Page 31 of The Billionaire's Catch

She was really losing it. She ran shaking fingers through her sopping locks as her heart lowered from a thunder. Someone hadn’t grabbed at her, something had. Her bikini top had caught on the rocky wall, and it snagged when she passed too close. Cursing wild imaginations, she grasped the fabric and pulled.

It didn’t come out.

She pulled again, and suddenly Snap! as the bikini loosened around her. She fell back, and it came completely off. And suddenly her breasts were saying hello to the world.

Not good. Not good. Not good. Not good. Not good. Not good. Not good. Not good.

With one hand over her breasts, she grabbed the tiny yellow scrap of fabric, but the bikini was still firmly caught on the jagged rock. She tried once more. A ripping splintered the cave, and again she fell back with a splash. The good news: the garment had come free in her hand. The bad news: it had ripped completely in half.

So much for swimming. Dara attempted to don the top, but it was like trying to cover a grapefruit with a bubble gum wrapper. Covering herself as best she could, she waded to the cave opening with an awkward gait. Then… a splash.

She froze. Unlike the bikini incident, the splash definitely didn’t have artificial origins. The cadence of cutting laps through the water betrayed the uninvited guest to her impromptu skinny dipping. Holding her hands over her breasts, she peeked around the corner. There was a person, a man judging by his great breadth, swimming through the pool with ease. She squinted, edged forward to get a closer look–

She gasped and jumped back into the cave.

No. Absolutely not. She couldn’t be this unlucky. But reality laughed at her.

Jason Sterling was in the pool.

The strokes stopped. “Is someone there?” he called. Although he wasn’t nearly close enough to hear her labored breathing, Dara involuntarily held her breath. Her heart thumped so loud it sounded like a marching band drum. A second passed, but he didn’t make another sound.

Was there any chance of escape? A thousand options rang through her mind, but most of them involved her somehow turning invisible. How could she sneak past Jason without him seeing far too much of her?

The swimming hadn’t resumed, so she took a few slow, watery steps toward the cave opening. Bolstered by the quiet journey, she traveled further, emerging from the darkened cave. Jason was nowhere in sight.

“Gotcha!”

She pivoted and came face to face – or rather naked chest to naked chest – with Jason.

She opened her mouth. And closed it. And opened it again. Then a little voice reminded her she was still standing, topless, in front of him. “What are you doing?” she gasped, frantically covering herself. She splashed down into the water, but the crystal clear liquid hid little.

Jason’s eyes blazed. “What am I doing? What are you doing? I thought a reporter was spying on me again, so I came around the other end of the cave. But it’s you and you’re...” He stopped. For once, she’d rendered him completely speechless, as he took in her unclothed body, the naked skin she couldn’t hide. Like a hungry predator, his gaze sharpened. She returned the scrutiny, staring at the black swim trunks barely hiding his magnificent form.

Focus! “I’m not spying on you. I was just swimming.”

He folded his arms across his bare chest, flexing naked muscles. His chest was tanned and broad, his muscles well-defined. He cleared his throat, snagging her attention once more. “Alone? Naked?”

“No!” she protested. “Well, yes.”

His eyes darkened.

“I mean I was swimming alone, but I wasn’t naked.”

His gaze wandered, stopping where two pink tinged breasts could be seen dancing under the waterfall’s waves. Her nipples puckered.

His eyes turned onyx. “Do you know how dangerous it is to swim like that in a public pool? Anyone could’ve seen you.” His voice was rising in volume, in a rare burst of true emotion. “They could’ve taken advantage of you.”

The only person she feared seeing her was him. Not that she was afraid of him taking advantage of her. No, she was one bad judgement call from jumping out and tracing that delicious chest. “It’s not my fault. My top ripped on the rocks. I was just about to leave when you snuck up on me like some ninja spy.”

He stepped closer, looked down, jerked his eyes back up. “You have no idea what you do to a man looking like that.” Why was he so upset? Was he that concerned for her safety?

Her throat dried. “I will endeavor not to lose my bikini in the future.” She meant to sound defiant, instead the words came out breathless. She gestured to the side of the pool, where her fluffy white towel awaited. Lifting her chin, she said primly, “Would you please get my towel?”

For a second, he didn’t move, and she wondered if he was going to deny her request. Then slowly he turned and sauntered to the exit, emerging from the pool like the king of the sea. Water dripped from his silky hair down his muscular back, over powerful legs defined by strength. He grasped the towel, watching her every second of the journey. With one hand (insufficiently) covering her breasts, she pushed up, reached for it.

Only he held it away. “Come out first.”

“You’ve got to be kidding.”

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