feel like I’m imposing.” Her tone didn’t reflect a solid no.

  “Nonsense.” His voice confident, but his gut turned. “I was worried about you anyway. Now we can both get some decent sleep.” Hopefully his reasoning would be enough to push her over the edge and give in.

  He watched her shadow move toward him and his body relaxed. He scooted over. Not too far—he wasn’t that much of a Boy Scout. Besides, if she ended up like last night, he’d be pushed off the bed if he moved too far over. She positioned herself near him on her back and squirmed in place.

  “Comfy?” he asked.

  “I fidget.” Liv gave an airy, one breath laugh. “Sorry.”

  “No worries. I can sleep through anything.” If I want. He wondered if this would be one of those nights. Or, maybe, just maybe, Liv didn’t have sleep on her mind. He hoped beyond hope that ending their kiss last night hadn’t closed that door permanently. He wanted to feel Liv’s lips on his again, to kiss her soft skin and feel her body under him. Her summer scent consumed him as they both lay on their backs. Neither moved.

  “Good night.” He strained his neck down to the top of her head, just as she moved her head to look at him. His lips clumsily collided with the side of her eye. He gasped in surprise “Sorry.”

  Still, he kept his face near hers—unwilling to move away from the only chance he may ever have to kiss her again.

  She let out a faint chuckle. “No problem.” She rubbed her lips together.

  Through the darkness their gaze held. Adam leaned down, decisively, and met his lips to hers. He worked to control his eagerness. But in one breath Liv deepened their kiss. He ran his hands over her soft thigh, cupping her firmly round butt and bringing it closer to his body. Her body felt cool to his touch and every part of him that rubbed against her burned. A low moan escaped from her lips and his desire for her hardened. She put her arms around his neck and he rolled them so he lay on the bottom. He didn’t trust himself to do a very good job of stopping. He didn’t know how far this was going to go, but he’d halted their kiss once and hadn’t forgiven himself since. He’d let her control a lust-filled encounter this time. For now.