Eve pushed her sunglasses farther up on her nose and sighed. What was life without a few challenges?

* * *

He shouldn’t have come out. One look at his watch told Alexander he had an appointment in twenty minutes. He had no business going out to the pool when he should have been in his office, preparing for the meeting with the minister of state. He should have known better than to ask, however casually, if Miss Hamilton had returned from the center. He should have known better than to think he could have gone up to his office and concentrated once he knew she was out at the pool.

She looked as though she were sleeping. The brief red bikini stretched low over her hips, rose high at the thighs. She’d untied the straps to the top so that it stayed in place only because of her prone position. He couldn’t see her eyes behind the sunglasses, but she made no movement at all when he approached.

He looked his fill. Her skin was glistening with the oil she’d applied to every exposed area. Its scent rose exotically to compete with the flowers. Her hair curled damp and dark around her face, showing him she hadn’t sat idly, but had used the pool. Stepping closer, he saw her eyes flutter open beneath the amber-tinted lenses.

“You should take more care. You’re not accustomed to our Mediterranean sun.”

She lay almost flat on her back, staring up at him. He blocked the sun now, so that it glowed like a nimbus around his head. She blinked, trying to clear her vision and her brain. Damsels in distress and dragons. She thought of them again, though he looked more like a god than a prince.

“I thought you were out.” She propped herself up on her elbow before she remembered her bikini. As it slipped, she grabbed for it with one hand and swore. He simply stood there while she struggled with the ties and what was left of her modesty.

“I was out. Your skin’s very white, Eve. You’ll burn quickly.”

It occurred to her that protocol demanded she rise and curtsy. Protocol aside, a curtsy in a bikini wasn’t practical. She stayed as she was. “I’ve slathered on a pint of sunscreen, and I wasn’t intending to stay out much longer. Besides, living in Houston toughens the skin.”

“It hasn’t appeared to.” Minister of state or not, Alexander pulled a chair up and sat. “You’ve been to the center?”

“Yes. You and your family are to be congratulated. It’s wonderful.”

“Then you’ll agree to have your company perform?”

“I’ll agree to negotiate a contract.” Eve pulled the back of her chaise up so that she could settle into a sitting position. “The facilities are first-class. If we can iron out the details, we’ll both have what we want.”