Page 32 of Rotanev
“Do you want to go for a swim?” Nero asked.
This appeared to be one of his favorite pastimes because everything we’d done this week involved water of some kind. Today, he’d flown us down to the Florida Keys on his private jet, just to take the yacht out for the day.
Yesterday was spent at the aquarium, where he’d rattled off more facts about sea life than I knew existed. The man was a walking genius when it came to marine life. Which, I supposed, made sense considering his environmentally inclined occupation.
And the day before that, we’d walked hand in hand along the Hudson. At one point, he’d dared me to go for a swim. Given the March New York City temperatures and the fact that no one ever swam in the Hudson, I’d refused. But today?
“Yeah, I’d love to take a dip.” I had craved the feel of the water since we boarded the yacht. He’d asked me on our date the other night if I liked the ocean. I did. But this was my first time being close enough to one I could actually jump into.
“Go on, then,” he encouraged, waving his hand toward the back of the boat. There were stairs that led directly to the surface of the water.
I shivered in excitement. “Will you join me?”
“I want to watch you first,” he murmured, his voice low and sexy.
Of course he wanted a show. All I had on was a thong bottom. I stood, happy to give him what he desired, and swayed my hips as I walked toward the edge. I leaned over just enough to admire the crystal-clear water below. We were too far out for me to see the bottom. The deep blue quality reminded me of Nero’s eyes, making my heart skip a beat.
I had it bad.
Very, very bad.
But who could blame me? The man practically devoured me at every given moment, unleashed a passion within me I could hardly believe was even possible, and flew me to freaking Florida just to enjoy the sun for the day.
Talk about a dream life.
I shook my head, needing to clear my thoughts.
Best way to do that? Jump.
And so I did.
Bliss engulfed me from head to toe, causing a laugh to bubble out of my lungs as I surfaced in the smooth waves. I sculled my hands through the water to propel myself in a circle, loving the way my body seemed to control the essence around me.
Oh, I missed swimming. I used to visit the campus aquatic center a few times a week just to get a few laps in for exercise. An old coach once called me a natural. I just knew how to move through the water without thinking, my body automatically going through the motions as if I were walking.
Nero sauntered over in his swim trunks, his sunglasses hiding his gorgeous eyes. “Enjoying yourself?”
I whirled in response and tried to splash him, but he stood too far back.
A single eyebrow rose. “Are you trying to flirt with me, little siren?”
“Maybe.” I allowed my legs to float upward, pushing onto my back and revealing my breasts to his view. “Is it working?”
He removed his bottoms, revealing his heavy arousal. “Maybe,” he said, repeating my choice term.
The ocean seemed to part for him as he executed a perfect dive off the back of the yacht. He came up beside me with a shake of his head, sending water flying off his wild strands.
I shifted to my stomach, swimming along beside him with a few deft kicks of my legs.
“One might think this is your natural habitat, Kailiani,” he murmured, moving with the expert ease of someone used to playing in the waves.
“You’re not the first to say that to me,” I admitted, picking up my pace for fun to see if he could keep up.
He did while effortlessly keeping his head above water like me. Not that we were truly racing. We were merely using our legs and hands to tread water on our sides. A little light exercise. And fun.
“A swim coach once tried to recruit me for a youth swimming team,” I said, thinking back on the fond memory. “I’d spent most of that summer playing in the pool with my friend. The one you saw the other night, actually. It was my first time in the water—aside from baths and showers, I mean—but I picked up on it quickly. The coach I mentioned, well, he said I was a natural.”
“So why didn’t you join the team?” he asked, his gaze still hidden behind his glasses. I had no idea how he’d managed to keep those on his head when he’d entered the water, but his question weighed heavily on my mind, distracting me from pondering it further.
