Page 53 of The Billionaire Offer
“Sure, but we shouldn’t take any chances.” I squeezed a dollop of the thick white cream into my hands and smeared it onto her back and shoulders. Her skin was warm under my palms, and the sound of her soft moan as I started massaging it in made me wish we were closer to the time we’d be going back to the hotel.
Especially when she returned the favor and made me take off my T-shirt to do it. I wanted to point out that I couldn’t burn through the fabric and that she really only needed to get the back of my neck and my arms, but then her hands were on me and I didn’t care.
Dangerously close to asking her if she wanted to risk a quickie in the restroom below deck, I sighed when she pulled away and handed me back my shirt. “There you go. We should be fine for the rest of the day now.”
“I’m glad you’re fine,” I grumbled. “Why is it that applying sunscreen has to be an erotic experience? It should just be about not turning into a tomato and getting sunstroke.”
She chuckled, glancing down at the tent in my pants. “I think any activity that involves us touching each other like that would become an erotic one. If it makes you feel any better, if I had your equipment, it’d be just as obvious on me right now.”
I groaned, covering my face with one of my hands and shaking my head at her when she laughed. “That makes it worse, not better, but thanks. What do you say we get this guy to turn the boat around so we can go back to the hotel?”
Before she could respond, the guy in question came up to us carrying a tray of local delicacies in one hand and a cooler filled with ice and some local beers in the other. He beamed at us as he set it down, motioning toward it proudly.
“My wife made these for you,” he said. “Enjoy. There is more if you want it.”
“Well, now I feel like an asshole for wanting him to take us back,” I mumbled as we watched him walk away, still beaming and whistling softy as he went back to the steering wheel.
Serenity eyed the plate of food he’d brought us, plucking two beers out of the cooler and handing one over to me. “There. That should help you cool down. We’ll be back at the hotel soon enough. We can’t spend all our time here in bed, however much we might want to. Those snacks look really interesting. Which one do you want to try first?”
I pointed at a kebab-looking thing, really impressed with the taste once I got over the strange spices my palate wasn’t yet accustomed to. Mentally moving sex to the backburner, reluctantly, I tucked in with her and found that the man had a reason to be so proud of his wife’s cooking.
Serenity and I slowly worked our way through the platter he’d presented us with, polishing it all off while he drew our attention to the landmarks we were coming up on. Eventually, I realized it would have been fucking stupid to have turned back.
The cruise was everything I could’ve asked for and more, and we even met the guy’s wife when we arrived back at the pier where he’d picked us up. They invited us to have tea with them at a shop across the street, and Arun joined us too.
While simple, tea with the locals was an experience unlike any other, and it gave me the opportunity to get some more information about their way of life here and how I might be able to help some of the children. Serenity glanced at me with curiosity in her eyes but didn’t ask any questions in front of them.
Once we were back at the hotel and in our suite, stripping down to wash the day off us again, she cocked her head and finally broached the subject. “What was that all about?”
“I don’t know yet,” I mused, all thoughts of the plan I was still putting together in my head melting away as her sundress dropped to the floor and my gaze raked over her mostly bare body. “Let’s get your underwear off. I’ve been waiting all day for this.”
Before she could even think about moving, I closed the distance between us and scooped her up in my arms, carrying her into the bathroom. Only letting go of her to turn on the faucet, I unhooked her bra and pushed her panties down while the water warmed up, then hurriedly got myself naked before we got into the shower together.
We made love for hours that night, ordering room service between rounds, and after, we lay in bed together, perfectly content.Fuck. I wish this trip could last forever.
Even as the thought occurred to me, I realized it wasn’t quite right. What I wished was that this magic between us could last forever.
While I was already planning my next adventures and hoping she’d come with me, she had only agreed to accompany me while I completed my dad’s bucket list, not my own as well. I was afraid that once we were done with his bucket list, I was going to lose her all over again if I didn’t take the chance and tell her that I was in love with her.
I just needed the right moment to do it.On the other hand, there’s no time like the present.
“Serenity?” I murmured quietly into the dark room. When she didn’t respond, I glanced down at her lying on my chest and realized that she’d fallen asleep already.
Shit. Okay, well, maybe the present isn’t going to work then. But soon, I’ll tell her. Very soon. But maybe this is a sign that I need to wait for the right time after all. Clearly, this isn’t it.
CHAPTER34
SERENITY
It was the last day of our time in Egypt, and it had been an amazing stay. The things we’d seen and the places we’d been had all wormed their way into my very soul, and by this point, I was seriously wondering if I’d been an Egyptian queen in a previous life.
Probably not, but still.The country had woven itself into the very fabric of my being, and I was surprisingly sad at the thought of leaving.
“Are you sure you’re okay with us not having anything specific planned for today?” Bart asked after breakfast as we climbed into the elevator to take us to the lobby. “If you feel like you missed any part of Cairo when we were first here, now is the time to speak up. We’ve got a whole day to fit stuff into.”
I considered the question before I shook my head. “No, I think we saw and did it all before. I’m good with spending the day just walking the streets and visiting a few of the local shops and restaurants. It’ll be good to see Arun again, too. Those guides he hooked us up with everywhere else were incredible.”
Bart smiled fondly as he nodded. “They really were. We were lucky to have him recommending other people to us. He also asked if we’d like to go back to the bazaar since we were so tired and overwhelmed after a while on that first day.”
